What will happen with Chivas USA?

A bomb dropped on Major League Soccer yesterday. The league is buying Chivas USA from Jorge Vergara and plans to keep the team in LA, for now. But let's not kid ourselves--we saw this coming.

If anything, a Chivas rebrand might be the best thing that could happen to the league if it really wants to move on to better things. Since 2005 the expansion side has tried to turn LA into a city of two soccer teams. For a time it worked and Chivas had serious quality when Preki was coach. Since then, however, the team has struggled and has been a type of "assured-points game" for stronger teams whenever they played.

The original intent with Chivas USA was to provide the significant Mexican presence in Southern California with a team they could truly call their own. The "Rebaño Sagrado" was the perfect fit, it seemed, since it is one of the most prominent teams in Mexico. 

One of the more curious things about the early Chivas USA was the inclusion of a heavy Mexican developmental contingent, which in retrospect was more of a stunt aimed at the local population than dealing with soccer reality. It was believed that Mexican players had an advantage being developed in a soccer community but this never translated into quality on the pitch. This, in addition to a parade of coaches, added to the misery experienced by the LA team.

But does Los Angeles really need a second soccer team? Are there really enough Chivas USA fans out there or were they always de facto Goats fans because their main team was Chivas Guadalajara? The latter is more likely to be the case.

Indeed, a case can be made that The American Goats was an experiment and that, however flawed, offered something fundamentally different from the glamor of the LA Galaxy and all that it means to the city. Chivas was often an afterthought only to be brought up for the so-called SuperClasico. And yes, at times those games were fun when Sacha Kljestan, Jonathan Bornstein and Brad Guzan played for the Rojiblancos, but the "derby" never quite caught up and was overshadowed by the Portland-Seattle rivalry when it arrived.

A move away from the LA area would serve the former Chivas team best and would benefit both the Galaxy and the league as a whole. And the team need not move too far. San Diego has been hoping to land a tier 1 soccer team for a while now, and deservedly so. It is a town rich in soccer culture and a strong market with Mexican influence that would provide a great fan base.

Los Angeles continues to run the soccer world in this country.  From Galaxy II's development in USL to the rebranding of Chivas. What else can the City of Angels give to American soccer?

Is 24 teams too much for MLS?

Photo credit: MLS

 

Yesterday American soccer fans received an interesting bit of information about the future of the game in this country: Major League Soccer was looking to add 4 more teams to the league by the year 2020. Is this a good idea?

Let's think back to the year 1981. The league in which Pele and Beckenbaur played expanded to 24 teams in 1979. After 3 years with an expanded field of teams at 24, the North American Soccer League (NASL) contracted to 21 teams, then 14, 12 and finally to 9 in 1984. After that, the league folded and pieces of soccer were played in smaller venues with very little attention by most of the population.

The reason NASL failed was mostly due to the superclub Cosmos earning most of the attendance and poor planning in the expansion to new venues that weren't carefully analyzed for potential followers of the sport, a lack of the necessary funds, stadiums and coverage. Very few teams made it on the air and Americans lost interest in what was always considered a fringe sport.

Is all of this true today? No. But all the pieces aren't there yet either. Early in the 2000s, both teams in Florida (Tampa and Miami) folded and the league remained at 10 teams until the entrance of Real Salt Lake and Chivas USA in 2005. To this day, teams like Columbus, New England, Chivas and Dallas trail the league in attendance and attention, even when they are playing well. And even though some may argue for better management, these clubs should show more progress off the pitch in order to warrant an increase in the number of teams in the league.

There are success stories for sure. Kansas City has seen a tremendous resurgence with new leadership, a new stadium and great player development. Houston's BBVA stadium also allowed for the team to continue with its strong attendance numbers. Then there is Cascadia with Seattle and Portland's sellout crowds for every game. Soccer never left those cities and is here to stay for the long term.

Television coverage is also at an all-time high with the addition of NBC Sports Network and continuing coverage from ESPN and Univision. It is still rare, however, to see matches in non-cable networks like other sports enjoy, although national team coverage has grown through FOX and NBC. This, perhaps, is the next big thing the league has to do. Right now, realistically, this is not financially suitable for most networks due to the reach and requirement of other competing sports. 

If teams such as Orlando and markets like Miami or Baltimore are able to get enough ground support then this could work out, especially if soccer specific stadiums are added. This, most of all, is the key economic component, for rental of bigger football or baseball stadiums drain capital from ownership.

There is also a question of players. Can the US produce good, quality individuals? It can but with a good reserve league and a full suite of academies at all levels for all teams. College soccer can only do so much. Foreign stars are also difficult to acquire in their prime while the league fails at international tournaments and most stars want to be in New York or LA, something akin to what occurred with the NASL. These are cosmetic, societal problems to deal with that make an addition of 24 teams more complicated.

Ultimately, if the concerns above can be addressed properly and in a timely manner, increasing the field of teams to 24 could work to enhance the sport in America and also to increase player quality and perhaps propel the national team to greater heights. Truthfully, the best course of action would be to enact a promotion/relegation procedure to the league, but this remains economically unfeasible for at least a couple of decades.

New York's second MLS team arrives

Photo credit: MLS

New York City FC will be MLS's 20th, and most expensive franchise. After 17 years of trying, the league finally achieved their goal: a second team in the New York metro area. Instead of dwelling on details better covered in other pages, I will instead devote this post to the significance of the club and what it may mean for the league and players in this country.

The New York area is home to around 19 million people. Just driving through there you get a sense of the enormity of the population, not to mention its worldly inhabitants. You can hear a dozen languages at every street corner. Thus, New York acquired multiple teams in every sport, including big names like the Giants and Jets in American football and the Yankees and Mets in Major League Baseball. So why should soccer be any different?

At one point it was thought that the New York Cosmos would come back to the big scene. What with the inclusion of Pele as a backer and managing by Giovanni Savarese and Carlos Llamosa. But Dom Garber and MLS directives were very good at keeping the secret about who would build the team, what it's brand would be and where they would play.

Enter Manchester City and the New York Yankees. Suddenly a big name in soccer and a major brand in world sport enter the scene and establish the team. Significant, because although other squads have "training" sessions with big teams (Real Madrid with Real Salt Lake), and Chivas Guadalajara might consider Goats USA to be their satellite team, adding a European squad and the Yankees is much more impressive. The cost alone, at $100 million, benefits the league and players and sets the stage for even more greatness in the American soccer scene.

So how do we take this latest step in MLS? The league has proven that it has what it takes to build new teams and followers. One must only look at the Pacific Northwest, the Canadian teams, the new stadiums being built and the crop of homegrown players and big name stars. A second New York team adds a subway derby, a cross-town rivalry better than Chivas-Galaxy ever was. In fact, Chivas might re-brand and/or move out of the city. In reality, capitalizing on the Mexican population and the biggest brand in Liga MX wasn't enough to maintain attention or build a bigger fan base. New York FC must learn from this. They should have their own stadium and bring big name players. And maybe, just maybe, Red Bull Arena and the NYCFC stadium might sell out every match the way the Sounders and Timbers do.

MLS Attendance Statistics 2012 Week 6

The major markets in New York, LA and DC are all showing slightly negative trends compared to the average for last year. It is, however, just the start of the season. And maybe it has to do with how the team is performing? Perhaps for LA that is the case. Indeed, the reigning champs have won only twice this season. Worth considering also is their cross-town rivals, Chivas USA. They were trailing the lot in relative attendance terms and we were getting a bit worried with the low numbers. However, these numbers have been amended to reflect the true capacity at the Home Depot Center for Chivas: 18800.

Another city with a marked change from last year, and indeed past seasons, is Toronto FC. The first MLS Canadian team has yet to win this season, with their sole victory coming in LA in Champions League play. Their numbers are down sharply by over 1,000 seats. In relative terms they are at 83%, a far cry from the sold-out BMO Field of a couple of years ago. Aaron Winter will need to work something quick to get this team back in shape ahead of the Canadian Championship battle for a Champions League berth. 

The numbers:

Team	Average	Relative	Median
DC	13817	56	14410
KC	18671	101	19600
NE	11657	58	11657
CLB	14857	73	14857
TOR	19163	83	18944
CHI	14282	71	14282
NYRB	17184	68	17114
PHI	18470	100	18526
HOU
MON	41016	202	41016
LA	22233	82	21734
CHV	11853	63	13372
DAL	15072	74	14184
SJ	14289	136	10525
COL	13954	77	13954
RSL	18554	93	18531
SEA	38419	100	38332
POR	20438	100	20438
VAN	18592	89	19394

MLS Attendance Statistics 2012 Week 5

Week 5 has seen further normalization of the attendance figures for most teams. Thanks to the opening at Montreal, however, the average attendance in 2012 is higher than 2011's by close to 2000. The Red Bulls have slipped further in attendance figures and are now at -2411 relative to 2011 due to smaller number of fans in the last two games. This despite the resurgent Henry and his partner Kenny Cooper, who are obliterating opposition left and right after the team started the season at 0-2.

There is a lot about the MLS statistics on this page that deals with "relative" attendance. That is, the total number divided by the stadium capacity. I always find it more instructive by looking at the whole picture. Century Link Field typically holds twice the available seats at Colorado's Dick's Sporting Goods Park. This doesn't, however, mean that the Rapids' stadium isn't full at 18,000. 

To better illustrate the concept of relative attendance for new visitors to the website, I would like to show the average attendance vs relative for the Western Conference. Notice that both Seattle and Portland sell out their games and are therefore at 100%, but their average attendance differs by about 18,000 seats. A team like Chivas plays at the Home Depot Center with a capacity of 27,000. Their low attendance numbers, coupled with low relative attendance relegates the squad to the lower left quadrant of the plot. However, this relative figure may need to be revised since it looks like the Goats have lowered their expected attendance figures, as can be seen by the large plastic Chivas mats covering seats on the end stands.

MLS Attendance Statistics 2012 Week 4

Week 4 and a few changes and trends begin to appear. First and perhaps most importantly are the two biggest markets in MLS: LA and New York. The Red Bulls remain south of last year's 19,691 average despite this being the first few weeks of the season with less distractions from football or baseball. The New Jersey base for New York may have been necessary from a logistics point of view but would it have been better to put Red Bull Arena elsewhere? Would a second New York team make a difference? We hope so, especially if a good location for a stadium is secured.

For LA its two teams have vastly different situations. Chivas is ailing at the moment both on the soccer pitch and the stands. Its relative attendance is less than 50% and averages 11,853, a figure just over the capacity for San Jose's team. The Galaxy has bigger attendance margins due to its superstar trio but have only sold out their opening match versus RSL and sit at over 80% capacity averaged over the first three games.

The numbers:

Team	Average	Relative	Median
DC	14742	60	14742
KC	17469	95	17469
NE	12925	65	12925
CLB	18197	89	18197
TOR	19507	85	19507
CHI	18075	90	18075
NYRB	17220	68	17220
PHI	18443	100	18443
HOU
MON	58912	290	58912
LA	22263	82	21324
CHV	11853	44	13372
DAL	16555	81	16555
SJ	16171	154	16171
CRD	13954	77	13954
RSL	18577	93	18577
SEA	38438	100	38304
POR	20438	100	20438
VAN	20197	96	20197

MLS Attendance Statistics 2012 Week 3

Welcome to the new MLS attendance statistics graphics for the 2012 season. To complement the changes made by MLS in terms of unbalanced schedules, the weekly format of some of the plots (percent attendance, total attendance per week) have been removed and will no longer appear. Instead, more intuitive plots will be shown like the relative attendance median (a measure of the percentage of the stadium filled on any given week) along with the median and mean attendance values. There will be some sporadic supplemental plots in high-definition via the quasi-weekly updates.

To start 2012, only Chivas seems to be having trouble from the start. Perhaps this is another sign that the club needs to change the way it's managed, change the structure, or move the team. San Diego seemed to be interested when I last checked. The Goats trail far behind their season average for 2011 and this should be the relative peak of the season for some of the more established teams. It's true that the novelty eventually wears off but the expansion markets seem to be doing pretty well even after a few years have passed: Houston, Salt Lake, Toronto, Seattle.

The totals as seen on the plot above are bolstered by Montreal's record-setting opening day (58,912) at the Olympic Stadium. Their regular home at Saputo Stadium has a max capacity of around 20,000. San Jose also chose to play outside of their Santa Clara home for their match versus Houston and their attendance reflects that when looking at the relative values. Also this season are Houston's stadium (22,000), the expanded attendance at Seattle (38,500) and Portland (20,000).

Compared to 2010, the initial 2012 numbers look even more impressive. As the season goes on this difference should subside somewhat but attendance should have another record year this season.

MLS 2011 Attendance Statistics Game Week 15

Sorry for the long lapse in stats analysis. It's been quite busy elsewhere and only one person manages the desk at Futbol USA. One of the more important events in the past few weeks is the inauguration of Livestrong Sporting Park in Kansas City, the new home of Sporting KC. Beautiful location and one the national team will remember for a while (just see some comments by Edu, Donovan and Co. at ussoccer.com). In MLS play, the stadium has been sold out and is a welcome sight after years at cavernous Arrowhead Stadium and CommunityAmerica Ballpark (slightly over 10,000 capacity). Because of KC's stadium and the fact that they just now started playing at home, its numbers will look relatively inflated. Remember that it's doubling its previous capacity so crowds will be bigger.

As was posted before, the median of the attendance can now more appropriately be used to gauge the approximate attendance any particular team has had this season. Above is the average - median relationship for the Western Conference. Unlike the East, there is more of a one-to-one relationship for most stadiums. Notable differences are Dallas and Chivas. Dallas had higher attendance for its opening day and when the Galaxy came to town. The same goes for Chivas (sellout at the HDC for the SuperClasico).

World Cup USA: the game is in US

This is just a short message to my loyal readers. Saturday's game in Chicago was a great success in terms of fan attendance. I've heard some rumblings that tomorrow's game versus Colombia at PPL Park in Chester, PA, won't be so hot. Hopefully this will not be the case. We, the soccer fans of this country, are proud of our home and we are ready to host the greatest spectacle of sport once more. The game is in US.

A few words from reputable characters:

Observations: US vs Czech Republic

It was a disappointing end to an interesting and eventful night. Czech's go-ahead goal shouldn't have been and the defense should have done better. But, instead of looking at the game, I'd like to focus on the players:

• Guzan: Very rusty, and it showed at times. He also showed why he's on the team. Quick saves and good positioning.
• Onyewu: Was at fault for the first Czech goal, looked rusty at times but very good on the ground. May not start in South Africa but in the 23.
  
• Bornstein: Speedy recovery in plays but many errors that caused trouble for the defense. In 23, could be replaced by Pearce/Bocanegra/Spector.
  
• Goodson: Excellent game for the central defender. Assisted on Gomez's goal. In 23, may start ahead of Onyewu/DeMerrit.
• Pearce: His play was weak tonight and didn't outdo Bornstein. Good going forward. Not in 23.
  
• Cherundolo: Beaten in Czech's second goal. A bit lost at times but had generally good positioning throughout the match and very good going forward. In 23, Spector may get the nod ahead of him at right back.
  
• Edu: Opportunistic goal, his new trademark. He was steady and dangerous in the midfield and broke up play by the opossing team. The 4th goal was his fault. Not a great switch to D. In 23, starter alongside Bradley.
• Holden: Excellent match. Assisted on the first goal. His crosses were great. His defensive play could improve, however. In 23, probably a supersub or interchangeable with Dempsey.
• Beasley: This was the Beasley we all know and remember. Quickly to the attack and defense, great passing. In 23, supersub and/or interchangeable with Donovan.
• Torres: Had a quiet night but impressed enough to remain in the team. In 23, substitute mainly.
• Sacha Kljestan: Not a bad night, but he's still behind many others in the initial 30. Not in 23.
• Alejandro Bedoya: Not very effective and this may have cost him the trip to the World Cup. Pearce's faults could put him into the 23.
  
• Robbie Rogers: Lively and speedy but not enough to replace others in the squad. Not in 23.
• Edson Buddle: Worked hard but was unlucky going forward. Could make 23 in favor of Johnson/Gomez/Bedoya.
• Eddie Johnson: A bit more effective than Buddle. His play set up Edu's goal in the first half. Could make the 23 in favor of Buddle/Gomez/Bedoya.
• Herculez Gomez: Golazo! Always dangerous but needed to pass the ball better. A great supersub in South Africa. In 23 unless Pearce/Bedoya/Johnson combination doesn't work for him.
• Brian Ching: Possession and experience. In 23 and could start along with Donovan/Altidore/Dempsey.

The 4-2 score is tough to swallow. Treat this as a pre-season withouth the starters. However, about 3 or 4 that played tonight might actually start in the World Cup. Tonight was about showing us who can still cut it and who has lost their chance. Gomez, Beasley, Holden, Edu and Goodson stepped up. In any case, we'll learn tomorrow who will actually go to South Africa. Saturday will showcase more, if not all of the starters.

MLS 2009 Attendance stats week 30

Back to club business. MLS has seen its share of ups and downs lately. From DCU's inability to win important wins at home, to an FC Dallas that suddenly has a last playoff berth in sight with the aid of the resurging Cunningham. In the stands, Chivas has lost its momentum while Salt Lake, Dallas, New England have seen important gains that bring them at least level with last year's numbers. With the closing of the season next week, it looks like some of the numbers we have will stand as they are.

A closer examination with the aid of the figure 2009-2007 we can see the pre-post Beckham effect. His influence felt late in 2007 and died down in 2009 after the AC Milan soap opera. This year, it's Seattle and Toronto that make the difference. Indeed, dropping Seattle and Toronto from the average places the average season attendance to 14411 from 15895. Plenty of things to consider before 2010 and Philadelphia's introduction. Will we see more of the same? Will Seattle's attendance tumble out of the honeymoon phase? Only time will tell. Again, all stats are derived from MLS official numbers and the graphics are in the right column of this page.

MLS 2009 Attendance stats week 26 & 27

And we're back from international play. Whilst some of our ambassadors abroad are struggling for playing time (Onyewu, Bradley, even Adu again), and others are making their mark (Torres and Orozco in Mexico), our own MLS is coming down to the wire. Arena's Galaxians are close to an automatic playoff berth as long as they don't implode as they did versus Dallas this past weekend. So, are people coming to the games? With the NFL and college football in full swing, it would be hard to see many full MLS games. And yet some manage.

Chivas has lost some of its attendance impetus but places like DC, Columbus and Salt Lake City are making up ground and/or exceeding it. A look below at difference between 2009 and 2007 shows how the fall of Beckham has strongly affected their attendance numbers. Also notice, however, that places Chivas has actually seen an increase and Toronto, Houston and RSL (strong markets) have remained about the same. Clearly, ground for improvement but also nice positives as well. Hopefully some of the weaker markets can learn to emulate the stronger ones.

All's forgiven: Becks lights up LA

Call me a believer. Yes, Bruce Arena is a catalyst for this new LA Galaxy team, but tonight it was pure Becks magic. Sellout (27000) crowd at the Home Depot Center, a gritty match, plenty of shots and another beauty from the free kick specialist. No, it wasn't a free kick that he scored with, but it was his poise and experience and knowledge of the ball that allowed Becks to score against Chivas tonight. The Goats put up a great fight. Nagamura, Marcos Santos, New-comer Jesus Padilla, Maykel Galindo and much-maligned Sacha Kljestan all showed up tonight.

And it's because tonight was much more special due to the game's proximity to the playoffs and how tight the standings are. Any bad streaks or false moves could doom any team at this point. With this result, the Galaxy gains sole possession of second place at 38 points whilst Chivas shares fourth in the West with Real Salt Lake.

There has been much said about TV ratings of MLS and crowd support, but today was a rebuttal to all that noise. The boys came to play. The crowds came to watch. Their star scored. They cheered. And they won. No nasty banners, no pushy fans yelling unnecessary obscenities, no boos. Just the sport. Plain and simple.

MLS 2009 Attendance stats weeks 12 & 13

Two weeks in one update... International dates are gaining momentum and attention these days. Lately RSL has somehow come back to have two near sellouts in their home showings. Not bad. Right now I'm watching a very discrete game between Dallas and San Jose at the Pizza Hut Park. Empty seats abound.

Looking back to a difference between current attendance average figures against the final figures on 2007. It's basically the same pattern as 2009-2008 difference except for Chivas, which has gained momentum recently both on and off the pitch. A nice turn of events, no?

Tim Howard: outstanding goalkeeper

Simply amazing. Howard was the FA Cup here for Everton over the weekend. Two penalties stopped against none other than Dimitar Berbatov and Rio Ferdinand. Clearly, we have an awesome superstar here, not to mention the fact that he's a former Man U keeper as well. It's no fluke that the back line of the US national team just seems to gel better when he'd directing things from his goal.

Meola. Keller. Friedel. Hannehman. Perkins. Guzan. The list goes on. Outstanding US goalkeepers making their mark here and abroad. They have the most impressive resumes of any US player. Why is that? I venture a couple of educated guesses:

1. Americans love upper body-oriented sports: Baseball, Basketball, Football. All rely on arms mostly although speed and motion are important as well. This fact allows for a seamless transition into soccer. Much less knowledge of the sport is necessary. Saves, reflexes, elasticity are important. Think diving for a football/basketball. I venture this notion also because my wife was a goalie back in the day. She also played basketball and rugby. Seamless transition, right?

2. Development. Around the world, goalkeeping is often an afterthought. You need scorers and playmakers first, defense second, and if you have a chance maybe a goalkeeper too. That's the way it goes usually. Just facts. But here in the US all facets are taking seriously, including goalkeepers. It is part of the developmental process and starts with boys and girls at the youngest of levels.

That's my rant for today. Feel free to share your thoughts. Meantime, a few seconds with Howard, stopping mighty Manchester United, and reaching for glory in the FA Cup.

An ode to SuperClasicos: Chivas vs Galaxy

They exist all around the world. In-town rivalries are unparalleled in their excitement and passion regardless of the sport, current level of play or rivals, stars in each team, or coaches. From Man U - Man City to Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid, Inter vs AC Milan, Boca vs River, Chivas vs Atlas, Rangers vs Celtic, Emelec vs Barcelona, Mets - Yankees, Jets - Giants, it doesn't matter. Now MLS has its own in-town game: Chivas USA and LA Galaxy. And what a rivalry it has become.

Indeed, yesterday's match wasn't unprecedented at all. 3 red cards, several yellows, no goals and lots of passion. A Beckham-less Galaxy is looking lethargic and anemic at points and no Berhalter, Saneh or Lewis (all national team vets, and old) can save Bruce Arena's side. This team is looking more like the Mexican national team. Chivas, on the other hand, has a splendid attack, imposing defense and is unbeaten this season. Preki (also a national team veteran) has done wonders as coach of the mid-decade expansion side.

Donovan looked a bit lost without much service from the midfield. Gordon knew the importance of the match and acted like it. This may be why he got ejected for two infractions... dissent of the ref and a random foul behind cameras a-la-Zidane. But that's what these games are about. Nagamura (Chivas) felt it too and got unjustly ejected after a soft yellow for a foul against Donovan. Berhalter also tackled Eskandarian in midfield after a bad bounce nearly left the former DC man one-on-one versus Ricketts. And Ricketts came up big as a solid 'keeper. Something sorely needed after Cronin's debacle last season.

And the commentators also reacted well to the superclasico atmosphere. Lalas felt for his former team (manager of Galaxy during the Becks circus) and fellow one-time teammate John Harkes also drowned in the atmosphere. Indeed, JP Delacamera had a nice remark: "Looks like you two would like to be on the field."

So bring it on, SuperClasico. There will be a return match at the Home Depot Center in mid-July before Goldenballs returns to MLS. Another chance to see a good rivalry. Not much soccer yesterday but plenty of grit and emotion. In the end, when it comes to clasicos, all bets are off.

Concachampions: straight apathy or are we that bad?

Concachampions, i.e. the newly formed "champions league" of the North, Central America and Caribbean Federation (CONCACAF) has started with a fizzle when it comes to MLS. Apathy? Yes, perhaps. The Concachampions (as the media likes to call it) happens to lie at a crossroads of final games in the regular season for MLS (and yes, no actual "league" like in European soccer) and the play-offs. Teams like New England (2nd in the east and arguably one the best teams in MLS) and Chivas are preparing for the gruellengly annoying post-season. The Goats are actually out of play-off contention so you'd hope they would at least try against a limited Panamanian side. So there's the scores: Joe Public 4 - NE 0. Think SuperBowl and the Miami of last season against the unstoppable Patriots (prior to the superbowl). Then think Miami beating New England 60-0. Weird, heh? That's right. That's how it went down tonight. NE players didn't take it seriously and lacked any cleanliness in final touch, Matt Reis looked like he was playing with kids in his backyard and the defense was more interested in the upcoming football (gridiron) season than in this game.
Chivas was a bit different. Preki played a sneaky game with lots of attacking options. So what happened there? Well, theirs is a different tale. . . Kljestan missed a penalty early in the game (yes, the same hero of the Olympics), the Tauro (Panama) goalkeeper wasn't ejected, and Jonathan Bornstein was red carded. And where some teams would have come back from such adversities to win a match against a "group of friends," as Andres Cantor likes to call them, from Panama, the USA Goats faltered and faded and remembered that there is much more to play for inside MLS.
What's wrong with this picture? Well, this tournament was suppose to showcase the American league's dominance (if at least a 2nd to Mexico) in the region. We are left with DC and Houston. Those are more dominant sides that know how to play abroad and get the results needed. The group stage will be played in the midst of end-of-season games and play-offs and we're left wanting more answers from our MLS officials. I agree with claims that the league's teams are just not deep enough and that the way the pay goes these days there's not much room for improvement. I'll give them that much. But they should also remember that winning this tourney gives you the opportunity to play competitively against the best in the region and that the end result of winning the title lets you play against the best in the world in the World Club Tournament.
MLS must not look inwards. Some attention should be payed to the scheduling of these Concachampions games but the rest is up to the teams and to the fans. Let's move on from the baby days of a wannabe league that everyone scoffs at. We have real stars these days and export real stars worth $10 million. Club football doesn't end with MLS but instead becomes more with international tournaments. WHy is it so nice then when Barcelona plays Manchester United? It is my hope that we can address some of these issues soon or stars that were toying with the idea of MLS play may think twice and choose to play in the Emirates, Bahrein, Saudi Arabia or Quatar*.

* Those are all fine leagues with fine pay by the way, just not anywhere close to the USA soccer fans.

Commentary: Club America de Mexico interested in expanding into MLS

As I posted on the MLS Rumors website, XM Satellite Radio's XM Deportivo Deportes De Primera radio show reported that Club America de Mexico is looking to "reach out" to its considerable following in the United States and also look for partnerships with MLS. Michael Bauer, recently elected president of said institution, discusses among other things, participation of America in MLS.
As to whether this is an exploratory partnership a-la-Bundesliga or a rebranding of one of the MLS teams or acquiring a new team remains to be seen.
From some of the comments posted following the story there are two clear sides to the coin: Chivas USA didn't work and this is an American league, and the other, potential rivalries could spark up with Chivas or other teams and an additional border state team could take shape. I might even venture to say FC Dallas could change names (their attendance is meager at best right now). Further, maybe Chicago--as suggested by soccer365.com some time back--could also rebrand and have an excuse to cling on to Blanco for another season (his contract expires at the end of 2008). [Also note that Chivas USA is among a few teams that have seen increases in attendance this year... just look at the 07-08 difference plot.]
Although I tend to side with some of the fans and bloggers out there that this should be an American league, there is nothing wrong with having teams be named after teams abroad. It actually happens to be common practice in Latin America and, and nobody seemed too concerned about this, teams such as FC Barcelona and Boca Juniors have expressed interest in starting up an MLS franchise with their name on it.
We must also be objective and realize that there is a large Hispanic (mainly Mexican) population in the States and that these are soccer-addicted individuals. I also see nothing wrong with repatriating players such as Orozco to play for the red, white and blue. Maybe more transfers will take place between the MLS and the Mexican Leauge. This would be a great deal for the MLS, accruing increasingly more experience against foreign teams that may get the league play in tournaments outside the SuperLiga and Concachampions. . . but that is another thread.

MLS Attendance stats week 7

I have updated the attendance figures and loaded them onto the right column complete with attendance averages and relative averages for each conference. I've done a great deal more in the way of graphical analysis that I will share with you throughout the season. In the meantime I've inserted pie graphs of the current attendance figures and how each team's attendance relates to the other teams in its conference. In the east DCU and TFC lead the way with their fervent fans. I must note that only DC and KC have had 4 games. All other teams have 3 home games each. Out west the story is different. Here we see the large Beckham effect with 5 home games for the Galaxy at or near capacity (27,000). Honorable mention to the great fans of recently-expanded RSL. May their new home continue to bring fans and turn into a new cauldron in the west. Also note that San Jose has a much smaller stadium (Buck Shaw, 10,500) and thus will have a modest presence in this table. Chivas lags far behind, although this may partially be due to unrest amongst factions of its supporters. Enjoy the figs and let me know if there's something else you'd like analyzed and shown here.