This may seem trivial to some, but I have forever been pissed off about MLS kits. Why does every team (save for columbus) have a white road away kit? Furthermore, why can't teams wear their home kits on the road if they don't clash with the home team's home kit? It would make the teams much more identifiable than guys in white to the fans, and downright just makes the product on the field look better and more like soccer elsewhere in the world. Imagine Chicago in their road blue, united in their road red/white vertical stripes, the revolution in their road red, the galaxy in road green and black hoopstripes, the metros in their....well road white, dallas and san jose in road black, colorado in road green (to harken back to their old home). I dunno i just think the league would look better this way. I would like to know what others think on the matter, and if there is any official ruling from MLS why the status is as is now.
During the first couple of season's MLS went with the don't clash rule of thumb. Then they went to the home dark, road light scheme. Which had everyone go to white.
Basically, MLS came up with the ridiculous excuse that TV producers requested they do light/dark becuase of black and white monitors in the truck. The reason i say it's ridiculous is because A: the camera is what follows the action and B: it is not very difficult to distinguish between the colors on black and white unless they are red and blue in the same match. But you can make the arguement that liverpool and everton play in their home strips against each other. C: I say it's ridiculous is because i was a broadcast major in college and i had my own soccer show, yes, using black and white monitors. You have to be an absolute moron if you can't distinguish between the teams. Finally, D: The play by play people in the booth should be able to distinguish between the colors of the team. The producers are always listening and talking to the play by play people continously throughout the match. MLS needs to get with the program basically.
You're a DC fan, surely you noticed that KC wore their blue jerseys during both games in DC last season. (photo by Andy Mead/YCJ)
Indeed. I was at that match. But that was by far the excpetion on the season. I think that match may not have been on TV.
I am the choir. That TV monitor argument is a load of horse pucky - whatever horse pucky is. Although probably only 73 people saw it on HDTV, KC wore their road white against Dallas in their black shorts / red shirts. Why KC could not have worn their blue jerseys with blue shorts or even white shorts - I have no idea. You can't tell me those HDTV folks are stuck using black and white monitors. I think it boils down to lame ass / timid thinking. I watch 3 or 4 games a weekend - and I am so damn tired of seeing all-whites I could scream.
Hey. Use the language of the game, in hockey u call it a sweater, in soccer u can use kit, strip, uniform, whatever. Don't be hatin because someone is trying to carry over vernacular of the game that's been used for years. Baseball, football, basketball don't have as original names for their uniforms coz they are not as big a part of team identity, especially baseball, where everyone wears white and grey.
You can say all you want about kits, jersey's, uniforms and what have you but it IS FOOTBALL! You play with your FEET! There is a connection.
Between 4 KC and Columbus games that's almost 30% of your home schedule right there where the visiting team was not wearing white jerseys.
Count me as another who hates the darks/whites system used by MLS. Yesterday, I just watched the Inter-AC Milan CL semi. Both wore their traditional striped kits. Do you mean to tell me that European TV producers are able to tell the difference between the two clubs, but, given the same situation, American TV producers are too stupid to distinguish one from the other? The argument is just ridiculous. Maybe it isn't a major issue, but it is one of the little things that Garber and MLS should be listening to their hardcore audience on. Maybe it isn't the tradition here in the US, but it is the tradition of the sport as a whole. If the kits don't clash, let the clubs wear what they want. As for the use of terms such as kit, pitch, strip, etc, using them does not make you a Euro-snob. I'm proud to be American, proud of American soccer, proud of MLS. The terms are just the traditional terms used in the sport ( such as sweater in hockey, as has been pointed out).
as a member of la norte and a promoter of your publication on our website, i would hope you wouldn't be so difficult
You would think so. This one of the few things MLS can do to please a bunch of fans for next to no money and not piss anyone off. Give teams the option - is that so hard? 1/2 of the fans won't notice. 1/3 of the fans will notice and not care 1/6 of the fans will notice and WILL love it.
Even if the trucks have B&W monitors, it's a tangential argument. B&W monitors don't preclude a team from wearing colored road jerseys. LA or Columbus' yellows are proof of that. Why can't Chicago have a light blue change jersey, or SJ have a silver, or Dallas have a wasabi? I'm being half-facetious about the last two, but seriously, there are light colors OTHER than white.
It seems like most MLS fans want the teams to wear their color jersey's against each other, so I don't understand why MLS would rather satisfy their producers in the truck instead of the fans? Is there an email address where MLS fans can mail MLS requesting this to happen? I'm sure if MLS got enough requests they would allow teams to wear colored jerseys.
It's called football because you are running around on your feet, as opposed to riding a horse or driving a dune buggy through the Baja desert or piloting an X-wing fighter on your way to Dagobah. - Paul