Do you think that the arrival of david beckham will cause an expansion in the MLS?
I think that his arrival means more fans, which will mean more money, which will mean more teams, and soccer will expand across the U.S. (Finally!) I really hope this happens, because i would love to watch soccer become a major sport in America. What do you think?
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I don’t even follow sports and I am excited he is coming. I would definitely be interested to see him play. It will be great, and bring more fans to the game.
Comment by siddoly — May 10, 2010 @ 5:26 pm
I honestly think he will help. But I think the interest will mostly be from people who already follow soccer. People who watch the European leagues will start to check out how Beckham is doing. Will one player make soccer explode in popularity in the US? No.
Comment by thefly119 — May 10, 2010 @ 5:26 pm
maybe in a couple years but not likely this season or next.
once beckham makes his way to the mls, there will be a spark with an increase in attendance and overall interest in the sport. the problem with soccer in america is not getting that spark. two other times were the coming of pele to nasl (mls predecessor) and the wc 94 finals, both did well to create a surge of interest in american soccer, and although mls should be commended for long term execution, even the most ardent supporter will tell you that mls in america is a second or even lower tier sport and internationally, mls is a bush-league, occasionally popping up cheap talent to fill up euro team rosters.
the only way to make soccer in america a top tier sport is to develop some of the top tier athletes in america play soccer instead of football, basketball or baseball, which is hardly realistic considering the amount of money the other sports can offer.
the hope is that in a nation of 300 million, enough of the b-talent athletes would play soccer to make an american team competitive. for example, perhaps while it would be unreasonable to expect michael vick to pick soccer over football, maybe marcus vick might pick soccer since michael is playing football already. a team composed of that quality athlete would still be competitive in a world cup, perhaps even be a darkhorse to win
Comment by relaxin — May 10, 2010 @ 5:45 pm
I hope so it is the only sport I like and everyone in america talks about football which makes me so bored.
Comment by Brad — May 10, 2010 @ 6:07 pm
i wouldnt go that far….he might bring in more interest which could potentially bring curious people to matches….but that doesnt mean a surge of fans bringing in millions of dollars.
Comment by Lola P — May 10, 2010 @ 7:00 pm
Absolutely. The whole world will be curious, and will be watching.
Comment by playmaker4747 — May 10, 2010 @ 7:38 pm
Major League Soccer is continually planning for expansion. They have a goal of having so many expansion teams by 2010.
Here’s hoping Cleveland can get a team since they are one of the potential cities.
Comment by behindblueeyes — May 10, 2010 @ 7:46 pm
Oh my God David Beckham is a soccer player. Last time i checked, he was a little out-of-shape pansy who got kicked out of European soccer and forced to join the Galaxy. American soccer is completely different from soccer anywhere in the world. It’s too commercialized. When a little kid thinks of soccer do you want him/her to think of David Beckham, Landon Donovan, Kobe Jones. What about real players like Zidane, Eric Cantana, Ryan Giggs.
Comment by Southparker77 — May 10, 2010 @ 7:55 pm
It will help fill the Galaxy’s stadium and to whatever stadium they travel to. But as far as expansion, they’re already going on 13 teams. Football isn’t a sport that’s really popular another in the States to handle a lot of teams.
Comment by Tosh — May 10, 2010 @ 8:54 pm
Yes! In general MLS is changing quickly. Blanco is already signed into Chicago Fire and other players are being bought too. I’ve heard of stadiums putting more football games onto their venue. So even though I think football will never be the #1 sport in the US, it will become bigger than it is now.
Comment by llala — May 10, 2010 @ 8:55 pm
I think so. He’s a popular fellow, and very marketable. There isn’t a doubt in my mind that he will expand the MLS’s popularity.
Comment by sweetpanther08 — May 10, 2010 @ 9:30 pm