I think the Friday after Thanksgiving -- a game of traditional college football rivalry games before the BCS -- might be a good idea. It would probably help the TV ratings. Attendance at the game might be another matter. I realize the league likes to plan events around the match, but it would make the stadium environment better (and it would be easier to sell tickets) if they played it at the home field of the higher seeded team. Stadium conflicts should lessen as more SSS come online, and they do seem to pull it off for the conference finals.
I like the idea of having the MLS Cup on Thanksgiving or the day after... The only problem I can see with the day after is that its the busiest shopping day of the year... unlike Turkey Day, there really won't be a captive audience in front of television sets...
Actually travelling support is so far the biggest drawback I've heard to this idea. I think the point is not just to decrease competition w/ the NFL but to increase the stature of the game itself and improve the TV audience. I'm not swayed by arguments about concern about competiting with 2 NFL games when we currently compete with a dozen. I also think that these traditions are far from ironclad and the dividends from this will pay off 5 years down the road.
My experience with NFL or CFL fans for that matter are never going to be interested in soccer. NFL is the lifeblood, it seems, of the average American sports fan. The very notion of competing with NFL on thanksgiving or whenever seems to be a moot point that MLS has already realized as futile and schedules itself to suit itself. This is the way to go, NFL fans as a rule will never become soccer fans. The market for soccer is under development and is going to take time to grow. Now that a young American soccer player could potentially make an unlimited salary, there might be less of a inclination to switch sports. Baby steps and the league will improve. BTW we look forward to welcoming fans to Toronto next year!!
I think there are a lot of casual sports fans most of which like football, baseball, basketball, and soccer. The key is increasing the stature of MLS and the MLS Cup in their eyes. I think Garber is right on by saying MLS should focus its attention on the market of soccer fans in the US rather than trying to convert. But the major point of this Thanksgiving proposal would be to increase the attention that the MLS Cup generates. Right now for a championship match it needs to attract more attention. This should be the marquee event of the year.
A Thanksgiving MLS Cup is a great idea. MLS could market the playoffs around success in November the way that baseball emphasizes October. Plus, I'd easily switch from the Lions and the Cowboys to the Dynamo and the Revolution, and, like the others have said, competing with 2 (this year 3) NFL games is easier than competing with 16 of them.
On the Friday after Thanksgiving many of the Houston and Dallas fans and most of the casual sports fans in this state will be watching the Texas Aggies BTHO t.u. In fact, that used to be the Thanksgiving night tradition in this state until ABC and the Big 12 Conference in their combined infinite wisdom decided to move the game to 11:00am the day after Thanksgiving (imagine how that helped the gameday atmosphere) as part of their College Football Holiday Triple Header. BTW... if you're looking for a sporting atmosphere in the United States that resembles the passion and crowd participation in chant and song of a major European soccer match check out a Texas A&M football game at night at Kyle Field. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vsdIO91cBzw
NO! Decide the 2007 MLS Cup on Sunday NIGHT, @ 20.00ET/17.00PT (8.00pm ET/5.00pm PT). So this can feel like a European football match
You're proposing that a neutral site final for a league which isn't heavy on demand be played....on Thanksgiving? Seriously? You think that's a good idea? Really?
I do. As do some other posters. Why do you disagree? By the way, I'm not married to the idea of the Cup being at a neutral site. It could be at the home of the MLS Scudetto making it an incentive, i.e. Scudetto winners win the right to host the MLS Cup, which may be neutral but may not. I've got mixed feelings about this idea.
I think that this thread does have some merit, even if it is just between us fans. You have two groups of fans who are likely to watch the game; hardcore MLS fans and the casual sports fan. The hardcore MLS fan is going to watch the game when ever it is on. The casual sports fan is going to watch whatever is most compelling. I am not sold on a particular day, however I do believe that matching the game against the juggernaught that is the NFL is a recipe for failure. Sunday afternoon to me is much like a concession. Even if you enjoy soccer, you will be hardpressed to watch the game versus a great NFL matchup unless it is your team. However, if you match the Cup against minimal NFL competition, you will catch the casual fan. Thanksgiving is tough due to the holiday and the NFL games, but that Friday or Saturday would be fair game to me. Texas versys A&M aside (when was the last time that game was worth watching) would be one game versus the cup as opposed to 6. And by the way, 3:30 Eastern actually puts you against all 12 games that day. I live in Texas and I would rather run up against one game college game as opposed to 12 NFL games.
Here's an idea.Why not play MLS CUP on Veterans Day every year and start some sort of tradition.Also have some tie-in with veterans or the military and their families.
For some reason, rightly or wrongly, commercializing Vets Day doesn't sit as well with me as Thanksgiving. That said a tie-in with veterans or the military and their families as a stand alone proposal I think is a very good idea.
Because for the Friday after Thanksgiving this year, ABC has college football scheduled for noon-7pm EST. And MLS Cup is not big enough for ABC to give up prime-time, even on the Friday after Thanksgiving, to show it. So when would you play it on that day? 9am EST/6am PST?
I would play the game either at noon or at 7. At noon, they can move the football game back. They (TV networks) already set the time of the football games a week in advance so they have all the latitude they want. At 7 they are currently showing SHREK, not their normal primetime lineup so I am not sure they would care all that much. Not too mention there is also ESPN, ESPN2 to fall back on.
LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL Really, ABC will just "Move the football game back" for something that got a .8 rating? Or they'll show it instead of Shrek because "they wouldn't care all that much"? Trust me, Shrek will to significantly better ratings-wise than MLS Cup will anytime in the next 10-20 years. Playing the gama at noon isn't an option if you have it on the West Coast, the fans won't be there for a 9am game. I question them showing up at noon the day after Thanksgiving. Falling back to ESPN/ESPN2 is an option, it appears that ESPN isn't showing live sports until later in the afternoon, but then we've relegated the championship game to cable, which probably isn't what MLS wants.