Support D2-last chance

I'm not entirely shocked that the NASL model is not sustainable. If I were on the NASL board of directors, the first thing that I would suggest to my colleagues is for them to seek out some way of creating a cooperative working model with the MLS. I'm not saying to having promotion and relegation or anything like that, but rather more or a NHL > AHL type of model where players move up and down. It would be an easy way for the NASL to establish credibility and for the MLS to increase its foothold on the soccer market.

 

Apparently that sounds like what the NASL is working on.

http://www.canadiansoccernews.com/content.php?630-ICF-Interview-Only-with-NASL-CEO-Aaron-Davidson

 

I'd rather have it where the D2 teams just sell the player contracts to MLS, rather than a major/minor league setup. I don't want the big team to call up our star player to ride the bench, when we're the midst of a playoff run. That happen with the Silverbacks one year when they had an "agreement" with KC; Bo Oshonyi got "called up" to the Wizards, and the 'Backs tanked (but they had a penchant for doing that just about every season, for some strange reason).

 

AHL only has one market it can sell/trade players with.

NASL can also sell players to Europe, Asia, and Americas. Why limit them selves to only one market MLS, better to stay independent develop players and sell them to the highest bidder in the world market.

 

Players out of contract are free agents, players with only 1 year to go are almost free agents so no other team will be willing to spend big bucks on a player who will become free agent 1 year later

Is the NASL ready to sign players on long term contracts?

 

MLS is not interested in buying players. The cost counts against the salary cap along with the salary. It's not a model that will work in the US pyramid. MLS would rather develop their own talent or wait out the contract length of lower division players.

I'm interested to see what RSL offers for Paulo Jr, if anything.

NASL would be much better off trying to sell players overseas.

 

How's that working out?

The NASL, from what I can tell, understands the market, and they know that survival means fitting inside the MLS player development system and staying outside it.

 

Except that the players in NASL, for the most part, aren't worth anything. That's the cold hard truth.

 

Couldn't we try to sell them to a league somewhere in Indonesia or Uzbekistan?

 

I agree with that last point. It's sad to say but most of the 'talent' that we've seen in the NASL and even the MLS isn't worthy of note.

 

Support or DIEEEE

 

What's the biggest coup a lower-division American team ever got selling a player to someone overseas?

 

Marcus Haber was recently sold by Vancouver for a relatively good amount.

 

http://www.transfermarkt.de/en/marcus-haber/transfers/spieler_103607.html

125K pounds

 

Given how much the average D2 team loses each year, I hope none of the owners quit their day jobs.

 

And second is probably Macoumba Kandji, who I think the Red Bulls bought for less than $100,000.

And I bet it's a long way from that to 3rd place.

 

Didn't the D2 Sounders sell Hahnemann at one time?

As to the general point, no, this isn't the "last" chance. That's ridiculous. And if people haven't supported D2 up to now, you're hardly going to rouse them to do so by exhorting them on a freaking message board.

 

the Battery sold Osalvdo Alonso to Seattle in 2009 for an "undisclosed sum"

unofficially I have heard that amount was somewhere around $175,000 plus a sell-on clause.


Alonso is currently on trial with Everton FC from what I have been told but still has a year on his contract with Seattle so im interested in seeing if anything comes out of it in terms of financual gain for the Battery

 

Really? The last few years tells us that quite a few teams/leagues are taking note.


If the only thing of note is selling to the top teams in the top leagues than fine...otherwise you need to start paying attention.

 

Selling a player for around 150,000$ isn't what I consider to be noteworthy. However, I guess we have a different definition of that word.

 

It's all relative.

MLS players of course aren't highly prized, but over the last 3 to 4 years it's become clear that the confidence in what they can do has gone up.

The same way MLS just waits for USL/NASL contracts to end, rather than buy them out (not necessary) many Euro leagues are waiting on MLS the same way.
MLS players can produce at certain levels, but no need to pay highly for it, and there isn't that much comp yet.

However, this is becoming the general rule for soccer since the meltdown for the most part. Outside of the top teams/leagues transfers are down, and money paid is down. Only hot/proven assets, or dire need, are getting the big cash.

Also, MLS does not have to sell. There have been quite a few offers for players over the last 3 to 4 years, and if MLS does not deem them high enough, they won't sell, as they don't need to in order to survive. Just because you don't see the transfer or follow closely enough to know, doesn't mean they haven't happened (Sharlie Joseph comes to mind to Celtic - 1Mill-, and there are others).

While the league isn't a hotbed of course, there is a clear uptick in interest and understanding.

Compared to 5 years ago it's a clear uptick.

As MLS slowly raises salaries to compete with Scandanavia and lower leagues less mid level guys will move. As the academies ramp up you will start to see more interest in those kids. It never happens overnight, thus many don't see it, but it is slowly happening. The pieces are coming together with the young players that it will happen more in the next 5 years.

It's all relative, and relatively speaking MLS is a long term/solid grower.

The thought that the NASL/USL model of selling to support could even work shows the typical lack of understanding/perspective that is often seen here.

 

You would if your total budget was like $2M.

 

On the title of the thread, why do we have to support a league? I support my team, no matter who they play for, and I will want my team to play for a well managed competetive league, D3 or D2.