Previously on The18, we examined the immediate future for soccer in the United States - focusing on how things might be different today than in previous days when it looked like soccer was poised to break through.
In Part II, we examine what Major League Soccer and European Leagues can and should do to capitalize on the momentum that soccer has been building in this country.
Major League Soccer:
Major League Soccer has come a long way in the years since its early struggles and concerns that it would fold. With 19 teams currently participating and another two on the way in 2015 (New York City FC and Orlando City) and one in 2017 (Atlanta), the MLS has never been stronger. Even David Beckham has taken steps to restart the Miami franchise that had previously collapsed.
The current strength of the MLS is the increasing quality of the in-person experience at each stadium. For example, the Seattle Sounders have a “March to the Match” before every home game that starts 90 minutes before kickoff in a local park. The gathering features live music, contests and giveways, and culminates in a march to the stadium featuring chanting and singing of Seattle Sounders songs. Hopefully the Sounders’ example will catch on and as more teams move into soccer-only stadiums. With these designated facilities, the in-person experience keeps getting better, and hopefully this will inspire franchises with outdated stadiums (cough*D.C. United’s RFK Stadium*cough) to upgrade. Below is a video of the Seattle Sounder fan experience, which is incredible!
That said, while the average attendance at MLS matches is more impressive today than ever, the television ratings have not been. Case in point: last November, MLS rating even trailed the WNBA. No offense ladies, but..that’s not good. In a fairly surprising move given this statistic, ESPN and Fox recently signed a new television deal that will give them rights for MLS starting in 2015. This deal was triple the amount of the current contract, and actually generates $7 million more per season than NBC is paying currently for its coverage of the English Premier League.
By putting that kind of money on the table, there is little doubt that Fox and ESPN believe in the future of soccer in the U.S. - perhaps banking on a new generation of consumers under 35, who rank soccer mugh higher than any past generation, to bring in advertising dollars. It is also likely these networks will seek to maximize their investment and will be advertising MLS matches across all platforms - perhaps even during NFL football games? Here at The18, we'd like to see more cross-promotion between the two forms of football; to us, the idea of Ian Darke’s angelic voice calling a Monday Night Football game is the equivalent of Walter White arriving in King’s Landing to convince Cersei Lannister to give up her goblets of wine for a little crystal blue persuasion. But, we digress.
The question is whether Americans will be willing to follow the players that they learned about while following the U.S. Men’s National team as they matriculate back to MLS clubs. This could be tough as even fairly knowledgable soccer fans may not be able to name where all our national team stars play. There is also the concern that given the discrepancy between MLS clubs and their European counterparts, even if a star were to appear on the MLS stage, he likely would be quickly poached away in the transfer market. Though Michael Bradley and Clint Dempsey recently returned from Europe, defender DeAndre Yedlin (who currently plays for the Sounders) has been the subject of transfer rumors from major European clubs. Depending whether he makes the move, Yedlin could start a new wave of major MLS stars heading abroad.
Speaking of Bradley and Dempsey, their decision to return to the MLS from Europe during the prime years of their career (truer for Bradley than Dempsey) defies the usual practice of stars from Europe coming to the United States after they’ve passed their prime. In addition to Bradley and Dempsey, Sporting Kansas City and United States Men’s National Team stars Graham Zusi and Matt Besler have both spurned offers from European clubs to stay in the MLS. Some would argue that this development is a strong sign for Major League Soccer, as its stars stay put and grow the game domestically. However, U.S. National Team Coach Jürgen Klinsmann has gone on record as saying he would prefer his players to challenge themselves against the best in the world - and that he does not believe this level of competition exists in the MLS.
This same "not-quite-there" level of competition is another problem that MLS faces in terms of attracting American viewers. With the English Premier League, La Liga, Seria A, and (starting in 2015) the Bundesliga all having deals with major television networks (to say nothing of the UEFA Champions League), the highest level of football in the world is readily available to any viewer looking to get a soccer fix. Even for a casual fan, the difference in the quality displayed on the pitch between MLS and those leagues is readily apparent. The most easily discernible difference can be seen in passing: in the top European leagues, the passes are crisp and mostly spot-on target, even when crossing the length of the pitch, whereas in MLS, that level of quality simply is not there.
Even I have to admit that I rarely watch MLS, because even when my favorite EPL clubs are not playing, I look for other EPL or La Liga matches to watch. And perhaps this is because I have no emotional connection to the MLS. It will be a tough-enough job convincing casual American sports fans to start supporting their product, but the MLS also has to start convincing soccer snobs like me to care about their league. (In a related note, my pitch to my fiancé that I need to start watching MORE soccer went over almost as well as my statements that I wanted to start dipping and watching professional wrestling again.)
But perhaps the tide is turning. Over the last few years, stars David Beckham and Thierry Henry have made their way to the MLS and, recently, expansion club New York City FC signed Spanish star David Villa and Chelsea legend Frank Lampard for its debut season. These big-name signings have raised MLS’s profile and help bring fans of those players from their previous clubs into the MLS fold; however, in order for the MLS to change the widely-held view that it is the Senior Tour for soccer, it will have to keep the stars it has and lure others in their prime. Hopefully, the new television deal will provide the financial backing to make that a possibility.
Ultimately, the challenge that the MLS has is two-fold in terms of attracting new viewers: 1) It must convince the casual fan that got excited about the World Cup to get behind it, and 2) It must convince hardcore soccer fans of European leagues that it is more than simply watching the equivalent of AAA baseball. The continuing development and construction of impressive soccer-only facilities, the new television contract, and increasing the quality of the action on the pitch are what will determine whether MLS can ride this World Cup wave through 2018 or whether the tides will go back out, only to resurface when it’s time to rally around the flag.
European Leagues:
There is little doubt that the European leagues see a future for their product in the United States. As the television ratings slowly increase each summer, Europe’s best clubs make their way to the United States for preseason tours. What started as friendlies against MLS clubs has made way for the International Champions Cup, which started last year. The competition has attracted European super-clubs Real Madrid, Manchester United, Chelsea, and AC Milan among others over its two-year history. The competition features matches played at American football stadiums across the country and allows American fans to see the best players in Europe up-close and personal. For instance, Real Madrid and Manchester United played in “the Big House” in Ann Arbor, Michigan - home of the University of Michigan Wolverines - on Saturday and saw a “record crowd," selling out over 109,000 seats. Of course, after Spain, England, and Italy all went out of the World Cup early, many of the clubs in this tournament have featured their “A” squads in the matches. I’m sure that will make the fans of those countries feel better about their teams crashing out of the World Cup prematurely.
In addition to clubs coming to the United States on tour, with an increasing amount of Americans taking ownership of clubs in the Premiere League, there has been an increasing level of effort to "tie-in" soccer clubs to their American cousins. The most notable example of this has been the effort by Fenway Sports Group to attract fans of the Boston Red Sox to Liverpool (FSG owns both). Liverpool has played matches at Fenway Park, there has been crossover merchandise, and it also led to the incredibly awkward meeting between the two clubs in the Red Sox clubhouse that was captured on Being Liverpool.
Just one of many tie-ins between Liverpool and the Boston Red Sox (Photo: @MySportsComplex | Twitter)
Since it obtained the rights to the English Premier League prior to last season, NBC has done a phenomenal job with its coverage. In addition to giving the league a ton of coverage and pouring time and money into advertising, the revolutionary decision to echo the NFL’s Sunday Ticket and make EVERY match available either through one of its channels or online, has allowed American fans to start enjoying and following clubs other than the top ones. The more people that can start caring about different teams in the league, the stronger the EPL’s presence in the United States will be. In addition to quantity of matches available, NBC’s coverage team is excellent, both in the studio show hosted by the knowledgable and lovely Rebecca Lowe and in the commentary booth, which is anchored by renowned play-by-play man Arlo White. White’s English brogue really adds to the proceedings, as there is something proper about hearing about football from an Englishman. It is the perfect compliment to a morning tea and crumpet (which are surprisingly good).
The quality of the coverage is paying off, as NBC indicated that 4.9 million viewers tuned into the final day of matches in the English Premier League season. The number represented a 172% increase over the final day of the 2011-12 season that was on ESPN2 and nine Fox networks and also featured coverage of every match being played. NBC also announced that a total of 31.5 million viewers saw Premier League coverage on its networks this past season, up from 13.3 million last year on ESPN and Fox. These are fairly staggering increases in a short period of time, and so it seems NBC is on the right path.
In contrast to the visibility that the English Premier League enjoys with NBC, La Liga and Seria A currently toil on the far-less-visible BEIN Sport. Although it is available through most television providers (although not in HD on Xfinity, which has led to many-an-expletive in the Smith household), the matches do not have the same visibility as their English counterparts. This is a shame given the firepower that will be on display in this year’s matches between Real Madrid and FC Barcelona, as World Cup superstars James Rodriguez and Neymar join Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and the other incredible players that will be on the pitch for both sides. That kind of star power must be leveraged for ratings and whichever network gets to televise El Clásico this year (ESPN televised a Copa del Rey match between the two this past season) must do absolutely everything it can to draw America’s attention. After that, the quality on the pitch will do the rest.
Overall, the best selling point that the European leagues have to an American audience is the star power of the players and the corresponding quality of the product on the pitch. After the World Cup, more and more fans are trying to figure out which club they should support for the upcoming season. Hopefully, the early Saturday morning matches will continue to grow the sport in this country, as new fans discover the allure of enjoying a breakfast beer in a pub amongst similarly-clad individuals before noon. We at The18 are optimistic about the future of soccer in this country and cannot wait to see what happens in the upcoming season, both on and off the pitch.
In Part III, we will look at how the U.S. Men’s National Team can capitalize on its popularity and prevent it from being an every-four-year fad.
Follow Mike Smith on Twitter @thefootiegent
