I get that CONCACAF is not UEFA, but the principle is the same and yes, if I found out the league was not trying to work with our governing body and was trying to cut out the smaller teams so they could keep all the money, I'd be angry. Having to play Marathon, Comunicaciones, Saprissa, and the other teams from smaller countries is part of the deal in how soccer is structured. I love that about soccer and if it was worth preserving in Europe, it's worth preserving here.
I like it too but, for example, the NASL did not participate in any of these tournaments and is still remembered fondly... And I would bet a huge majority of MLS fans wouldn't mind MLS dropping out of the CCL (and thus world football) entirely because it leads to fixture congestion in the all important (jk) MLS regular season.
Permanent membership for some and not others would be problematic but I have no issues with the basic idea of a competitor to CONCACAF’s way of doing things.
One more thing, I have never been a pro/rel person. I realize I am touching the live wire by even bringing it up but here it goes. I love pro/rel in Europe but totally get all the reasons it could not have and would not have worked in getting MLS launched and surviving. Hell, the Quakes would have been relegated multiple times. No stadiums, no facilities, no designated players, no academy investments if the owners thought they end up in USL. But this ESL discussion has me wondering if there is some time in the future, the very distant future, where the pressure on MLS grows to make them consider it. Maybe not in my lifetime, but sometime, if there are enough healthy teams at the D2 level clamoring to have a path to D1, that this becomes an issue. The big teams in Europe might lend their voices to that argument since their club valuations are weighed down by the pro/rel structure. If Atlanta for example starts really competing with European teams to get the best players in the world in their prime to come to the US, I think the discussion gets more interesting in that they may start pressuring FIFA to take action. What would the big teams say if LAFC offered $430mil for Haaland tomorrow? (BTW, $430mil is what the Padres are paying Tatis for the next 14 years.) Shockwaves, I think. Now, I know that is not gonna happen. But as MLS grows and the team values grow and the ratings grow and they get a really rich TV contact that is even close the the NFL or EPL deals, who knows? Just food for thought. This ESL thing, even though it got squashed, still may have long lasting implications.
The difference with UEFA is that the Champion's League title means EVERYTHING. Players get into the game to win that thing. Devaluing it is very painful for fans and even players.
I totally agree. However, one could argue it gets devalued each time they expand to non-league winning teams. Again, I think it works now and works pretty well, but it is not strictly a league made up of league winners. CCL is very young and not in the same "league", but there is no reason it can't become a important and valuable trophy that all players in our region aspire to win. And people may scoff at the Club World Cup, but it gives all teams a chance at measuring themselves against the best. If Tigres had beaten Bayern earlier this year, that would have been fun. And that is the point, if Tigres had beat Bayern it doesn't all of a sudden mean CONCACAF is the best soccer region, but it is fun for fans to watch and discuss. Bayern shouldn't get to declare themselves World Champions just by being the best in Europe and then not be willing to play other teams. As someone said about the difference between England and the US, in England when they hold a tournament to crown a world champion they invite other countries.
The NBA world champion has to get through the Canadian Toronto Raptors! Clearly a world championship!
Not officially anyway. However teams still hang "world championship" banners. Didn't congress declare DC United MLS World Champions in '96 before being corrected?
BTW these "NBA World Champion" type things could just be interpreted to be like combat sports, where every promotion has a world champion and nobody is offended by it...
Until the Raptors committed the faux pas in 2019, you have to go back to 2004 since the last time a team proclaimed themselves World Champions and, even then, it was the NBA World Champions.
Glad there is progress. Especially in basketball, which is becoming more and more of a global sport. I don't think the world series will ever be renamed though. Too much history.
Unless you try to murder them it seems. The fact that you are trying to justify violence is beyond belief.
Soo...the US has many other leagues to watch....The G-League, NCAA Basketball/Football, AHL, ECHL, WHL, USL-C, USL League 1 & 2, International League Baseball, etc... Anyone else catch that PSG owner Al-Khalifi is now head of the UCA....the same guy that is the head of broadcaster BeIN, and whose club PSG was found guilty of FFP violations not too long ago....
I'm not salty at all. I honestly could give 2 sh!ts about it. The fact that you decided to come to a MLS board and post your usual anti-american BS is quite comical. I recommend sticking to the Pro/Rel in the USA thread
For the record, I don’t think i’ve ever called anyone “salty” in my life. usually i say “why are you being a little bitch?”
The two things that stuck out to me. 1) Spanish and Italian teams need this so much more than anyone else and those teams are responsible for their current situation. The English teams already have a "super league" and more eyeballs watch those games on average than La Liga and Serie A. 2) For all the outrage about "competition". Fans of the clubs will eventually back the club. All of those Italian teams cheated 15 years ago. Their fans still support them
What team is beating them once in a ten game series? The talent gap is gargantuan. Is it arrogant to refer to the NBA winner as world Champions? Absolutely. Are they the best team in the world? Absolutely. Under the circumstances a little flummery is forgiveable.