Sunday, September 27, 2015

Stoke City Versus


I didn’t mean for it to happen, but the Stoke City vs. AFC Bournemouth game (Saturday, Sept 26th) had me glued to my chair for 90 minutes. Soccer fans out there know the feeling of having to schedule life 45 minutes at a time but it’s something I haven’t thought about since sometime around 2010 when I drifted away from watching foreign soccer and started focusing on and writing about Major League Soccer and the Columbus Crew.

To set the stage for this particular Premier League match up - before this week Stoke had not managed to win a game through the first six rounds of this season, putting them uncomfortably in the bottom three. On the other side is recently promoted Bournemouth, who has managed to win two, draw one and lose two. Good enough for a mid-table start.

On the surface, it’s easy to say that nothing about this screams “match of the day” type stuff. In a world known to me 20 years ago I would have said a match-up like this would be like a midseason Kansas City Wiz vs. Dallas Burn (two poor to below average teams) and nothing more. It is more, though, so much more.

This is a world of an organized, double round robin and tiered system with promotion and relegation. These type of matches become some of the most intense and interesting of the whole season. Stoke, who have become a regular mid-table team who feeds and survives off the bottom half (occasionally slaying a world beater) vs. Bournemouth - a thus far over achieving, newly promoted side.

What I’m saying is that both Bournemouth and Stoke need points in these games to stay afloat in the Premier League and the match didn’t disappoint.

Stoke City, predictably, came out strong as they were playing at home and can consider themselves as EPL veterans now (8 years! Who would have thought). Easy to see that the Potters wanted that early goal to take charge of the match. After 30 minutes of pressing a goal finally came, but at a cost. Bournemouth started growing into the match and were gaining confidence each minute.

The second half started off with manager Eddie Howe’s Bournemouth still in full flow, pushing Stoke into defensive positions for long periods of time. The goal finally came in the 76th minute off a nice finish from 25-year-old central midfielder Dan Gosling.


1-1 does Stoke no favors. Earning full points from a newly promoted team at home is the only acceptable result, but Bournemouth is still pressing (proving, surprisingly, they have the capacity to do so) for another goal and Stoke isn’t able to maintain possession for any length of time.

Enter Jon Walters (or - enter again, as he had the Potters goal).

In the midst of defending for the entire half and conceding a goal, he trots halfway over to the sideline with what looks like a rib / side injury. Not serious enough for the trainers, not fake enough to lather up the opposing players -> but well enough to break the dominating play of Bournemouth and allow players to get some water. It was an innocuous moment to most, but I don’t think it was for Walters and manager Mark Hughes.

Intentional or not, Bournemouth’s continued run of attacking pressure and momentum was broken. Stoke immediately took control of the match and scored when Glen Johnson whipped in a beautiful cross to sub Mame Biram Diouf in the 83rd minute.

Stoke hung on to win 2-1. The teams now sit next to each other, 16th and 17th, on the table.

---------------------------

Also happening yesterday was the #BlackAndGold20 anniversary promotion game for my local professional team Columbus Crew SC of Major League Soccer. Round 31. Or, at least is was for the Crew. It was round 30 for their opponents, Portland Timbers. Others in MLS are on 28 and 29 games.

Beyond that, it was also a “East” vs. “West” conference matchup between two teams that play different schedules and qualify for the post-regular season MLS Cup differently. Were both to qualify and work through the playoffs, they could meet again in the MLS Cup final. That said, the result does play a part in the Supporters’ Shield trophy (the one given to the team with the best record). Got all that?

The game was energetic and the crowd was large (I would like to think it was the 20th anniversary that filled the stands over the dollar beer and brat night, but it was probably the beer). I want to say that the game was good. I really do. “Energetic” is all I can muster, though. There was no flow to the match, no giant swings in tactics (outside Portland grappling with the league’s leading scorer to the tune of two to one ratio in fouls) and no real consequence for the final result. Sure, Columbus could have moved up a spot in the East and Portland solidifying their playoff spot in the West, but what if the result were different? Take it further and ask - what it both these teams just forfeited the rest of their games?

Columbus plays the best soccer in MLS and as such, along with the team’s location, is the most likable team in the league. We are spoiled here in town. Ultimately though, where does a good season go? How about a bad one? I enjoy the players effort and taking stock of the good and bad but find myself asking these questions a lot.

---------------------------

I didn’t ask fundamental questions about English league structure when I watching Stoke and Bournemouth today. The match was about the intense competition on the pitch just two months into the season. For me, the result easily blew past even the biggest regular season MLS match and then easily surpassed MLS playoff games with a purpose, rhythm and flow that almost never happens here.

Tuesday, September 22, 2015

Tyson Wahl: 2015 Crew SC



Kei Kamara and Ethan Finlay have league leading offensive stats. Tony Tchani has the likeable comeback story. Michael Parkhurst is the affable voice of the coach on the pitch. Wil Trapp is Mr. Perfect making his way to the national team, Waylon Francis and Harrison Afful are playing their outside full-back roles perfectly and Federico Higuain is being... Pipa. There's even a story or two around "yes, yes, yes" goalkeeper, Steve Clark.

Where does this leave a somewhat boring, yet much-maligned league vet Tyson Wahl? Not sure. The team he plays for is currently 2nd in the Eastern Conference and overall one of the top teams in MLS over the last couple years. The defensive metrics, as modern analysts track them, say he's out of his depth - even as players like Emanuel Pogatetz and Gaston Sauro are signed, here he is. A MLS veteran. A survivor. Outlasting them all.

So Goes Ohio So Goes MLS


The MLS Players Union published their updated player wages document today. Not a whole lot of surprises since they just released it a few month's ago. This one does include some of the secondary window players. Now that rosters are locked the list carries a little bit more meaning.

High-level bullet points:

• Median Team wages up two million in two years (+50%)
• Toronto, LA, NYCFC, Seattle, Orlando biggest spenders (10m-23m)
• Rest of league remains in the 5-6 million $ range

Not a whole lot of surprises on the Columbus Crew SC front other than Gaston Sauro is making close to $600k annually. A wage that puts him the top 5 in the league, defensively. It's likely prorated this year, but that's still a hefty bill. Under Gregg Berhalter, the Crew have spent big on center backs.

I've gone over these wage lists dozens of times over the past few years and there's not much that surprises me anymore. I did discover that Columbus almost always matches the league median, as far as median guaranteed salaries go.

Just as the age old political saying goes, I guess. So goes Ohio, so goes the country.

Here's the full list of Crew players:

1,175,000 - Federico Higuain
599,513 - Gaston Sauro
536,667 - Kei Kamara
-------------------------
MLS TOP 10%
-------------------------
334,167 - Jack McInerney
300,000 - Michael Parkhurst
262,500 - Emanuel Pogatetz
220,179 - Cedrick Mabwati
-------------------------
MLS TOP QUARTILE
-------------------------
195,000 - Tony Tchani
188,333 - Steve Clark
175,000 - Justin Meram
170,167 - Waylon Francis
150,000 - Harrison Afful
164,500 - Wil Trapp
142,500 - Ethan Finlay
119,438 - Kristinn Steindorsson
110,000 - Mohammed Saeid
-------------------------
MLS MEDIAN
-------------------------
99,667 - Tyson Wahl
90,000 - Hector Jimenez
87,802 - Chris Klute
80,417 - Ben Swanson
68,355 - Ben Speas
63,420 - Romain Gall
60,000 - Kevan George
60,000 - Matt Lampson
60,000 - Sagi Lev-Ari
60,000 - Aaron Schoenfeld
60,000 - Brad Stuver
60,000 - Chad Barson
52,500 - Sergio Campbell

Sunday, September 20, 2015

Crew SC Take Inside Track

Last night's Crew SC victory over slumping DC United puts them second in the East and 6th overall with 1.57 PPG. It's a turning into a tighter than expected race at the top of the East table between three hot teams in Columbus, NY Red Bulls and New England.

Columbus has been bouncing around 7-11th on the overall table for most of the season. It's taken a red hot streak of 13 pts in 6 games to get them here. The only caution to this fantastic run would be the paltry +1 goal difference they have amassed in that time. What that indicates is that lady luck may have been in their corner for this stretch and, uh... gentleman(?) regression may be on the way.

Other teams on good runs are NE Revs (13pts, +6), NY Red Bulls (12 pts, +7) and Seattle Sounders (13 pts +7) highlight how sort of strange the Columbus +1 goal difference is.

Here is the full true table [UPDATE: NYRB won today taking them to 1.71 PPG, top of the league. Leaving this table as a snapshot thought, might be as high as Crew SC get].

ConfPts pGMGD pGMTeamP
West1.680.25FC Dallas28
East1.670.56New York Red Bulls27
West1.660.31Vancouver Whitecaps29
West1.570.18Sporting Kansas City28
West1.570.43L.A. Galaxy30
East1.570.00Columbus Crew30
East1.530.07New England Rev.30
West1.500.20Seattle Sounders FC30
East1.500.00DC United30
West1.46-0.11Portland Timbers28
East1.38-0.03Toronto FC29
West1.330.03San Jose Earthquakes30
East1.330.00Montreal Impact27
West1.31-0.21Real Salt Lake29
West1.25-0.04Houston Dynamo28
West1.17-0.21Colorado Rapids29
East1.17-0.47Orlando City30
East1.13-0.20New York City FC30
East1.03-0.38Philadelphia Union29
East0.93-0.34Chicago Fire29



Wednesday, September 16, 2015

NFL Decimates MLS TV Ratings

Major League Soccer's ESPN and Fox Sports ratings took an enormous hit on the opening weekend of the NFL season. The match on Fox Sports 1 between came in Orlando City and Sporting Kansas City came in at 58% below season network average while ESPN 2 was hit even harder losing almost three-quarters of their regular MLS audience (-73%).

Here is the breakdown:

215k : 2015 FS1 Viewership Avg

91K : Sunday's Match

-124k : Below Season Average





233k : 2015 ESPN2 Viewership Avg

63k : Sunday's Match

-170k : Below Season Average






Combined, that is a 66% loss in total viewers to MLS. Taking it on the surface that means that a mere 33% of the viewers over the spring to summer are MLS-first fans. There's obviously a lot more to that equation but rarely do we get such clear head to head match up.

This could be filed as "not news" by most of us out there as the NFL finally jumps off the starting blocks but rarely do we have the numbers publically before us like this (which you can find at sportstvratings.com). It's a guess on my part, but I find it hard to believe that MLS drew fewer numbers in the past.

For me, the drop in audience is shocking. The issues MLS has drawing an audience has to do with the fear of going their own way and breaking free of copying league formats used in the rest of the country. We've said it here many, many times on this site through posts and podcasts - SOCCER is a popular sport in this country but MLS is not. Going after the "casual fan" (or Butch, as I have called him) caused MLS to get completely blotted out this weekend.

We need leaders working in the sport. Lacking the courage to separate themselves from the rest of the domestic leagues and the humility to recognize that there are better ways of organizing soccer has hurt MLS for 20 years. Going forward will be no different unless things change drastically at the US Soccer Federation level.

Monday, September 14, 2015

MLS on TV

[This is a follow-up to my last post "Broken Games," where I talk about the ever increasing frequency of bad MLS games.] One of the things I thought about when writing that post was the visual experience of watching a MLS match. Not on ESPN or FS1 but where 90% of the games are watched... local broadcasts.

It's reasonable to think that local broadcasts are inferior to the big boys like ESPN but because so few MLS games are covered at that level it's fair to take stock of what the local / regional broadcasters are producing (to be fair, ESPN and FS1 broadcasts are slick but love too tight camera shots on the action). With that in mind and armed with MLS Live, I set out to grade each team's broadcast. This is visually speaking only (after all, this is TV), so no assessment of the folks on the call.

After spending some time running up and down all 20, I came up with five different categories of which to grade. Keep in mind this is only based on what I see visually on TV, not what it's like to be there.

1. Pitch
2. Stadium
3. Atmosphere
4. Camera Angle and Distance
5. Graphics

I scored each category on a 0-20 scale, only giving out 0, 10, or a 20 to keep it simple and fast instead of obsessing needlessly between the difference of 12 and 15 (or similar). The standard-bearer is White Hart Lane, home of the Tottenham Hotspurs of the Barclays Premier League as well as Old Trafford (not when NBC has their cameras there).

Going in I knew generally what to expect but what I found was that there are many MLS markets that are "broken" as far as even approaching a standard, informative and interesting match broadcast for a fan of soccer.

Now, I say fan of soccer because it is a fan that MLS has never really grabbed hold of. They've always gravitated to the "casual fan." Since I'll likely be referring to both "casual" and "soccer fan" a few times let's call them Butch (representing a small % of soccer fans in the US) and Liam (who represents every kid who watches foreign leagues in Europe and Mexico, aka - most soccer fans in the US. Think of them as the ones that sell out 90k strong Barcelona games in the USA).

First up are the broken broadcasts. What this means is that Liam will not spend much time with them on TV. Their overall scores vary but the dealbreaker is the surface, so we'll start with those. I'll still grade the other items on my list, as you will see.

[% is total score out of 100 possible points]

--% New England Revolution, Gillette Stadium (CSN, NBC)
It's an impossible watch for any fan outside the teams playing, and even for them it is a test in patience. I've found that you have to treat the game like it's another sport. Making matters worse is its a cavernous NFL stadium.

0: Pitch
0: Stadium
0: Atmosphere
10: Camera Angle, Distance
0: Graphics



--% Orlando City, Citrus Bowl (FOX)
Orlando gets the Angle and Distance right but is otherwise completely broken from a soccer viewing standpoint. The surface is awful and it's in a gridiron stadium.

0: Pitch
0: Stadium
10: Atmosphere
20: Camera Angle, Distance
0: Graphics



--% Vancouver Whitecaps, BC Place (TSN)
I like BC Place as a soccer stadium, but the surface is rough and artificial. The camera on the action is pretty good, but just like other non-specific stadiums, it's more to do with what else is played there and not the decisions of the Whitecaps.

0: Pitch
10: Stadium
20: Atmosphere
10: Camera Angle, Distance
0: Graphics



--% Portland Timbers, Providence Park
The most unique and atmospheric of MLS stadiums is played on artificial turf. It's the pellet type as well, making it worse. It also appears to play smaller on TV (listed at 110x75 yds).

0: Pitch
10: Stadium
20: Atmosphere
20: Camera Angle, Distance
0: Graphics



--% Seattle Sounders FC, Century Link (CSN, NBC)
Seattle gets a lot of things right with their broadcast, but not much of that is due to what they have done (it's a NFL stadium). The surface is also poor and it isn't uncommon for it to have gridiron lines in the fall. I'm not docking it for this but... it comes off as sterile on TV. Like it under fluorescent office lighting.

0: Pitch
10: Stadium
20: Atmosphere
20: Camera Angle, Distance
0: Graphics



20% New York City FC, Yankee Stadium (YES)
Outside of the novelty aspect of a game at a popular MLB team's home, these games are terrible to watch on TV. The surface from a playing standpoint looks alright but it's small and you can tell where they sod the baseball field. The Yankees are paying a lot of money to make it playable but it's not "division 1."

10: Pitch
0: Stadium
0: Atmosphere
0: Camera Angle, Distance
10: Graphics



30% FC Dallas, Toyota Stadium (CSN, NBC)
FC Dallas games are often sparsely attended and making matters worse is the stage on one end. The atmosphere is also extremely casual.

20: Pitch
0: Stadium
0: Atmosphere
10: Camera Angle
0: Graphics



30% Chicago Fire, Toyota Park (CSN, NBC)
I'm being generous to Chicago's pitch. Think of the 10 as a "most improved" score. The rest of the experience of watching a game at Toyota Park is average. It falls in the PPL Park, Rio Tinto, Dick's type feel of sameness though. One thing Chicago broadcasts also suffer from is lack of fans. Don't let the official attendance fool you, there are a number of nights at Chivas USA levels.

10: Pitch
10: Stadium
0: Atmosphere
10: Camera Angle, Distance
0: Graphics



30% Columbus Crew SC, Mapfre Stadium (TWC)
Sorry Crew fans. Again, this isn't about the gameday experience, it's what I see on TV (and the stage and the south end "party on the pitch" is giant eyesore, not to mention the field seating). Outside of the immaculate surface, everything else is busted. It's shot like an NBA basketball game and the angle is nearly flat. You can't tell what's going on 10 yards outside of the ball.

20: Pitch
0: Stadium
0: Atmosphere
0: Camera Angle, Distance
10: Graphics



40% DC United, RFK Stadium (CSN, NBC)
DC gets a little love from me for the atmosphere. It's the longest running MLS home in the country and the fans loyalty comes through on TV. The angle and distance are pretty good as well, but still. It's just doesn't reach the bar as far as viewing on TV.

20: Pitch
0: Stadium
10: Atmosphere
10: Camera Angle
0: Graphics



40% Philadelphia Union, PPL Park (ABC)
Philly suffers from the multi-use syndrome, for me. If it isn't football lines it is lacrosse. Otherwise the surface is nice. Stadium is nice as well but the atmosphere has dipped over the last couple years. I almost reaches average. Maybe it's unfair to call this one broken but there just isn't any energy at PPL park coming through my TV.

10: Pitch
10: Stadium
10: Atmosphere
10: Camera Angle
0: Graphics



40% Toronto FC, BMO Field (TSN)
Toronto's biggest crime is adding a 2nd tier that erased the skyline view for watchers on TV. It's funny because they still shoot the stands as if you can see the city. You can't. You can only see more sparsely populated seats. Games also don't come off as exciting on TV. Not sure if it's the stadium sounds or just the colors that dull the senses. Either way, comes off flat. Intensity on the pitch often refects that as well.

20: Pitch
10: Stadium
0: Atmosphere
10: Camera Angle, Distance
0: Graphics



50% Real Salt Lake, Rio Tinto Stadium (American Sports Network)
Just like I mentioned with Chicago. There is a sameness to the stadium. What does separate it is the atmosphere that the fans bring. Fading now that the team is slipping.

20: Pitch
10: Stadium
10: Atmosphere
10: Camera Angle, Distance
0: Graphics



50% Houston Dynamo, BBVA Compass Stadium (Root Sports)
Houston went ahead and build an enclosed stadium in the face of 90+ degree temperatures. Combine that with the orange colored seats (which are often unfilled) and I break a sweat just watching a game on TV.

20: Pitch
0: Stadium
0: Atmosphere
20: Camera Angle
10: Graphics



50% San Jose Earthquakes, Avaya Stadium (CSN, NBC)
I docked the pitch because it's the first year and it hasn't been consistent. It's also been used for other sports and not properly converted back to soccer. Liam hates that. Liam likes the stadium though, even with the rich sections at field level. Why? It's fitting for a place like San Jose (the richest place on the planet) and not generic.

10: Pitch
20: Stadium
10: Atmosphere
10: Camera Angle, Distance
0: Graphics



60% Colorado Rapids, Dick's Sporting Goods Park (Altitude Sports)
Unique and easily identifiable is the best way do describe DSG Park. The architecture also matches the Colorado feel (for me) and comes across on TV. Especially when there's snow. Haven't commented on graphics much because almost all broadcasts stink, Colorado's might most of all. They regularly shrink the screen to fit in ads, not good.

20: Pitch
20: Stadium
10: Atmosphere
10: Camera Angle, Distance
0: Graphics




60% Montreal Impact, Stade Saputo (TSN)
Stade Saputo looks good even when it isn't filled to the brim, which is something I can't say for many others. It has a unique feel to it on TV (and a pretty blue hue). Over the year,s the pitch has been kinda dicey, but I don't mind a pitch that isn't perfectly green if it suits the location of the city. It should look a little rough in Montreal.

10: Pitch
20: Stadium
20: Atmosphere
10: Camera Angle, Distance
0: Graphics



70% L.A. Galaxy, StubHub Center (TWC)
I like watching games at the StubHub center because of the large, expansive pitch and the camera angle I get. There might not be many "locally" broadcast games for the Galaxy (many get on ESPN, Fox or Unimas) but when they are, they work.

20: Pitch
10: Stadium
10: Atmosphere
20: Camera Angle, Distance
10: Graphics



80% New York Red Bulls, Red Bulls Stadium (MSG)
This is probably the broadcast to watch as far as meeting an international standard (Liam loves that). If only they could fill up that stadium more often and improve the graphics (get bonus points for being a little unique).

20: Pitch
20: Stadium
10: Atmosphere
20: Camera Angle, Distance
10: Graphics



80% Sporting Kansas City, Sporting Park
Top of my list is Sporting. They've got just about everything working for their broadcast including unique and only to them graphics that are well thought out and executed (pre-game graphics are great). They are the gold standard right now. A lot of teams talk about mimicking this team but nobody actually pays attention to the details (looking at Precourt Sports Ventures).

10: Pitch
20: Stadium
20: Atmosphere
10: Camera Angle, Distance
20: Graphics



------------------------------------------------------
CLOSING THOUGHTS
------------------------------------------------------
Not mentioned in any of the comments above is one glaring problem when watching MLS games (and this includes national broadcasts) and that is when the action drifts towards the top (away from the camera) the videographer fills 50% off the frame with the crowd. It's nice every now and again but - man, is it a problem. I figure this comes from the cameramen shooting NFL or College Football games.

What's a little baffling to me is how MLS doesn't have any sort of standard for broadcasts. They pride themselves on equality of teams via caps and roster rules as well as stadium standards (mostly) but completely leave it up to individual teams to figure out the broadcast. Even the English Premier league has a consistent broadcast in the way of graphics and broadcast quality. There are only 20 teams in MLS, so that's 10 games a weekend. I'm not sure why they don't hire 10 broadcast teams to venture out each week instead of following this local model like MLB.

Last up is a couple comments on ESPN, Univision and Fox Sports 1 handling of the games... they are not as good as we might think and still plagued with poor camera angles and awkward cut-ins and interviews. I will say, however, that they do draw you in with shots of coaches and players in between the action. It's something the local guys can't get because of the lack of cameras at the game (I'm faily certain TWC has about 3 at Crew games).

Anywho, I enjoyed going over each broadcast. Needs work overall. The league needs to focus on the basics in regards to the television product to avoid remaining a punchline in the industry as far as TV ratings. Instant replay, ref cameras and the like can wait.

Sunday, September 13, 2015

[podcast] Red Cards in Helltown : Season 2, Episode 15



SPECIAL EDITION of Red Cards in Helltown as show host Rick Gethin and analyst Larry Johnson go over the latest in the world of soccer things. As always the show is recorded live. Sixty minutes, start to finish - no bathroom breaks. Thanks for dropping by!

Questions, comments > ljohnson@helltownbeer.com.

00:40 - HEADLINES
► Thanks to Craig Merz for joining last show
► Coming off international break, MLS
► Don Garber, Soccerex convention comments
► MLS: Promotion, relegation, unique league set up
► EPL: David De Gea contract
► EPL: Chelsea's historically bad start
► Every match matters

14:40 - COLUMBUS CREW SC NEWS AND NOTES
► Hibiscus infused brandy! (Larry's homemade aperitif)
► FC Dallas and how the played the Crew
► Steve Clark's season
► Shots in the box against (h/t Patrick Guldan)
► Tyson Wahl, Parkhurst and the defense
► Interesting to hear outsiders view on team
► Kei Kamara, Stern John
► A look at the jacked up MLS table
► Even goal difference is average soccer
► Top Crew SC moments, voting on team site

37:30 - GENERAL DISCUSSION
► Where to find Rick's Columbus Blue Jacket and Crew SC coverage
► Crew SC coverage on TV, quality isn't there

48:40 - QUICK HIT, WRAP UP
► Copa America location up in the air
► Chances it it held in the US
► David Beckham Miami drama continues
► Outlook of pro sports in Florida
► Manchester United, Liverpool match
► American ownership - stale, sterile


Monday, September 7, 2015

Too Many Broken MLS Games

The game last night between Columbus Crew SC and FC Dallas was the type of MLS game I've found myself calling broken. The Columbus match was a bit unusual in that it had so many player absences due to international matches that they had to use an ellipsis in the game preview, but it's not unusual in terms of being disrupted by events outside the league.

For most of the MLS season, looking at the league table is like looking at one of those funhouse mirrors. Teams a month off as far as games played, unbalanced scheduling and teams with negative goal differences near the top of the table. The league PR folks like to call it "parity" driven by league mechanisms like the salary cap, awarding allocation to teams finishing poorly and the college draft. But that's not actually what drives parity in MLS. It's more the fact that the season is made up of a large collection of broken games.

Let's run down the list of things that have great impact on MLS games:

1. Summer Cups (Gold, World, Copa America)
2. International Friendlies
3. Summer team friendlies vs foreign clubs
4. Turf (5 of 20 stadiums)
5. Special CCL scheduling (every year)
6. Unplayable summer temperatures (Texas, Florida, Southern Cal)

There are many other factors that can "break" a game in any league or sport. Injuries (ask a Blue Jackets fan) or poor weather can mess with any league in the world. Those are natural events, however. MLS works differently in that almost all of it is self-inflicted (un-natural) and it happens more frequently than any other league I know of. Count for yourself next time you are watching some MLS games. It's easy. Just ask... "Is this game broken."

I actually don't think any of the items on my list are out of necessity. So let's go down each one so I can explain myself.

1. Summer Cups
If there isn't a tournament, there is qualifying for one. It happens every year and they are scheduled years in advance. The only way to avoid the actual tournament is to adjust as much as possible to the FIFA calendar or get creative with split, opening / closing seasons (like much of this hemisphere).

2. International Friendlies
This is same as number one only in non-meaningful form. Again, these are scheduled far in advance. If US Soccer doesn't want to break MLS for them, then they can 1) not schedule a game or 2) Only field players from other leagues.

3. MLS Team vs. Foreign Club
These games have been going on for a while. "Foreign Team" looking to play some preseason games here in the US to get ready for their seasons. It's usually a fairly minor disruption but in recent years we've seen the rise of things like the International Champions Cup where there are multiple games played by some of the MLS teams. Maybe it's not your favorite team but your team is likely taking on one that is participating. Meaning: Broken.

4. Turf (the fake kind)
Polytan LigaTurf RS+CoolPlus World Cup Edition 260 W ACS 90 Bionic Fibre Infill, FieldTurf Revolution, AstroTurf GameDay Grass 3D and plain old Field Turf are the names of current playing surface names in MLS. Two of the surfaces belong to a couple of the most well-attended teams in the league. While I'm sure it nice to be there, it's unfortunate that the play on TV a lot. I think of it as a home with nice tapestries but a concrete floor. The game loses its familiar feel. Misjudged bounces, balls out run guys, no slide tackling, star players skip the games and almost all players hate the day after because of soreness (or pellet injury). More often than not, it makes for a broken match.

5. CONCACAF Champions League, Preferred Scheduling
MLS is not above moving heaven and earth to free up the schedule for teams advancing in recent CCL tournaments. Last year it was the Seattle Sounders and this year it was Montreal Impact. The result is not only a bunched up schedule for the teams in the tournament, it also means it jacks up opponents as well. It's a flat out mistake to change the MLS regular season schedule. It falls into the nebulous logic that pundits use about rest and form as well as tell the world how meaningless your competition is. Respect your season and others will too. With less than 2 months to go in the season, Montreal is still 4 games back from most of the league.

6. Hot Temperatures
Saving this one for last because it is the trickiest, yet still the worst part - games during MLS summers. Cities like Houston, Dallas and Orlando are inhospitable during summer months (and nearly as hot as Doha, Qatar - fyi) and you also get some scorchers in LA, Columbus, and all up the East Coast. Outside of long-time watchers of the sport getting frustrated at the pace of hot games (including the water breaks) vs. cold ones, anyone that has played an outdoor sport will tell you whether too hot or too cold games are preferable. Of course with cold, just like hot, you have fans showing up to worry about - but MLS has to do everything it can to improve the level of play for those watching on TV. Hot games suck. Each league has them, it's just that MLS has so many of them. 

The MLS budget / salary cap (which is good so long everyone plays by the same rules) only exacerbates the items I've listed above as teams are not able to go two-deep at any more than a couple positions.

I was in the RFK stands during DC United's first few seasons of dominance. The volume of quality players the league is bringing in has grown, but so has the league - and, it must be said, so has the rest of the world. MLS is a league of change. Good and bad. One consistent is that the quality of soccer has always been hit and miss in MLS, even on the best teams, because of (but not limited to) the issues listed above.

This year we have a good team to watch here in Columbus but, as we saw last night, it can be undermined by preventable issues. It's unfortunate, especially for the relatively large crowd and those watching nationwide, but it has helped bring some of this to light. The league has the power to fix most of these issues. They always have. The only question is - will they?

Sunday, September 6, 2015

[PODCAST] Red Cards in Helltown: Season 2, Episode 14



Great show this week as writer / author / reporter Craig Merz joins host Rick Gethin and Larry Johnson in the 34th episode of Red Cards in Helltown.

Craig spent 25 years with the Dispatch covering just about everything here in Columbus and is currently with NHL.com. He's also co-author of the wonderful book Chill Factor: How a Minor-League Hockey Team Changed a City Forever.

00:40 - HEADLINES
► Introduction of Craig Merz
► Talk about Craig's book Chill Factor
► International matches, popularity of the sport
► MLS not taking an international break
► Ideas on how to improve it, change it
► Crew / Dallas playing shorthanded on national cable TV

14:40 - COLUMBUS CREW, NEWS NOTES
► Crew seem more comfortable this year
► Best playoff spot, Crew defense still shaky
► Knockout games, scary.
► McInerney a good pick up if Kamara leaves
► Montreal, Klopas middle of the night firing
► Teams fighting for the playoffs
► A look at the table
► Discussion on Ethan Finlay

34:32 - GENERAL DISCUSSION
► Wil Trapp, his impact on the team (on and off pitch)
► Topic for Merz: Pro sports in Columbus, the future
► Relationship to Ohio State, room for all
► Future of Crew Stadium, decisions need to be made

48:40 - QUICK HIT, WRAP UP
► NASL challenging D1 standards
► Merger at top level? Tiered? What coming
► How would a suit impact US Soccer / MLS / SUM

Thank you again to Craig Merz for joining the show!

Thursday, September 3, 2015

Crew SC - All Around the World (map)

Columbus Crew SC have nine national team players in 16 international matches this week. Here are the locations where they will be traveling. You can click on each of the pins to get general info. Top toolbar has the link to a full window.



[Full map in image form]