MLS Cup 2011 was held last night. The championship was played between the LA Galaxy and Houston Dynamo. The Galaxy, you may know, are home to Landon Donovan and David Beckham, two of the most exciting and well-known players in MLS. So why, pray tell, did Commissioner Don Garber schedule this game on a Sunday night directly opposite America's favorite sport?
I have been trying to figure out one good reason why this would make sense, and with the exception of football vs futbol jokes and saying soccer and football are on the same playing field (at least literally), there is no practical reason. As it stands, it does a huge disservice to MLS. It was televised on ESPN which should garner some respect (unlike ESPN2 or Versus) but they could have played it any other night of the week (Monday notwithstanding) and found a larger number of viewers.
The whole idea is to grow your audience beyond just the core set of fans. MLS can't do that going up against the NFL. They are just further segregating their audience and upsetting some soccer fanatics who also enjoy football. Why make us choose?
The real credit should go to ESPN for giving this issue considerably more thought than MLS did and simulcasting the game on ESPN3.com. I know I'm not the only person who had Giants/Eagles on the TV and Galaxy/Dynamo on my laptop.
MLS needs to figure things out quickly because Beckham is most assuredly leaving now that his 5-year "I'm going to make soccer popular in America" contract is over. All of these great storylines were leading up to last night's game, but thanks to MLS, almost no one knew.
Showing posts with label soccer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label soccer. Show all posts
Monday, November 21, 2011
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
A Revolution in New England
The New England Revolution have parted ways with the longest-tenured and most successful coach in their franchise’s history. Steve Nicol departs after 10 years on the job with a resume including 4 MLS Cup appearances but missing out on the championship each time.
This was a long season for the former Coach of the Year recipient. Nicol’s contract was up at the end of the year and there was uncertainty if team owner Robert Kraft was interested in bringing him back. Much like what we have been hearing from the Red Sox the past 3 weeks, there does appear to be a certain shelf life for head coaches. Additionally, Revolution captain Shalrie Joseph was playing out the final year of his deal and got into some preseason trouble along with third year defenseman Kevin Alston. (I know one of the Rev Girls and apparently the incident involved drugs and a physical altercation with a woman.)
Though the season started on a high note – managing a draw with an LA Galaxy squad featuring Landon Donovan and David Beckham, followed by a win over DC United (and my old classmate Charlie Davies) – it was all downhill from there. With only 4 more wins the rest of the season (against 16 losses and 12 draws) the Revolution missed the playoffs for the second consecutive year leading to Nicol’s departure. It’s impossible to deny the comparisons here to Terry Francona’s situation with the Red Sox. He was in the final year of his contract and missed the playoffs the past 2 seasons.
What we have seen this past decade with Boston sports teams is consistency. Steve Nicol (2002), Terry Francona (2004), Bill Belichick (2000) and Doc Rivers (2004) have all held their roles, successfully, for 7+ years. That patience goes back to the franchise owners understanding that they have the right man in charge and giving him room to work. Especially notable is the Nicol/Belichick connection as both the Revolution and Patriots are owned by Robert Kraft. He is one of the premier owners in sports and it's clear he knows how to manage people the right way.
Whatever his future holds, Nicol will be looked on fondly by Revolution fans for many years to come. He took the team from being an afterthought to a championship contender and will not be easily replaced.
This was a long season for the former Coach of the Year recipient. Nicol’s contract was up at the end of the year and there was uncertainty if team owner Robert Kraft was interested in bringing him back. Much like what we have been hearing from the Red Sox the past 3 weeks, there does appear to be a certain shelf life for head coaches. Additionally, Revolution captain Shalrie Joseph was playing out the final year of his deal and got into some preseason trouble along with third year defenseman Kevin Alston. (I know one of the Rev Girls and apparently the incident involved drugs and a physical altercation with a woman.)
Though the season started on a high note – managing a draw with an LA Galaxy squad featuring Landon Donovan and David Beckham, followed by a win over DC United (and my old classmate Charlie Davies) – it was all downhill from there. With only 4 more wins the rest of the season (against 16 losses and 12 draws) the Revolution missed the playoffs for the second consecutive year leading to Nicol’s departure. It’s impossible to deny the comparisons here to Terry Francona’s situation with the Red Sox. He was in the final year of his contract and missed the playoffs the past 2 seasons.
What we have seen this past decade with Boston sports teams is consistency. Steve Nicol (2002), Terry Francona (2004), Bill Belichick (2000) and Doc Rivers (2004) have all held their roles, successfully, for 7+ years. That patience goes back to the franchise owners understanding that they have the right man in charge and giving him room to work. Especially notable is the Nicol/Belichick connection as both the Revolution and Patriots are owned by Robert Kraft. He is one of the premier owners in sports and it's clear he knows how to manage people the right way.
Whatever his future holds, Nicol will be looked on fondly by Revolution fans for many years to come. He took the team from being an afterthought to a championship contender and will not be easily replaced.
Friday, October 21, 2011
Support Your Soccer!
I was talking to my girlfriend today about Fox winning the broadcast rights to the 2018 & 2022 World Cups over ESPN (who’ve held the rights to every World Cup since 1994). She caught me off guard when she said she didn’t care about the World Cup and found it annoying last year when people were sucked into the excitement. I chalked it up to her general non-interest in sports but enough people claim to not like soccer that I wanted to better understand why.
Yes, I grew up playing soccer and played it through high school; Yes, I was at the perfect youthful age to be heavily invested in the 1994 World Cup that was played right here on US soil; And, yes, I did win a free workout with the New England Revolution when I was a kid. But I feel like I have a pretty good handle on most people’s complaints about the sport: it’s too slow, there aren’t enough goals, MLS sucks and the foreign leagues are too difficult to follow due to TV rights and cable packages. Fine, if that’s the case then these people should also be uninterested in baseball (slow) and hockey (not enough goals). Yet baseball is America’s pastime and hockey is a popular niche sport that certainly doesn’t get ragged on like soccer does. So, why the hate?
To Americans, soccer is a European sport. Football and baseball are pure Americana; Basketball is urban; Hockey is Canadian. Americans haven’t cared much for European things since 1776. And the biggest thing that has carried over that distaste is flopping. Soccer players are known for flopping, which is a terrible but true distinction. But even all the European basketball players in the NBA flop constantly. It’s just what they do. So the manly American men chop it up to soccer players being weak – “It’s not as physical as football” – as their reason not to watch. Of course, that feeling has become so pervasive that people will just use it as an explanation without ever actually giving soccer a chance.
The World Cup is different though. It’s more like the Olympics; a must-see event that captures the world’s attention and cultivates national pride. Is there a better chant than “U-S-A!” “U-S-A!”? I ended up sending my girlfriend the reaction video to Landon Donovan’s goal heard ‘round the world against Algeria. I rest my case.
Yes, I grew up playing soccer and played it through high school; Yes, I was at the perfect youthful age to be heavily invested in the 1994 World Cup that was played right here on US soil; And, yes, I did win a free workout with the New England Revolution when I was a kid. But I feel like I have a pretty good handle on most people’s complaints about the sport: it’s too slow, there aren’t enough goals, MLS sucks and the foreign leagues are too difficult to follow due to TV rights and cable packages. Fine, if that’s the case then these people should also be uninterested in baseball (slow) and hockey (not enough goals). Yet baseball is America’s pastime and hockey is a popular niche sport that certainly doesn’t get ragged on like soccer does. So, why the hate?
To Americans, soccer is a European sport. Football and baseball are pure Americana; Basketball is urban; Hockey is Canadian. Americans haven’t cared much for European things since 1776. And the biggest thing that has carried over that distaste is flopping. Soccer players are known for flopping, which is a terrible but true distinction. But even all the European basketball players in the NBA flop constantly. It’s just what they do. So the manly American men chop it up to soccer players being weak – “It’s not as physical as football” – as their reason not to watch. Of course, that feeling has become so pervasive that people will just use it as an explanation without ever actually giving soccer a chance.
The World Cup is different though. It’s more like the Olympics; a must-see event that captures the world’s attention and cultivates national pride. Is there a better chant than “U-S-A!” “U-S-A!”? I ended up sending my girlfriend the reaction video to Landon Donovan’s goal heard ‘round the world against Algeria. I rest my case.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)