MLS growing?

No, it's not. When it makes a blip on the sports radar screen, then we can considering it growing, otherwise, it's just a euro/latin sport.feryl06

Yes, it's growing. The decision to require plans for soccer-specific stadiums for potential expansion teams is a great one, and it ensures that the league won't just go away. Plus, the teams are all beginning to turn a profit, with 5 of the 14 reaching the black ink this season (up from 2 last year).

MLS is here to stay.

The quality of the league is still very low though, maybe at the level of the English Second Division (that's the third highest league in England). I will watch a Toronto FC game from time to time but it's very evident that the quality of play is nowhere near the major leagues of Europe.

The quality of the league is still very low though, maybe at the level of the English Second Division (that's the third highest league in England). I will watch a Toronto FC game from time to time but it's very evident that the quality of play is nowhere near the major league of Europe.

UssjTrunks

You're reaching pretty far...

The best teams in the MLS can easily compete with the mid-table premiership teams.

what do you mean by growing? Growing by them getting more fans or growing by their soccer skills? If its the second one, then my answer is NO. The MLS is a very bad league when it comes to Soccer -_-

[QUOTE="UssjTrunks"]

The quality of the league is still very low though, maybe at the level of the English Second Division (that's the third highest league in England). I will watch a Toronto FC game from time to time but it's very evident that the quality of play is nowhere near the major league of Europe.

HurricaneHugo

You're reaching pretty far...

The best teams in the MLS can easily compete with the mid-table premiership teams.

I think you mean the mid table of the coca cola championship. Seriously the quality of play in MLS for the most part is atrocious compared to the european top leagues. And yes, It does make me sleep at times and I am a fan, But I also think that it is growing thanks in no small part to David Beckham. But even before he arrived the MLS was enjoying a healthy growth. While I doubt that the MLS will be on par with the major European championships it is nice to see that it is fostering the growth of the sport in America. Yes Hispanics are the fastest growing segment of the U.S. population but I think that Basbeball will be the beneficiary of that grown with MLS towing behind.

The quality of the league is still very low though, maybe at the level of the English Second Division (that's the third highest league in England). I will watch a Toronto FC game from time to time but it's very evident that the quality of play is nowhere near the major league of Europe.

UssjTrunks

That is it's biggest problem.

How can you get fans excited about a sport that is so bad compared to what is being played elsewhere?

In all the dominate sports in North America we have the best versions, at the very least we have second best. Now in soccer we have the 12th best version if we're lucky? There's whole leagues that woudln't take the guys in MLS for backups to their backups.

The sport wont grow if players wont play and right now they wont. Who can blame them either? I mean will you go to North America and play there in front of lackluster crowds and no media reception or will you play overseas where hundreds of thousands know you on a first name basis and the media wants every bit of coverage they can take?

That's what has always held back soccer here and it's still happening today.

[QUOTE="UssjTrunks"]

The quality of the league is still very low though, maybe at the level of the English Second Division (that's the third highest league in England). I will watch a Toronto FC game from time to time but it's very evident that the quality of play is nowhere near the major league of Europe.

Jaysonguy

That is it's biggest problem.

How can you get fans excited about a sport that is so bad compared to what is being played elsewhere?

In all the dominate sports in North America we have the best versions, at the very least we have second best. Now in soccer we have the 12th best version if we're lucky? There's whole leagues that woudln't take the guys in MLS for backups to their backups.

The sport wont grow if players wont play and right now they wont. Who can blame them either? I mean will you go to North America and play there in front of lackluster crowds and no media reception or will you play overseas where hundreds of thousands know you on a first name basis and the media wants every bit of coverage they can take?

That's what has always held back soccer here and it's still happening today.

[QUOTE="Jaysonguy"][QUOTE="UssjTrunks"]

The quality of the league is still very low though, maybe at the level of the English Second Division (that's the third highest league in England). I will watch a Toronto FC game from time to time but it's very evident that the quality of play is nowhere near the major league of Europe.

CommanderShiro

That is it's biggest problem.

How can you get fans excited about a sport that is so bad compared to what is being played elsewhere?

In all the dominate sports in North America we have the best versions, at the very least we have second best. Now in soccer we have the 12th best version if we're lucky? There's whole leagues that woudln't take the guys in MLS for backups to their backups.

The sport wont grow if players wont play and right now they wont. Who can blame them either? I mean will you go to North America and play there in front of lackluster crowds and no media reception or will you play overseas where hundreds of thousands know you on a first name basis and the media wants every bit of coverage they can take?

That's what has always held back soccer here and it's still happening today.

[QUOTE="Jaysonguy"][QUOTE="UssjTrunks"]

The quality of the league is still very low though, maybe at the level of the English Second Division (that's the third highest league in England). I will watch a Toronto FC game from time to time but it's very evident that the quality of play is nowhere near the major league of Europe.

CommanderShiro

That is it's biggest problem.

How can you get fans excited about a sport that is so bad compared to what is being played elsewhere?

In all the dominate sports in North America we have the best versions, at the very least we have second best. Now in soccer we have the 12th best version if we're lucky? There's whole leagues that woudln't take the guys in MLS for backups to their backups.

The sport wont grow if players wont play and right now they wont. Who can blame them either? I mean will you go to North America and play there in front of lackluster crowds and no media reception or will you play overseas where hundreds of thousands know you on a first name basis and the media wants every bit of coverage they can take?

That's what has always held back soccer here and it's still happening today.

Except the part about having the 12th best league with luck. :) Let's see.. England, Spain, Italy, Germany, France, Portugal, Netherlands, Russia, Romania, Scotland, Turkey, Greece, Brazil, Argentina, Ukraine, Belgium, Czech Republic.. I could name plenty more leagues that are almost definitely better. :P

yea i defintiely think that the MLS is growing...players like Beckham and Blanco also help in the growth to get more people interested...and everyone has been saying that MLS teams couldnt compete w/ high tier English teams...look what the All-Stars did to Chelsea and Celtic the last two yearshank_101

I remember the Chelsea game. MLS guys berly won. 1-0 :| Chelsea can easily beat those guys.

the fan base is defenitly getting bigger yesterday i went to the toronto fc game it was packed there were people of all ages there so at least in toronto the fan base is getting bigger every year i dont know about other teamsrapsrule4

The fan base in Toronto was big since their first game last year... But really, a 20k seat stadium is too small... I want to see at least 50k...

They couldnt pay me to sit and watch an entire soccer game..._-MURS-_

What a wonderful and insightful post maybe next time actually try contributing to the topic being discussed instead.

The league is growing but it is still a long way from getting close to most of the European leagues it's one thing to beat a top European team in an exhibition game when the European teams are still in pre-season but to play them in a competitive match is a whole different ball gam. Thetop priority for European teams in pre-season games is to build up to 100% match fitness for the new season the results are secondary for them so i wouldn't look into the results too much.

[QUOTE="_-MURS-_"]They couldnt pay me to sit and watch an entire soccer game...fordies

What a wonderful and insightful post maybe next time actually try contributing to the topic being discussed instead.

The league is growing but it is still a long way from getting close to most of the European leagues it's one thing to beat a top European team in an exhibition game when the European teams are still in pre-season but to play them in a competitive match is a whole different ball gam. Thetop priority for European teams in pre-season games is to build up to 100% match fitness for the new season the results are secondary for them so i wouldn't look into the results too much.

It's basically just regular practice for them...:P

[QUOTE="UssjTrunks"]

The quality of the league is still very low though, maybe at the level of the English Second Division (that's the third highest league in England). I will watch a Toronto FC game from time to time but it's very evident that the quality of play is nowhere near the major league of Europe.

Jaysonguy

That is it's biggest problem.

How can you get fans excited about a sport that is so bad compared to what is being played elsewhere?

In all the dominate sports in North America we have the best versions, at the very least we have second best. Now in soccer we have the 12th best version if we're lucky? There's whole leagues that woudln't take the guys in MLS for backups to their backups.

The sport wont grow if players wont play and right now they wont. Who can blame them either? I mean will you go to North America and play there in front of lackluster crowds and no media reception or will you play overseas where hundreds of thousands know you on a first name basis and the media wants every bit of coverage they can take?

That's what has always held back soccer here and it's still happening today.

12th best version... sorry but I can name at least 30 leagues that are better.

[QUOTE="CommanderShiro"][QUOTE="Jaysonguy"][QUOTE="UssjTrunks"]

The quality of the league is still very low though, maybe at the level of the English Second Division (that's the third highest league in England). I will watch a Toronto FC game from time to time but it's very evident that the quality of play is nowhere near the major league of Europe.

Red_sox_fans

That is it's biggest problem.

How can you get fans excited about a sport that is so bad compared to what is being played elsewhere?

In all the dominate sports in North America we have the best versions, at the very least we have second best. Now in soccer we have the 12th best version if we're lucky? There's whole leagues that woudln't take the guys in MLS for backups to their backups.

The sport wont grow if players wont play and right now they wont. Who can blame them either? I mean will you go to North America and play there in front of lackluster crowds and no media reception or will you play overseas where hundreds of thousands know you on a first name basis and the media wants every bit of coverage they can take?

That's what has always held back soccer here and it's still happening today.

The NHL is the #1 league right now but you're right about Russia. Speaking of NHL, I pray that hockey gets spread more throughout North America. There's two big reasons why hockey is not the biggest sport in America.

1.) Not everyone has access to an iced over body of water due to different climates. This means that in order to play hockey you have to go to a rink and pay money. To put this in perspective, imagine going to play baseball on a baseball field and getting charged for it. Playing a sport = loving sport = watching professionals in that sport's league.

2.) Ice skates, pads, and equipment can be very expensive. Sure, football has a lot of pads and equipment as well, but you can easily play just about anywhere with a football alone. Ice is something that can't be found anywhere.

I really hope hockey finds it's way in America, and honestly soccer deosn't need any more attention. Soccer basically has the whole world. Is it so wrong to ask to let another sport be recognized? :(

The number one reason why MLS/soccer wont be that successful in the US, is due to the fact that soccer has a horrible format for TV - every other sport has period breaks in play so brodcasters can fit in there commercials to make money.

And in america/canada more then anything else TV coverage is the most important thing to create a succesful league - look what happened to the NHL when they got off espn (i know the league has been making more money, but thats more to due with exchange rates more then anything else)

All that asside i would love for soccer to become popular here- i thourghly enjoy watching eru/world cup coverage on tv and would love for more soccer

The number one reason why MLS/soccer wont be that successful in the US, is due to the fact that soccer has a horrible format for TV - every other sport has period breaks in play so brodcasters can fit in there commercials to make money.

And in america/canada more then anything else TV coverage is the most important thing to create a succesful league - look what happened to the NHL when they got off espn (i know the league has been making more money, but thats more to due with exchange rates more then anything else)

All that asside i would love for soccer to become popular here- i thourghly enjoy watching eru/world cup coverage on tv and would love for more soccer

RingX5

Sorry, but in order to show commercials during the game, they would have stop the time, and I'm definitely not okay with that... Besides, that would copletely ruin the flow of the game, and then North Americans (Most, not all) would complain even more that soccer is 'slow paced' when American football is already slower paced than soccer...

And besides, They have half-time for that **** anyways...

HurricaneHugo

"The best teams in the MLS can easily compete with the mid-table premiership teams"

That's the funniest thing I've read in ages.

The number one reason why MLS/soccer wont be that successful in the US, is due to the fact that soccer has a horrible format for TV - every other sport has period breaks in play so brodcasters can fit in there commercials to make money.

And in america/canada more then anything else TV coverage is the most important thing to create a succesful league - look what happened to the NHL when they got off espn (i know the league has been making more money, but thats more to due with exchange rates more then anything else)

All that asside i would love for soccer to become popular here- i thourghly enjoy watching eru/world cup coverage on tv and would love for more soccer

RingX5

Huh?

Last I saw ESPN/ABC are broadcasting a lot of the MLS' games...

I don't think they have much problem with it...

Some MLS team tried to persuade Zidane to come and play for them. I've read a huge contract was in the talks, but Zidane rejected it...

I'd actually start watching MLS if Zidane played for one of its teams.

Some MLS team tried to persuade Zidane to come and play for them. I've read a huge contract was in the talks, but Zidane rejected it...

I'd actually start watching MLS if Zidane played for one of its teams.

IgGy621985

CHicago Fire did that last season, I think...

Lawl, they should pull Pelé out of retirement, I bet he could still play decent at this level...:P (Joking)

The number one reason why MLS/soccer wont be that successful in the US, is due to the fact that soccer has a horrible format for TV - every other sport has period breaks in play so brodcasters can fit in there commercials to make money.

And in america/canada more then anything else TV coverage is the most important thing to create a succesful league - look what happened to the NHL when they got off espn (i know the league has been making more money, but thats more to due with exchange rates more then anything else)RingX5

TV timeouts aren't the #1 reason why MLS could possibly fail to arouse much American interest (saying it's already doomed to fail is a bit excessive IMO). I would lay that blame on the number of professional sports in North America. You have the four major sports that don't really leave much room for soccer. Interestingly enough, MLS games average 16,770 fans per game, which is just a touch away from the NHL's 17,265 and the NBA's 17,394. So you can't really say that it won't be that successful, when attendance is at its highest point since 1996, when the league was formed.

As for TV coverage, ratings are up 20% on ESPN and 10% on Univision (Spanish channel) compared to last year's ratings, and a number of teams are already turning a profit, with the league reaching profitability by 2010. With more teams entering the league (18 teams in the league by 2011), that means more markets to reach into, which translates into even better attendance figures and better ratings, which you say is the most important thing in creating a successful league.

Trust me, MLS is here to stay.

It's still boring, although now I have a team to cheer for (Seattle Sounders) so that might increase my interest.

I think that's true for a lot of people in WA, so I would say it is growing.

I don't think it's growing. I don't hear much rumblings at all about the Sounders here in Seattle,SherlockHolmes1

Probably because they haven't started play...

i didn't realise David Beckham was so big in America.

im from England by the way.

Its good to hear that MLS is getting big because the sport is a fun one to watch and play.

I don't think it's growing. I don't hear much rumblings at all about the Sounders here in Seattle, not many people seem to care which I believe is the national consensus. I really doubt soccer will ever be big in my lifetime.SherlockHolmes1

Yet, that was the same thing with Toronto FC a year before their MLS debut. Now look at the talk they get!

In the next couple of years...i think MLS will grow big......but someday i beleved they will have just one league ( NO EAST, WEST CONFERENCES) just like they have in europe......MLS is headin in the right direction and i like it.

In the next couple of years...i think MLS will grow big......but someday i beleved they will have just one league ( NO EAST, WEST CONFERENCES) just like they have in europe......MLS is headin in the right direction and i like it. FuZion09