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OT: Messi coming to MLS

mosito

mosito

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This is awesome.
I know my dad will likely hit a few RedBulls games now. Fathers day or Birthday present set for the next few years
 
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mildone_rivals

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He's one of my favorite players. Thing is, 35 in soccer years is like 70 in human years. So while it is a public relations coup for the MLS and Miami, it's not a huge deal from an MLS quality of play, thing, IMO.

Still, Messi is one of those players who makes the players around him better (unlike C Ronaldo, for example, who seemed to have the opposite effect). And he'll still be fun to watch for a few more years or so. So things may be looking up for his new team when he joins them on the field.
 
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Zak57

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He still plays at a high level so it's a big deal for a couple of years before he loses his skill.
 
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WhichReligionIsRight

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This is a big deal for MLS. As big - or bigger - than Beckham. The league is growing and doing well in many parts of the country - Though not yet so much in NY/NJ. NYCFC is building a stadium - I think they take off with a real soccer stadium. As for the Red Bulls, I think they need local owners invested in North Jersey.
 
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Doctor Worm

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RUBlackout7 said:
Thank god he didn’t go to the Saudi’s. I wanted him to retire with Barcelona though. He’s still really good and could start for them imo.
Click to expand...
Messi hinted that Barca was his first choice, but financial restrictions mitigated against it.
 
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Roy_Faulker

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I’m terms of attendance and valuation it’s already top 10 - though I know the attendance numbers are a bit skewed by give aways and a few teams packing larger stadia. But - interest is growing. Hell my Columbus Crew keep posting 20k+ for games.

I think this is great for the league. It helps the profile in the build up to the next World Cup and provides mentorship opportunities for younger guys.

I do think the league is ready to take the next big step. The academies are pumping out talent we are about to see the first fruits of a generation of players who actually grew up in a genuine professional youth system.
 
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famousbill19

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NotInRHouse said:
It's the retirement league. Always has been and will be.

Unlike at PSG no one is coming to your house to complain if you lose...and Ligue 1 is the 5th best league...in Europe.

Though I appreciate him going to the US instead of sportswashing with the Saudis...and I'm a Real fan.
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I do not disagree that was the case in the early days of MLS, but now it is more of a feeder league. Sure there are a handful of big names joining MLS late in their careers, but their are many more younger players that are leveraging their MLS experience to play in top flight EU leagues. The challenge now is to keep those players who are entering their prime in MLS; this is a much more difficult task.

https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_...-transfers-europe-which-benefits-usmnt-mexico
 
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NotInRHouse_anon

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famousbill19 said:
I do not disagree that was the case in the early days of MLS, but now it is more of a feeder league. Sure there are a handful of big names joining MLS late in their careers, but their are many more younger players that are leveraging their MLS experience to play in top flight EU leagues. The challenge now is to keep those players who are entering their prime in MLS; this is a much more difficult task.

https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_...-transfers-europe-which-benefits-usmnt-mexico
Click to expand...

I hope Messi is at his prime- he and I are around the same age. But didn't the best team in the MLS lose to a midlevel Mexican team last week? I mean this is not a European caliber league.

My guess is the interest generated will be tourists visiting Miami from LatAm in particular going to watch him. Kinda like what pro sports in Vegas have been for US tourists, and I met Canadians traveling at a Golden Knights game.
 
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famousbill19

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NotInRHouse said:
I hope Messi is at his prime- he and I are around the same age. But didn't the best team in the MLS lose to a midlevel Mexican team last week? I mean this is not a European caliber league.

My guess is the interest generated will be tourists visiting Miami from LatAm in particular going to watch him. Kinda like what pro sports in Vegas have been for US tourists, and I met Canadians traveling at a Golden Knights game.
Click to expand...
I certainly would not argue MLS is currently as strong as the top European leagues (i.e. UK, Spain, Italy, Germany). The reason why, however, is not because it is filled with a bunch of used up has-beens. Rather, it is because the top young talent typically leaves for EU in search of money and bigger stages.

The good news for MLS however is that the Top EU leagues are now paying large transfer fees to the MLS clubs for this talent, which if invested wisely back into the clubs, will improve the overall strength/quality of the league. It will take time to get to the level of the top leagues, and may ultimately never get there, but I think it is the right pathway.

Some argue that bringing Messi in ultimately hurts the league by reinforcing the narrative that this is a retirement league. While I don't necessarily disagree with this, I also do not think you can pass up the publicity that the most popular athlete on the planet will bring to your league. Either way, it is a big risk for MLS- if people watching take away that it is a vastly inferior product, it will haunt them well past the days when Messi is long gone. (My guess is that the casual fan turning up to watch Messi will not know the difference.)

BTW, shout out to my West Ham club that won the the UEFA Conference League last night over Italian side Fiorentina. One of the highlights of life as a sports fan. COYI!
 
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Zak57

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famousbill19 said:
I certainly would not argue MLS is currently as strong as the top European leagues (i.e. UK, Spain, Italy, Germany). The reason why, however, is not because it is filled with a bunch of used up has-beens. Rather, it is because the top young talent typically leaves for EU in search of money and bigger stages.

The good news for MLS however is that the Top EU leagues are now paying large transfer fees to the MLS clubs for this talent, which if invested wisely back into the clubs, will improve the overall strength/quality of the league. It will take time to get to the level of the top leagues, and may ultimately never get there, but I think it is the right pathway.

Some argue that bringing Messi in ultimately hurts the league by reinforcing the narrative that this is a retirement league. While I don't necessarily disagree with this, I also do not think you can pass up the publicity that the most popular athlete on the planet will bring to your league. Either way, it is a big risk for MLS- if people watching take away that it is a vastly inferior product, it will haunt them well past the days when Messi is long gone. (My guess is that the casual fan turning up to watch Messi will not know the difference.)

BTW, shout out to my West Ham club that won the the UEFA Conference League last night over Italian side Fiorentina. One of the highlights of life as a sports fan. COYI!
Click to expand...
Congrats on West Ham yesterday and my condolences for losing Declan at some point this Summer.
 
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Fat Koko

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famousbill19 said:
I certainly would not argue MLS is currently as strong as the top European leagues (i.e. UK, Spain, Italy, Germany). The reason why, however, is not because it is filled with a bunch of used up has-beens. Rather, it is because the top young talent typically leaves for EU in search of money and bigger stages.

The good news for MLS however is that the Top EU leagues are now paying large transfer fees to the MLS clubs for this talent, which if invested wisely back into the clubs, will improve the overall strength/quality of the league. It will take time to get to the level of the top leagues, and may ultimately never get there, but I think it is the right pathway.

Some argue that bringing Messi in ultimately hurts the league by reinforcing the narrative that this is a retirement league. While I don't necessarily disagree with this, I also do not think you can pass up the publicity that the most popular athlete on the planet will bring to your league. Either way, it is a big risk for MLS- if people watching take away that it is a vastly inferior product, it will haunt them well past the days when Messi is long gone. (My guess is that the casual fan turning up to watch Messi will not know the difference.)

BTW, shout out to my West Ham club that won the the UEFA Conference League last night over Italian side Fiorentina. One of the highlights of life as a sports fan. COYI!
Click to expand...
When I learned this news yesterday morning I went to StubHub to get tix for Red Bulls-Miami on 8/26. Prices were $500+. Got tix for 8/19 Hartford for $50. One of my kids idolizes Messi.

Back in the day I went to a lot of Red Bulls games. The retirees then were World Cup winner Thierry Henry and Tim Cahill, the top Australian soccer scorer of all time. Watching these old guys warm up together was amazing. I bought tickets just to see their skills on display before the game.

MLS started off choppy but today is a glorious success story. Last year’s final was better than any Super Bowl.
 
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Zak57

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Fat Koko said:
When I learned this news yesterday morning I went to StubHub to get tix for Red Bulls-Miami on 8/26. Prices were $500+. Got tix for 8/19 Hartford for $50. One of my kids idolizes Messi.

Back in the day I went to a lot of Red Bulls games. The retirees then were World Cup winner Thierry Henry and Tim Cahill, the top Australian soccer scorer of all time. Watching these old guys warm up together was amazing. I bought tickets just to see their skills on display before the game.

MLS started off choppy but today is a glorious success story. Last year’s final was better than any Super Bowl.
Click to expand...
Hartford isn't in the MLS. What did you get tix there for?
 
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famousbill19

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Zak57 said:
Congrats on West Ham yesterday and my condolences for losing Declan at some point this Summer.
Click to expand...
He deserves any and all success that comes his way. Top, top professional. I know this is going to sound sappy, but he has made me enjoy professional sports again the way he has gone about his business. You will be hard pressed to find a West Ham fan that wishes anything but the best for Dec- he has given everything to the club.
 
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RUevolution36

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Zak57

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Doctor Worm said:
Ruh-roh. There is a USL team called Miami FC. They are not Inter Miami. They do not have Messi on their roster and never will. They DO play the Harford USL team on August 19. Caveat emptor.
Click to expand...

You got it. Tix were so cheap for a reason.
 
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RUevolution36

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famousbill19 said:
I certainly would not argue MLS is currently as strong as the top European leagues (i.e. UK, Spain, Italy, Germany). The reason why, however, is not because it is filled with a bunch of used up has-beens. Rather, it is because the top young talent typically leaves for EU in search of money and bigger stages.

The good news for MLS however is that the Top EU leagues are now paying large transfer fees to the MLS clubs for this talent, which if invested wisely back into the clubs, will improve the overall strength/quality of the league. It will take time to get to the level of the top leagues, and may ultimately never get there, but I think it is the right pathway.

Some argue that bringing Messi in ultimately hurts the league by reinforcing the narrative that this is a retirement league. While I don't necessarily disagree with this, I also do not think you can pass up the publicity that the most popular athlete on the planet will bring to your league. Either way, it is a big risk for MLS- if people watching take away that it is a vastly inferior product, it will haunt them well past the days when Messi is long gone. (My guess is that the casual fan turning up to watch Messi will not know the difference.)

BTW, shout out to my West Ham club that won the the UEFA Conference League last night over Italian side Fiorentina. One of the highlights of life as a sports fan. COYI!
Click to expand...
MLS will be a feeder league until it is willing to offer players competitive pay for the leagues that they say they want to compete with.


some of these players on the top of the list are not surefire starters for their clubs.




For the most part, when excluding the DP's in MLS, salaries are more in line with the English Championship, the 2nd tier of the English leagues.

 
Fat Koko

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Doctor Worm said:
Ruh-roh. There is a USL team called Miami FC. They are not Inter Miami. They do not have Messi on their roster and never will. They DO play the Harford USL team on August 19. Caveat emptor.
Click to expand...
Yeah got a couple brothers who follow this closely still and are amused by my Miami tix buy.

We will pair game with B-ball HoF visit. Looking forward to seeing Hurley exhibit in Springfield.

What a shame Rutgers lost Dan and Cam to Connecticut.
 
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NotInRHouse_anon

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famousbill19 said:
I certainly would not argue MLS is currently as strong as the top European leagues (i.e. UK, Spain, Italy, Germany). The reason why, however, is not because it is filled with a bunch of used up has-beens. Rather, it is because the top young talent typically leaves for EU in search of money and bigger stages.

The good news for MLS however is that the Top EU leagues are now paying large transfer fees to the MLS clubs for this talent, which if invested wisely back into the clubs, will improve the overall strength/quality of the league. It will take time to get to the level of the top leagues, and may ultimately never get there, but I think it is the right pathway.

Some argue that bringing Messi in ultimately hurts the league by reinforcing the narrative that this is a retirement league. While I don't necessarily disagree with this, I also do not think you can pass up the publicity that the most popular athlete on the planet will bring to your league. Either way, it is a big risk for MLS- if people watching take away that it is a vastly inferior product, it will haunt them well past the days when Messi is long gone. (My guess is that the casual fan turning up to watch Messi will not know the difference.)

BTW, shout out to my West Ham club that won the the UEFA Conference League last night over Italian side Fiorentina. One of the highlights of life as a sports fan. COYI!
Click to expand...

Too much $$ creates a Saudi like situation, China tried that and it failed. But we will see.
 
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