Just for clarification as to Wynalda's criticism of JK......http://www.onelovefc.com/features/post/eric-wynalda-why-not-us
I recall before the 2002 World Cup, Clint Mathis was asked who he thought would win the World Cup. He responded with 'the USA'. When that was followed up, he said and I'm paraprhasing that 'If I tell you another team will win, that means that we will have lost. I don't go into any game thinking that we are going to lose.' That is the correct answer and why we all love Clint Mathis.
1. I don't get how this link relates to the thread topic. 2. When Waldo goes off about the importance of win bonuses, I wonder if anyone has ever pointed out to him that those college kids he's bashing in this blog post have non-guaranteed contracts and so, if they aren't worth the cap hit, they'll get cut right away. And I wonder if he's ever realized that non-guaranteed contracts are probably more of a motivation than some pissant win bonus. He strikes me as the kind of guy who would just dismiss that. 3. He thinks MLS should play fall to spring. Therefore, I can say with complete confidence that he's an idiot.
Why? Is it supposed to actually get worse than a 0.3 rating for the last MLS Cup? MLS would be competing against baseball and basketball instead of baseball, hockey and (American) football, which is now king.
Because you can't play games in Toronto in February (or Montreal or New York or Chicago or Boston...). It has nothing to do with TV ratings. Also, it's irrelevant, but a fall to spring schedule would compete with hockey much more than the Spring to Fall schedule does, because the playoffs would be at around the same time.
Start late February and have those teams start with more road games. And it would not compete with hockey. Hockey has a niche audience. It would compete with basketball and baseball; but that's better than (American) football, which is easily this country's main obsession right now.
Apparently some have never seen the weather Berlin, Moscow, and western and eastern Europe in general????
The people in Moscow have seen their own weather and decided that it's too cold to play there until mid-March.
Toronto, Montreal, New England, Vancouver, Philly, NYRB*, Chicago, Colorado, and San Jose are all in markets where hockey is a legitimate major sport--the most popular sport by far in the three Canadian markets and more popular than the local NBA team in Philly and Colorado. It's less of a draw in Columbus, DC, and Dallas but will still beat MLS head-to-head. Of the league's other 7 teams five don't share a market with the NHL and one is a complete joke. The only MLS team that might be able to go head-to-head with an NHL team in its home market and win is LA. (* - With the introduction of NYCFC, NYRB will likely have more of a Jersey-based fanbase and will be competing more with the Devils, which they might be able to win. NYCFC however will be going up against the Rangers and Islanders, which is a battle they won't win.)
Great point. The NHL would present a problem. But, like soccer, their fans tend to be niche and not mainstream. I think those teams are competing with other teams no matter when the season is played. The bigger argument for me is the weather. But, I just think this is more about TV penetration than attendance, which should remain strong. Competing against college and professional football seems very il-advised.
What Jurgen meant was "We'll win the World Cup and dance around in US boxers in the middle of DC surrounded by thousands of Americans in the streets and random confetti falls from the sky"
If the season does not sync up with Euro schedule, then remove the salary cap. Europe should really be on the cycling/summer schedule; early Spring to Fall. World Cup in late Fall when players are peaking in form for the year. It sounds crazy, but I think England would do more
That's not really true in those markets I mentioned. It's unquestionably the #1 game in town in the three Canadian markets and the Flyers are neck-and-neck with the Phillies for #2 billing in Philadelphia most of the time (not in the late 00s, when the Phillies won the World Series and two pennants and were challenging the Eagles for top spot in the city, but they've come back to earth). The NY-area teams are interesting, the Devils and Islanders have niche fanbases but the Rangers are a legitimate major team.
MLS penetrating the mainstream is going to be based upon national television coverage/ratings. Competing with football is a terrible idea. If certain teams take hits in attendance by switching to a winter/spring schedule, then so be it.
Have you ever been outside in Philly, NY, Chicago, or Boston in January and February? Playing or watching soccer is not possible.
His club is LA. If that's where he's from, then I understand why he'd want to play a winter schedule and why he thinks NHL is a niche sport in most markets. Being from Chicago, and going to a parade in June where an estimated 3 million people showed up to celebrate the Blackhawks winning the Stanley Cup, I can assure you that in the north, and especially in the markets where the Original 6 teams are, the NHL is not a niche sport. On one afternoon, the Blackhawks had about half as many fans show up to an event as the Fire have at every game combined since 1998. The blackhawks are every bit as big as every other team here, including the Bears and Bulls.
Yet TV ratings average a lot less than that, even my brother that has never been to a hockey game and could not tell you the rules of the game was at that parade (maybe it was the one 3 years ago). Some people just like the celebrations I guess.
In 2010 that was probably true of a lot of people. They were just there for the celebration. I was at both. In 2013 it was a lot more than just the parade. During the entire playoff run, you couldn't go outside without seeing a few people in Blackhawks jerseys. If you went to a restaurant or bar, even on a day when there wasn't a game, chances are you'd be part of a conversation about the team. Most of the fans that started caring in 2010 kept caring, and actually took it upon themselves to learn about hockey in the 3 years between parades. As for the TV ratings, yes they average less than that, but those ratings don't take into account people watching at bars, and every bar in the Chicagoland area was full on nights when there was a game.
MLS is a fanny league, like hockey and baseball. It's not an eyeball league, like the NFL. Who cares about doubling MLS Cup ratings when attendance will dive?
Its not impossible in NY, Philly and Boston (really can't speak of Chicago winters). It would be a miserable day with temsp in the low 30's (not unlike England or Scotland), but it is not a fan friendly environment. And, unlike the British Isles the likelyhood of days in the low or mid 20's are much more likely in the US winters.
I took a quick look at Philly/Chester temps on Sats from last year, Jan/Feb/Mar 2012. The temps from 12/31 - 3/17 on Sat were: 45, 40, 28, 26, 36, 34, 28, 37, 38, 45, 33, 48. Quite a few midweek days were below 20 degs so night games during the week could be damn cold. Last year was pretty mild. You also have to count on wind chill at PPL Park which sits right next to the river. As you said, not impossible, but some miserable days.