Double Booking & MLS's New Season

If the league is to avoid fifa dates they will have to shorten the amount of regular season games. I'm for a shorter schedule but right now the MLS isn't.

 

There aren't really that many conflicts this year between the MLS Schedule and FIFA international dates.

The FIFA international dates for 2008:

Feb.6, Friendly - No MLS conflict

March 26, Friendly - No MLS conflict

Aug. 20, Friendly - 3 MLS matches conflict

Sept. 6-10, Official matches - 8 MLS matches

Oct. 11-15, Official matches- 8 MLS matches

Nov. 19, Friendly - No MLS conflict (this is the Wednesday between the MLS Conference Finals and the MLS Cup. By FIFA rules this is not a conflict with a friendly date.)


So, that's it. 19 matches out of 210. The problem is that most of those are on two weekends in the fall when MLS is reluctant to give up dates.

But, wait you say, the U.S. and Canadian teams play official matches on more dates than that this year. Sure they do but many of those are not on official FIFA dates.

MLS will probably move away from international dates but it will mean more mid-week games or fewer total games and either of those is going to negatively impact revenue. Getting completely away from CONCACAF competitions is going to be much harder.

 

I can't remember which poster put it this way, but it was apt: MLS is still a league that values its Saturdays more than its stars.

And I think anyone with access to the attendances and availablities could prove that policy as correct, which says something about the popularity of the league currently. If MLS become popular enough, the league's ability to get away with not having its stars around goes down. But for now, we have to face it, MLS needs its Saturdays too much.

 

In fact, by adding SuperLiga and this stupid U.S. Open Cup qualifying scheme, MLS is adding games.

And yes, MLS is more than happy to charge you full price for games where they've decided the best players can't play, because lemmings go to the games anyway.

 

Plus, arguably soccer is not a game about individual stars as much as some American sports. Much of a soccer game is about whether one team, as a team, can move the ball around better than the other.

 

Quiet, You! I have full confidence that david beckham will take the Galaxy to the cup!

WINWINWINWINWIN

 

I have no problem with Becks and Donovan missing the LA v Chicago game.....its actually best we have a game the day before.

The game will sell out anyway, so its better Beckham and Landon have to miss that rather than lets say.....the Salt Lake game.

 

While I wish MLS wouldn't play games on WCQ dates (those dates could be reserved for US Open Cup, SuperLiga, exhibitions, etc), I can live with it.

I do have one or two requests to MLS, though. 1. Can either MLS or CONCACAF move their games to Sunday? Or, can MLS at least not play at the same time as the US? WCQ during the afternoon; MLS at night?

 

Outside of the Galaxy going on a craptastic run and just missing out on the playoffs, what were those reprecussions?