*** This post is a duplicate. I wrote it for goalseattle.blogspot.com and am also posting it here on shotgunprose ...
Concacaf Champions League...
Seattle soccer fans ... picture this...
Qwest Field.
The opposing team has a large section of supporters in yellow.
The opponent is Club America.
But, this is not a mid-season friendly in the summer of 2006; a game with no meaning and higher than regular season ticket prices.
No, it is the fall of 2013 and our hometown team is playing a Group Phase match in the CONCACAF Champions League. It could be something like Matchday 4 with a Quarterfinal berth on the line.
It paints a pretty cool picture.
But, and this is one huge but ... in order for the above to happen two things must first take place...
1) MLS Seattle must become a good team in a 3-4 year window...
2) CONCACAF has to make the Champions League actually work...
Let's see ... the first one I can buy since the organization in Seattle looks very good and the track record is there to trust ... the second one looks like a much harder sell and the track record is there not to trust...
CONCACAF has a really good opportunity right now. It appears that the FIFA Club World Cup is going to continue to place a CONCACAF team in tournament with the winners of the Copa Libertadores and European Cup every year. Whatever one thinks about the world club tournament, the reality is that it would be a real opportunity for an MLS side to play a Barcelona or a Chelsea and have it NOT be a friendly ... an actual game with value...
So, I am of the belief that MLS needs the new Champions League to thrive and for MLS clubs to do well in it. International competition is good for the league, players, and national team development. The toughness developed from the games one must play in Central America can only come from going there and grinding out games. The credibility of teams doing well or winning will be good for the league and the perception of American teams and players in the eyes of Eurosnobs that still think England plays good soccer - I mean English teams don't even have the English running things or in key field positions very much any more ...
The difficulties are many. However, the scheduling will not be nearly as difficult as teams continue to build, own, and manage their own stadiums. It could be a grind on teams with some fixture congestion, but that is hardly a unique situation. The nature of top flight soccer worldwide is that top players and teams play more games and get correspondingly rewarded for it.
But, it needs television, support, and marketing; the financial incentive must be there. The potential bonus money players could earn from this tournament could help offset some of the financial shortfalls the players at the lower end of the MLS pay scale face. The bonus money must be there.
Why the big change? The current Champions Cup format is too brief; the Mexican teams are almost angry to have to play in it and the MLS clubs don't go out of their way to promote the idea too much. And, let's face it, Mexico HATES being in CONCACAF and it regularly shows. Everything about Mexican participation in Concacaf events seems begrudging at best. But, Mexican teams also thrive on US publicity and the revenue opportunities from these matches could be quite good. Maybe they won't view this one as being beneath them. Right.
The current allotment of teams give the MLS potentially 5 of the 24 spots with the inclusion of the Canadian slot of one team. That is a bit much, but as things develop over time those sorts of iniquities can be adjusted. If MLS adds a second or third Canadian team or if the two USL1 teams knock off Toronto we could also have some fun matches to road trip to in Vancouver. I might consider a drive to see the Whitecaps play Saprissa ...
For the US allocation, my thought is that the MLS Cup champion, Open Cup Champion(enhance the value of winning it and give USL1 teams a shot at something bigger), and both division winners (the Supporters Shield by default and the other regular season title would have more value this way) should be the base for deciding who plays. This could also kill off the strictly commercial SuperLiga thing since it would make it redundant...
I actually hope that some of these things line up and the Concacaf Champions League works. But, that's just me.
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it got response elsewhere on the internets ....
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curious...where you a grunge rocker in Seattle?! :)
ReplyDeletecurious what magazine you created?!
I was not the creator of City Heat ... I was a writer who became editor of the magazine for a period of time; circe 1990 ... so yes ... I was in the grunge scene ...
ReplyDelete