News: MLS owners approve fall-spring calendar and season format changes: Sources

They will come to who pays them, point blank. Will the schedule change make the league enough money to make this the case? We will see, they obviously thing it will. As a fan in a place effected I think they might be underestimating the overall effect on the game in these places.

What is the significance to "Brazil also plays a “winter” schedule, like Europe." I must be missing something in regards to this discussion

 

What are the other indicators, and how exactly could they have done this better? The league has been discussing this since before Covid.

This decision should have been made a year or two ago so that they could role it out in 2026 post WC. If we're really being honest, this decision should have and could have been made and implemented in 2020.

 

According to Paul Tenorio, the league has been discussing this and other changes for many years. He's been embedded with MLS front offices while doing research for his book about the signing of Messi.

It's also very difficult to believe that the league and its' teams haven't had casual discussions with their sponsors and partners about a potential schedule change in the future. In May they likely decided on a plan that could be formally presented to the other stakeholders. After those presentations and the feedback they received the owners decided to vote on it.

Out of all of the things that are going to be discussed and implemented in the next CBA, the schedule change is likely not at the top of the list\.

Now I can only speak for myself, but I've personally filled out at least 3 surveys over the past several years that had questions about a schedule change. I also filled out one from SUM. The fact that you, as a long time Rapids STH didn't receive any surveys pretty much proves my earlier point in the TV thread of the legacy clubs not doing enough (anything?) to drive engagement and interest in their markets. It could also be that MLS let teams decide who they distributed surveys too as well. It's possible that those teams with low STH bases decided to send the surveys to the single game ticket buyers. i can only speak to my own experience.

 

And people have unlimited money to spend on sporting events.

 

Every MLS market has a NFL team?

 

I get it. I empathize with you. KSE have been shitty owners/stewards for the Rapids. Jay Sugarman et all have had their moments here in Philly of being bad. I've suffered through nearly 20 years of playoff less football as a Bill fan, and now nearly as much as a Sabres fan.

Don't mistake me offering a different viewpoint and experience with defending the league. I'm as critical of the league as many of the posters here including yourself. MLS' owners are super conservative and are slower than a tortoise when it comes to making changes. So why does anyone suddenly think/believe that they took this vote to change on a whim?

Who's saying the league hasn't spoken with the PA about this? The league office, or reps from the PA? PA's will always publically take the side of their members as a negotiation tactic.

I agree with you that this decision should have been made earlier so that it could coincide with the World Cup. In fact I did in a previous response above. IMO this should have been done when they returned from the Covid break.

 

Brazil mainly buys players from other South American leagues. They have no problem buying because players want to go play there because of the quality of that league and they also get a big fat salary increase. The talent that Brazil usually buys from Europe is other Brazilians that aren't playing in big Euro clubs so the timing of when they buy them doesn't matter much since they aren't playing in Europe to begin with.

 

This. Calendar change is good but won't make much of a difference if they still hang on to so many restrictions that keep the ambitious teams, those that are willing to spend, from bringing in players that put butts on seats and/or raise the quality of the league.

 

This change is to drive media revenue, not gate. A TV subscription is a lot cheaper than a ticket to an NFL game. Viewers equate to sponsorships.

Thx,

Jay!

 

Public explainer from FCC FO guy:

 

The Twin Cities allegedly has one. Votes are still being counted.

 

Most obvious “why not both?” memebait I’ve ever seen in my life

 

Not quite…it’s 91% of the dates, not 91% of the matches. Weeks that now have 8 or 4 or 2 teams playing because it’s the playoffs are being replaced by weeks where all 30 play, and vice versa.

 

I'm raising this as a question, and don't have any special insight into this issue. There's an interesting part of the Apple TV contract that may be a piece of the schedule puzzle. Or not. I'm not sure how to read this move. The online report of the TV contract by MLS doesn't mention this, but it is mentioned in the reports on news and soccer blogs.

The original MLS-Apple Plus contract was set to end in 2032, with Apple having an option to cancel beginning in 2027. The new contract with Apple TV changes the broadcasts to the TV contract, but the contract now ends in 2029, with Apple waiving its 2027 option to cancel. If Apple wanted the schedule change as part of the negotiations, it could explain the seeming abruptness and rough rollout by MLS. If so, it could bolster the points made upthread, that the MLS may be more interested in the TV and advertising revenue stream than counting the number of people in the seats, at least for now.

No hot takes here, just this offered as a question. Thoughts?

 

So one thing I've learned over the past few days is the MLS haters and europosers are the frauds I thought they where. They said MLS was a joke because it played in the summer. Now they are a joke because they'll be playing in the winter.

 

You learned this over the last couple of days?

Just now?

Um, OK.

 

You’ll get to host the annual Black Friday game:

Weather via Copilot:

• 2015: Snowstorm dropped several inches, highs only in the 20s.

• 2017–2018: Mild, sunny, highs in the 50s.

• 2019: Snowy and cold, highs in the 30s.

• 2020–2021: Dry and mild, highs near 60 °F.

• 2022: Snowy, highs in the 30s.

• 2023–2024: Mild, highs in the 50s, little to no snow.
  
  Thx,
  
  Jay!

 

Look forward to the mental gymnastics they'll do if pro/rel ever happens, lol.