promotion and relegation*

Hi Oliver!!!!

 

Proper punctuation and spelling are your friends.

 

Oh Oliver, MLS needs you now.

 

When the MLS was talking about expanding a year or two ago they were looking for franchise fees of over 20 million dollars. What would a new franchise (it's possible, you know) say if they payed even a fraction of that and were relegated? Also, I'm sure that Saint Phil has the long term hope of selling some of his 5 franchises for a profit...

 

I posted this in a different non promotion and relegation related thread, but I'll restate it here because, well, just because.

16 MLS teams that are never relegated.
4 A-League teams that are in the MLS every year.
Three of the 4 are relegated every year while the best A-League team gets to stay up. The three best A-League teams are promoted every year (East, Central & West.)

 

You know, that's not a bad idea at all. I don't knwo if it would work - but it's not a bad idea.

In your world, would 3 A-League teams still be relegated if they finished above an MLS team?

 

Except for Rochester.

 

In my world, I think so. Mostly because people think the MLS teams would fail if they were relegated (and they're probably right.) Long term, true promotion & relegation could happen, I'm not against it. I think the A-League would need more exposure first, that's all. Or, long term the league could just "grow" when an A-League team or two proved their worth.

 

But of course in no way would an A-League team cry foul if they finished higher than, say, the Revs (what are the odds) and still got relegated.

Can't see a single flaw in this.

 

Are they crying foul now that they can beat teams in the US Open Cup but they're not able to play at all in the MLS?

What's your point? Obviously if the A-League didn't want to "join" with the MLS, they wouldn't. If they did, they'd certainly have something more to fight for.

No system is perfect, but I think this one could really spread the exposure of the MLS and Soccer in general across the country a whole lot better than a single MLS can.

 

I don't think a one off tournament is exactly the same thing.....
The problem would be a what if situation....like what if the a league teams finished in 2-5 spots...

only the 2nd place team could stay while the other 3 were forced back to the a league?

this system just couldn't work....

 

I'm not so sure. First, like I said, it could be a way to expand the league (to a point.) If the Rhinos finished well enough two to three years in a row, so be it. Promote them for good. That incentive might be enough to offset the pain of relegation. Sure they might finish well and get relegated one year, but if they earn their way up they'll NEVER be relegated again.

Second, it would be a hell of a way to find good talent for MLS teams. If the Revs lost to the Riverhounds, well buy their coach! Buy their goalie! Buy SOMETHING from the damn team to make sure you're better next year. You're right, a one-off tourney isn't good enough for Milwaukee to prove that any of their player deserve to be on the Fire (ouch) but a full season might.

Until the league matures, relegation for current teams would almost certainly not work. This idea is just taking that into account while trying to gain some of the benefits of the promotion & relegation system.

I don't think P&R is essential to the survival of the MLS, but I think it could be used effectively. I think this plan could be used as a step in that direction.

 

Because a one-off single elimination tournament is exactly parallel to a 28-game season

You haven't adequately explained why MLS would want the A-League to join them. With all the talk about attendance etc., I'm sure having a bunch of teams that average 2,500 fans or less will be a real boon to the league.

How much exposure do minor leagues get? Because right now MLS is, at best, considered a minor league by a large percentage of the population (I wish this weren't true, but it is).

How is a minor-league below a league considered minor-league going to suddenly equal extra exposure?

 

Can someone answer this - let's say MLS expands to 20 teams in 10 years time. Then is it conceivable that the owners would agree to split the league into two 10 team divisions and have promotion and relegation between them?

This is the only way I see Pro/Rel happening in MLS. Forget all the b.s. A-league talk.

 

I thought I was the sock puppet.

 

I agree that having promotion of A-League teams is a bad idea. You don't want to mix with lower-class teams. You want to mix with higher class ones, with money and popularity. I propose that the best 4 MLS teams be promoted to the NFL.

 

I already covered your point about the single elimination tourney.

How many cities does the A-League cover? And if 2,500 fans show up now, how many start to show up if their team can earn a shot at MLS Cup? (I'll give you a hint, it's MORE.)

This system wouldn't help MLS directly, but it would promote soccer nationwide. How many teams are in the A-League? 14 USA based teams I think. That means 14 extra cities! WOW! More exposure!

I said this wasn't a plan to promote the MLS, it's a plan to help soccer overall in the USA. SoFla Metro, you say it doesn't help but haven't given a clue as to why not.

 

STOP!

won't work under MLS structure, but I'm sure you guys already told him so.

 

Re: STOP!

You guys are boring.

 

Not botherd about puntuation...not like my posts are marked and graded....

 

Re: STOP!

Just like MLS, keeping the Rhinos down and blaming Single Entity.

 

They are now: F.

Sachin

 

Just as soon as MLS buys every A-League team or A-league teams are in a position to purchase the demoted team's "spot" in the league each year ($10 million? $25 million?) I predict this will happen.

Note that I'm not holding my breath.

 

Don't fret. We can all be sockpuppets.

 

It'd be good if they were.