If Real Madrid wants Beckham, they supposed to talk about it w/ Manchester Utd, make sense but, when Leverkusen wants Landon they have to deal w/ MLS why not w/ Earthquake ?
MLS operates under what is called a "single-entity" system, which is probably unique in world soccer. Basically, it means (among other things) that all player contracts are owned by MLS, and not indivdual teams, although each team operates independently.
Sort of. Each team is owned by a different owner (in theory ), but the players are assigned to teams by the league. Seems like a recipe for hanky panky, but that doesn't really happen much. When it comes to player contracts, the league handles transfers, not individual teams.
Except when it comes to (lack of) suspensions and fines for butcher-like play. The league has no backbone.
Bob Bradley went to the MetroStars thanks to this system. They have to get a strong New York-area presence in MLS and felt he was the man for the job. I'm glad some of you can find this vile idea of one person owning 6(!) teams and another owning 2 to be amusing.
Its actually 3 dudes. Anchultz, Hunt, and Kraft. And with the way this league is structured I wouldnt want to either.
With the Bradley--Faria trade, the league directly screwed the Fire. But they indirectly screwed the team by renegotioating Wolff's contract, contributing to the Fire's salary cap problems and necessitating a huge sell-off. Single Entity has a few nice elements, but I don't think that engineering the kind of Parity that existed last year is one of them. But the cap, and the quasi socialist business model do have some saving grace. For example, if this new young league can produce a world class player, the transfer fee will go the league, rather than the team. Besides, with that salary cap, income from selling a player overseas can't be spent to buy talent, and the league or municipalities are financing the stadium construction. Suppose Martino turns out to be as good as Pires or Zidane, and some European team paid five million bucks for him. (Ha! Jesus himself couldn't have played better than Zizou.) The Crew already have a stadium, and would have cap space freed up for a new player. Right now, the money would be better spent improving the league as a whole, by helping to fund new a new SSS. Seriously. This year three teams play on plastic--two of those with hideous permanent gridlines (for now; it will likely be three when football starts at the Meadowlands). Four more teams will be playing with Football lines at the end of the season. The league gains credibility when its sport takes place on an appropriate surface, and that creditibility is essential to the profitability of this league. For now MLS has realized that competition should be mutually beneficial. Sadly, they've also decreed that someone else's mistakes need to be shared by all. Until they effectively deal with this enourmous red flag, I/Os are going to be hard to come by.
Basically, because the league would fold. One guy owns/operates half of the teams. You can not even begin to imagine the favoritism fights that would occur if one team were given more transfer funds than the other. Or if a controversial transfer happened between two teams owned by the same guy. I don't think any American that knows much about world soccer wants our system to be the way it is. But they also are smart enough to know that until 10 investors (or more if we expand) each own only one team, our league must run with the "single entity" system. Its either have a league that way, or no league at all. Pretty simple if you ask me.