MLS Goalposts The tent style goal, the kind with the trapezoids on the sides, is vastly inferior to the box goal, the kind with posts and crossbar only with dark support poles behind the goal to pull the net taut. A powerful shot deserves to be viewed with a billowing net, especially on a replay, not rudely cracking back onto the field. Because the net is fastened in so many places, the tent style creates a tension that rebounds the ball. Plus the backstays just knock a ball back onto the field. But the box style utilizes steel cables that make the net keep its shape, but allow for plenty of slack to billow majestically in slow motion. MLS needs to make its product look good, especially for the few seconds that are going to be seen by a non-soccer audience as highlights. They should require teams to use better hardware. Somehow Giants' Stadium can support permanent soccer goals; why can't Arrowhead, Cardinal, Soldier Field, the Razor, RFK or Invesco? Especially RFK, since nothing else is ever played there? Drag Queen Stadium isn't worth considering. I'm also for allowing teams to wear their dark signature uniforms (a.k.a. home jerseys) on the road. Check out the cover of the newest Eurosport catalogue, which features a blue shirted Landon Donovan against a red shirted Kelly Gray. It looks awesome. I think fans have a right to see the uniform they recognize, and it's in the league's interest to market the identity of its teams. Plus, games are less memorable when it's always _____ against White. Today's Crew Metrostars game looked great because NJ got to wear the new look, and the Crew were in their signature yellow. Also, when high school football games are played on fields operated by MLS teams, such as at Crew Stadium and the new Frisco site, can a policy be established that the football lines are painted yellow? It would be nice to see American football forced to defer to soccer for a change, and a SSS seems like a good place to make that happen.
Re: MLS Goalposts These are stadiums used by many things, a lot of which are more important than soccer. Invesco field-Denver Broncos. They only pull in, what, seven hundred times more money than the Rapids do. They don't want a permenant soccer goal on their field. That would be ugly. Arrowhead has the chiefs obvisously. Don't know about the rest, but it is also not just soccer. They have events, like concerts or other stuff during the offseason. It's not feasable. And who cares?
Re: Re: MLS Goalposts The Meadowlands is probably the most used of any facility MLS plays in, and they have the "permanent" ones, though they obviously aren't permanent. Clearly it is feasable, it just isn't done often enough. As for who cares, I do.
Re: MLS Goalposts Oh my goodness, they've only been using those "dreaded" so-called tent-style goals for a hundred years. MLS must be doing pretty good, if the only thing we can whine about is the style of the goals. I don't care what the goals look like, as long as it's soccer that's being played. On the other hand, those "international" style goals do look pretty sharp (sharp as in good).
Um, I was wondering why they couldnt do this either. many stadiums take down the football uprights for soccer games and such. So why cant we do the same with the box goals? Oh yeah, And I agree with this more then anyone...Crew Stadium should paint the football lines yellow. Its kinda like saying "soccers the main game in town now" since everywhere else you go the football lines are white.
Re: MLS Goalposts Good Point!! I don't understand why it is taking 8 years for MLS to figure out the BOX style goals are much better and present the goals in a better fashion than the temporary one piece goals that most of the MLS teams use.
It doesn't matter one iota which type of goals are used. Only the die-hards care about it and they are already sold on the game. Average joe will not decide on if they will come to a game based on the shape of the back of the goal.
Re: Re: MLS Goalposts For the love of f---ing God did you seriously just type that?!?!?! Presents the goals better? Yeah, I set there and think to myself: "Man, I sure am excited that the Wizards scored. But I sure wish they would have the cool looking nets because the goal's presentation was lacking." WTF, is there nothing else to discuss? Honestly, the type of net??? Are we next going to discuss what type and color of corner flags should be used? Or how about the fact that some refs have brighter red and yellow cards than other refs? Or maybe that some people like the 4th official to use an electronic board and others like the old fashion flipping numbers on a stick. The possibilities are endless!!!
We should ban every shoe from MLS except for Nike, every goal I've seen come off a Nike boot, ends up in the back of the net and the ball is shot 1.5mph faster when it comes off a Nike shoe.
Re: Re: Re: MLS Goalposts Funny you should mention the Wizards. The particular shot that prompted me to start this thread was Orlando Perez's goal against KC last week. That shot was a rocket that smacked off the back support and bounced back out of the goal before the camera had panned to the net. An appropriate piece of hardware would have allowed the viewer to see that a goal had been scored, rather than having to rely on the announcers. There's plenty to discuss: OT, 4 subs per game instead of 3, ubiquitous road whites, Plastic v. Grass, American football lines on the field, single entity, expansion, pro-rel, SSS v. NFL Stadia, Salary Cap, Victoria Street, etc. That's why there are plenty of threads on these boards. If you think something is trivial, ignore it. I mean, really, what's more sad, commenting about field equipment or commenting about comments about feild equipment. Yes. In the recent Brazil Mexico game, the corner flags had green posts. That was quite tacky.
Re: MLS Goalposts Really? So you're saying that it is harder to score goals in one of these? I suppose that would explain why goal totals are down this season. Wow. I guess I really do learn something new every day.
      Hattrix, I completely agree with what you're saying. And that goal by Perez brought the question of box-goals vs. AYSO-goals back to my mind as well.       Granted, a goal is a goal regardless of whether it was scored into a box-goal or an AYSO-goal, but the box-goals just look so much better and more professional (and in the sports business, perception is reality... especially for a relatively-young league vying for legitimacy both among the general sporting public in the U.S. and among the more-established soccer/football leagues around the world).       And since there are currently more important and difficult matters for MLS to take care of, that's all the more reason for all the MLS teams that haven't already done so to switch over to the box-goals ASAP: compared to the time and money it'll take to take care of the other problems, switching to the box-goals can be done fairly quickly and inexpensively (if the league's fathers can afford to build a new soccer-specific stadium for each MLS team except San Jose , then they sure as heck can afford to install box-goals) - they might as well get it over with, and then afterwards spend their time concentrating on the more important league matters. -G
Yeah, you guys are right. Box goals are exactly what the Dallas Burn home games are missing right now. That would make all the difference in perception.
I was over at bigbaseball.com and they were discussing how using the aluminum alloy foul pole instead of the stainless steel one has contributed to the decline of attendance in baseball.
It seems a ridiculous thing to complain about, but I get sick of looking at the youth league goals when I watch a MLS game. Poke fun all you want, but it's an aesthetic issue, and to some people that is important. I don't care if going to "box-style" goals brings more fans or not, it will improve my enjoyment and thats what matters to me. The story from RFK is that the underfield drainage system currently prohibits the use of the "box-style" goals because they require placing sleeves into the ground that go down a fair distance. To accomodate these goals they would have to re-route the drainage system and they simply don't have the money to do it.
I think the main reason for the AYSO goals are they can be moved easily on and off the (NFL) field. I think KWIKGOAL can and should make a goal that looks like a box style goal that can be taken on and off the field. That would not be too hard.
I agree, box goals look much better. this topic though has been talked about on Big soccer a million times already, so lets move on, its not that important.