Boy, this Beckham thing started out to be a disaster. It's been great since.

Re: Boy, this Beckham thing has been a disaster

Agreed . . . . . I don't know what the sport has to do to get some attendance that goes beyond friends and family of the MLS players. And have you seen the dismal crowds the national team plays before? We're talking in the hundreds.

And don't get me started on the TV ratings. I don't get why ESPN wasted so much money buying the TV rights a year ago (BEFORE Beckham signed) for a sport that no one watches, no one plays, and no one writes about.

It's only a matter of time before crowds comparable to high school games doom MLS. Besides, youth participation has fallen precipitously in the last 20 years as well. The sport will soon go the way of the dodo.

 

Re: Boy, this Beckham thing has been a disaster

If you're defining "America" as you, your friends and J. Marriotti, maybe.
If you're defining "America" as the 300 million living with the borders, more of whom watched the final of the 2006 World Cup than the average 2006 World Series game, than I'm afraid you're mistaken.

 

Re: Boy, this Beckham thing has been a disaster

This just in. D.C. United is gutted about the lack of tickets sold for Thursday.

Now while most of the tickets were sold before his injury, you can't honestly say that no-one cares about the sport in this country.

 

Re: Boy, this Beckham thing has been a disaster

What I just don't get is the seemingly incessant need on part of you soccer types for everyone to love the game. Where does this need come from? Is it strength in numbers? Does your love of soccer change if the MLS is not successful.
If soccer does become more successful what's in it for you? How does your life become better?

You don't see Hockey fans overselling their game.

 

Re: Boy, this Beckham thing has been a disaster

A soccer fan didn't start this thread. We keep ourselves contained to one (1) thread on this board. Kind of like NASCAR fans ... another group you and others have trolled in the past.

But I guess we shouldn't chime in when somebody else launches a thread bashing the sport. Because if we do, you accuse us of trying to make everybody love the game which is so far from the truth it's not even on the same planet.

 

Re: Boy, this Beckham thing has been a disaster

wtf?

A soccer fan did start this thread. Me.

Do I need to show my credentials? You want to quiz me? Just because I don't post regularly on the soccer ghetto thread (only during USMT games), doesn't mean I am not a fan.

 

Re: Boy, this Beckham thing has been a disaster

Then you have not been paying attention then because Poindexter is a huge soccer fan who has taken me to task on some of posts that he perceived to be negative towards soccer.

At least he is willing to admit that so far Beckham has not worked out that great.

 

Re: Boy, this Beckham thing has been a disaster

I apologize, Poin'.

But I get damned tired of people trolling soccer. It's become Boom's go-to move this summer. As I said, you launched this thread. Then when others begin discussing it, we're accused of trying to force the sport down America's throat.

 

Re: Boy, this Beckham thing has been a disaster

 

Re: Boy, this Beckham thing has been a disaster

No offense taken.

I actually have no problem with the position of the MLS right now. I share Angels season seats that are $50/seat, and which I know will be $100/seat in a couple years. The NFL isn't in SoCal, but it costs an arm and a leg to go to games.

Exactly why, as a fan, do I need the MLS to become more popular? To increase the ticket prices? The Chivas and Galaxy games are already televised.. It doesn't matter to me if one in 50 are interested in the game, or 1 in 2. As long as the games are accessible, it makes no difference.

As far as the grass roots level, I've been to enough youth soccer tournaments with my daughter (many held on fields originally designed for baseball, but get much more use year-round for soccer) to know how popular the sport is.

 

Re: Boy, this Beckham thing has been a disaster

You didn't use the blue sarcasm font, so I'll assume you're serious.

-- "A sport no one plays"?

What are you smoking?

-- "I don't know what the sport has to do to get some attendance that goes beyond friends and family of the MLS players."

Average attendance is just shy of 15,000 per game with virtually none of the Beckham effect accounted for (the only MLS game he missed, in Toronto last night, would have been a sellout anyway. Toronto FC is basically selling out that stadium every game). If that's "friends and family" to you, then you are indeed blessed with a great support system.

-- "And have you seen the dismal crowds the national team plays before? We're talking in the hundreds."

Total, unvarnished bullshit. The U.S. hasn't had a home crowd of under 6,000 since 1994, and the overwhelming majority have been over 10,000. Stop pulling stuff out of your ass with no basis in fact.

-- "And don't get me started on the TV ratings. I don't get why ESPN wasted so much money buying the TV rights a year ago (BEFORE Beckham signed)"

The ratings do suck, but they're comparable (on ESPN2) to what the same network used to draw for NHL regular-season games ... and that's a league with a head start of nearly 80 years in the U.S. market, not to mention far greater market penetration than MLS. Oh, and there's reason to believe (at least speculation) that the rights fees ESPN paid were dependent on the so-called Beckham Rule passing; the network wanted to be sure it would have some big names to relentlessly hype as only ESPN can.

Anyway, remember the blue font next time.

 

Re: Boy, this Beckham thing has been a disaster

If this were baseball, the LA soccer team would be the Texas Rangers.