MLS: Teams need to spend more money in order to make money
If teams want to come out on top and draw fans, they’re going to have to spend a pretty penny to bring in more people. The market in MLS is getting more and more competitive.
Over the last couple of years, we’ve seen some of the bigger MLS markets lure in some top tier talent from overseas. Think Zlatan Ibrahimović to LA Galaxy or David Villa to New York City FC back in 2014.
We get it. Some of the smaller market teams have tougher enticing fans to fill their stadium seats. To get around that, they’re going to have to pony up and offer them an experience they don’t expect.
Don’t believe us? Listen to Seattle Sounders Garth Lagerway in the video below. From ESPN’s Herculez Gomez, Lagerway talks about how fast the landscape of the league has changed and how tough it is to keep up:
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A very candid Garth Lagerwey tells us why @SoundersFC can no longer compete with the big spenders in today’s @MLS market.
— herculez gomez (@herculezg) May 1, 2018
If you are Seattle with that fan base (and ownership group), is it ok to just punch above your weight class?#MLS #Soundershttps://t.co/wuJ3ifz5lj
“It’s amazing right now,” Lagerway said. “If you look at the growth of the league in the last two years, if you look at Atlanta, then you have LAFC coming in and you know, 23 teams are playing and we got at least three more in the works and it sounds like another soon and it’s bonkers man and you can’t keep up. Just looking at the level of players that teams are acquiring and how fast the envelope is getting pushed it’s cool. It’s a really good time to be a part of MLS.”
Remaining efficient might keep money in the pocket. But making a few splashy deals every once in a while could provide more motivation for fans to buy tickets. It could give other famous names in the soccer world more incentive to make their way across the pond.
We still don’t know who the next splashy transfer will be and we don’t know whether or not they’ll take as big a pay cut as Zlatan. We can only hope that teams like Portland or Sporting Kansas FC can package a deal that will motivate them. Perhaps a certain player nearing the end of his career will suddenly change his mind and motives to building up soccer in the U.S.
Perhaps teams will really capitalize on players who have USMNT have called up and who will represent the U.S. in Russia come summertime.
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Sure, fan bases vary from market to market, they have one thing in common. Fans want to see some good soccer.