Cascadia Forever: Dempsey and Seattle face Portland

Photo credit: Portland Timbers

 

At the start of the match on ESPN2 we all knew the stakes. For Seattle it's their home-opener, of sorts, as Clint Dempsey makes his first start in front of his new home crowd. For Portland it is something to prove, to remain ahead of the Sounders and closer to the playoffs. For the league it's a seminal moment where their biggest rivals play in the biggest stage full of stars and a sellout crowd that rivals and surpasses most in the world.

At halftime, on the pitch, Portland seemed like the better side. Diego Valeri's wonderstrike hit the woodwork and the Portland faithful held their breaths and closed their eyes in disappointment. Still zero - zero.

For Seattle one thing was clear. Sharlie Joseph and Brad Evans in the midfield weren't allowing the width and pockets that Dempsey needs for his brand of magic. Eddie Johnson also looked a bit lonely out there even though he had a national team striking partner at his side.

The second half was different. In what should have been the true starting lineup, Mauro Rosales came in for Seattle in place of Sharlie Joseph and changed the game with a perfect free kick lob that Eddie Johnson put away.

Most of the second half was Seattle's. Portland seemed lost at times and Valeri rarely saw the  ball and Nagbe was left alone to try kicks from long range. Valencia did not provide the necessary energy when he replaced Ryan Johnson and Will Johnson's presence was sorely missed.

Seattle won tonight and so did the league. Dempsey may not have scored but he played, he his presence felt to the Timbers and to the newly-adoring fans. For the Timbers this was only their fourth loss of the season. Not a good time to start losing more games but with two games in hand compared to most of the Western Conference, this team still had plenty of chance to get their place in the post-season. The fans believe in this blue-collar squad and their young coach, Porter. It's not over yet for this rivalry since they meet On Sunday, Oct 13.

For other fans out there, I'll include this hashtag: #RCTID

Complete performance: USA defeats Panama in Seattle

Photo credit: Dan Levine/EPA

 

It's been a few years since we have seen a complete performance by the US Men's national team in an official tournament setting. There were none present in the Gold Cup 2011 and World Cup 2010 had its ups and downs, yet inspiring games. But last night Team USA delivered, as did the city of Seattle with a full stadium cheering for the Americans in unison as the team went on to win 2-0 with goals by Altidore and Eddie Johnson.

Starting from the back, although Howard did not have much to do in this match, he did provide a trademark save late in the game to keep the shutout. Brad Evans struggled at times at right back but continued to solidify his place as an option, perhaps behind Cherundolo, for the spot. He needed help from Eddie Johnson and the center back tandem but eventually settled in. Besler is certainly a fixture for the team now and in many ways better than Omar Gonzalez, who still struggled at times but remained dominant in the air. DaMarcus Beasley may not be a natural left back but he has shown he is more than capable of playing there when needed and/or remaining the starter.

The midfield was all Michael Bradley. Easily the best and most complete player in the team right now, Bradley had a 92% pass completion rate and broke up Panamanian plays and set up Altidore's goal. The Roma midfielder is arguably, as some have suggested in the media, the top box-to-box player in Concacaf. All he needed was a goal.

Johnson and Johnson, Fabian and Eddie, that is, were brilliant as wingers in this match. The first was good at defending the flank and pairing up with Beasley and also provided the assist for Altidore's score-opener. Eddie Johnson covered for the struggling Evans and timed his run beautifully for Geoff Cameron's lobbing pass to score a perfect breakaway goal in front of his home crowd. Geoff Cameron did well to cover for Jermaine Jones' absence and defended the midfield well. Although Cameron lacked the experience of the Bundesliga player, he still provided expert attacking passes such as his assist for Eddie Johnson's goal.

Up front it was all Jozy Altidore. While Clint Dempsey continued to be a distracting threat for the opposing squad, it was Jozy that delivered, once again, with a quality strike to break the deadlock. We have now seen three varieties of Altidore's goals: a volley versus Germany, a trademark header against Jamaica and a tap-in on the Panama goal. Perfect positioning, physical while holding the ball, athletic abilities mixed with deft touches. It is no surprise that he is one of the top scorers in Europe and the 31 goals he scored for AZ Alkmaar of the Dutch Eridivisie have now translated into game-winning goals for the national team.

There were two other winners in this match: Klinsmann and Seattle. While Mexico experienced its third scoreless tie at home against Costa Rica, the US hasn't lost in the Hex since the first qualifier at Honduras back in February. Three wins and one tie. In a tournament that needs usually only 16 points to qualify for the World Cup, another two wins could send team USA to Brazil, especially considering that they still have 3 more home games to go. Credit Klinsmann on this and for sticking to a lineup with alternatives due to suspension and injuries. He has a winning combination on the flanks with Fabian Johnson (left) and Zusi/E.Johnson (right) that feed the ball to Altidore where only Landon Donovan could do it before. And now Jozy scores too and all the burden doesn't fall on Dempsey.

Finally there's Seattle. Michael Bradley said so himself. This was the best USA crowd to play for. All USA chants. All red and white. The symphony of the Sounders harmonically synced with American chorus and the United States had their home turf. Better and bigger than Columbus, more American than Chicago, a home venue difficult to match. Not to mention that they have a consistently sold-out stadium club team in the Sounders with attendance matching Bundesliga games....but that is another blog post.

Player ratings:

Howard.........6

Evans............5

Gonzalez........5.5

Besler............7

Beasley..........6

F. Johnson.....6.5

Bradley.........8

Cameron.......6.5

E. Johnson.....7

Dempsey.......6

Altidore........8

Subs: Corona (N/A), Davis (N/A), Castillo (N/A)

The Beckham Experiment Worked

Photo credit: AP

During the winter of 2007, the soccer world was shocked when it was announced that David Beckham would be joining Major League Soccer later that year. Although there had been hints of this eventually occurring near the twilight of Beckham's career, the sudden shift towards one of the up-and-coming markets in the world was nonetheless astounding. At just 31, Beckham remained in his prime to help the league get to new levels.

The English midfielder joined the LA Galaxy later in the summer, after a buzz was created around the league and the country. Even CNN had him on their front page when he announced his move. And Victoria Beckham (the Spice Girl) made a reality show about moving to America. The glam was here to stay.

On the pitch, things were different. Becks was plagued with injuries early on in his first games for the Galaxy, and would not show up at some of the games. This was besides the fact that every single MLS stadium was full for every Galaxy game, and most Galaxy games had been moved to the end of the season to maximize on the hype.

But did Beckham really change the league and the sport in the US? Yes, definitely. First, a new type of player was added to the choices for MLS teams. The Beckham rule, it was called, and it meant that teams were allowed to have one player beyond the MLS salary cap. Enter Cuautemoc Blanco for Chicago, Denilson for Dallas, Juan Pablo Angel for New York. Just like that, stars in their prime were coming to MLS.

But besides the influx in world talent, the MLS brand became international and, more importantly, Americans turned to the sport once more. And this happened at the right time because new cities started to sign up to be MLS hosts. Enter Toronto FC, the first Canadian team in MLS and a first in the world, then followed the return of the San Jose Earthquakes. Next came additions to Seattle and Philadelphia, which had pursued a franchise for a long time. Finally, the Pacific Northwest entered the picture with Portland and Vancouver, and eventually Montreal. 

With the new teams came a new type of audience. They were there to see the players but they were also there to enjoy the sport. Seattle and Portland have yet to have a non-sellout in their brief history. Player academies started popping up, encouraging young talent that eventually led to a successful Gold Cup 2007, Confederations Cup 2009, and World Cup 2010. It also led to players such as Altidore, Stuart Holden, Sacha Kljestan, Eddie Johnson to jump to European teams.

But are these developments really due to Beckham. Partially, yes. The influx of media coverage, attention, sponsors, expansion money, allowed for the erection of new stadiums in major markets such as New York, as well as classic MLS teams like Houston, Kansas City, Colorado and mid-decade expansion team Salt Lake. Suddenly, new stadiums were full and money could be diverted to further player development, expansion of the DP field, and increased marketing.

Finally, let's remember that new web pages were added to the soccer internet traffic, including this very blog, and others like the now-defunct mls-rumors.net, and increased attention to professional blogs like Ives Galarcep's soccerbyives.net, Steve Goff's Washington Post page, among others.

So, did the Beckham experiment work? Yes, but it depends on how you define it. Bigger league, bigger names, better players such as Thierry Henry and Rafa Marquez, new venues, international attention, increases in player pool for the national team. And goals from Becks' signature free kick. Who doesn't like that?

So now, with word that Beckham will play his last LA Galaxy game in next month's MLS Cup final versus Houston, the league is ready to jump onto better things. Beckham is no longer necessary to fill stadiums, nor is his name a per-requisite for television coverage. The league is here to stay and with new rivalries that will keep the sport going for decades to come. So, thank you, David, for helping to grow our league and the sport in the United States.

MLS Attendance Statistics 2012 Week 17

Briefly catching up with MLS, which is in full swing after the international break. There are consistent patterns in attendance numbers stemming from how well a team is doing, especially as compared to recent seasons. DC United, for instance, has seen a steady increase in attendance given their winning ways this season. The same can be said for Columbus, Chicago and Colorado.

Some of the negatives include New York's struggles at Red Bull Arena, although the latest match was a sellout, and Montreal, which has seen attendance numbers that are relatively low for a debuting team. Indeed, as soon as Saputo Stadium opened, there have been three games in a row well below 15,000. Interestingly, places like Seattle and Portland sell out every game, and Salt Lake, Philadelphia, Houston and Kansas City have full stadiums almost every game.

The numbers:

Team	Average	Relative	Median
DC	14132	73	14131
KC	19353	105	19876
NE	12254	61	12523
CLB	14141	69	11978
TOR	19036	83	18911
CHI	14756	74	14163
NYRB	17161	68	17114
PHI	18399	99	18367
HOU	21632	98	22039
MON	26495	130	19223
LA	22483	83	21836
CHV	13291	71	13816
DAL	13252	65	12203
SJ	16509	157	10391
COL	15396	85	15269
RSL	18820	94	18780
SEA	39514	103	38399
POR	20438	100	20438
VAN	19123	91	19271

Fight: Timbers earn first win vs Sounders in MLS play

 

Photo credit: AP

What a game. The Portland Timbers started the match early versus the Sounders at Jeld-Wen Field with a Kris Boyd goal in the 15th minute. Horst would double the score a few minutes later. Seattle's Eddie Johnson rounded out the score at 2-1 in the second half. It was a different kind of MLS game: honor, rivalry, and plenty of fighting.

This was the Cascadia Clasico, of course, one that dates back several decades to the age of the NASL. The on field rivalry plays off the natural competitiveness of the two cities in the Pacific Northwest. Seattle is the more established, cosmopolitan place while Portland is an alternative, and proudly sustainable city. And this carries on to the teams: the Sounders play at CenturyLink Field, an NFL venue with all the commodities, while Jeld-Wen is solely a soccer field with a distinct "made in Portland" attitude.

On the pitch tonight were two squads in dire need of a win. Seattle had been winless in 6 matches, while the Timbers were cellar dwellers in the West. John Spencer, Timbers' coach, has been rumored to be in danger of losing his position. Whether or not this is true, the Scotsman needs to get his team out of the sophomore slump and give the Timbers Army the kind of game they are so passionate about.

And yes, Portland delivered. Boyd knew what was at stake, being a son of the Old Firm rivalry between Celtic and Rangers in Glasgow. Nagbe, Al-Hassan, Jewsbury, Chara and Futty remembered last year's loss at home and were looking to avenge it. Along with Palmer and Perkins, however, Jewsbury let the emotions get to him, and Freddy Montero, a proud Sounder, responded with unsportsmanlike conduct. Two red cards and a yellow card. But hey, that's what these games are about.

The fact that ESPN chose to air this match immediately after the England - Italy Euro game was brilliant, as it captured a different audience and showed the rest of Americans and the world how seriously the game is taken in the Pacific Northwest. Full stadium, Timber Joey, the Timbers Army, and the whole of Rose City watched their team win while singing proudly "When I root I root for the Timbers!"

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 2011 Attendance Statistics Game Week 33

Magnificent Seattle. Over 64,000 in attendance for Kasey Keller's farewell match. Can anyone else match that? Perhaps once Donovan or Dempsey retires. Maybe the LA Colliseum or Rose Bowl. Maybe for Tim Howard there will be enough to approach Seattle's attendance for Keller? In New York? Seattle has set the bar pretty high once more.

This is the penultimate week of MLS attendance stats. The Sounders continue in front, having raised their average by 2000 over last year. KC, relatively speaking, has doubled its attendance due to their new stadium. LA, Dallas and Colorado have all had good gains from 2010. Chicago and Columbus continue to struggle a bit although recent matches have seen higher number of seats filled, especially for the Crew as they gear up for the playoffs.

The stats:

Team	Average	Relative	Median
DC	15203	62	14849
KC	18070	98	18467
NE	13631	68	13164
CLB	12185	60	11298
TOR	20183	88	20139
CHI	13898	69	14203
NYRB	19356	77	20039
PHI	18258	99	18524
HOU	16491	61	16478
LA	23330	86	23719
CHV	14470	54	14067
DAL	12933	63	11022
SJ	11928	114	10525
CRD	14881	82	14706
RSL	17248	86	16841
SEA	38496	108	36304
POR	18827	101	18627
VAN	20334	97	20226

The Cascadia Clasico

Photo credit: AP

Welcome to MLS, Portland. And welcome back, Seattle. Tonight we saw a new incarnation of the Northwest Derby, the Cascadia Derby, the rivalry game that defines a sport. Yankees - Red Sox, Packers - Bears, Ohio State - Michigan, North Carolina - Duke, FC Barcelona - Real Madrid, Inter Milan - AC Milan, Emelec - Barcelona SC, America - Chivas. These are the games we wait to see every season, and every time we see it something special happens.

For MLS it's been more difficult to establish: DC vs New York? Houston vs Dallas? Real Salt Lake vs Colorado? The Superclasico Galaxy vs Chivas USA? Great approximations, even LA - New York is a good match between marquee players. But something else was missing, a little history, a more personal touch, some sibling rivalry.

And this is what the Seattle Sounders and Portland Timbers bring to MLS. An established derby dating back to the 1970s and the old NASL (North American Soccer League). It reestablished itself in the WSL and the USL divisions. The teams nourished the competitiveness between fans in both cities and players alike. Case in point: Roger Levesque, detested by the Timbers fans for consistently scoring on their team.

Tonight we saw a new brand of soccer in MLS. A different passion. Not just to win, but to beat the other side at every level of the game. It wasn't about points or even goals. It was about showing your passion for the jersey, the city, and picking your side.

On the pitch we saw Seattle at its best when Fernandez scored the first tally of the night. The Sounders pressed on the Timbers defense constantly at the start of the second half after an underwhelming first 45. You could feel the loss of Zakuani in their movement and the lack of a true creative force in their midfield. Portland started slow, allowed for Seattle's attack and answered with quick counters thanks to Nagbe, Cooper, Perlaza, Chara and Jewsbury. True to fashion, Jewsbury delivered a perfect free kick pass to "Futty" Danso and he headed the ball backwards above a stretching Keller.

One - one. All tied up in Seattle and now comes the cauldron at Jeld-Wen Field. Can the Sounders break down the boisterous crowd in Portland? Seattle fans are touch to match, especially their numbers. But Portland doesn't need a large stadium to show their dominance. All they need is their fans and the extra edge that comes along with any and every Clasico, derby, rivalry game.

MLS 2011 Attendance Statistics Game Week 9

The MLS stats may be getting a bit lost amongst all the European (and Mexican) season closure craziness. But we still wonder about our own league and our version of the sport. This week's post is brief, but I'd like to mention (or reiterate) the importance of the Pacific Northwest. If the season ended right now, the average attendance would be 17266. That's up 550 from last year. If we take away Seattle, Portland and Vancouver, it drops down to 15553. Taking Seattle out alone for last year brings that total to 15397. Above is a pie chart of the Western conference total attendance by percentage. The Cascadia teams alone rack up 48% of the 9-team conference. And yes, Seattle's numbers are always above 36,000. All the more reason to include its influence.

MLS 2011 Attendance Statistics Week 2

Before I dive into the statistics for this week, I wanted to restate the purpose of this analysis. It is really twofold: as a scientist I am interested in trends and relative terms. Thus, the "relative attendance" factor, which is derived from the stadium capacity, is a look at how full a stadium really is. Having been to two opening days: Rapids (2010) and Sounders (2011), it became clearer that a number be defined. For the Rapids, the attendance was 11,641 (64%). I had posted on Twitter that it was a nice crowd and I believed so until someone replied that "it looked empty."

Seattle, of course, is the pernnially sold-out venue for soccer fans. The stadium can hold up to 67,000 for football matches has a reduced MLS capacity of 36,500. Opening day had 36,443. And it was precicely after this match that, as we walked out of the stadium, I heard several conversations about how full the stadium was and why they didn't expand it further, given its NFL capacity. That's a tough sell in this country, even by Seattle's standards. This is why most soccer venues are usually for 20,000 spectators. It's more cost effective for the team and the fans and it adds intimacy to the experience.

But for opening day this season a couple of weak markets (in recent years) showed very well. FC Dallas opened at 20,104 this season (8016 for opening day 2010). Colorado, the reigning champs, opened with a crowd of 17,139, approaching capacity. Real Salt Lake, Vancouver, LA Galaxy and Philadelphia also sold out for opening day. Decent (>70%) crowds were present for the New York, DC and Toronto. Do temper your judgement, however. Paltry crowds were present for a rebuilding Columbus Crew, New England, Chicago, as well as the second game in Dallas.

Graphics are on the right column. All data is derived from official match reports and stadium capacity.

MLS first kick 2011: the live experience

What a game. What sounds. What fans. Everything a soccer fan can hope for--with an American twist. It was the Seattle Sounders FC versus the LA Galaxy. The new (3 seasons now) team versus the old guard. The setting was the superbly-equipped Qwest Field.

On the pitch emotions ran high, kicks when right and wrong, balls flew past goalkeepers, bounced off posts and skidded along the wet grounds. In the stands the enjoyment was permanent. Whether tied at zero or behind 0-1 after Juninho's goal, the unwavering fan base of the Sounders continued their chants. It came from 5-year olds to the ubnoxious young men yelling obscenities at the opposing team. The yells were against Donovan (American hero) and the multi-million dollar Goldenballs: David Beckham. It is team first, country second here.

The Seattle brand of soccer was present with the fireworks at the start of the game and with the (only in America) marching band. Add to this the cross-field chants of "Seattle" to the west and "Sounders" to the east and one is transported to college football. But this is soccer. This is MLS. And this is the point of today's match. Sold out stadium. Radiant fans. Incredible field. Great spectacle. And this is our sport, our American soccer.

Designated Winner: FC Dallas triumphs over Galaxy

FC Dallas was victorious this evening at the Home Depot Center, cradle of the LA Galaxy and stadium that ranked second-highest in attendance. Hyndman's men did it in style. Gritty defense. Outstanding 'keeping by Kevin Hartman, often underrated, clearly overlooked by the national team.

The star today? Hartman +10. The team played as one. It defended as one, it created as one and it attacked as one. Some of us out there had called Atiba Harris' lone start up top a risky maneuver not likely to pay off. I jokingly said it could be a genius move. And it was. More so because it allowed for the counter as Ferreira, McCarty and Shea pushed up as soon as there was a free ball. Ferreira iced the game midway through the first half. John scored again for Dallas early in the second half before Chavez sealed the 3-0 win in the 73rd. Hartman saved at least 4 sure goal attempts.

No Beckham and no Donovan in the final. Instead we have two "long shot" teams: Colorado Rapids and FC Dallas. Little did I know when I went to the Rapids' home-opener in April that this would be the team to beat in November. MLS clearly doesn't need designated players to win the cup. And yes, I'm stressing the cup. Because in reality, LA won the league and Real Salt Lake were the runners-up. This would be the case in most of Europe and some South American leagues. Here, the Supporters Shield (awarded to the highest points) is clearly shunned as a secondary title.

One last point: these two teams represent some of the lowest-attended of all squads in this league. Rapids' 2009 average was 13,328, whilst for Dallas it was 10,815. Only San Jose and Kansas City had lower numbers, and that's because their stadiums hold less than 10,500 to begin with. Will reaching the final bring up attendance numbers? It did for Columbus, to some extent. Is a designated player necessary? Not really. Not unless you know how to slide one in without upsetting the environment: Schellotto, Giovanni worked well. For Dallas it may be appropriate to get an interesting name and excite the soccer-loving crowds in the state.

This will be an interesting, fitting finale for a season full of surprises: from the rise of Buddle to the late charge in scoring by Wondolowski. From the return of Beckham to the arrival of Henry and Marquez. From the entrance of Philadelphia to the sellout crowds at Qwest Field. From the impressive Hans Backe (New York) to the outstanding Hyndman.

photo credit: MLS

MLS 2010 Attendance stats final week

It seems only fitting that I should do the last week's attendance figures as the first part of the MLS playoffs draws to a close. Why? It just seems that 3 of the teams with the lowest attendance could win the cup and will be hosting the semifinal: Colorado Rapids (13329), San Jose Earthquakes (9877) and FC Dallas (10874). Only New England (13018) and Kansas City (10286) have lower numbers than the Rapids.

With that said, we turn to another statistic: change from 2009. Both San Jose (-3836) and Dallas (-1567) saw declining attendance compared to last year. Indeed, San Jose saw the biggest loss by any team in the league. The Rapids saw a modest gain of +998.

Let's keep this in perspective, however. With the two highest-attended teams yet to play, Seattle (36500) and LA (21571), the spectacle on ESPN tonight will have a nice backdrop. Indeed, this season saw a significant increase in attendance overall when compared to 2009 (+1678). This is partly due to increasing availability of seats for Seattle (+5603 overall) and the major gains by New York (+5889) after opening the Red Bull Arena and adding Marquez and Henry.

How will next season compare? Given possibly sellout crowds for Vancouver and Portland, as well as strong attendance in Philadelphia, Toronto, LA, Salt Lake and Chicago, we could see the figure go up even more, perhaps by another 1000. And if the on-field success by Dallas, San Jose and Colorado can reignite attendance in those cities, MLS can look even stronger in the world scene.

Seattle elevates US Open Cup to glory

The second year expansion team, Seattle Sounders FC, defeated the Columbus Crew in the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup tournament and won it for the second year in a row. For those unfamiliar with this tournament, it is akin to the English League and FA Cup tournaments, the Copa del Rey in Spain, and many other single-elimination tournaments in planet football. Yes, USA has one too, and they've had it for 97 years.

Just like in other countries, this tournament is open to almost all semi-pro and professional leagues within the country, including the USSF Division 2 (Carolina Railhawks, Miami FC, etc.), USL-2 (Crystal Palace Baltimore, Austin Aztex, etc.) and other minor leagues. Like in England when Wycombe Wanderers may upset Arsenal or Everton, a team like the Charleston Battery may defeat the LA Galaxy.

Ever since the formation of MLS, and with the exception of the Rochester Rhinos in 1999, only MLS teams have won the cup. Attendance for these matches is notoriously low because they (a) fall during midweek usually, and (b) media coverage is limited. The same can be said for most other cup tournaments throughout the planet with the exception, perhaps, being England.

But this year Seattle changed the tournament. It injected credibility with the media, given the significant, ardent fan base of the Emerald City. The team also includes world class stars: Blaisse Nkufo (Switzerland) and Angel Fernandez (Uruguay), both present at the World Cup. Added to this are young phenom Fredy Montero, Steve Zakuani, Kasey Keller, among others. And the Crew is no pushover: Frankie Hejduk, Guillermo Barros Schelloto, Robbie Rogers, Eddie Gaven, Emanuel Ekpo.

It was a fun game to watch, with plenty of action on both ends. The Crew went up first but Sanna Nyassi would even the score before the half and would add the winning tally deep into the second half. He did it in front of an emphatic 31,000+ attendees in a raucous environment worthy of the 97-year-old tournament. This is after winning it against DC United in 2009 at the RFK Stadium. Seattle is a model club worthy of praise on and off the pitch. It is a triumph for MLS and for the US fan of the sport. Well done.

MLS 2009 Attendance stats week 6

Figures have been updated through week 6. You will notice a dip in TFC attendance (below 20K?!). Not by much, but certainly bogs down on their differential from last season. RSL also had a poor showing and has lost its edge. DCU is understandable given their poor form... Too bad ESPN has to cover them (another weak attendance showing on national TV... when will they learn?!). If it weren't for Seattle and Philly's inflated opening match game we may have the same or even lower average attendance compared with last year's. Keep in mind that we average not the games, but each team's average of their own games. This filters out some of the noise. New York remains strong, despite their less-than-stellar numbers (about 15k+ at their last home game). Anything is better than last year's numbers... on and off the field.

MLS 2010 Attendance stats week 3

Welcome to the Union...actually, more like "Welcome, Union." Watch out, Seattle... another team is selling out 35,000 seats for an MLS match. Well, that is until June, when the Philadelphia Union will move out of Lincoln Financial Field and into their brand new PPL Park in Chester, PA. Their soccer-specific stadium holds 18,500, but that's okay, because it's better to have a full soccer park than to play in a cavernous American football stadium (New England) or a shared baseball field (Kansas City). PS: KC will get their own stadium so this is temporary and better than Arrowhead.

Back to the stats. MLS and their new website has made it harder to get actual attendance numbers, but I was able to find them through other sources. The East is the big winner this week thanks to Philly. Dallas disappointed once more but at least came out of the 4-digits. RSL and Chicago opened at home with sold-out stadiums (20K each). Relative to last year, New England, Columbus and San Jose show losses but we can expect this to change as more games are played. TFC has yet to open at home this season. They will open on Thursday. Enjoy the figures (right column).

MLS 2010 Attendance stats week 2

Week 2 served to show if Colorado, DC and Houston would attract fans to opening day. We'd like to argue that DCU and the Dynamo did well in this respect. Colorado could have done better (2/3 full). Granted, the atmosphere at Commerce City was vibrant and plenty of fans on my side of the stands.

Seattle once again marks the difference. LA is drawing decent crowds, especially for its match versus Chivas. Still, you'd expect a sold-out venue for a derby game. Next week is Philly's turn, as well as New England, Chicago and champs Real Salt Lake.

Plots are on right hand column.

MLS 2010 Attendance stats week 1

I'm updating attendance stats (always on the right column for new visitors) for the first week of the 2010 season. Seattle is the gold (emerald) standard of the league. Another sellout crowd of over 36,000 fans. New York are, not surprisingly given the Red Bull Arena, also in the top of the list with a near-sellout of their new venue. LA, Chivas and Columbus could have done better but were still acceptable, especially the LA teams. KC and SJ sold out their small 10,000+ venues. We can't hardly wait to see their new soccer-specific stadiums. Dallas is the ugly duckling here... barely 8,000 fans and below 50% capacity.

Colorado opens this week (I will be in attendance), as does DCU and Houston.

MLS 2010

Just a few thoughts as we open MLS' 15th season. That's right... 15th season. It seems like just yesterday we were talking about Carlos Valderrama, ridiculous shootouts, countdown clocks and team names like Clash, Mutiny, Burn, Fusion. Not anymore. After the Beckham experiment blew up and simmered down, MLS rose from the ashes with Seattle as a flagship of success. The Sounders posted the highest average attendance ever for an MLS soccer team last season (>30,000) and are poised to break that record once more.

On the field things have also changed. Although Beckham may be hurt and Blanco is on leave at Mexico's Veracruz (hoping for a spot in the World Cup), rising stars like Christ Pontius, Freddy Montero, Sean Franklin and Marvell Wynne are quickly proving that the league can produce quality players. Former graduates include Eddie Johnson, Jozy Altidore, Clint Dempsey, Tim Howard (ringing a bell yet?). This surge of talent is complemented by veterans like Kasey Keller, Freddie Ljundberg, Landon Donovan, Juan Pablo Angel. This is what makes this league stronger every year.

A few questions remain: Can MLS compete internationally? Can stadiums outside of Seattle and Toronto be filled with fans? Can new franchises be sustainable? All will be addressed by the league in due time and we may see glimpses of this on the present season.

Watch out for rising stars like Danny Mwanga and Jack McInerney in Philadelphia's new team, as well as Opara in San Jose, among others. New signings and/or designated players (expensive guys like Beckham) are on the horizon and something tells me we're likely to see them right after the World Cup...Henry, we're looking in your direction. Also, behold the majestic Red Bull Arena and the cozy PPL Park.

A great opening game tonight and Seattle showed why they may be the team to beat this year.... Let's have a great season!

MLS player strike?

MLS Player's Union and MLS league officials have failed to reach a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). Among points in dispute are player salaries and the ability of teams to deal with individual players instead of the league itself. I thought I would weigh in a little bit on the matter. Instead of focusing on some of the politics and details involved, I wanted to touch on how a player strike in Major League Soccer would affect the league, players, teams, fans, and the sport as a whole in this country.

If we think back to NHL and MLB, we cringe at the possibilities when it comes to MLS. NHL lost broadcasting. MLB was paralized and even President Clinton threatened to intervene. MLS would be left in shambles, no?

Consider the possibilities: Philadelphia has a brand new team with a brand new stadium and ardent fans waiting for soccer to finally make an appearance in their city. What do you do if your league doesn't even play? Seattle, a solid team that sold out every game last season, is in danger of losing fans, money and credibility. What do we say to Portland and Vancouver (set to begin play next season)? What do we say to further expansion of the league if it's in danger of collapsing?

Finally, what happens to the players? Where will they go? How do they retain game fitness? What will happen to our national team? The USA has a third to a half of its players in the domestic league. This may spell doom for the country's chances at the World Cup.

And what about international progress of the league? Will foreigners continue to laugh at us... maybe even stronger now?

These are several points worth considering. Indeed, hard decisions to come. The player's union and MLS are continuing talks but a strike may be inevitable if a new CBA isn't reached.

Some numbers to consider:

AVERAGE PLAYER SALARIES
NBA: $4,900,000
MLB: $2,866,544
NHL: $1,460,000 (used to be $1,830,000)
NFL: $1,250,000
EPL: $1,162,720
MLS*: $90,000????
AFL: $85,000
WNBA: $55,000

LEAGUE SALARY CAPS:
MLB No Cap - Highest Team Payroll- Yankees $208 Million
NFL No Cap - Highest Team Payroll- Raiders $152 Million
NBA $60 Million
NHL $57 Million
MLS $2.3 Million

COMMISSIONER SALARIES
Bud Selig MLB $14.5 million
Roger Goodell NFL $10.3 million
Gary Bettman NHL $5.9 million
Don Garber MLS $3 Million

NFL national TV package rights: $3.085 Billion/year
MLB national TV Package: $416m/year
NBA national TV package: $400m/year
NHL US National TV package: $75m/year
MLS national TV package: $1.5m/year.