2008 Schedule?

StoneIsland · Jan 28, 2008

Any word on when the 2008 schedule will be finalized?

http://web.mlsnet.com/mls/schedule/

StoneIsland · Jan 28, 2008

MLS schedule rife with challenges

Ask your local grocery store manager or the boss at your favorite burger joint about the toughest part of their job. "Scheduling" is likely the answer.

Why? Because it's simply impossible to keep everyone happy. Invariably, somebody's going to feel put-out, marginalized or disrespected. Allegations of favoritism can grow from a benign simmer to a damaging, roiling boil. Or maybe somebody just gets bummed about not getting the choice shifts.

Now multiply that by exponential factors and you're probably getting close to level of acrimony and angst felt over Major League Soccer's scheduling process -- a serially painful exercise playing out right now in MLS. Opening dates have been announced. But with everything else, there are still plenty of moving parts.
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Best line in the piece:

This year's process basically began with Beckham. The first "layer" (in schedule-maker parlance) was scattering the Beckham fairy dust over the land in strategic bursts. Suffice to say, every team has its preference. With that in place, the league moved on to solving other logistical riddles.
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CSUFstewie · Jan 29, 2008

This was funny too ...

"Here's another sticky issue specific to 2008: The schedule-makers will artfully dodge assigning nationally televised dates to San Jose's temporary digs. Quaint little Buck Shaw Stadium in Santa Clara may provide dandy atmosphere for fans on-site, but it's sure to look more "Double-A ball" than "Major League ball" to the cameras. (Where would they even put the cameras?) So league schedule-builders may stamp "avoid at all cost" when it comes to Thursday night ESPN2 broadcasts -- although the team has committed to playing a few matches at the much-larger Oakland Coliseum, which may be fair game."