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The future of MLS


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#1
elf

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I never liked klinsman but he was right abt US Soccer. MLS and USL need to combine forces and create a true pyramid structure where teams can compete against each other.

MLS pro looks like a joke.

#2
Brian.MLS

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I never liked klinsman but he was right abt US Soccer. MLS and USL need to combine forces and create a true pyramid structure where teams can compete against each other.


Teams like Louisville, Sacramento and New Mexico are drawing about 10k. San Antonio just pulled in a full house (8k). Many teams are in 5-6k seat stadiums and filling them regularly and looking for larger homes. Some still struggle (namely Miami, Loudoun, Memphis, and Charleston).

There are 2 paths likely here in the next decade or so:

Current Plan: USL keeps up their strategy and trajectory and maintains solid leadership in their front office and, outside of mostly being in Tier 2 markets, they stand a chance at competing with MLS when MLS expansion essentially ends at 30/32 teams. This leads to USL being the available option with lower performing teams moving to USL League 1 and expansion moving into the USL Championship where the top performers continue to grow. Eventually a merger of MLS/USL leagues with Pro/Rel being a reality.

More likely scenario: MLS realizes this, keeps expanding with either Pro/Rel vision or much larger East/West conferences and 4 divisions. They continue to pull in the top performing USL teams into MLS or get new ownership groups for the same cities, still getting their franchise fees until all the top markets are in MLS and USL Championship maintains the Tier 2/D2 market.
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#3
elf

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Teams like Louisville, Sacramento and New Mexico are drawing about 10k. San Antonio just pulled in a full house (8k). Many teams are in 5-6k seat stadiums and filling them regularly and looking for larger homes. Some still struggle (namely Miami, Loudoun, Memphis, and Charleston).

There are 2 paths likely here in the next decade or so:

Current Plan: USL keeps up their strategy and trajectory and maintains solid leadership in their front office and, outside of mostly being in Tier 2 markets, they stand a chance at competing with MLS when MLS expansion essentially ends at 30/32 teams. This leads to USL being the available option with lower performing teams moving to USL League 1 and expansion moving into the USL Championship where the top performers continue to grow. Eventually a merger of MLS/USL leagues with Pro/Rel being a reality.

More likely scenario: MLS realizes this, keeps expanding with either Pro/Rel vision or much larger East/West conferences and 4 divisions. They continue to pull in the top performing USL teams into MLS or get new ownership groups for the same cities, still getting their franchise fees until all the top markets are in MLS and USL Championship maintains the Tier 2/D2 market.

They don't necessarily need to be pro/reg but USL needs to play more games against MLS main clubs and reserve clubs.

Usl and MLS reserve players need to be exposed to better competition. That way you can separate the pretenders from the contenders.

#4
magicmoron

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MLS may also split into two leagues with promotion and relegation between them as a token gesture, if they expand a lot.

#5
uptownbull

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MLS may also split into two leagues with promotion and relegation between them as a token gesture, if they expand a lot.

This is what my money is on. Expand to 40 teams in an MLS 1/2 with "pro/rel." Can't see MLS owners fleeced for a franchise fee being open to the possibility of their team falling down the pyramid.


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#6
eagercolin

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Pro/Rel is the hallmark of the old dying order. What needs to happen is for USL to accept its minor league status, including the responsibility to develop players for the superior league. 



#7
Paul Nasta

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This is what my money is on. Expand to 40 teams in an MLS 1/2 with "pro/rel." Can't see MLS owners fleeced for a franchise fee being open to the possibility of their team falling down the pyramid.

They could do something where an MLS team is not eligible for relegation for 20 years, or something like that.  This way, the exorbitant franchise fee that the owner paid is long in the past before the team could ever go down to USL.



#8
The Falcon

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Pro-Rel is not the American way. Owners would never agree to it. Tepper dropped over $300M on Charlotte FC. What do you think his reaction would be if you tell him his club he paid over $300M for now has to play in a lower division? If it were me, I'd say drop dead. My club remains in the top flight. IMO, keep building MLS-USL partnership as major/minor league system. Improve youth soccer opportunities across the country. Do best we can so "pay to play" isn't the only way. Increase sponsorship and revenue of MLS, particularly the salary cap. Someone above commented about Klinsmann being right about US soccer structure. Up to now and maybe still, ultimate goal for young soccer player is to earn college scholarship. Klinsmann said we need change that goal to turning professional and playing in MLS or Europe. Show youth MLS is solid, good pay and they'll stick with it.  



#9
SatansHockey

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Our attendance sucks now, imagine if we were regulated, same thing would happen with a lot of MLS teams.

I know I'm in the minority but I can't stand the EPL style system, it's the same handful of teams that always win, then the mid packers who aren't good enough to win but not bad enough to be close to regulation and finally the shit teams who are just struggling to avoid regulation because they can make more money by being in the top tier league. The vast majority of these teams that go up and down never do anything either.

Keep that system for the euro snobs and let em watch from an ocean away.

MLS should never, ever have this system and the playoffs should always be around. They just need to stop fucking around with the playoff formats and stick with one.

#10
SatansHockey

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They could do something where an MLS team is not eligible for relegation for 20 years, or something like that.  This way, the exorbitant franchise fee that the owner paid is long in the past before the team could ever go down to USL.


Imagine being a team that's regulated even though they had more points than said expanded franchise, I'd be absolutely livid.

#11
Paul Nasta

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Imagine being a team that's regulated even though they had more points than said expanded franchise, I'd be absolutely livid.

Definitely, but that's life.  That team would know the deal going into the season and would know who they needed to stay ahead of and who wasn't eligible to go down.

 

There's no perfect way to implement pro/rel.

 

I'm not a big proponent of pro/rel here, not because I don't think it's a good system, but because I don't know how practical it is.  I have to say, though, that with a more stable and better financed USL where many of the teams now have their own stadiums, it's becoming more realistic.

 

Watch a late season EPL game between two relegation threatened teams and compare it with a late season MLS game between two teams that are out of the playoff hunt, and tell me which is more exciting?



#12
SatansHockey

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Definitely, but that's life.  That team would know the deal going into the season and would know who they needed to stay ahead of and who wasn't eligible to go down.
 
There's no perfect way to implement pro/rel.
 
I'm not a big proponent of pro/rel here, not because I don't think it's a good system, but because I don't know how practical it is.  I have to say, though, that with a more stable and better financed USL where many of the teams now have their own stadiums, it's becoming more realistic.
 
Watch a late season EPL game between two relegation threatened teams and compare it with a late season MLS game between two teams that are out of the playoff hunt, and tell me which is more exciting?


In terms of excitement watching a game between 2 MLS teams out of the playoffs isn't any different than watching 2 EPL teams that are secured in the middle of the pack. Both are absolutely meaningless.

#13
Paul Nasta

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In terms of excitement watching a game between 2 MLS teams out of the playoffs isn't any different than watching 2 EPL teams that are secured in the middle of the pack. Both are absolutely meaningless.

There aren't that many of those teams in the EPL, though.  The number of teams that don't have a shot at a European competition but are also safe from going down is pretty small.

 

You could say something similar about MLS, especially with the expanded playoff field.  There won't be too many teams that have no shot at the playoffs, probably right up to the last weekend of the season.  But making the MLS playoffs as a 7 seed, or a 9 seed, or however many teams they have this year, just isn't as significant as an EPL team either staying up or going down. 



#14
McSoccer

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In terms of excitement watching a game between 2 MLS teams out of the playoffs isn't any different than watching 2 EPL teams that are secured in the middle of the pack. Both are absolutely meaningless.

The mid table match ups are bad. But watching the bottom squads fight for survival or a Cinderella team pushing for European football can be intriguing stories outside of the title race.

#15
guanaco20

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Pro/Rel is the hallmark of the old dying order. What needs to happen is for USL to accept its minor league status, including the responsibility to develop players for the superior league. 


So MLS was the model for the European Super League!!!!!




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