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- And so the inevitable conclusion of the Beckham circus is about to happen.... I'm getting my popcorn ready! To those who constantly state that MLS is now broadcast all over the world: Is there...
- The USL has made its mark. In the CONCACAF Champions League that is. I'm a person who has very little time for MLS. The USL results has made me watch the sole USL game on FSC at the expense of...
- MLS has for years fudged it's attendance numbers. This is a well written piece if we could really trust the numbers. It's been speculated as many as half the tickets in places like San...
- MLS actually publishes this information directly at http://web.mlsnet.com/stats/index.jsp?club=mls&year=2008 They report an average attendance just higher than you, reporting 3,456,641 total...
- I pulled all the attendance figures from ESPN.com, which were just raw numbers without any information as to how those numbers were compiled. I'm not sure how those Stuttgart numbers were...
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Maybe I was simply delusional. Perhaps I was drinking the Kool Aid. This past April on EPL Talk.com I had engaged in a back and forth dialogue with the publisher of that site, Christopher Harris (aka the Gaffer) arguing the English Premier League would always have a niche following in th
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7 months ago
And I can' t imagine why you thought MLS would do so well vis a vis the EPL. I see people wearing EPL jerseys all over the place. I see maybe one MLS jersey a year
- and some years not even that.
7 months ago
As Wendell Gee said who in their right mind would believe MLS clubs have the support EPL clubs do here in the US.
Even at MLS games as many people wear EPL kits!
The TV ratings are worrying, if you worry about MLS. Some of us realized after the Beckham hype died down that the league is actually regressing with less player development and good young talent than ever before and checked out.
The league was better in 1998. The previous golden generation of American players were all in MLS at the time along with Valderrama, Donadoni, Etcheverry, Cienfuegos, etc. Why you feel you need to compare 1998 with quality foreign players to 2008 with pin up models Beckham and Ljunberg making up the foreign contingent is silly. The results the league had in those days in CONCACAF and the TV ratings you list speak for itself as does the 2002 US World Cup team made up primarily of guys who had been in MLS between 1996 and 2000. The current US team has fewer and fewer MLS players and that speaks loudly of where the league is currently and obviously the viewers agree with that assessment.
7 months ago
I was born a Liverpool supporter and have spent years going to bars at the crack of dawn to see my team play, and I watch whatever else I have time for. After LFC matches I don't even find myself watching as many other Premiership games, since I now get La Liga which is an incredible treat for a football fan. I can't see switching to an MLS game if I have the choice. Unless I became an avid supporter of a local team -- which would make all failings superfluous to the need to follow my club.
This is what is needed in the U.S., local fan bases. It won't start with viewers, who have only a passing interest, tuning in on TV. It's not a great medium for the sport and only fantastic teams would come off well enough to keep viewers coming back.
7 months ago
Attendance is up over the last ten years by about 2,000 per game. That could account for your decline in TV ratings.
Bottom line: Things need to get better for MLS no doubt. The TV ratings are poor, the mainstream media coverage almost non existent. But ESPN has committed through the 2014 season so we still have time.
7 months ago
The object for a 12 year old league is establish a loyal fan base not set the TV world on fire.
By that standard the fact that MLS is now averaging more than 16,000 per game is a more important metric than tv ratings.
Perry
7 months ago
The TV ratings would be worrying if they had ever been good to start with. It's not like they're falling. TV money is not yet an important part of funding MLS. That's why the salary cap is so low. Considering that the league has recently signed deals with ESPN, Fox, HDNET, and Telemundo, it seems the broadcasters are willing to be patient.
It's certainly an issue. And worth considering a problem. But there's little need to worry just yet. MLS on TV isn't going to be as good as the EPL on TV anytime soon. MLS knows it. ESPN knows it.
There might not have been 5k at New England's game, but I wouldn't call it "dishonest" since all they ever have and probably ever will report is "tickets distributed" not "viewers present". On one weeks notice and given the conditions, people with tickets in hand decided not to go. Few sporting events report turnstyle numbers. It'd be nice to know, but tough luck. 1st week playoff attendance is and has been horrible. It's something MLS needs to work on. I've yet to hear a good alternative.
7 months ago
The road to a powerhouse football league will be long but the MLS seems to be doing a lot to try to attain viewership. This year I have been to about six Redbulls home games where as in the past I have only been to international friendlies. I have always tried to follow the team but this year myself and friends have been attending games and watching matches instead of just following the next day in the news. I hope one day the league is able to have the support that other sports in the US share but until that day comes I am happy enough to follow my team.
7 months ago
1) I can hop on the Metro and go watch DC United. I can't do that for any European team.
2) Why would I want to watch a league that is made up of haves and have-nots? Hmm... Manchester United vs. Sunderland (or other debt-ridden bottom feeder) gee, I wonder how that's going to play out? 200 million dollar payroll vs. a 2 million dollar payroll. Yeah, that's real fair. That's legitimate competition. Why bother paying to watch when you know that only four teams have any chance of winning anyway? European club soccer is like the end of a game of Monopoly. You have a couple of big winners and everyone else is going broke. How is that entertaining? In MLS, any team can win on any given day. The better ones sort themselves out over an entire season. Any team can build over 2-3 years and become a good team. In order to become a good team, you have build a core of players and a system. This year, the Columbus Crew is an excellent example of taking a couple of years to build a core of players and a system. No one can just buy the MLS Cup. That's entertaining. Watching European club soccer is like great if you love to see the strong brutalize the weak every week.
7 months ago
In the early days ESPN showed two games a week and also showed a weekly highlights show called extra time or direct kick or something. They built the brand. But as the salary cap kicked in and the early foreign stars left or retired the league never replaced those players with comparable products.
You can piss on Stanley all you want but I am in a camp of people who watched MLS closely in the early days but now have so much more soccer to choose from across the globe and anytime I watch MLS now, I do not see the compelling games or the skill level of the midfielders that I did then. It's an easy choice to watch La Liga or Serie A instead.
7 months ago
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7 months ago
However, they will be an expansion team. Expansion teams don't leave everyone in the dust. They will also be subjected to the same salary cap rules that all the other teams will be. They won't be able to buy the trophy like Barcelona and Real Madrid do in La Liga.
Finally, I really hope the team does not have "barca" anything in its name. We already have a Chivas. One co-branding/red headed stepchild is enough for one league and that spot is already taken. Chivas USA's problem has been that it's had to get over the impression that it's only for Mexican-American fans rather than for everybody. In the first year, the brand turned off Chivas fans since they were a weak expansion team. A team with Barca in its name will have the same issues. The team should be identified with Miami, not Barcelona.
7 months ago
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7 months ago
1. the only way I can explain my new found obsession with the MLS is because we, Seattle, FINALLY got our own team in the top league. Without it, MLS is still nothing to me. Sad, simple truth.
2. Totally agree with Cavans first comment as well. The one thing that I personally feel that American sports gets right is the salary cap. It's the one thing I hate about other leagues. Sure, it sucks that MLS's cap is unfortunately low. But it preserves the hope that your team will always have a chance.
3. Does anyone else find it sad that soccer fans are constantly pouting that our game isn't as good as that overseas? What's with the inferiority complex? Soccer is the beautiful game because, no matter if its a pick-up game or an EPL match, its fun to play and watch. I just hope someday we don't have to compare ourselves to the rest of the world, because really, it's sad to think that someone receives less joy from soccer just because they know they aren't the best. These people haven't come to love soccer for what it is. They just love being associated with world-class winners just so they can look down on everyone else.
7 months ago
I get liking the EPL if you're English. That makes sense if you grew up supporting a team. Otherwise, I just think you're trying to look down on someone rather than just enjoying soccer. Now, if you watch the EPL and MLS, more power to you. Everyone I've taken to a DC United game has always had fun and come back again. That includes both non-MLS soccer fans and non soccer fans. It's fun. Isn't that why we like soccer?