Add to the dissapointment that when the match went to penalty kicks, the story line was how arguably MLS’ greatest player botched his penalty shot. 

In other words, Beckham and Donovan, were expected to win and to win flashy, which after the 1st goal, looked to be a possibility.  They lost though.  Too bad, because the league needed the Galaxy to win. 

Overall, Beckham and Donovan showed they need help.  They need more superstars, though Ricketts may become one. 

Beckham and Donovan must become a dynasty.  Its imperative for MLS’ success.  They need to win 3 championships in a row and surround themselves with great players whose names also can become part of the American consciousness. 

Had the Galaxy won the 2009 MLS Cup, the doubters to pro Soccer’s ascension towards mainstream would have been silenced at least for this year.  More would have been made about the Galaxy’s dynasty in the works and how great it is for the League’s crossover appeal. 

Obviously, there’s still a great chance for this league to become a bigtime American sports league.  Expansion and interest are both on the rise.  But the aftermath of this Cup shows that more superstars are needed.

In all the world of Soccer, who would have been a better tandem for an MLS team and which team should it be?  Would Ronaldhino and Altidore playing for D.C. United have been a better attraction to sportsfans?

It would seem for MLS, that nothing could have been better than Beckham, the international superstar of futbol who brings all the glitz, Donovan, the American hope who brings all thats pure about Soccer, and the city with the richest reputation (two letters says it all, ‘LA’ and one of the coolest nicknames in all of U.S. professional sports, Galaxy) winning the title. 

The conditions seemed perfect for this to be a breakthrough moment, especially with 46,000 on hand live to watch.

Maybe the world’s television ratings should be included in order to look beyond U.S. households and sportsbars.  They merit major consideration as part of how to gauge the marketing benefits of MLS. 

The world’s tv ratings could be the hidden upside to what seems to be a pretty bad outcome for pro Soccer in the U.S.  Its a new age for all pro sports and what the rest of the world thinks, matters.

Dear Mr. Goodell,

What has been witnessed all season long at Qwest Field in Seattle is the potential of professional Soccer in the U.S.  Interestingly, it has all taken place at a football stadium.  Who would have ever guessed, 14 years in, that MLS would make its biggest impact in a football stadium.  It’s been tried at other active NFL football stadiums for years and has failed or keeps failing, i.e. New England.

Whatever it is that makes Seattle different, the proof is there that Soccer in an American football stadium can work.  So, why is it important for you to see that Soccer can be successful in an NFL football stadium? 

Because the NFL is a business.  You are there as the commissioner to look for business opportunities for your clientele, the NFL owners.  One of your consistent musings is growing the American football base and bringing in new football fans from around the world.  But really your main mission is, and always will be, improving the bottom line. 

Expanding the NFL’s assets, by owning and operating a new professional Soccer league, to be played in NFL stadiums in the off-months, is a zinger of an idea.  If done with the same zest and brilliant marketing that has made the NFL the apple pie of the American sports world, Soccer could also garner huge revenues.

This is your golden opportunity.  MLS has laid all the groundwork for you.  Now, you can come in, make the appropriate changes that sports fans would want from Soccer and flourish as owners of the #1 and #4 most popular spectator sports in the country.

Seattle has already shown you that keeping the team colors the same (Sounders and Seahawks) is a great idea.  They’ve also shown how savvy of an idea it is to have the front office from each team work together in partnership with regards to operations, marketing, sales, etc… 

Learn from this cooperation and market Soccer during football season and football during Soccer season.  Each sport leads into the next quite fluidly, without any real overlap, as the Super Bowl is played in February and the start of the NFL season is September.  A March to August format for pro Soccer gives dormant stadiums the chance to come alive during the spring and summer months.

Your best option would be to include a women’s league to accompany the men’s league, having them traveling together as visiting teams, giving the fans two games for the price of one. 

Your best bet is to convince as many of your owners to go with natural grass as their playing field of choice.  With this in mind, you should try to keep the rivalries and divisions set up like they are in the NFL.  Probably best to leave the dome teams out because outdoor Soccer was never meant for indoors. 

But you never know, if the Soccer is exciting enough and the scoring can get closer to 4-3 instead of 1.7 to .75, just maybe it is possible for domed stadiums  and the other lame, sterile stadiums to attract the amount of fans necessary to justify their existence.  The upper decks can be sold for advertising, no worries.  Just concentrate on the lower decks and 25-30,000 fans per home game.  If you can, learn from the Sounders.

 Respectfully,

U.S. sports fan and non-purist Soccer fan

Tonight is the NHL’s opening night and it feels like, your kidding, right, didn’t it just end like a month ago? 

The NHL has a laundry list of problems besides the fact that their greatest star, Wayne Gretzky, couldn’t make things work in the desert (Phoenix). 

How the NHL ever thought it would make it in any warm-weather climate is tough to figure out.  Besides their one good day, the New Year’s game outdoors, they have an obvious identity problem.   

The attraction to watching sports is seeing others who can play them better than you.  But for that to happen, you have to be playing or have played the game.

At any given moment after watching a game, a person should be able to play that sport outdoors.  The NHL would work best where ponds freeze over months at a time and kids go outside and play well into the late afternoon hours. 

As Soccer becomes more mainstream, both hockey and basketball will be forced to make changes.  Both will either have to shorten the amount of games played or the amount of rest between games so their seasons don’t wear down the sporting public’s interest. 

The NFL has shown itself to be the premier league in the country for many reasons.  One reason is because of the length of the season.  Everyone looks forward to football starting back up because its such a long offseason. 

Many sports fans don’t even pay attention to hockey and they are tiring of basketball because it is the same story line year after year.  There’s Kobe and Lebron, and the same cast of stale characters.  Add college hoops to the mix, and the sportsfan just feels innundated with b-ball to the point that they are looking for something different. 

This is where Soccer can come in and fill the gap to change the seasons for all team sports for the better.  The responsibility for Soccer making the intrusion on these other entrenched team sports and making it stick for years to come lies with those who can give Soccer the relevance it deserves in the American sports calendar.

The best way to give fans more matches in a season is to allow for unlimited substitutions throughout each match, including being able to re-enter a game as many times as needed. By providing for this caveat to the ‘beautiful game’, coaches will be able to manage the time each player spends on the field and project ahead to play a fuller schedule of games.

Coaches will have to use their players not just according to who should rest, but also for strategy purposes. Coaches will substitute to counter the efforts of their opponent.

A typical roster consists of 22-25 players. By allowing for substitutions, more players will get playing time and there will be fewer injuries due to players who end up staying on the field too long and over-extending themselves. As it is now with only 3 substitutions per game, players are forced to play till their bodies are spent and playing another game 2 days later becomes a more difficult chore to bear.

Substituting players introduces another concept, time-outs. There should be five 90-second timeouts per half that will allow for the flow of substitutes. Also, at the end of a half or before or after overtime are times for substitutions to be made.

There are 2 other exceptions for substitutions: Injuries and Red Cards. A player that is injured on the field during game action and receives care on the field must be substituted for immediately. A player that is injured and leaves the game is not allowed to reenter the game until the end of the half or the end of an overtime. Red cards are addressed in Americanizing Soccer for the U.S. Sports Fan pt. 3.

The idea behind substitutions is to keep players as fresh as possible in order to provide for more matches. This puts pro Soccer on the sports radar more frequently, which leads to additional time on center stage in the U.S. sports world, where it belongs.

He has expressed himself with the press on a range of topics.  Most recently, he appeared with ESPN and answered questions regarding his notorious outburst towards fans from the stands. 

He continues to state his desire to return to AC Milan and play World Cup for England.  His contract with the LA Galaxy will again need to be reworked to accomodate his wishes. 

He wants to play out his career on his terms.  Though his ways of doing this may not be popular with the public, he certainly is in his rights.

He’s in the driver’s seat with American Soccer and he knows it. 

As his world turns, so do the fans.  He is a mercurial figure for American fans.  They just don’t know how to feel about him. 

On one hand, they want to root for him because when he does well, MLS does well.  On the other hand, how dare he be so fickle and play with the fans emotions.

This period of time in MLS is all Beckham’s.  It won’t last forever, soon many other great stars from the recent past will begin to trickle in.  What he is doing with this period of time is the most interesting part of this soap opera.  He’s behaving like all the many other great American athletes that have come before him, most notably and most recently, Brett Favre and Lance Armstrong. 

He’s an athlete trying to play at the top level for as long as he can and doesn’t want anything, including binding contracts, to get in his way.  Athletes change their minds all the time in pro sports.  The main difference between Beckham and John Smoltz or Terrell Owens is that Beckham had a country waiting on him and he left for a league in another country.  

Interestingly, as things are working out, Beckham’s image as a ‘bad guy’ may be more productive for American pro Soccer.  Rooting against him and then for him seems more appealing for fans than just rooting for him. 

He has drummed up a lot more attention with his natural ego.  His uninhibited challenges to fans has given many a reason to pay attention to Soccer, when maybe they wouldn’t have before.  He is more compelling as a ‘bad guy’ than he is as a ‘good guy’. 

Only in the last couple of weeks has Beckham’s arrival really begun to take its effect.  Unexepectedly, it was his arrogance towards fans that ultimately got the national sports fan’s attention.

The damage is done.  After huge summer gains with the American sports fans, US Soccer blunders. 

At some point, US Soccer will have to gain more influence with CONCACAF.  US Soccer can not take the same risk again.  The next qualification for Confed Cup may need to exclude the U.S. from playing the following Gold Cup. 

Right now, pro Soccer is trying gain its foothold with the sports fans.  If the sports fan is going to be in constant bewilderment over wins and losses, first teamers and second teamers, Cups and Championships, then Soccer is defeating its purpose.  This Gold Cup meant nothing, but a trophy.  Treat the fans honestly, don’t try to sneak things past them.

Pro Soccer is being directly impacted by the USMNT’s play.  The USMNT generates interest when it wins, which in turn, generates more interest in Pro Soccer.

It is time for those making the decisions for US Soccer to make a stand for common sense.  It is the only thing the sports fan understands.  Sports fans in the U.S. only support teams playing to win with its best players. 

If the Gold Cup was just a buffer in case of an early exit from Confed Cup, its understandable why US Soccer made the commitment to play it.  But, there are only so many priorities USMNT players can have, and US Soccer is aware of this. 

Having more foresight into scheduling issues is extremely important for US Soccer execs.  The U.S. can not afford to be playing second teamers as Soccer continues to rise in popularity.  It needs to win as much as it can as often as it can.   

After the great final from the Confederation Cup, the U.S. had only one option for the Gold Cup and that was to win it.  The result from the Gold Cup final only confuses sports fans.  So much of the progress made from the great run against Brazil in Confed Cup can now be completely zapped with a loss to Mexico in the World Cup Qualifier later this month.

The bottom line is that US Soccer must project ahead and try to help CONCACAF to build strategies for a better schedule of tournaments.  CONCACAF is a great organization, and it is continuing to make strides.  It has made the region more recognizable to Soccer fans and has brought many of its participating countries much overdue respect in the eyes of Americans.  But improvements and refinements need to be made to its structure and US Soccer should be a driving force in those changes.

There may come a time when the USOC will not have the same relevance, if one of the leagues is clearly dominating or there is only one league.  As it is now, with at least one USL team in the semi-finals and other pro and amateur teams playing competitively, the Cup seems to have a niche.  Also, the CCL has earned respect by becoming the region’s most important club tournament. 

With MLS Cup included then, there are 3 main trophies to be won every calendar year.  This is the uniqueness and advantage Soccer has over the other mainstream sports, basketball, football, baseball and hockey. 

The schedule, including USOC and the CCL, seems to be working well for Soccer fans.  As the pro season builds, the USOC plays its championship, then with the season progressing, CCL begins and takes the fans through to the end of the season.  Some MLS teams are managing to give their fans the chance to see many additional games. 

D.C. United has the possibility of  giving their fans an extra 12 home games this season through its USOC and CCL play.  By giving fans more games, they are building more tradition.  Their dedication in trying to play the fullest schedule possible is teaching their fans to respect all 3 championships. 

Learning the principles and value of each championship has been lost on many Soccer fans and it is definitely not easily understood by U.S. sports fans.  Who’s responsibility is it to teach the sports fans and all the Soccer fans?  Is it just something that’s going to take a while?  It seems that it is a shared responsibility among the leagues and the media. 

As pro Soccer progresses and becomes more mainstream, the 3 championships need to get a better explanation so the U.S. sports fans can begin to pay more attention to all the storylines. 

The NY Red Bulls may be having an awful MLS season, but they are about to embark on a whole other journey with CCL.  At this point, their games in MLS need to be played as practice and preparation for the CCL.  This is the kind of intrigue that 3 different championships brings. 

As each championship awards an automatic berth or berths to another championship, the fan stays connected and interested to their team and its prospects that exist for their season this year and the following year. 

A 30 game schedule can become a 50-60 game schedule depending on how far a team can go in the 3 championships.  When and if that happens, a team that can go the distance in all 3 in the same calendar year, will have rightly gained the title as greatest club team ever from the U.S.  The only way for them to be supplanted with the label, ‘Greatest U.S. Club Team Ever’, would be if another team came along, wins all 3 AND the FIFA Club World Cup.

David Beckham may want to take a cue from President Obama with regard to the ‘fan’ from the AC Milan friendly.  When the season is over, he may need to invite him out for some beers. 

When Beckham grew bitter and challenged the ‘fan’ to come out of the stands, he showed a side of himself that the American public had never seen.  He says he doesn’t regret his behavior, but it’s his stubborn bravado talking.  He knows he was wrong by being confrontational with a fan.

Ironically, that whole halftime scene might have been exactly what he needed.  It seemed to light a fuse in him and give him more purpose. 

Beckham is battling some of the worst scrutiny he has ever had to deal with.  It is him against the world, except he is part of a team, so now its the L.A. Galaxy and him against the world.  There’s only one thing that can help him now, his first MLS championship. 

David Beckham needs to win a championship this year with the Galaxy for many reasons.  Number one, his reputation is on the line and he needs to qwell his critics.  Number two, he wants to play on his schedule, which means going to AC Milan next year, playing the World Cup and coming back to the Galaxy mid-season.  Number three, it puts Beckham on target for his biggest undertaking, making U.S. pro Soccer a more popular spectator sport. 

A championship resolves all his conflicts. 

Winning this year with America’s biggest Soccer idol, Landon Donovan, won’t secure Soccer’s plight in the U.S., but a second, third and fourth championship may. 

David Beckham and the L.A. Galaxy need to become a dynasty to improve Soccer’s chances of going mainstream and never looking back.  Beckham knows this and he also knows that he has got his Scottie Pippen in Landon.  A dynasty can only begin with the first championship. 

The ‘fan’ did him a favor and has forced Beckham to keep focused on his desire to bring Soccer to the next level in the U.S.  When they do have beers, hopefully for Beckham and for pro Soccer in the U.S., it is after a championship and Alexi Lalas is there for the toast.

The Summer of Soccer continues to open eyes. Sports fans are taking a second look and new fans are getting hooked.  This period of time has undoubtedly been Soccer’s most historic in the U.S.  But are sports fans getting confused and could this confusion be counter-productive?

No other mainstream sport has as many international tournaments.  Basketball and hockey have the Olympics, while baseball entered international competition only very recently, playing in the Olympics and forming a World Classic. 

No other mainstream sport has an international tournament structured towards clubs/franchises only.  CONCACAF Champions League and SuperLiga are something none of the other ‘Big 4″ have. 

The U.S. Open Cup has its place among the team sports as the only one of its kind, as well.

On one hand, all of these Soccer tournaments produce something unique and special.  But what is the average sports fan supposed to think?

We send our best team to play the Confed Cup, but second-teamers to play the Gold Cup.  Why play it then?  The average sports fan doesn’t accept that the best only play some of the time, but not all of the time.

The best players play in the Champions League but second-teamers play in the U.S. Open.  Why play it then?  What’s the average sports fan supposed to think? 

After a while, it’s like which exhibition/friendly/international is this and are they playing for real?  Superliga doesn’t matter because the Mexican teams aren’t in their season.

The great European squads are here for their pre-season games, which don’t count towards their record, so their first-teamers don’t play the entire game and when they are playing, they’re trying to avoid contact and not get injured.  Are sports fans supposed to watch these ones too?

On tv, we get our choice of many games from all over the world all the time.  So, which games count?  Which matter?  Does each fan pick and choose? 

If an MLS team wins the Champions League but doesn’t win the MLS championship, who had the better season, the MLS winner or the Champions League winner? 

More soccer in America is great but wouldn’t more MLS games in a season be the better idea?  The intrigue of all the different international and national tournaments is fascinating for the soccer enthusiasts and blogs, but what’s the sports fan’s motives through all this?  Why should they care and are they able to keep up?

It’s time for the annual MLS flunks out again blog for MLS not taking action during MLB’s all-star break.  Instead of garnering potential sports media headlines for games on Wednesday, the best day of the break to play games, the headlines went to the Tour de Lance, the NHL’s Winter Classic and the comings and goings of the sports blotter.

It was a lazy day in the sports world.  Only drivel came out of Wednesday; Brett Favre’s status, Tiger Woods buzz at the British Open and free-agent signings in the NBA.  No real team sports action took place.

Why hasn’t MLS made this day its day to dominate?

Wednesday, the day after baseball’s mid-season classic, should be a showcase of action for MLS to give to sports fans in the U.S.  Show ’em the product, baby!  Give ’em the best ya got!  Forget the doubleheader.  Let’s see a television tripleheader getting started on the East coast at 8p.m., then let’s go to Salt Lake for an 8p.m. Mountain time rendezvous and let’s end it with a West coast match time promptly beginning at 9p.m.

What is so difficult about this?  Where is the planning?, the organization?

Instead, what does the sports fan get?  The mid-season baseball awards.

The USL took advantage with a game featuring Rochester and Montreal, two respectable teams.  Of course, as luck had it, if any sportsfan would have tuned in to check out the game, they would have seen no scoring.

Ahh, but,with a tripleheader, at least one of those games will be memorable.  At least one of those games will feature scoring and intrigue.  The percentages are in their favor.  Surely, one game would leave us breathless and reel in more sportsfans to the U.S. brand of soccer.  Surely, the Soccer Gods would be watching on MLS’ annual Super Wednesday Soccer Summer Special and bless the day and breathe life into this U.S. brand, and in so, guaranteeing next year’s SWSSS to be even better.

Unfortunately, we are left only to speculate on ‘what if”.

Once again, MLS executives prove they are not in tune with their product.  The Gold Cup provided the perfect opportunity for MLS to expand their fan base.  Collaboration with CONCACAF representatives could have brought doubleheaders featuring one MLS game and one Gold Cup game from the first game through to the final (This year’s format does provide doubleheaders, two Gold Cup games/one stadium, except for the final).  

A collaboration among organizations would have allowed for more stadiums to get an opportunity to host the Gold Cup, which in turn, allows more people overall to see live soccer action.  By spreading the wealth, Soccer gets more promotion and more exposure.

What this would have accomplished is good for both CONCACAF and for MLS.  By having an MLS game take place for fans who might not be familiar with the MLS product, there is a possibility of enhancing the significance of the CONCACAF Champions League.  Fans of different heritage would get the chance to see teams which may play in the Champions League.   

MLS would  have benefited by getting their product to their easiest fans to win over, soccer fans.  A game between Guadeloupe and Nicaragua in Reliant Stadium on the 9th of July with an MLS game as part of the attraction is a marketing wet dream for the Houston Dynamo.  

The biggest dilemma for the organizers of these events would have been which game becomes the headliner.  This is a problem you want to have.  Some may argue the MLS game may have more broad appeal than the Gold Cup game or visa versa.  Regardless, there are still two games to be played and to be enjoyed for fans. 

There’s also the possibility of marketing to the sports fan and getting them more heavily involved.  With 2 games to see, there’s a stronger likelihood they’ll see a great game and be pulled in more to soccer as an entertainment option.  (International doubleheaders tend to attract a specific audience already familiar with Soccer). 

Scheduling MLS games could have been made easier by getting all the teams involved during this 3 week period of 25 matches.  They could have scheduled just 25 MLS matches during this time. 

Among the 25 matches to be slotted to accompany Gold Cup matches, another brand could also fill the void.  With sufficient planning and anticipation from U.S. Soccer and CONCACAF, some U.S. Open Cup matches could have been included. 

It’s dissappointing this is not transpiring because it would have made for great theater and discussion for soccer fans.  It also seems that this idea would have garnered more national attention from ESPN.

After last night’s performances, any comparison of the two leagues must include some of the D-2 teams.  A lot of discussion by bloggers, primarily ones from this site have already addressed the issue of talent among USL and MLS.  Last night only reinforces their viewpoints and invites more doubters to the supremacy of MLS as the premier professional Soccer league in the U.S.

Of course, many MLS supporters see the US Open Cup as only exhibitions because second-teamers are playing or maybe because MLS brass refuses to promote the tournament and so the fans follow suit.  What happened last night is certainly not an aberration and has been well documented on this site by other bloggers in the last year or so.  Any MLS supporter wanting to talk down the significance of yesterday’s multiple victories by USL teams over MLS teams is only making excuses. 

If MLS executives were to take the tournament seriously and encourage participation of its teams and promote the US Open Cup more, one wonders what significance it might have on the final scores.  But, because they choose not to do this, they leave the door open for critics and pundits to believe their product is not superior. 

If MLS does not have the best product in the U.S., it is leaving itself susceptible for either a take-over or a bankruptcy.  Why pay $40 million for a franchise in a league that’s not even first class in its own country? 

What must the owners of the Seattle Sounders be thinking?

FIFA President Blatter’s statement a couple weeks back regarding MLS and its schedule was way out of touch with the reality of the American sporting landscape.  Blatter said it was imperative for MLS to get on an August to May schedule in order to compete with other leagues for the best players.

Not only is there little about the comments that made common sense, but the statements further prove how extraordinary it is that an American-born sports league is being governed by a European-run entity.  A complete rebuke by the commissioner, Garber, would have been appropriate.  But Garber didn’t say anything other than playing an August to May schedule was not likely to happen in the near future.  Garber’s complicity for MLS being governed by FIFA will eventually lead to either his demise or the league’s.

It is a sin that the strongest American pro Soccer league can not lead on its own.  Comments like these recent ones by Blatter and Garber only show that they are completely removed from the reality of the American sports fan. 

Playing from August to May is a ludicrous idea for several reasons and Garber knows this.  He should just come out and say it, but he’s too much of a coward to tell the truth.  Garber won’t tell the whole truth ever as long as FIFA is in charge because he is intimidated and scared.  He doesn’t want to say the wrong thing and lose opportunities for future FIFA tournaments on U.S. soil.  His thinking is that another World Cup here will also bring more fans to MLS. 

Garber keeps playing along, pretending that FIFA has all the answers, when he knows they don’t.  FIFA knows very little about the American sports fan’s expectations. 

Playing with the minds of the fans is not a game. It is a shame that Soccer at the professional level in the U.S. is being run by people with such little courage.

MLB scheduled its Interleague dates to start right after the finals of the NBA.  It is a great move for baseball because it rejuvenates its fans and transitions sports fans by refocusing their attention from basketball to baseball.

MLB has begun to master its technique for giving Interleague baseball the spotlight in the crowded sports calendar and has accentuated the rarity of matchups among teams by having in-state, intra-city rivals playing one week and the next week having World Series rematches, as well as other oddly encounters. 

Drama has followed baseball’s good moves.  Anyone watching Interleague play in the last two weeks will have noticed that there has been an unbelievable amount of highlights, history and walk-off wins.  The steroid controversies, ticket prices and other problems with ego-driven players that has plagued baseball does not seem to be effecting the public’s will.  Baseball is coming through this Summer in better position than originally thought by many critics and it seems to be weathering the financial storm. 

It is also no secret that MLB is working all the angles of college baseball.  The college World Series played out tremendously this year, as its format has begun to take on more tradition and more recognition with each year that passes. 

Make no mistake about it, Soccer is competing with baseball for the American sports fan’s dollar.  More than any other sport, baseball is a thorn in the side of the growth and popularity of U.S. pro Soccer because it is a constant scene stealer.  This is a reality mostly because of the timing of the seasons they play. 

But, there is no doubt to the fact that the Confederation Cup has boosted Soccer in the consciousness of the U.S. sports fan.  It proves the U.S. is nearing equal footing with the best in the world. 

What effects will possibly winning Confed Cup and winning the Gold Cup have on recruiting new fans for the struggling professional leagues, MLS, USL and NPSL?  Will the boost from the Confed Cup and upcoming coverage of the Gold Cup help the U.S. pro leagues with attendance in general? 

Attendance should rally not only due to improved international play, but also because of hotter temperatures and better weather across the country. 

Of course, if there is no improvement in attendance or television ratings, no worries.  Soccer purists have it figured to be only that ‘the public needs to have patience’ as these professional leagues develop.  After all, they are such young leagues. 

Sometimes though, it seems as if  U.S. pro Soccer can’t catch any breaks.  On the heels of the success of the USMNT in the Confed Cup comes the unfortunate link of AEG, a huge part of MLS and its future, to the July-planned Michael Jackson concert series in England.  What impact will Michael Jackson’s death have on AEG’s financials and what transferrence will be felt in MLS ? It appears certain there will be some sort of significant fallout, as AEG was way deep into its commitment with the King of Pop.

The purists want to influence popular opinion by granting God-like status to European Soccer, but the truth is that there are only so many great teams.  This standard also applies to the Spanish, German, French and Italian leagues.  MLS teams would battle most of the teams well (the bottom 75%), winning and losing close games.  The top teams would give a whipping to MLS teams. 

In terms of the Mexican, Central American and South American leagues, MLS would be competitive with all of these teams with the exception of the top tier two or three teams of Brazil and Argentina. 

It could be that MLS teams have traditionally not played well in CONCACAF because of scheduling or that its relevance was low on the totem pole for general managers, owners and fans.  This seems to be changing. There has been a lot more press regarding CONCACAF play this year. 

The newest CONCACAF schedule was released yesterday.  Look for MLS teams to give a good showing.

The truth is that the world’s Soccer leagues play just like MLS does.  There is a lot of boring Soccer out there.  There are maybe 20 great teams in the world that play with consistent innovation and determination. 

The average Soccer league teams play an exciting game only every third or fourth game.  It is the rules of Soccer that hinder teams and make their games so dull and lifeless. 

The great teams can get around the lack of drama from which the rules stifle average and good teams because the talent is so much more superb.  For these teams, the matches achieve a higher level of skill and action.

Don’t fool yourself and don’t believe the hype! 

Check out the empty stadiums all around the world.  These are the homes to average teams who play average.  Relegation and promotion doen’t change anything, it only proves the point further.  Teams fight to stave off relegation and fight to gain promotion, but the stands still remain half-full or even worse than half-full, regardless.

The U.S. team will make next year’s World Cup and has a decent chance to make it through to the second round.   The second round would mean that the U.S. is one of the top 16 countries in the world.  With a big upset, the U.S. could make the quarter-finals.  This is awesome that the U.S. has a chance to make it so far into the World Cup, most countries would die for the opportunity just to qualify.

So where does the U.S. rank in Soccer?  It’s doing well.  The national team is solid and its leagues, MLS and USL are improving.  But if MLS fails, and it very well could in the next 3-5 years, the U.S. Soccer world will turn upside down.

Photo Captions: 1st Lt. Paul Wistermayer, from Denville, N.J., takes a header in the opening round of the Combined Forces Football Tournament, a Baghdad-wide tourney featuring teams made up of American and Iraqi players. Jamaica native, Pfc. Mark Skeen, assigned to 1st Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, moves the ball, flanked by defenders.

Story and Photos by Sgt. Joshua Risner/Multi National Division-Baghdad

BAGHDAD – Dust clouds form as American and Iraqi footballers compete under a cloudy sky in the community of Salman Pak, here, May 10. However, this is not a national rivalry grudge-match; both teams are made up of Americans and Iraqis.

The game is a preliminary round of the Combined Forces Football Tournament, according to Maj. Paul Salmon, operations officer assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment. “This is the first round,” the Philadelphia native said. “The second round will be played in Baghdad.”

Soldiers from 1st Bn., 505th PIR, teamed with Iraqi Army Soldiers of the 46th Iraqi Army Division, faced off against Soldiers of 1st Bn., 82nd Field Artillery Regiment and the 3rd Brigade, 1st Iraqi National Police Division.

While it might have been easier to host the game on a Forward Operating Base, the match was held out in sector, allowing the local populace the opportunity to come out and watch, Salmon added. “This is an opportunity to exhibit the security that has been established,” he said. “It’s telling them we’re getting to a point of normalcy with the [Iraqi Security Forces] taking a positive stance of making sure this is a better place.”

An extensive information campaign preceded the event to ensure public awareness, according to Salmon. “We got with our Iraqi partners to establish a vision of how to do it,” he said. “We put up banners, did some soliciting and gave out trinkets and soccer balls to the kids.”

The advertising paid off and the spectators showed up in droves, from American and Iraqi Security Forces to local leaders. “There’s a band, there’s dancing, there’s children and sheiks and no one’s scared,” said 1st Lt. Paul Wistermayer, the assistant intelligence officer for HHC, 1st Bn., 505th PIR. “It says a lot about where we are and where this country’s going.”

Being on an integrated team has produced results with overall partnership, according to Wistermayer. “At first it was hard with the language barrier, but we gelled after a couple of practices,” he said. “It’s helped us become closer to the Iraqis in general, because we have something in common besides training and security now.”

The game itself was a very physical match, with both teams competing hard for the win. The crowd cheered for their team and booed when calls from the officials didn’t go their way. A three-piece band pepped up the crowd when the home team scored a goal, sparking a dance-fest with the 46th IA Div., along with local Sons of Iraq.

In the end, however, the visiting team took away the victory, 3-2.

“It was a good game and of course, the field artillery won,” quipped Spc. Daniel Brindell, from St. Louis, assigned to 1st Bn., 82nd FA Regt. “I never thought I’d be out here without a weapon, playing soccer with the Iraqis.”

The football match showed that a sense of normalcy is indeed returning to war-torn Iraq. The Beautiful Game, as it is called, is giving the Coalition force and the ISF another opportunity to strengthen their bond and improve their working relationship.

Sure, Soccer Moms, Latinos and Soccer players make up some of the peripheral targets, but who makes up the core target?

One U.S. pro soccer fan thinks he’s the core target demo.  He’s 41 and 1/2 years old and had been a consistent fan of the big 3, football, basketball and baseball his whole life, until recently.  As a new Soccer fan and not having been a soccer player for more than 20 years, he watches snippets of world soccer leagues, but does not go out of his way to find them.  He doesn’t have Fox Soccer Channel to watch at home, though he wonders what life would be like with it.  He doesn’t own a soccer scarf and has no plans to purchase one.   

He supports Obama and likes to talk politics, but does not consider himself a Republican or Democrat.  He doesn’t tweet yet, but has recently investigated Facebook as a possible hobby.  He likes Spanish music a lot, but does not like watching American Idol or Dancing with the Stars.  He has attended one women’s Roller Derby and one Lucha Libre and only watches short stints of MMA, but he is ready to watch American Soccer every night of the week.

He only glances briefly at NASCAR, but loved Talladega Nights with Will Ferrell.  He wants to know a little more about Lacrosse and Cricket, but not too much.  He likes to watch and play Tennis a lot, but only can take small doses of watching or playing golf.  He likes to spend time with his wife and kid and wishes he had season tickets for a professional soccer team in his area.

He likes to travel, but does not like to get too involved in popular culture.  He is college educated, but thinks college is overrated.  He likes movies based on a true story, but really liked ‘Oh Brother, Where art Thou?.’  More than anything, he is really sick and tired of the big 3 sports and is trying to wean himself off of them.

He refuses to succumb to the word ‘pitch’ to replace the word ‘field’ and still hasn’t seen ‘Bend it Like Beckham’, but he did really enjoy the documentary on the NASL Cosmos, even though he’s not old enough to remember too much about the league.  He also refuses to succumb to the abbreviation FC or nicknames like Chivas and Real, which seem foreign and pretentious.  He’s looking forward to an old name coming back, Rowdies.  He gets confused by all the different cup competitions and would rather see a longer regular season of professional U.S. Soccer.

His socioecomoic status is middle class, but he relates well to all classes; middle, middle-upper, middle-lower, upper and lower.  He lives in an apartment and his wife keeps pushing him to buy a house.  His work fluctuates, which is another reason he needs a stable, semi-daily American Soccer league, so he can get away from all of his work problems. 

Above all, he considers himself a U.S. sports fan, who deals daily with his disenchantment for baseball, football and basketball.  He looks forward to the day he can go to a franchise restaurant where the volume is up on a U.S. pro Soccer league match like it sometimes is on the big 3.

If scoring goals is the way to the heart of the U.S. sports fan, then, most definitely, MLS is not doing a very good job at attracting new fans or making more highlights for SportsCenter.  Scoring is attrociously low, making for some boring games. 

Obviously, not every match can be a great one, but too many seem lifeless and aloof.  There’s not enough of a connection with the fans. 

Saturday night’s game that saw D.C. United live up to their reputation was the exception, though.  Justice was served for the team who gelled better together and attacked more frequently.  It was a great comeback. 

It proved a team can overcome a one-goal advantage, but what about a two or three goals advantage.  Will there be a comeback from 3 to 0, where a team wins 4-3.  Has this ever happened in MLS?  These kind of games are so few and far between, it’s a pity the fans can’t get more excitement.

Two seasons ago, the average amount of goals for a regular season game was 2.27, last year the average crept up to 2.79 and this year so far, it has fallen back to 2.36.  The average score two seasons ago was 1.61 for the winner and .66 for the loser.  Last season, the average was 2.04 to .75 and so far this year it is 1.69 to .67.

There seems to be more emphasis on defense in the playoffs.  This is natural.  Teams tighten up as they fight for a championship that is closer in sight. 

Last year’s playoffs averaged 2.28 goals per game.  Winning teams averaged 1.73 goals and losing teams averaged .55 goals. 

MLS needs to find a way to be more spottaneous, to give fans more surprises and more bang for their buck.  More goals are the solution.

In Toronto on Saturday, Soccer outdrew baseball.  According to MLS-daily.com’s attendance and YahooSports attendance figures for boxscores in baseball, Toronto FC had 19,998 and the Toronto Bluejays had 18,331.

The one city MLS need not worry about in baseball is Washington, D.C.  The Nationals are the worse team in baseball.  But on Saturday, they still outdrew arguably the proudest MLS team.  They drew 19,9950 to the United’s 14,225.  Go figure that one.

The biggest story in baseball so far has been the Los Angeles Dodgers.  They look like they might run away with the division.  If they do, ultimately, that could be better for the 2 LA soccer teams.  But, surely they will be a story to watch for Southern California sports fans this summer.  It also looks like the LA Angels will hang around to try and win the division as they have hung around pretty well for each of the last 10 years , either winning divisions or making it close. 

The Dodgers drew 47,000 Saturday, while the Galaxy drew 21,000.  Surely, the Galaxy would have done better head to head Saturday had Manny not signed that big contract, and had Beckham stuck to the plan. 

At Wrigley Field, the Cubs drew 40,000, probably to be expected, knowing the history there.  The Cubs are a decent team this year and they carry a more than 100 year relationship with sports.  Their drout makes them always the lovable loser and an interesting team when they win.  It would be better for the Fire, who drew 10,000 on Saturday, if the Cubs have a crappy season, but that’s not happening apparently.   

The Fire need to be compared head to head to the White Sox too, who also seem to be contending.  In fact, because of parity, it seems many MLS cities are competing in baseball this year, like the Astros and Rangers.  But, maybe they’ll sail out of contention as the year moves on. 

The Royals of Kansas City would definitely seem a likely candidate to sail out of contention, but it doesn’t help MLS or the Wiz that the Royals are having a decent season.  They have been bad for a long time, so when they are good, it seems an anomaly, and fans start to pay attention. 

One team who won’t fall out of contention this year is the Philadelphia Phillies, the defending champs.  They are riding a wave in which the core of the team is sticking around.  The Phillies have reestablished themselves with their fans via a new stadium and may make it rough on the newest expansion team for MLS next year. 

In Colorado, the Rockies seem to be in the decline, and it appears it will be a long season for their fans.  But, the Nuggets of the NBA are picking up the slack, pulling out John Elway of Arena Football League fame to announce their starting 5 in a crazed playoff atmosphere last night.  The hockey team had a bad year and the Broncos had an unusual year, so as the Rapids average 11,000 in attendance, is it maybe a result of too much sports for one town?  5 pro teams may be one too many. 

Colorado seems a good case for general managers from MLS to look to not schedule head to head against rival sports leagues. 

It seems it is best to hold back on any judgement on the Red Bulls as everyone awaits their new stadium, which looks appealing.  Next year will be interesting to see how they do head to head versus the Mets and Yankees.

For one exhibition game tomorrow night in Laredo, Texas, teams play for more than just fine-tuning their skills while getting ready for the regular season.  It is a match with historical significance for both sides.  The exhibition breaks down borders, both literally and figuratively.  This is definitely not just another exhibition game.

In a PDL exhibition game pitting the USL Laredo Heat (2007 PDL champions) versus the Nuevo Laredo Bravos of the Mexican minor leagues, soccer is the impetus for communities coming together.  In this case, the communities are from separate countries caught up in a border war involving drugs, cartels, and politics. 

Nuevo Laredo was a violent border city for a long time.  Violence has tapered off since 2006, as rival gangs have issued a truce.  This game represents some normalcy among the two communities.  Soccer is proving to be part of the healing process.

The two organizations plan on alternating sites for an exhibition game every year.  Next year, the Heat will travel a few minutes through the border crossing over to the home stadium of the Bravos.  A press release on the Laredo Heat’s site desribes the event and gives more details on the two teams.  They are looking to turn it into a Copa Laredo type of thing. 

One of the pleasures USL brings is the potential for these kinds of breakthroughs.  There are so many stories to be found among the more than 100 teams from Canada, the Caribbean and middle America.  It’s interesting to go to a team’s website and see what promotions they are doing and what kind of stadium they are playing in. 

Through the dedication of the players, the organizational efforts of management for the various teams and the schedule that brings in neighboring cities, soccer becomes a catharsis for the fans, as it should be.

Above:  USL W-League action featuring the Los Angeles Legends vs. the Vancouver Whitecaps

The unpredictability of the USL continues. With the signing of the New York team for the 2010 season, it pushes forward. Maybe they have a better business plan for pro soccer than the critics give them credit for. Do they feel their Division 1 & 2 budget-minded leagues can outlast and ultimately uproot MLS to become the center point for professional soccer in the U.S.?

One thing is for sure though, they blew it when it comes to women’s pro soccer. They had so many of the necessary parts in place, they could have easily put a league together to travel with its D1 league.

On its website, the USL brags in one article, claiming 92 players from opening day rosters for the new Women’s Professional Soccer league originally played in the W-League of USL. www.uslsoccer.com/home/317461.html

It appears odd to see one enterprise congratulating its competition, business doesn’t normally work this way. There is a subtle difference though between leagues which might make the unusual article almost make sense. The W-League is a semi-pro or amateur league in which players can maintain their collegiate status, it doesn’t promote itself as a fully integrated professional league.

But, both leagues share one key element which defines success to them. They both seek to be family-fun affordable entertainment. This is a crucial item of interest because it shows how USL executives might have missed an opportunity.

In order for Soccer to carry forward as a spectator force with sports fans, it must find all the niches, work all the angles, and make unforgettable nights of entertainment. Two games for the price of one seems achievable.

By having a women’s pro league, USL could have an edge when it comes to promotion. A women’s pro league could become an asset in terms of profits too.

So, should USL executives have taken all the legitimate talent from its W-League and formed a pro women’s league?

If interested, read Pushing Women’s Pro Soccer in the Right Direction to see more on this topic, www.majorleaguesoccertalk.com/pushing-womens-pro-soccer-in-the-right-direction/630 .

The game Thursday night in Seattle is a big deal, it involves much more than just a soccer game between Seattle and NY. Media will be forced to cover the game and the after-effects of the game. It will have to be a part of Sportscenter and all the talking heads shows of Friday’s daytime programming. It is a pivotal moment in time for every team that makes up MLS. It may mark a turning point for the league. 

As crowd estimates for the game figure to be close to 30,000 people, this game could prove to be the biggest indicator of what the future holds for soccer and other spectator sports in the U.S. As other bloggers have pointed out, the public might be willing to budget MLS over Major League Baseball.

How interesting it is that MLS marks its beginning in a major cosmopolitan city the same week as that city’s more than 100-year old daily newspaper folds (the Seattle Post-Intelligencer)? Times are a changing, as are People’s interests.

How interesting is it that Soccer comes to Seattle one year after it lost its NBA team? The city may be rallying around its Soccer team to feel good about itself. This is a news story for Soccer lovers in the U.S.

But none of the speculation matters, if the product doesn’t deliver. The most important thing to happen for Thursday’s event, is that the game is exciting, fair, and has lots of scoring. I like a great strategic 0-0 battle as much as the next guy, but the sports fans need a 4-3 game decided in the last minutes, hopefully won by the home team.

This all coincides with reports that indicate Vancouver will be the next franchise invited to join the league. MLS sees how the energies from Toronto and Seattle are giving the league a big lift psychologically, and probably just wants to steal more teams already established from the USL. If the reports about Vancouver are right, then Portland would be the other choice. If not Portland, who do you think is the other franchise coming aboard and why do you think so?

Probably not too much, considering baseball is not played in nearly as many countries.  But, this Classic is a thorn in the side of MLS. 

As the opening week of the new MLS season approaches, the Classic will be entering its final days.  Who do you think will get more media attention?

These scheduling conflicts wouldn’t be a big deal, if MLS was an established league.   MLS needs to be more aware of the gains other sports are making, and the media attention that they are receiving.  They should always be anticipating these things, and make whatever alterations necessary.  Stealing the spotlight is the name of the game for any sport, especially with the financial times as they are.

The World Baeball Classic only gives MLB more strength for its upcoming season, regardless if the U.S. wins or not.

Basketball is another sport trying to carve a bigger share of the sporting audience.  The NBA’s developmental league, www.nba.com/dleague , has started to make more headlines.  Now, it is owned by the NBA itself, and it has become more established in certain marketplaces.  Cities like Albuquerque, Reno, Tulsa, and Austin are even more basketball oriented than they were before.

Potentially, the NBADL is stealing soccer’s thunder.  Why hasn’t MLS tried to get to more mid-level cities or area’s that don’t have one of the big 3 sports?

The NBADL ends its season in late April, but I’m sure they have plans for it to continue later and later as the years go by.  And, I expect they plan on franchising to more mid-range level cities or areas, as well. 

Of course, there’s been some good news lately for MLS in terms of the excitement in Seattle and for the new franchises to be announced soon, but, that good news is tempered by the reality that Soccer is not attracting enough sports fans, and the big 3 keep pushing their sports more and more.

These questions for ESPN Soccer Programming Staff were sent to the highest levels at ESPN, and apparently they are afraid to answer these questions.  I wanted to know the answers to corroborate what a source at ESPN had told me.  I wanted a second source.  

While discussing ESPN’s relationship with MLS, the original source indicated that ESPN would like to see changes to Soccer that differs from how MLS sees things.  These are the questions I wanted answered.

1. Are there rules changes to how soccer is being played that would make MLS more popular with sports fans in the U.S.?

2. What does ESPN think would improve spectatorship and improve television ratings for MLS?

3. Does ESPN feel that MLS is making a sufficient enough effort to attract sports fans to soccer? 

4. Does ESPN think it is healthy to have an outside organization like FIFA dictating how things should function for MLS? 

5. Does the Superliga and CONCACAF league play help or hurt the MLS? 

6. Considering that the league plays from March to November, are 40 games for each team per season enough games to matter? 

7. Did ESPN anticipate that soccer would replace hockey in popularity when it signed up with MLS?

8.  Does ESPN think it would be a good idea for MLS to pair itself with a Women’s Pro League to play in the same cities and do doubleheaders (women’s game, then men’s game) for every time games are scheduled?

What questions would you ask ESPN, if given the opportunity to hear their real answers?

The danger in the revelations of Alex Rodriguez’s (baseball’s current best player) admission, Miguel Tejada’s (former MVP) conviction, Barry Bonds’ (home run king) trial, and Roger Clemens’ (multi Cy Young award winner) legal battles is that fans may not show the kind of interest in baseball that they have shown in the past.  Scorecards and boxscores may be on their way out.  Fans might have reached the boiling point.  With the economy in shambles, the turnstiles might prove that fans have had enough, and would rather invest their money in other ways.   

This is where soccer comes in.  Can pro soccer gain U.S. sports fans, especially the ones giving up on baseball?  Peripheral baseball fans may be ready to jump ship. 

Baseball is losing fans and interest, this is no secret.  Soccer should act fast to get those sports fans that are dropping baseball, and get them introduced to the passion of soccer.  Maybe its time for a counter marketing campaign, one that focuses on baseball’s downfalls and soccer’s fun aspects of fandom.   

Even with many baseball stadiums not even half full this year, television ratings will still have an impact.  But, the empty stands may affect sports fans’ interest in watching games.  This is a question in the psychology of fandom.  For fans watching on tv, it seems better when the stadium is packed full.

Major League Baseball is betting that its new network, mlb.com, will be a hit with ratings.  Time will tell.  But, baseball is a slow game for fans to watch, and with the right presentation, soccer can nudge itself more into the minds of U.S. sports fans. 

Professional soccer in the U.S. should be looking to expand its fan base by marketing to sports fans, especially in lieu of what has happened to baseball’s credibility.  Seemingly everyday, there is negative news coming out of the sports world that affects baseball and sports fans’ views of baseball.  As a sports fan, now is the time more than ever to feel apprehensive towards baseball and excited about soccer.

These are America’s two summer sports.  They are competition to each other, whether they like it or not.

Granted, there have been some duds in Super Bowl history.  But, football seems to have found a way to keep building a new fan base, year after year.  Even when there have been dull or lopsided Super Bowls, the sport still carries over its fans to the next season.  Sunday’s game will reinforce the NFL’s reputation for being the best the U.S. has when it comes to professional sports leagues.

There are great soccer matches all the time throughout the world’s leagues, but for some reason, MLS seems to lack excitement in its games, and in its playoffs.  There was one great final a couple of years ago, but generally speaking, there seems to never be a last-minute goal or a last-minute anything in MLS.

The NFL has done an exceptional job at developing its game to give fans the most amount of drama possible.  NFL games seem to come down to the end so often, why doesn’t this happen enough in MLS?

Also this past Sunday was an incredible tennis final from one of its major tournaments, the Australian Open.  Again, tennis puts the fans at the edge of their seats.  Tennis allows the fans to go for a rollercoaster ride with the players.  One never knows when a match is put away for good.

In the U.S, there are more soccer players than football or tennis players and there are more soccer parents than football and tennis parents.  Soccer should be able to have a Super Bowl type of event in the U.S. someday, but it seems unlikely that MLS or the USL will be the league to pull it off.  Congrats to the winners from this past weekend, football and tennis.

Unfortunately, the USL at the professional soccer level, has a lack of innovation and leadership.  There’s no backbone and no guts.  It has the same losing business model as MLS.  It suffers from an identity crisis, just as MLS does.

The key statistics to follow this year will be the same as it has been for every year that MLS and USL have been existence, attendance and television ratings.  The next significant key statistic to follow is how many goals are scored per game (Offense brings sports fans in the U.S.).

In order for one of the leagues to stand out and become mainstream, they must solve the puzzle.  It is the greatest sports conundrum in the history of modern American sports, why can’t soccer make it in America? 

The pot of gold is out there, it is buried at the end of the rainbow, but the rainbow is multi-layered and multi-dimensional.  MLS and USL will never be able to count on what’s happening with soccer leagues everywhere else around the world to be able to discover the treasure.  They must figure out how to market soccer, the beautiful game, to American sports fans and not just soccer purists and/or soccer enthusiasts.

The most interesting stories to follow from USL and MLS are its business dealings.  Both leagues are so lost in what direction they want to go.  There is intrigue involved at every corner of every new stadium being built, both the small ones and the bigger ones.  Sometimes, the strategies involved with play calling, coaching and watching games does not match the intrigue and strategies involved with which developing soccer areas of D2 and Premier of USL are next to breakout and become new soccer havens. 

Who will be this year’s Cleveland City? and What will be the next small city to emerge as having the label of a pro soccer city, like Austin?

To its credit, the USL’s D1 is hanging around.  Even as it struggles for its survival, it deserves to get attention when it makes news.  Today it made news and showed all of the U.S. soccer fans that it will maintain an appropriate schedule.  With its organizational strength, the USL is indicating a commitment to provide a high level of pro soccer for fans in North America and the Carribean to enjoy. 

USL and its teams have worked hard in recent years to gather business sponsorships and marketing parterships with major and minor companies.  It has also made tremendous leaps on the international stage and in the U.S. through its participation in sanctioned pro and open league tournaments. 

USL has earned a right to be mentioned in the same breath as MLS.  It’s too bad that what USL is inhaling is the same kind of poison that MLS is swallowing.  The lifespan of these leagues is hanging in the balance. 

USL is trying to put a veil over the real issues, just as MLS is doing.  New ideas must replace the stale ones if soccer wants the big piece of the sports action in the U.S.

At first glance, this adjustment in the goalpost appears to be only for offensive purposes.  But, for every goal scored under these new conditions, there will also be one great save made by the goalkeeper. 

An American soccer league must take into consideration that sports fans will not settle for an average score of 2.5 goals per game.  It is all about offense.  Americans are looking for at least double or triple the amount of goals that are being scored now.  The ideal average score to attract sports fans to soccer in the U.S. would be 4-3. 

Making the sport mainstream should always be priority, unless soccer is only looking to fill a niche, and is satisfied being a peripheral sport in the U.S.  Raising the goalposts will create more drama, entertainment and the unexpected.  By having the posts a little higher, players can aim a little higher. 

Common sense dictates that there would be 10 times the amount of richochets than there are presently.  Goalkeepers, averaging 6 foot 3 inches, are now able to get to almost every ball level with the crossbar.  But raising the crossbar would mean that they would not be able to get to every ball level with the crossbar.  

These ricochets from the goalposts back onto the playing field will delight the fans.  Fans tend to always ooh and ahh when balls hit the posts.  With the ricochets, come more saves, more surpise and more pace. 

Recently, a still living legend, the Wizard of Westwood, John Wooden, winner of 10 NCAA basketball championships with UCLA, said that basketball should raise the rims from their present height of 10 feet.  This declaration by the most recognizable teacher of the game is an admission that the game as it is now, according to Wooden, can be better.  By raising the rim, players will have to be more creative with their shots, and thus, will rely less on dunks and put-ins.  Basketball has lost a good deal of strategic play because of the ease of the layup.

Sports must evolve with the times.  Players are taller and more athletic than players from the past.  Dimensions from the playing field should progress and change according to what is best for sports fans to enjoy. 

Regardless of the goalie’s position and distance from the goal, few scores are made that actually travel over the extended arm of a goalie who is in a standing position.  It is time for American pro soccer to take its shot.  Increase the size of the goal and see how many more attempts on goal there will be and see how much more exciting the game can be.

The whole business enterprise of women’s professional soccer is an enigma.  It is hard to figure out why the soccer braintrust with MLS has not already put a women’s league together.  It would seem that a women’s league would be the perfect compliment to MLS.  Women’s soccer is exciting, competitive, and fun to watch. 

Women’s professional soccer showed that it has a base of fans to draw from during its last try with the WUSA.  Women’s soccer was able to make itself viable as a professional commodity because of what happened with the U.S. women’s World Cup performance in 1999. 

With all the momentum that women’s soccer has accomplished since the ‘99 World Cup, and weighing where MLS is with their progress, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that they can compliment each other.  If cultivated properly, women’s and men’s pro soccer in the U.S. can take each other further along in the sports spectator spectrum. 

While it was not legions of fans that supported the sport, WUSA proved that it has the platform to stand up as a profitable spectator sport in the U.S.  MLS has proven that it too can be supported and profitable.  Professional soccer should consider profitability vs. mainstream spectator sports, but this is another discussion entirely.  The bottom line is that both can feed off each other and grow together.

Both MLS and Women’s professional soccer need each other.  MLS is struggling and this is well documented.  Attaching women’s pro soccer to MLS would be a catalyst to propel the game more with American sports fans.  It is a package that brings soccer fans more with less effort. 

The leagues, MLS and WMLS, would travel together and make a doubleheader for fans on every appearance with the exception of the playoffs.  WMLS would be treated equally at all levels with regard to the amount of teams, separate website, statistics, jerseys, etc…  Team colors for WMLS would follow suit with their respective MLS team’s colors.  Fans are the ones who would benefit, getting all the emotion, enthusiasm, and professionalism of two games and two leagues for the price of one. 

But, of course, this is not happening, even though the new women’s league, WPS ( www.womensprosoccer.com ) is playing in 2009 in some MLS stadiums.  

WPS will struggle along just as WUSA did.  Eventually, MLS will have no choice, they will have to take a women’s league on as a partner in order to save itself.  It makes common sense.

The NCAA is missing an opportunity with NCAA soccer.  The ‘Final Four’ in NCAA basketball and the ‘Frozen Four’ in hockey have achieved much more fanfare.  The basketball championships are obviously huge and have been huge for a while.  The hockey championships are getting bigger every year and are sellouts (on the men’s side) for sure. 

NCAA soccer needs a calendar adjustment, a marketing plan, and a promotional facelift.  The tournament should probably not end when college semesters are out on winter break.  Also, the NCAA and ESPN should collaborate in order to do something with the College Cup during the MLS season so that it can be cross-promoted, and maybe make up some nifty name like the ‘Ultimate Four’ for the semifinals games. 

What do you think should be the official nickname of the College Cup semifinals?  Send in your responses via comments.  Another example might be the College Cup Core Four. 

Seeing the empty stands Friday at Frisco Field in Dallas when the best and brightest of college soccer are at their pinnacle event is embarrassing for the sport.  There needs to be a solution for getting the public out to a great stadium to see 2 games.  This should not be a hard sell.  Tomorrow’s final should be a great game, but, unfortunately, with the stands empty, it gives the appearance that soccer is not supported as a college sport in the U.S.

The league has benefited from American football’s fans thirst for more football.  Play is inventive, dynamic and intense according to many of its thousands of avid fans.  The AFL’s niche has been its ability to adapt an indoor playing surface the size of basketball and hockey arenas with the fever of American football fans.

The past season seemed to be a season to build upon for the AFL.  The news of the league having to take a year to reorganize in order to reestablish itself as more financially solvent (among other things) is disturbing.

The relevance of the news to MLS is how connected the 2 leagues are in what they are trying to attain and where they are positioned when it comes to the public’s taste for team spectator sports.  Neither is a mainstream league for American sports fans. They are peripheral leagues at best.

MLS, though, seems to have much more going for it as a potential mainstream American spectator sport than does the AFL.  Firstly, the AFL directly competes with the NFL due to the fact that many fans already get enough football excitement.  But most importantly, soccer is the beautiful game with its own strategies and skills that no other sport can come close to imitating.

MLS should pay close attention to what is happening with the AFL to learn from their mistakes.  The AFL has survived mostly due to its entertainment value, but it is failing according to expectations because it has already peaked.  The AFL says that its version of the minor leagues, AFL2 will continue its operations for 2009.  The AFL should accept the fact that it will always be a peripheral sport and never a mainstream one, and then maybe it will be able to turn a profit.

MLS must look at soccer’s entertainment value and decide what needs to be done to take it beyond the periphery and into mainstream. Taking over the 4th slot from hockey is a reasonable goal, but enhancements and changes in MLS must occur and they must get done quickly.

Players in the AFL agreed on pay cuts in order to try and save their league.  It shouldn’t have to get to this level. 

It will take planning and innovation by MLS league executives and officials to carry the league forward to reach the mainstream.  They must know their sport and they must know the expectations of sports fans.

There are 6 seasons left on the contract with ESPN.  These next 6 seasons, ending in 2014, should be the indicator for success or failure.  ESPN will not renew the contract if it is a failing product. 

ESPN is the giant in sports broadcasting and will not go forward with MLS unless the future is solid.  The one caveat to add to what happens in 2014 would be if ESPN makes a bid to buy a majority stake in MLS (as it did with Arena Football, though it was a minority stake).  This would only happen if ESPN spotted an opportunity in which they felt that they could take the sport farther along on their own without MLS executives calling the shots.  It then becomes a situation where ESPN feels they know the sporting public’s interests better than MLS.

MLS must look deeper into itself if it wants to gain the respect of mainstream U.S. sports fans.  MLS executives and those with deep ties to MLS like to put a happy face on for the public when it comes to talking about the growth of the sport in the U.S., but it is hard to tell what is the true status of the sport.

There are obvious positive things to say when comparing the sport to what it was 13 years ago before its inaugural season.  There are soccer-specific stadiums.  Soccer is seen much more on television.  There are more fans of soccer now in the U.S. and there are more franchises on the MLS waiting list.  

But, how much more time does the league need before it will make a major impact on the U.S. sports landscape? And, how will this economical recession the U.S. is in effect the league’s progress? 

With the stock market the way it is now, it is hard to trust what anyone has to say about financials.  It seems that 2 accountants could look at the MLS books and come up with 2 different outlooks.  So, what is the truth about the financials of MLS?  How many years can MLS afford to languish as a cellar dweller with U.S. sports fans, yet have its franchises worth 40 million some odd dollars? 

The most important relationship for MLS to cultivate is the one with ESPN.  The relationship does not appear to be as strong as it should be.  The relationship needs work.  MLS should be listening more to ESPN’s feedback. 

ESPN bought into the relationship to broaden soccer’s appeal nationwide and make money for its network.  It has done this for nearly every sport that it has acquired broadcasting rights.

Is MLS about making money or about gaining respect around the world?  

Is MLS making a profit at this point?  It probably would depend on which accountant you believe. 

This has been a coup for MLS.  They have done the deed without having to put forth the effort normally associated with bringing along brand new franchises. 

But, without any formal partnership, who is really at fault? 

The USL has a flawed business model, and the future for its First Division franchises are all in jeopardy.  Anytime a First Division franchise shows promise, its immediate goal becomes how to make MLS.  Even as new franchises come on board with USL, such as the Austin Aztex or others, it is easily apparent that with the right moves, MLS is not too far away. 

History shows that the USL should compete directly against MLS.  In both the history of football and basketball in the U.S., leagues have merged and absorbed each other. 

In football, the American Football League (AFL), consisting of teams such as the Kansas City Chiefs, New York Jets, and Oakland Raiders, merged with teams from the NFL, which consisted of teams such as the Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers.  In basketball, teams from the American Basketball Association were absorbed by the NBA after an agreement of merger. 

Perhaps the USL’s future will be to be bought up by MLS to be a ‘minor leagues’ of sort.  But, the USL should consider that MLS is susceptible and it is possible that the USL could be the dominant league at some point in time in the future. 

As the USL sets its course for its future, with foundation at the youth and community levels as its bases, it should be more bold with its professional teams and not take for granted that MLS must be the ‘dominant’ league and the USL only a ‘funnel’ league.

The USL should approach an outsider cable television station like VERSUS to broadcast games on a regularly marketed basis.  It needs to bring its league closer to the American audience so that it can promote its Second Division teams sooner and form a more broad First Division.  A team in Charleston or Rochester is impressive with its own kind of marketing potential.  A league with many teams from cities or areas of 300,000- 500,000 or more people can also provide tons of soccer excitement. 

U.S. sports fans expect the player to be fined and suspended for more games.  But, for the game being played at that moment, sports fans want to see another player take the suspended player’s place on the field.  There is too much invested in the game for it to become a laughing affair, as the match last night did.

Soccer purists, of course, will disagree, and they will try to cite the occasions when the team down a player was able to come back and either win or tie the game.  But, this occurs infrequently.

The problem is that the rule is set up to punish not just the player and his/her team, but, also the fans. 

It was big, bad U.S. vs. small, socialist Cuba.  The match-up was an attractive one.  The drama was both surreal and potent.  The outcome was unpredictable. 

The score was 2-1 late in the first half when the referee made the debatable and controversial call.  The remainder of the game was played with 11 players vs. 10 players.  The final score was 6-1.  

As professional soccer develops in the U.S., it must revise the red-card rule to reflect the best interests of sports fans.  U.S. sports fans will not tolerate watching deliberate mismatches.  It is not fair to penalize the fan.  The ultimate competition is an even match among players, eleven on eleven.

As the economy weakens, U.S. professional soccer must consider all peripheral factors that influence how sports fans see the beautiful game.  After having planned a day at the stadium, and having paid for gas, parking, tickets and refreshments, fans would rather see a fair outcome, even when the advantage of the expulsion is in favor of the home team and goes against the opposition.  The same can be said for fans watching on television. 

No one wants to see an expulsion because it changes the complexion of the game.  Whether it is 10 minutes after the start, or with 10 minutes remaining to be played, a red-card ruins the synergy that is created from the beauty of the game.  An expulsion sucks the energy from the fan and diminishes the result. 

In many instances when the red-card comes out, it is a questionable call.  By revising the rule, professional soccer in the U.S. alleviates the possibility of the red-card being a major issue (There can always be controversy surrounding the expulsion of a particular player who may never re-enter the game).  But, from a fan’s perspective, minimally speaking, at least it can always remain eleven players vs. eleven players.  If the player that committed the foul is, upon further review, after completion of the game, deemed to have not made such a severe penalty, then his/her suspension and fine should be reversed. 

A professional league must make every attempt to take advantage of the U.S. sports calendar so that soccer can get the limelight needed to reach diehard U.S. sports fans.  Every ounce of sports spectating in America, including awards shows, is scheduled to a specific time in the year in order to gain a place within the public’s eye.  

When there is a hole or dip in the sports schedule, like the MLB all-star game, soccer must fill the spot in a big way.  This year and in past years, professional soccer has not scheduled games on baseball’s all-star break.  This is an error in judgement from those who are the decision makers for professional soccer.  Professional soccer should always try to maximize its exposure in the sports spectator calendar, especially on days when no other major U.S. sports are being played. 

There are few holes left in the sports calendar, but tradition doesn’t need holes in schedules.  Tradition can bring professional soccer to its rightful place on the U.S. sports calendar.  Tradition should be that professional soccer always stays one step ahead of both baseball and footfall.  Placing its regular season on the U.S. sports calendar for the months of March, April, May, June, and July, with its playoffs in August, will stabilize and solidify professional soccer’s niche in the sports spectator marketplace.

Professional soccer in the U.S. from March to August should build towards a 40-50 regular game season.  The schedule must find consistency from year to year and only allow interference from the most reputable tournaments(i.e. USOC, CCL).  Clarity in the schedule and more games means more opportunities for pro soccer to make a lasting impact with U.S. sports fans.

The perfect start to the 2009 season would be the first day of spring, Monday, March 23rd.  Monday Night Futbol would be the perfect anecdote to keep the fans engaged and enthused over a 20-week professional soccer schedule. 

The schedule should permit for play Thursdays through Mondays.  Friday nights will see a heavy schedule.  Saturdays will see a heavy schedule for day and night, while Sunday will see a heavy schedule for day and late afternoons.  Monday and Thursday nights will see a lighter schedule. 

Teams should prepare to travel for 2-3 game sets (against the same team) over a 3 to 5 day period, similar to professional baseball.  There should be games to view on television from Thursdays through Mondays all over the country.

Scheduling is the most critical element to ensuring that soccer gains the most exposure possible.  Groups of games must start one after another.  By staggering the start times, fans watching on television, should be able to see games in a consecutive manner.  Start times need to be prepared long in advance.

The game of Soccer, like all other American spectator sports, must be tinkered with from time to time in order to maintain its entertainment value for the newest generation.  But, the sport must not be altered significantly to where it is not recognized as Soccer.  The integity of the sport must be kept intact (10 on 10 where no one touches the ball with their hands and one Goalkeeper for each side).

In sport, it is common for rules to vary from country to country.  FIBA, the International Federation of Basketball plays its games under its rules, including a trapezoid key (paint).  The U.S. adheres to these rules during international play and reverts back to its own rules for play in the NBA.

All strategies for delivering the product must adjust to the spectatorship landscape of the U.S. sports fans.  If done with an American flavor, soccer can be an enduring spectator sport in the U.S.  It has the ability to provide unique drama, escape and entertainment.  It is definitely possible to raise the American consciousness for the appreciation of Soccer and it can become the 4th most dominating spectator sport in America. 

Soccer needs to be serious, competitive, fun, and unapologetically American.  The rules changes and marketing schemes must take responsibility in perfecting the art in the sport.  They must make sure that the skill involved in the sport is showcased and that every match is played with contemporary sports drama and theatre.  Action, tension during the contests and common sense in the rules must take precedence so that every game has the potential to rise to the occasion and be an unforgettable sporting spectacle.

There is a lot that must be done for American soccer to succeed.  Sports fans in the U.S. expect more from their spectator sports.  They are different than sports fans from other parts of the world.  They are more sophisticated and they have been spoiled.  The greatest moments in the recent history of sports have occurred in American sports or with American athletes.

The sport has been built-up significantly over time at the youth level and upwards through high-school and college levels.  But, in order for professional soccer in the U.S. to derive the most amount of fan support possible, the marketing must become event-driven and reach the diehard sports fans.

Soccer can become a fabric of the American sports fans environment just as football, basketball, and baseball have consistently achieved from year to year.  Soccer must think progressive in their rules amendments and consider what makes 4th down, the 3 and 2 count and the last-second shot so appealing to sports fans.