Found this article on the Puerto Rico Islanders blog. http://islanders.theoffside.com/puerto-rico-islanders/mls-in-denial.html#more-81
Funny stuff. I've often described the USSF in terms of Cuba/SUnion in how they have run things over the last couple of decades, however there does seem to be a bit of a thaw. Hey, nothing wrong with trumpeting your league/team while taking shots at the other league/bigger league. Always an easy/fun mark, especially with MLS media practices. Still, this is par for the course in general. Really nothing new here. ...and the blogossphere marches on.
I wouldn't call that an "article." More like a completely misinformed rant. Kind of like quite a few BigSoccer posts.
Hmmm, I thought the Philippines was the only place where people did that crazy crucifiying yourself thingy. Who knew the Puerto Ricans did it as well
Isn't that what blogs are? I still found it funny. Hey, why not? Politicians do this all of the time on huge issues that actually matter. Let them have their fun. I see plenty of MLS people do it when taking shots at European leagues. Remember, gotta strut when you can, no guarantee your gonna get the chance again any time soon.
Well, there is a generally defensible point though that MLS does in fact manage the soccer news a little bit too strictly. I remember when MLS sent this quasi All Star team over to the Bernabeu to play Real Madrid a few years back. The league touted this meeting as if it were Ali-Foreman's rumble in the jungle. However, after this hastily thrown together squad was annihilated 4-0 or something like that, MLS' homepage was strangely devoid of any news on the game. It was like the game had never taken place. No pictures, no articles, no anything. Now, the writer of this piece admittedly goes WAY overboard, especially with essentially proclaiming that MLS will disappear like communist Russia and missing facts like the Dynamo having in fact beaten a Costa Rican team in a knockout tournament. However, MLS does have a little bit of a nasty habit of avoiding bad results, rather than simply covering the news.
You're not wrong. But it's not the league's job to be objective, is it? That's why we have a "fourth estate."
I think it's a bit more than a habit. However, with regards to preseason matches that's normal. They pick and choose what they cover, even when MLS teams play each other, foreign teams, USL teams or college teams. It just doesn't matter. Should it? The funny thing is can you imagine if both Portlandt and Vancouver joined MLS this go round (don't think USL cares if Miami is lost)? While I admire the guy sticking up for his team and league the fact is that USL 1 is much closer to minimization/fall then MLS is. Still think it was a funny blog with some nice zingers and some radical screaming of course.
True, but like onef pointed out, when you promote something big time and then just drop it like it didn't happen (Real match on FSC no less) it does leave you open for some shots. Not that MLS cares.
Actually what he wrote was correct. Notice the conjunction "and". The Islanders got a result in Costa Rica (a tie) and advanced over the Costa Rican team. No MLS team has yet accomplished both parts of the statement. Houston lost in Puntaarenas 1-0.
I think he was referring to the article that was discussed in an N&A thread earlier this year about how MLS is experiencing healthy season ticket renewals despite the poor economic climate. That is, MLS is in denial that the economic downturn should hurt sales.
The blog starts off by labeling MLS "capitalistic." The interesting thing about that comment is that, compared to MLS, European football leagues/clubs are set up in a much more free-market manner.
I mean, it may have been buried when it happened, but I had a feeling something was on there. The game is also referenced in some player bios, although the score is not mentioned in those. I actually expected to come up empty when I went looking, if only for their shitty archive system, but it seems to have improved.
Can I try to disabuse everyone of the idea that MLS structure is not capitalistic? Capitalistic (free) markets are ones in which the government allows the market to set prices. The market being interactions of buyers and sellers. If there's only one seller (buyer in this case when you consider that MLS teams buy the labor input of soccer players), that seller has "market power" or is a monopolist, and if there are only a few sellers who manage to find a way to get the government to allow them to collude, you have an oligopoly, and there's nothing more capitalistic than trying to control market prices by being the biggest/only player. I know a lot see MLS as socialistic within the league -- where every team gets a handout from the league and no team is allowed to be much better than any other -- but that is done entirely for capitalistic reasons.
I honestly don't remember that. I remember checking the next day and it not being on the rotating MLS headline, like every other little triviality is. Apparently i did miss that article though. Good find.
I was only offering a general opinion. I dont have any evidence or anything aside from economists saying that the oncoming depression is going to be the worst since the great depression. And the fact that we are in uncharted waters economically speaking.