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| | Friday, December 3 | |||||
Special to ESPN.com | ||||||
| What else can be said? It was a terrible, backsliding year for Major League Soccer and its teams; the talent drain continues with the exodus of players and personnel, and the game continues to stagnate as a spectator sport. So, these words aren't directed toward you long-suffering fans, but to the owners. Please guys, listen up for once and help us help you save your investment.
First, thanks for giving us back the game that most of us know as "soccer,"
as opposed to the shootout, the bizarre clock, etc. that made it more akin
to a circus act. Now, if you could take the next step and drop the idea that
this is a developmental league, we'd all be winners. That's right: trash the
four-foreigners limit and bring in as much talent as you can.
But, wait, Jamie: isn't that the kind of silly spending that killed the
NASL? No, and I've told you that before. What I'm talking about is MLS teaming up with other leagues around the world -- the ones that don't play in summer months.
Sell Tampa and Dallas to Manchester United, or Benfica, or Real Madrid or whomever. Tell them they can do whatever they want with the teams -- park guys who aren't seeing games, do some rehab, whatever -- as long as they keep a set number of Americans on the roster. They don't have to play very many of them, but they have to practice with them. If, in midseason, it becomes apparent that the guys aren't getting much time, other clubs can poach off their rosters, replacing them with other American talent. If you expand the league by two teams, have one of them be owned by an overseas club or league.
What will this do? Three things: It would immediately raise the level of
play; it would allow the Americans a chance to actually practice with guys
who can play the game better than they can; and it would allow a pipeline of talent into the country that MLS cannot otherwise afford.
Second, start hiring people with business acumen. And then pay them. MLS is a very, very young group -- too young, in fact. They need seasoned leadership and talent, but you aren't going to get that on the wages you're paying some of the people in team offices. Hire some other sluggers. Give MLS commissioner Don Garber some cushion to work with.
Third, get Tony Meola as your on-air network color guy for the new weekly highlights show. MLS broadcasts are static, and need spicing up -- Meola has a nice, big mouth and is unafraid to sling it as he sees it. That makes for great TV. Hire him.
Fourth, start using some of the clout you have. Mr. Subotnick, MetroMedia underwrites all sorts of advertising -- why haven't you gone out and asked those people who so gleefully take your money why they are ignoring your own team? I'm sure other outlets would be very happy to have that money, and would be equally happy to give the MetroStars the coverage they so badly need. Mr. Hunt, why have you not put the screws to the Kansas City media? Why do you allow them to take your ad money from the Chiefs while they ignore the Wizards? You don't really think ceasing advertising in the papers is actually going to hurt Chiefs ticket sales, do you? Use the levers, guys. You have them.
Fifth, and finally, untie the purse strings. We all know you didn't get
rich by throwing money away, but it's darn hard to take this league
seriously when they don't even have a national broadcast advertising budget of any appreciable size. Stop listening just to the soccer family and talk to the professionals in every other league. Find out what works and then follow the leaders. You have to spend cash to make cash, folks, and this is the best economy ever. Now's the time for a little mad money.
Fan woes in New England The owners could also take a cue from the unfortunate events that hit the New England fan group, the Midnight Riders, last weekend. Seems that a few of their members were arrested while running a peaceful tailgate after they set out a jar to collect donations to defray the cost of a barbecue. The charge? "Selling liquor without a license." There was beer available in coolers, though the Riders could hardly be characterized as "selling" it. Tom Hill, one of the Riders and editor of the 'zine Pictures of Chairman Mao, wrote me a lengthy letter in which he described some rather heavy-handed tactics employed by the state police, including allegedly using racial slurs. Now, the Riders and POCM have enjoyed a good relationship with the Revs but, like many other MLS fan groups, spotty ones with the security forces that the individual teams have hired. And they aren't alone: In Chicago, the Barn Burners and the Pyromaniacs have had complaints about the ham-handed way Garcia security services handles things. I can personally attest to the occasionally apelike demeanor of the New England security forces; media members have been intermittently strong-armed over the years as they try to do such scandalous things as get into the locker room or make their way to the postgame interview stage -- through the fans, of course, because there is no sensible access to the tent. (And these guys wonder why the media doesn't like them?) In fact, several pieces of e-mail this year have come from fan groups wondering when MLS clubs are going to start paying attention to the fact they are the clubs' most devoted supporters, and I can't blame them. Back to the New England mess: GM Brian O'Donovan has apparently pledged to look into the situation, and has given the Riders assurances that they'll have some support. But is that enough? What the league really needs is a central fan group liaison that can help the groups coordinate activities without falling afoul of either the teams, their security or the police. Especially when those groups are doing thing like tailgating, which every other sport in America points to as a sign of their success.
Random thoughts We'll see ...
Jamie Trecker, editor of Kick! magazine, writes regularly for ESPN.com. You may e-mail him at jamie_trecker@go.com; while he guarantees he will read all letters, he regrets that he cannot guarantee a reply because of overwhelming volume. | ALSO SEE Trecker: Looking to future of MLS
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