MLS owners and the players union finally came to terms yesterday, signing a new 5 year collective bargaining agreement. Sounders will kick off this Thursday against Philadelphia at 630pm.
So here is a brief recap of what they were arguing about. Players were looking for a higher league minimum wage, a greater ability to switch from club to club, and guaranteed contracts. Ownership wanted to maintain control over player movement, length of contracts, and a lower overall salary cap.
MLS players wanted the same rights players receive abroad, while the owners (who have lost millions since MLS inception) wanted to be more conservative. Toronto FC and SOUNDERS FC are the only two profitable teams in MLS.
But why were the players and owners put in this position? It all comes down to certain markets not giving their club enough support. I have proposed on various soccer blogs that if a club can not average 15,000 fans this year then they should be relocated.
COLUMBUS CREW- 14,175 might sound pretty close to the mark, but keep in mind they were the returning MLS Champions from 2008. Not good enough.
COLORADO RAPIDS- 13,018. They had a competitive team, a soccer specific stadium (SSS), and are in a major metro area.
NEW YORK RED BULLS- 12,744. Pretty sad for the second biggest market in America. The good news here is they are opening a new SSS this season, which should significantly increase their numbers.
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION- 12,427 fans a game. Absolutely terrible. Boston is a great sports town, and a lot of fans attend US National Team games. They will never get a SSS until they can boost their fan base.
SAN JOSE- 10,329, yuk. They have been relocated once before (Houston Dynamo), and I would hate to see this team go again. But the truth is, they are holding the league back.
KANSAS CITY WIZARDS- 10,053 fans a game. This one I understand, the only people who cheer for wizards don't have an athletic bone in their body. THey are a money pit to begin with, but allowing them to build a SSS only makes it worse. Give them one more year and relocate them to Montreal.
FC DALLAS- 9,883. This only fuels my hatred for all things Texas (sorry Andy). Dallas has a major metro area, a SSS, a local rivalry, a large latino market, and a team that was one game away from making the playoffs.
CONGRATS to our SOUNDERS averaging 31,203. LA GALAXY with 20,827. TORONTO FC with 20,344.
So what do you think? Is 15,000 fans for each team realistic? Would a different city be more deserving?
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Well I'll start with the obvious rebuttal point. If relocation is in the works for all teams that cannot average 15,000 fans, then it looks like we're moving the team located in the largest market in the country. I don't see Chivas on your list, so maybe it's 2 teams. That approach doesn't make any sense at all, especially when you consider how many fans the Cosmos had when they were brining in high level international talent in the 70s and 80s.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with your basic premise, however, that weak fan support is one of the reasons that the strike almost happened this year. Players want more money, owners feel like they've spent millions of dollars keeping the league afloat. If all teams had support like SSFC, LAG, and TFC, then MLS would never be in this position.
But that ignores the obvious truth, which is that soccer is not yet a legitimate major sport in this country, regardless of the league's name. I think the league and it's teams need time to grow. Sure, some markets are probably bad markets to begin with. Dallas and KC come to mind.
I think that the bigger issue here is competent ownership that knows how to sell its product and how to make it attractive. Those things are unique to each market, and ownership needs to figure those things out on their own. But I don't know that we can expect any of the existing teams, outside of TFC, to have support like SSFC. What we have in Seattle (and hopefully Portland and Vancouver) is unique - a tremendously large population of young adults who play and watch soccer, stadiums located in the city center, and a legacy of professional soccer. Not many other teams have that.
I think we need to get to 18 teams, let the league chill for a few years, and then re-evaluate. 15,000 may be a realistic number, but I think we need to let things play out for awhile before we start giving any serious consideration to relocation.
Fans crack me up. Living in a couple different major cities I have seen all types. Seattle is perfect for a start up team because this city has some of the most flaky band wagon loving trend hoping people around. I am not hating, I love Seattle, but it is true. Thankfully we had a successful first season so the fans here will ride that (sound)wave for a while.
ReplyDeleteOther cities it is much tougher to get a loyal fan base. Places like Texas (I will talk to you later Nate) who have fans who old fashion it will take some time. You need to build a relationship with the fans, hang around for a while and let them know you are serious, and they will be die hard even through the shitty years. If you just pick up and move, you will never bring a team back. And a market like Dallas as way too much money to just give up on. If they had a better owner or field, they may get more love. Hell, just have them play before the Cowboys and you will have doubled the fan base.
This is going to take some time, and owners need to realize this is an investment and will be a while before the cash comes rolling in.
Are you sure that people in Texas don't go to games because they don't want to be associated with soccer? I mean, after all, it's a foreign sport, and you might as well be a gay supporter of Al Qaeda if you go to soccer games...
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