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Leagues Cup bad timing

By Jaime Broitman

HARRISON, NEW JERSEY - JULY 26: Hugo Mbongue #83 of Toronto FC attempts to tackle the ball from Matt Freese #49 of New York City FC during the second half of a 2023 Leagues Cup match at Red Bull Arena on July 26, 2023 in Harrison, New Jersey. (Photo by Evan Yu/Getty Images)
HARRISON, NEW JERSEY - JULY 26: Hugo Mbongue #83 of Toronto FC attempts to tackle the ball from Matt Freese #49 of New York City FC during the second half of a 2023 Leagues Cup match at Red Bull Arena on July 26, 2023 in Harrison, New Jersey. (Photo by Evan Yu/Getty Images) /
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The Leagues Cup has multiple problems and not having games is not a part of them.

One of the main problems is the fact that it is being played in July and August, two months that are chock full of games in both Mexico and the MLS. In the Mexican front, the league is in its beginning stages of the Apertura 2023-2024. In the time of writing this article it would be within the first ten games of the tournament. With the MLS it is right in the middle of both the US Open Cup, and regular season. Currently, by the end of August the league would be in coming into the end of the regular season and prepping towards the beginning of the playoffs.

The worst bit about the timing is about the CONCACAF Gold Cup. Every other year except for maybe in 2025, CONCACAF holds its confederation’s cup. These cups  are like the Copa America, the African and Asian Cup of Nations, the Euros and also the Oceanian Cup which are held every four years. The main problem with the Leagues Cup is the fact that out of the preliminary roster released from the US about half play in the MLS, with the Mexican National Team that number rises to about 80%. These two nations both played five games in a span of three weeks, with the US playing 120 minutes for both the quarterfinals and semifinal games. The main problem illustrated is the fact that most of these players have been playing at least three games in average every three days. Within these three games only one is dedicated for recovery, the other for travel and lastly the third for practice per FIFA regulations. The amount of wear and tear that these players endure would make it as they would be more likely to suffer injuries.

Not to mention the travel that all of these teams especially the ones out west need to do. For example in the east region of the Leagues Cup, like the MLS, the distance between teams is not that great. For example on the eastern seaboard there are nine teams within a three hour flight from LaGuardia Airport, John F Kennedy International Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport in the New York Metro area. But from Los Angeles International Airport, some flights are over four to five hours to travel for a game in Vancouver or Seattle.

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