Very simple question, how would you improve the MLS? Ive heard many things...what do you think needs to be done to improve the league? Financial regualations (salary cap, etc) Scheldule, alignment, etc Reserve league? (I've heard this idea, I actually like it a lot) Or some sort of second tier league. Etc.... What should be done for the MLS can improve and become a better league?
No more expansion!!!!!!!!!!!! The Philly game was absolutely painful to watch yesterday. How the heck are we going to get casual fans to watch when soccer fans can't even stand the product on the field.
Just increase the salary cap. Players getting payed 40k isn't lucrative and no player wants that at all. If the salary cap was higher maybe we can keep some of our US players instead of them going elsewhere to play. You only can get so much with the average player getting payed around 55k...
Yep, totally agree. But it's not as easy as that. The money has to come from somewhere. The more we support our teams, the more revenue they will receive, which hopefully would go into increasing the players salaries. But that is the main point. You get what you pay for. I thought the Seattle vs. Phillie game was fine. But if we want to continue to grow and increase in talent and quality, the players need to make more money. You will get more Americans wanting to make soccer their career if they knew they'd make a great living here.
I feel there are a few ways to improve the MLS... Remove the salary cap Remove the draft Implement a league system Do that and you have a real sports league. The draft is a horrible idea... Why not have it like everywhere else where teams can bring up their own youth players from a young age. The problem with most leagues in the US is that there is not incentive to not sucking bad, if anything being bad gets you #1 draft pick. A league should be implemented, just two tiers to start with and then go from there.
Send scouts to games and hold yearly trials for players. Team likes what they see then they can sign them. It has worked around the world perfectly fine for some time now.
It would make the game much better if it was. I am from England and moved to the US last year. I can't stand watching the MLS though due to the silly draft and lack of league structure. I find it hard to believe that there is a bonus to coming last in Americas major sports leagues.
The draft is just how we've always done it here in the States. Not everyone agrees with it. I, for one, am all about producing the best talent available. And I know the US has the talent. MLS is still great to watch, but has the potential to be so much better.
You mean the American major sports leagues that have a draft, and a salary cap. I'm not sure what you mean by "implement a league system" though, so I can't point and make fun of you for that. You are also aware that MLS clubs all have an academy system right? True that it isn't as developed as the academy systems in Europe, but teams can have home grown players and there are a few teams that have them on their roster right now... Heck, MLS even set-up an exemption system for home grown players where they don't count against the roster or salary caps.
By league system I mean this... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_football_league_system The European and I believe most of the South American leagues use a system like it. I didn't know about the salary cap exemption but I knew of the academies... Do the players have to be drafted before they can enter the academy or can they join as a teen/pre-teen like what happens in Europe?
In that case, I thought that was what you were talking about and was hoping you just left out the word "Reserve". I will now point and laugh at you for that as well. None of the major American or Canadian major leagues have a promotion and relegation system, yet, as you pointed out, they are incredibly popular here. None of your proposals is what is keeping soccer from being a more popular sport here. A player joins the academy system as a teen or pre-teen and its basically as simple as registering the player with the MLS office as an academy player. They just can't be on anyone's radar (colleges or MLS) prior to being tagged as an academy player. I don't think any MLS team currently has a residency program, so almost all of the players in the academy are locals. Vancouver has a residency program, but I believe they are going to have to dismantle it when they join MLS.
Our owners are rich. They CAN afford to to increase the salary cap. We've proven we can support soccer and now its their turn to improve the league.
How many countries around the world have a full college system that moat domestic plays go through and is administered by one of the most powerful organizations in domestic sports? Garber can't wave his hand and make the draft disappear. The NCAA likes drafts and will be very resistant to the idea of trial days and the signings.
In what universe has the US and Canada proven they can support MLS? Last I checked most MLS teams are still losing millions per year and tv ratings were below 1.0...
Can they afford it? Sure, most probably can. But if the model is going to be sustainable, MLS can't be dependent upon rich benefactors plowing money into teams that offer no prospect of paying their own way, let alone making a profit. Say you took the players from Wigan or Blackburn or Bolton and brought them to MLS and put them in RBNY jerseys. Collectively they offer more quality, but would people pack Red Bull Arena to see them? I bet not. Yet the wage bill for those teams year before last was between 55 and 60 million dollars. We're talking 20 to 25 times the current salary cap. Toward what end? It's easy to say "spend more money", but how it's spent matters. If the spending doesn't attract more fans, more sponsors and higher TV ratings, it weakens MLS, it doesn't make it stronger. And so far, with very limited exceptions, higher payroll spending hasn't improved the teams' financial position. Last year, Don Garber told Grant Wahl, "If there was a payoff and spending more money was a way to ensure that you would generate more profits, then I don't think anybody would argue with that plan. The issue here is that there has not been a relation with the exception of one or two moves between spending and even revenues, let alone profit." And there's the rub. Like it or not, while DPs and foreign signings may get the headlines, improving MLS rosters is going to be dependent upon developing or drafting good, young, cheaper domestic players. That's what's affordable. That's ultimately what's sustainable. It's just a very slow process, especially with MLS moving on to 19 (or 20) teams.
The draft works fine. The idea is to give teams a chance to improve from the previous season. Since its founding in 1992, only 4 teams have won the EPL. During that same period, 13 different teams have won the Super Bowl. Since its founding in 1996, 9 different teams have won the MLS Cup. The EPL system basically means that if you're not a Manchester United, Arsenal or Chelsea fan, you don't have much hope of seeing your team win the championship. A combination of a salary cap and a draft means that any team can be competitive if they have good management. Take that away, and you'll end up with maybe half a dozen "haves" with the rest of the league being "have-nots." And promotion/relegation is not going to happen in MLS, nor should it. Instituting such a system would kill MLS.
Be the first to PROPERLY implement goal line tech. ensuring matches are not fixed and that proper goals are accounted for.
All the new teams have been doing well. That wont last though because MLS is scared to pony the money up. And those 1.0 rating and millions will continue to be lost unless they actually do something about the quality of play. Quality soccer is proven to support soccer. Its on the owners now if they want want to stay as a feeder league or actually invest on becoming bigger. Thats because spending, for all general purposes, is practically even. Of course there's DP's but a couple of players aren't going to address the quality. Thats the problem. We dont even KEEP the talent WE develop. They all move overseas the first chance they get.
Unfortunately the new teams that are doing well are in the minority vs. the league as a whole. Until the teams that are doing well are in the majority you run a bigger risk of forcing a majority of the owners out of the league and/or discouraging new investors in the league.
1. Find individual ownership groups for the remaining league owned teams. 2. Cap expansion at 16 teams (18 max) 3. Eliminate conferences and playoffs in favor of a league table and various inter-league and international cups. 4. Invest in USL/NASL/whatever second division league gets sanctioned. 5. Commit to advertising in the hispanic and other minority communities. 6. Commit to advertising in the youth and family demographics. 7. Once expansion is capped and there is a stable second division, implement a promotion/regulation system (2 teams a year). I know several have argued against this, but I have yet to see anyone address a better way to put MLS into more markets without further (over) expansion. 8. Remove the draft, or redesign it to support point 7. 9. As league quality and revenue increase, increase the salary cap (or if the owners can accept being fiscally responsible, remove it all together) 10. Don't try to be the premier soccer league in the world. Accept that MLS will feed more prominent leagues around the world; and not only is that ok, its the best thing for advancing U.S. soccer.
I swear, this stuff just debunks itself: All teams are already owned by individual owners. There are a few owners that own multiple teams though. Is that what you meant? Hmm.. 16 currently in the league, 2 more joining in 2011 and one more joining in 2012.. I'm not a math wiz, but that seems to add up to 19. Damn. One second.... I'm having problems breathing from all the laughter.... MLS is already peeing money, why would they want to pee even more? Already done. Wait.. I thought the problem with MLS was that they advertised to youth and family demographics too much? Oh god.. My spleen. I think I just burst it with all the laughter. Genius. The best way to improve the league is by creating superclubs that get all the young talent, while pissing off the most powerful sports organization in the country. That's simply genius. They are already doing this dumb ass. Every year the cap increases by a minimum of 5%... And owners accepting fiscal responsibility. You really hate my spleen, don't you? Already done. Perhaps you've missed the steady stream of players leaving MLS for more prominent leagues over the years...