Bruce Arena ]$20k[ anerA ecurB

STEVEN GOFF: It’s a forgiving league because you can start slowly and turn it on before the playoffs, right?

BRUCE ARENA: That has often been the case.

STEVEN GOFF: Do you plan to make any significant roster moves before the Sept. 15 deadline?

BRUCE ARENA: No, we are fine. I don’t know what you can do at this point — even though, the way things have been happening [in MLS] lately, God knows what could possibly happen.

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A few months back The Washington Post's "Soccer Insider" Steven Goff interviewed Bruce Arena in the wake of New England being awarded, via blind draw, Jermaine Jones. Whether it was timing, luck, or Arena letting off some steam about not getting Sacha Kljestan - Goff caught Arena at his very annoyed Brooklynite best.

Arena would go on to give this infamous quote: “Because they are children and there have to be adults in the process, and we didn’t have enough of them. I think we are back into the old days in the league when the rules are somewhat arbitrary. Hopefully we will get that straightened out in the offseason.”

Arena likely knew that Jermaine Jones is be the proverbial "game-changer" and he wanted something similar out in L.A. with Kljestan. Turns out Jones was a guy that did bring a team back from the dead in New England to go nearly unbeaten in there last 13 games to, as Goff puts it; "..turn it on before the playoffs."

The reason I'm bringing this back up now is because Arena just did another longer form interview with Sports Illustrated's Grant Wahl where is tune has curiously changed.

As soon as you follow the link to the piece you are greeted with a grinning ear to ear, slightly past magic hour photograph of Bruce Arena and an opening from Wahl:

CARSON, Calif. — Bruce Arena is bullish on America: On MLS, on the development of young soccer players and on the future of the sport here.

What follows is 4,000 words that might as well have been about the professional looking photo at the top of the page --- A confident, successful man in focus with calming afternoon hues blurred behind him as he is about to play an important match --- is my assessment of both the piece and the photo.

However, the other side of this piece that I see is that of Arena as a post third-largest-fine-in-league-history man.

Don Garber, MLS commissioner, had a busy year. Taking on prostate cancer and navigating the World Cup chief among them - but it was also taking on the two USA National Team coaches in Bruce Arena and Jurgen Klinsmann.

The tool Garber employed in trying to getting Klinsmann in line was a public lashing. The result wasn't all the successful and mostly left Garber with egg on his face. With Arena the punishment was easy, as he is employed by the league and Garber is his superior. Fine him $20,000. Amazing how suddenly attitudes and approach change after that.

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Late on in Sports Illustrated's December 4th Arena interview, Grant Wahl asks him about the difference between East and West Coast mentalities that I think explains how a fine can change a man from Brooklyn.

SI.COM: What does an East Coast mentality mean to you?

ARENA: I think you have a work ethic. You’re honest. You say what you think. What I’ve found: Athletes and coaches are confident, arrogant people. That’s why they’re good at what they do. They’re elite people in their profession, so they have confidence. We often run into people that object to things we do and say, because they’ve never been in that environment and they have thin skin, and they can’t deal with criticism and all of that.

SI.COM: What is your life like out here?

ARENA: It’s pretty good. I get to see the Pacific Ocean every day. I have grandchildren living around the corner. I like the weather. I like the culture of L.A. I like basically everything here. It’s a great community. It’s obviously pretty diverse. Just a different way of life.

Arena Fine, New Brand, Chivas USA Shutting down. MLS News Dump

Busy news week for MLS so I thought I'd run down some of the items and give some thoughts.

1. BRUCE ARENA FINED
It wasn't a normal MLS amount where players and coach fines are in the hundreds of dollars or low thousands. He was fined a legit amount of $20k. In a Washington Post report Arena said he got an email about it and then read a story up on Sports Illustrated about it.

The offending words:

“They are children, and there have to be adults in the process, and we didn’t have enough of them. I think we are back into the old days in the league where the rules are somewhat arbitrary.”

The comment doesn't warrant what is likely a near record MLS fine. Don Garber took this personally and is acting immaturely here - were this a more important league he would be fielding quite a bit of negative press. The WaPo report states that Arena has sought out legal counsel.

2. MLS LAUNCHES NEW BRAND IDENTITY

Somewhat surprisingly, MLS launched a new league "brand identity" at around 6 AM Eastern today. Odd time for anything. Odder still was the short press conference a few hours later unveiling it, which felt very internal-quarterly-meeting-ish.

The philosophy behind it was mostly lost to those who saw it today. MLS Chief Marketing Officer Howard Handley described it as being designed to be able to "adapt to its environment" and not be static. Neat idea and progressive idea but ultimately means it will change colors (as well as working as a single color).

Another point of interest today was the empty white space in the bottom half of the logo. If you head over to one of the three agency's sites today you'll find out sort of how they will use that space (Athletics). Handley also talks about that area as framing up the action. No doubt it will also be used for featuring sponsors / partners.

All of the ideas (even the kick stand) are fine and the philosophy is an interesting thing to apply to a league identity. Ultimately, though, these elements are normally what go into a single ad campaign and not the parent brand.

RIP 2012-2013

There is actually very recent precedent for what MLS has done. If you remember back to 2012 and when JC Penny brought in high level Apple executive Ron Johnson to help freshen up the brand. Johnson implemented some pretty radical policies and changes, among them was a new logo that replaced a longtime standby. In may ways the MLS logo is exactly the same. The same ideas and philosophies of adapting to change, environment, etc.

It failed, Johnson was removed by the board and the logo returned to the old standby.

Another interesting note about this brand unveiling today as the overall theme of #MLSnext as a meaning of moving ahead or each day being better. This idea, as with the JC Penny brand (or even Nationwide), was either ignorantly taken or completely ripped from PepsiCo and their Pepsi Next campaign.

Pepsi has long been trying (1963) to be the more youthful alternative to Coca-Cola products so over the years they've tried different campaigns to drive this home. Back in the late 1990s they introduced a "Generation Next" tagline that featured songs by the Spice Girls and Ricky Martin (ironically using David Beckham as a spokesman).

One of the most interesting things about this branding project MLS has going on is that the logo reminded me so something I would have done on my way to getting my design degree (?!) back in the late '90s. Tying this all together is Athletics use of  The Chemical Brothers' supremely 90s "Let Forever Be" in their introductory video (bottom of page).

I guess since we've pillaged the 80s, the 90s is fair game. What's funny is the 90s were a modern take on the 70s. We are collapsing in on ourselves. SAVE YOURSELF.

Yes, I have B.A. with a major in Graphic Design (and a minor in Fine Art!) - and you'll also note that had to learn another trade, ie. manufacturing - but it's for the largest retailer of posters and custom framing on the planet. So there is some carryover there. Loving it for the past decade.

3. LEAGUE CONTRACTION / CHIVAS USA
MLS seems to be having a hard time finding the right fit for Los Angeles' other team in league owned "Chivas USA." With attendances at all time lows for any MLS team in history, it's not surprising.

Earlier this week Don Garber mentioned that shutting the franchise down for a year or two is on the table and then today made it sound like there may be a buyer out there somewhere. There likely is, just not one the league likes for whatever reason.

The team is broken and MLS has no one to blame but themselves. The business models of C.D. Guadalajara and MLS don't mesh and never will. This also makes the deal with NYCFC and Manchester City a head scratcher. Why would the league enter into a partnership like this again is risky, at best.

LA and other markets like NY or Chicago or the Bay Area or any major city in the US are plenty large enough to host dozens of pro teams. Just not MLS teams.

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Perhaps one day MLS will get it but judging from these three items above that day is very (very) far off.

Gregg Berhalter and the Magic Towel

The above photo is of the Columbus Crew coach and sporting director, Gregg Berhalter, during his short time in charge of Hammarby in Sweden. Note what seems to be a scarf around his neck. Months of in-depth research lead me, Vidda "JibJab" Grubin, to believe that scarf is really a simple towel in disguise.

I have been accused of paranoid conspiracy leanings in the past. Heck, just yesterday I was rudely accused of that very thing during a discussion about SpongeBob SquarePants. Is he simply a well-intentioned adolescent sponge earning his keep flipping crabby patties and spending his free time catching jellyfish with his pink friend, Patrick? Or, is he a yellow-bellied commie sympathizer out to brainwash the youth from "sea to shining sea".

Each episode of SpongeBob begins with a supreme ruler, an evil looking uncle-like captain, who sings: "Who lives in a pineapple..." (think Cuba), "...under the sea" (what does he have to hide?). "He's absorbent and yellow..." (yellow, really? pretty obvious there). This captain guy tells all the kids in America to "...drop on the deck and flop like a fish." (Red, white and blue kids ain't floppers or fish. Damn, that gets me going!).

Anyway, back to Gregg Berhalter and the towel disguised as a scarf. If you have read my stuff previously, you know that I adhere to the rules of universal travel (credit to the late, great Douglas Adams): always carry a towel, keep a copy of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy handy and listen closely to what the dolphins have to say. Gregg Berhalter, I think, has the towel part perfected.

Berhalter's discovery of the universal usefulness of even the most simple of towels dates back to the photo above. My research proves that Gregg Berhalter's time in Sweden found the current Columbus Crew coach with only a towel at his disposal. That towel likely saved his life when things began to go sour. The goals dried up, and losses led to Hammarby's faithful calling for Berhalter's head.

The photo above shows the towel disguised as a tie. The towel couldn't help Berhalter save his job, but it did, with a little help from the Stockholm police, see him safely out of Sweden.

Berhalter was cast into the wilderness. He had to find a copy of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. If he did, he knew he might find the Heart of Gold spaceship with its Infinite Improbability Drive. Notice the towel disguised as a scarf in the photo above.

Somewhere, after his narrow escape from Sweden and during his wanderings around Europe, I believe Mr. Berhalter did find a copy of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Nothing else explains his miraculous arrival in Columbus, Ohio. Without the "Guide" he never would have known about the magical yellow stadium and its dolphin professed Scioto River Catfish Taco future (see: Helton Janglom's Template for Life. No, really, read it, it's good).

Showing the wear and tear of a lucky vagabond (the look in the above picture, that sly smirk, proves Gregg Berhalter had in his possession a copy of the "Guide." And, again, the towel as scarf), the Columbus Crew's coach was ready to build the next great soccer dynasty. All he needed was to locate the Heart of Gold spaceship.

While his initial attempts to improve the Crew were successful, they soon ran into hard times. After opening the 2014 season with three straight wins, the Black and Gold began a seventeen game run in which they would win just two games. Things were not looking good for Columbus' newest hitchhiker.

I propose that it was during this run of poor form that Coach Berhalter found the priceless Heart of Gold Spaceship. The photo below is proof.

Somehow Berhalter found a way to turn the towel into a shirt. Genius. He must have the Heart of Gold, and he used it to travel to the planet Ablididas. Clearly, he inserted his towel into a run of shirts being made on the planet by its many family owned stitcheries. Possibly the dolphins told him to.

Also as obvious is the fact that Gregg Berhalter decided to stick with the youngsters on his roster. He chose to run-out players like Finlay, Meram, Anor, Jimenez, Trapp and Gehrig week after week despite the mounting number of ties and losses in the middle of the season. Only a trip on the Heart of Gold could account for such an astute decision.

Gregg Berhalter must have gone back in time to the moment in the photo above. He then realized that his mentor and former coach, Bruce Arena, not only had in his possession a copy of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, but Arena had somehow completely ingested any number of towels throughout his own travels. (Simply look at the size and shape of the man. There is no other explanation).

Having traveled back in time, Berhalter asked his mentor "What's the secret to success in Major League Soccer?" Arena's reply, "Stick with the youngsters." As Berhalter began to ask what the answer to "Life, The Universe and Everything" is, he was swept into a black hole and had to find his way back to Columbus. The search for his Midwest home was arduous, but short. Columbus is often confused with black holes. Finding a place similar to a black hole, while in a black hole, is not easy.

Once back in Ohio, Berhalter stuck with his youngsters and has been rewarded with more goals, entertaining soccer and a chance to continue building a soccer dynasty in Columbus, Ohio of all places.

The photo above confirms my theory. Notice the out of out-of-character smile, the towel as tiny Crew badge and the bit of weight Coach Berhalter seems to have put on (all clear signs of someone having swallowed their first towel).

(Photos in this article courtesy of www.dispatch.com www.thecrew.com www.mlssoccer.com and various Swedish websites)

























 

Bruce Arena Prior to Game at Crew Stadium, Aug 2014

Continuing my search and share of never used MLS pictures; Above is a photo by Joe Maiorna taken for USA Today Sports. It is a photo that I very much like. Bruce Arena is a larger than life figure to guys like me. He's one of the only guys in the league left that transcends Major League Soccer. For a league that boasts about only engaging 18-34 year old demographic new to the sport (and actively discouraging the rest), there is something about that I like.

"Because they are children and there have to be adults in the process, and we didn’t have enough of them. I think we are back into the old days in the league when the rules are somewhat arbitrary. Hopefully we will get that straightened out in the offseason." - Bruce Arena, in my favorite interview of the year with Steve Goff of the Washington Post.

Arena helped drag the sport out of the post NASL era and put the USA back on the worldwide soccer map. In this picture he is seen strolling the touchline of a stadium that he, at least in some part, has something to do with. Now one of his students, a generation or so on, is coaching the Columbus Crew in Gregg Berhalter.

Did I mention that this is a picture I very much like?

XV. Only Interesting to Me

1. "I'm a great believer in the future of the game in this country. It has to be led by Americans." - Bruce Arena. Good piece in the LA Times yesterday where Arena talks about Major League Soccer's role in developing the sport and why he starts 9 US born players (NY started 9 foreign born against him). Got me thinking of how the Galaxy would do against our USMNT (Donovan wearing national colors even).

2. The Columbus Blue Jackets are Bad.
Very bad. Getting close to historically bad. Aaron Portzline writes: "The season from hell descended further into the depths last night..."

Jackets lost 9-2. It was 5-0 in the first period. The team is nowhere even close to crawling out of being the worst team in the 30 team league.

Columbus (the city) has really fouled this one up. Taking potential tax dollars earmarked for education to 'bail out' the team right before this season is one of the worst decisions I've ever experienced a city making.

IF THE TEAM CAN'T SELL TICKETS, IT CAN'T SELL TICKETS. Now change the word tickets to "cars".

The Jackets also convinced the local paper to get in on the deal to save the team. Thus the strong Portzline quote (he also dropped the word "massacre" in his article, which I never like in any sports article). Always love when a beat writer just loses it on his team.

2a. Crew Moving, rumors
More birds chirping about the team getting sold by the Hunt family. It's all but confirmed that they want to sell. MLS wants teams to be owned by different groups as well. I'd like to think that the Hunt family would sell to someone who wants to keep the team in Columbus but I don't see that happening.

Ohio, as a whole, isn't doing well. Population was statistically flat over the last 10 years (and it's not because it's an exclusive club keeping people out). Lots of weirdness going on (politically) because tax dollars are drying up. It'll only get weirder when the nation turns the spotlight on it next national election.

To the highest bidder, the team will go.

3. The first freeze.
Happened last week. A few days before the snow in the East (for the record). It has been nice since then though. 60s in November? Woohoo!

4. Pro-sports in Columbus
Not doing so hot. Sheesh.

5. Gears of War 3
Entertaining, but there are only so many bugs I can kill. The 2nd one was excellent in terms of gameplay and story. This one sort of goes off the rails story wise. Gameplay is still excellent though. Fluid and fast.

6. NHT
The Cobblers are struggling mightily this year. Lost a 3-2 one yesterday to the Gillingham. Gills had 2 PKs. Ugh. Not exactly champagne football being played in Northants. 20th on the table.