WVHooligan 16 November @ 07:23 PM EST
Garber sees growth in MLS. (Getty Images)
I've spent a good portion of the day collecting my thoughts on a couple subjects and then it
happen to be the same day that MLS commish Don Garber had his State of the League address. Yeah,
let's just say some of his comments just made my head go nuts (and your's too judging by some
emails).
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Photo credit: zz77 on Flickr
Does God care about soccer? There are certainly a good number of players, fans, and teams who
think it likely. Take Diego Maradona bringing "his Argentina squad to mass to pray for a World
Cup miracle."Â Or take Fred earning a yellow card for celebrating a DC United goal with the
message "Jesus Loves You.
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Because with live in a world of litigation and because people get all bent out of shape over the
smallest things (that could easily be explained) and because litigation takes forever and lawyers
are expensive (otherwise they wouldn't bother to take forever) and because you can get any kind of
suspension lifted while you're waiting for an appeal it appears that Chelsea can do business as
usual since the Court of Arbitration for Sport won't be able to set a date for a hearing until
February.
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The city of Baltimore in the state of Maryland; has everything you want in a fabulous downtown
area. The seafood in the marina, historic buildings and museums, the Aquarium and of course their
great history in their professional sports teams like the Oriorles of Major League Baseball &
currently the Ravens of the National Football League.
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Nutmegged 29 October @ 12:06 PM EST
After a second half of the season that was a tad weird to say the least, Dynamo get a chance to put
on their Tri-umph faces and Lay It on the Line for that third title.
I think this video above truly expresses my feeling about Seattle tonight. And while the truth is I
have never once flipped the toggle on an XBox, or done a 360 on top of one, I know for a fact that
an Orange Ring of Death exists on those consoles, and that's what I am expecting to see over these
two legs, starting tonight.
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No surprise there, then: in a tanking economy where even the nation's most popular league, the
NFL, has had trouble selling tickets and Major League Baseball's attendance fell 6.9%, it's not a
shock to learn that as Soccer America reports, MLS' attendance fell overall by 2.9% in the regular
season just concluded, falling from 16,460 in 2008 to 16,037.
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Has there ever been a final weekend of league games in the history of the universe where
every
single match actually meant something?
I bet Don Garber lit himself a big old Red Auerbach style victory cigar last night. All the other
commissioners over at the Commissioner's Club are getting set to throw him a roast.
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Fantasy EPL 21 October @ 10:29 PM EST
With all apologies to the footie-mad world, I have to say I'm a bit distracted by more provincial
sporting pursuits this week. As I write my hometown Philadelphia Phillies (that's Major League
Baseball if you aren't into the American sports scene) are in a best-of-seven series with the Los
Angeles Dodgers for the right to go to the World Series (to presumably face the New York Yankees).
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For years now people have been asking why in the world MLS farmed out their online operations,
including mlsnet.com and most individual team sites to Major League Baseball Advanced Media, a
subsidiary of, (obviously) Major League baseball.
Although I've never heard anyone go into detail, it doesn't take a genius to figure that it had to
do with money, ie.
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EPL Talk 24 September @ 10:45 AM EST
Now suspend your disbelief for a minute, and imagine the following scenario. What would you say
if you had the following service available online?
- A mix channel where you could watch up to nine games all once on your screen (or you could
watch one at a time, or a few at a time your choice),
- High-quality streaming video compatible on a PC/Mac,
- HD quality picture (where available),
- Live game DVR functionality,
- Live game picture-in-picture,
- Player tracker,
- Home and away feeds (where available),
- Live game radio option (where available),
- Archived and condensed games,
- Best of all, all games would be available online (unless you live in the area near the home
team in which case, the live Internet streaming would be blacked out), and
- Last but not least, a very reliable service that would be dependable and would actually work
flawlessly.
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MLS commisioner Don Garber seeks a balanced schedule
Last week's press release announcing that MLS will take a two week break during the World Cup
Finals group stage has stirred some debate from supporters of the league. However, hidden at the
end of that same press release is news that all MLS fans must be pleased to read.
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Red Bull Arena. The mere thought of what will be has fans going to the bathroom to change their
underwear. It is that good.
So what better way to kick off a the new digs than playing our dreaded rivals in what should be
the hottest ticket in town? That is right! Batton down the hatches, hide the wives and kids folks,
because here come THE RAPIDS!
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Anfield Talk 19 September @ 01:52 PM EST
Liverpool's new shirt sponsorship deal with Standard Chartered is undoubtedly a major coup.
Few clubs could attract such a lucrative agreement, especially considering the recent economic
downturn.
It highlights that after years of underachievement Liverpool now possess a commercial team capable
of ensuring that off the pitch the club realises its potential.
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Anfield Talk 07 September @ 12:20 PM EST
American businessman Tom Hicks, the co-owner of English soccer club
Liverpool, says the team will not receive increased investment after he sells his Texas Rangers
Major League baseball franchise.
More specifically, the proceeds of the sale - certain to be over US$500 million - will not go
towards the financing of the club's proposed new stadium in Stanley Park, which is unlikely to be
ready much before 2018.
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Anfield Talk 03 September @ 11:03 AM EST
The financial concerns that have dogged English soccer club Liverpool could be a thing of the past
if the club's co-owner, Tom Hicks, completes the US$600 million sale of the Texas Rangers, and
focuses his interests on the Premier League.
Hicks, who dissolved Hicks Sports Marketing Group earlier this summer, was reportedly forced to
depend on US$15 million from Major League Baseball to help pay wages at the franchise in August.
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I was intrigued by Don Garber's comment a couple of weeks ago to Reuters Soccer Blog when asked
about the future of the relationship between MLS and the second-tier, independent USL: "USL is
going through some transition on their own. . . I am not sure what the future holds for that league
or our relationship with it.
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Here in the U.S., followers of the mighty MLS have a marvelous option that negates the need to
go fishing for illegal internet streams to watch games the league offers an affordable (only $20
for the season), high-quality (up to 800k) stream on their website.
Now, if we scoff and say MLS is small-time, consider that Major League Baseball has an even
better internet broadcasting set-up which has proven to be enormously profitable for the league,
with over 500,000 fans forking out $110 for the season, and even offering streaming to the
iPhone.
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MIKE JACOBS 06 August @ 03:12 PM EST
After stressing the growth of soccer enthusiasts all over the United States - justified by
attendance figures and TV ratings over the summer - The San Jose Mercury News' Mark Purdy feels
writes how that growth is about soccer...but just not Major League Soccer.
Over the past decade, soccer telecasts from around the globe have found their way onto American
television sets through satellite or cable. Click to continue reading...
Following Inter's defeat to Club America on penalty kicks that no one seemed to know were
supposed to take place (and also included an angry Mourinho on the pitch, arguing with the refs) on
Sunday, Jose has apparently stopped talking to the press. Instead, his assistant, Beppe Baresi has
taken up those duties, while Jose pouts over a few issues.
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A great post over The Offside: Seattle compares the glowing attendance totals at Qwest Field to
those around the world's leagues.
12th in the Bundesliga (top attended league in the world)
12th in the Premiership
8th in La Liga
6th in Serie A
3rd in the Scottish Premier League
13th in Major League Baseball
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On June 26, Cristiano Ronaldo completed a $132 million transfer from Manchester United to Real
Madrid. In strict business terms, Real Madrid bought an asset from another business in hopes of
improving its own product. No government, federation or league was going to stand in the way of
what Real Madrid thought was a smart business decision.
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MLS Daily 08 July @ 06:51 AM EST
Those of you who follow Major League Soccer's attendance numbers week-in and week-out - and there
are plenty of you out there - already know that the league has experienced a modest drop in the
average crowd size when comparing this year's numbers to 2008. Several factors have led to the
overall decline, including poor weather conditions in some markets and the absence of David
Beckham.
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Liverpool co-owner Tom Hicks could be forced out of one of his American sports teams, as reports in
the USA claimed his financial position is becoming increasingly acute.
Hicks is owner of the Texas Rangers baseball team, but it has been claimed that Major League
Baseball, the sport's governing body for the USA's national sport, has been forced to step in and
loan Hicks millions of dollars in the last week to pay his players.
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North America needs about ten thousand more like him, punk rock, inner city, ex-pat, lover of the
Real American Game: sah-ker. Too often coverage of the sport in North America is either clouded by
insiderish earnestness, or worse, ESPN talking head bile. Some want the game to shirk its roots in
the barren New World to suit the childish anglophilic crushes of Williamsburgs and Mission District
Arsenal-scarved hipsters; others are satisfied to make moronic, homphobic jokes about the European
disease invading America.
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Liverpool Football Club - which owes two banks £350m - is close to renegotiating its debt with the
Royal Bank of Scotland, the BBC has learnt.
RBS has told club owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett the debt, due to be repaid in July, will be
refinanced.
BBC business editor Robert Peston says RBS will insist on significant payments in the subsequent
six months.
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Soccerblog 20 June @ 07:46 AM EST
SportsPro magazine has published the world's first value ranking of sports properties in its July
issue, out now. They have listed 200 properties. Here are the top ten.
1. National Football League (NFL) - $4.5 billion
2. Major League Baseball (MLB) - $3.9 billion
3. National Basketball Association (NBA) - $3.
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I am a frequent visitor of a website called Uni Watch: The Obsessive Study of Athletics
Aesthetics. Yesterday, there was a post about a guy that keeps track of the different uniform
combinations worn during each MLS game this season. Check out the excerpt and link from Uni
Watch.
Uni Tracking, MLS Style: Many of you, myself included, have been tracking Major
League Baseball uniforms.
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By CHRISTA MANN
Fans of Womens Professional Soccer can look forward to some additional broadcasts and webcasts
of future WPS games in the coming weeks. This comes after a positive response to the Chicago Red
Stars' web productions and will also include WPS coverage on both Fox Soccer Channel (FSC) and
regional sports networks.
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By CHRISTA MANN
Fans of Womens Professional Soccer can look forward to some additional broadcasts and webcasts
of future WPS games in the coming weeks. This comes after a positive response to the Chicago Red
Stars' web productions and will also include WPS coverage on both Fox Soccer Channel (FSC) and
regional sports networks.
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So I got a very thoughtful reply to a year-old post I made on the 6+5 rule "FIFA Approves Blatter's
Rule: Or When 6+5=0". You can read the post for yourself, but the gist of it is that I think 6-5
rule sucks and is an affront to free trade, capitalism and economics.
The letter-writer, Michael, disagrees.
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Bob Bradley addresses the U.S. team yesterday at Estadio Saprissa. Photo courtesy of the Men's
National Team blog. Head there for more photos and great information.
ESPN has switched coverage of tonight's USA-Costa Rica World Cup qualifier to ESPN2 to avoid a
potential run-over by Major League Baseball's Boston Red Sox visiting the Detroit Tigers on ESPN
original recipe.
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MLS Rumors 21 May @ 06:08 PM EST
Chang has attended the Lot 8 tailgates and is a big fan of United.
In what United fans likely see as an ominous sign, Will Chang appears to be the last man
standing.
Courtesy of MLSNet:
Washington, D.C. -- Victor MacFarlane has announced his sale of his ownership interest in the D.
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