MLS needs to realize where its roots are
Major League Soccer sure did make a splash Thursday, when the league announced that superstar David Beckham would be coming stateside to play for the Los Angeles Galaxy this July. It's not every day that soccer steals the headlines in these parts. But Beckham and a five-year, $250 million contract can turn the trick.
Apparently, so can his new mission. Like a modern version of St. John, Beckham is hoping to spread the gospel of soccer to a nation that has been reluctant to embrace it.
And he might just be able to do it. After all, the former British captain transcends the sport. He is a cultural icon, whose name is splashed on the fronts of tabloids and is used in titles of movies. In a society obsessed with its celebrities, he'll fit in perfectly.
But in MLS he might be out of his element.
For the last 10 years, the league seems to have avoided trying to rely on European stars to sell its product. Since 1996, when it began play, MLS has gone a different route. Slowly but surely it has built a viable operation and cultivated a loyal following by developing players rather than waiting on old stars from overseas to decide that they want their final tour of duty to take place in the United States.
On occasion, MLS has welcomed European refugees like Roberto Donadoni and Lothar Matthaus. But the league has survived for more than a decade because of American players like Tim Howard, Clint Dempsey and DaMarcus Beasley as well as Trinidad and Tobago striker Stern John.
It seemed that MLS had learned from the mistakes of one of its short-lived predecessors — the North American Soccer League. Kind of like the contemporaneous DeLorean Motor Company, the NASL was both flashy and mismanaged. It expanded too quickly and tried to build a presence in the states by bringing in hotshots like Pele, Johan Cruijff, George Best and Franz Beckenbauer. However, the talent was spread too thin and after 16 years the league dissolved in 1984.
With its centralized ownership structure, MLS seems to have avoided the pitfalls that NASL encountered. After initially losing $350 million, MLS is starting to rake in the money and the individual franchises are beginning to turn a profit.
But is MLS now headed in a different direction now that it has courted Beckham? Is drawing big-name Europeans who are on or nearing the downsides of their careers the beginning of its new phase of growth?
It could be if MLS wants to shirk its label as a "developmental" or "secondary" league. But unless it can attract burgeoning talents like Miroslav Klose or Lionel Messi to complement Beckham it should avoid taking this course.
After all, MLS doesn't want to be a novelty act. It's looking to be at the forefront of growing the sport in America. Signing Beckham may be a short-term solution for its goal. But it's the less-famous guys like Dempsey and the Kansas City Wizards' Eddie Johnson who are the true pillars of this league.
They are the ones who will determine if MLS can indeed survive.
Photo Sources: davidbeckham.com.au, columbus.crew.mlsnet.com
Apparently, so can his new mission. Like a modern version of St. John, Beckham is hoping to spread the gospel of soccer to a nation that has been reluctant to embrace it.
And he might just be able to do it. After all, the former British captain transcends the sport. He is a cultural icon, whose name is splashed on the fronts of tabloids and is used in titles of movies. In a society obsessed with its celebrities, he'll fit in perfectly.
But in MLS he might be out of his element.
For the last 10 years, the league seems to have avoided trying to rely on European stars to sell its product. Since 1996, when it began play, MLS has gone a different route. Slowly but surely it has built a viable operation and cultivated a loyal following by developing players rather than waiting on old stars from overseas to decide that they want their final tour of duty to take place in the United States.
On occasion, MLS has welcomed European refugees like Roberto Donadoni and Lothar Matthaus. But the league has survived for more than a decade because of American players like Tim Howard, Clint Dempsey and DaMarcus Beasley as well as Trinidad and Tobago striker Stern John.
It seemed that MLS had learned from the mistakes of one of its short-lived predecessors — the North American Soccer League. Kind of like the contemporaneous DeLorean Motor Company, the NASL was both flashy and mismanaged. It expanded too quickly and tried to build a presence in the states by bringing in hotshots like Pele, Johan Cruijff, George Best and Franz Beckenbauer. However, the talent was spread too thin and after 16 years the league dissolved in 1984.
With its centralized ownership structure, MLS seems to have avoided the pitfalls that NASL encountered. After initially losing $350 million, MLS is starting to rake in the money and the individual franchises are beginning to turn a profit.
But is MLS now headed in a different direction now that it has courted Beckham? Is drawing big-name Europeans who are on or nearing the downsides of their careers the beginning of its new phase of growth?
It could be if MLS wants to shirk its label as a "developmental" or "secondary" league. But unless it can attract burgeoning talents like Miroslav Klose or Lionel Messi to complement Beckham it should avoid taking this course.
After all, MLS doesn't want to be a novelty act. It's looking to be at the forefront of growing the sport in America. Signing Beckham may be a short-term solution for its goal. But it's the less-famous guys like Dempsey and the Kansas City Wizards' Eddie Johnson who are the true pillars of this league.
They are the ones who will determine if MLS can indeed survive.
Photo Sources: davidbeckham.com.au, columbus.crew.mlsnet.com
posted by Rainer Sabin @ 11:45 PM
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