After some major doubts over whether the 2015 Major League Soccer season would start on schedule after collective bargaining agreement talks went down to the wire, news broke Wednesday evening that a deal had been reached. No doubt fans will be relieved to no longer have to think about age cut-offs, hard caps and free agency.
Nevertheless, the new CBA, which introduces a very limited form of free agency that will almost certainly be expanded after the next CBA in five years’ time, will no doubt play a major role in shaping the competitive future of MLS. League commissioner Don Garber has long tried to play both sides of the fence, pointing to the growth in attendances and expansion into new markets on the one hand, while claiming the league relies heavily on investment dollars to survive on the other. In other words, Major League Soccer is stronger than ever before, but it can’t spend any money on its players or allow them to decide for themselves where they would like to play.
Former MLS player and ESPNFC analyst Taylor Twellman addressed this contradiction on Wednesday, but interestingly framed it in terms of MLS’ grandiose ambitions to be one of the best leagues in the world. If MLS owners are forced to post losses on their investment, surely it should be on the league’s greatest asset: the players. While free agency is a good first step, there are still some stringent clauses, including a cap on raises based on player salary. If Major League Soccer expects La Liga- or Bundesliga-style quality at bargain basement prices – all while earning hundreds of millions of dollars from TV rights deals and franchise fees – the next decade could provide a rude awakening for Garber and the league owners.
Battle of the new guys
This year welcomes a host of changes to Major League Soccer: a new logo, a new CBA, two reshuffled conferences and a pair of expansion sides in Orlando City and New York City FC. The first-timers will face off on Sunday (5pm ET, ESPN2) at the Citrus Bowl in more of a ‘statement’ game than anything else. Yet there is something more substantial in this fixture than in previous matchups of MLS debutants. Where expectations of newcomers have been traditionally low, there’s immediate reasons for optimism surrounding both sides.
New York City arrive with David Villa, yes, but they also boast US international Mix Diskerud and former Real Salt Lake midfielder Ned Grabavoy, plus an interesting backline featuring Josh Williams and Jason Hernandez. Perhaps the most important piece however is the coach: Jason Kreis. As Graham Parker pointed out in his preview regarding an NYCFC pre-season friendly against St Mirren: “the expansion side looked like a Jason Kreis team.” Which considering his pedigree – including a Concacaf Champions League final appearance at the helm of Real Salt Lake – can’t be a bad thing for nervous New York soccer fans.
As for Orlando City, most of the hype has centered on the 2007 Ballon D’Or winner Kaka, who – incredibly – is somehow only 32 years of age. Though he will be surrounded by some not-insignificant players in his first season including Brek Shea and Sporting KC’s Orelien Collins, Kaka is already the face of the franchise in a year where few expect the expansion side to do much other than provide some star power.
For the neutral observer, Sunday’s match will be about judging how relatively well each side is adjusting to their new teammates and surroundings, and generally deciding how far down the table each will finish at the end of the season. For MLS, it’s a positive sign of growth.
Whither the Eastern Conference?
Opening weekend will also offer a brief, if inconclusive, glimpse into the relative strength of what was regarded as one of the weakest Eastern Conferences in recent league history last season. This year, many believe the East is even less competitive after the departure of two of its traditionally stronger franchises in the Houston Dynamo and Sporting Kansas City. Despite missing out on the playoffs last season, Houston have a distinguished pedigree, and were MLS Cup finalists in 2011 and 2012. As for Sporting KC, despite an uneven season in 2014, the club were 2013 MLS Cup winners following consecutive finishes atop the Eastern Conference.
Moreover, the East will see not one but two untested expansion sides joing in NYCFC and Orlando City. And while DC United, New England, the Red Bulls, Columbus and SKC were competitive sides last season, particularly in the final stretch, none save for New England looked strong enough to compete with the best three or four teams in the West. There simply aren’t any teams there with the strength or consistency of a Seattle or LA.
With all this in mind, one game to watch is Sporting KC vs New York Red Bulls on Sunday (7pm ET, Fox Sports 1). SKC head coach Peter Vermes will want to put some of the disappointment of 2014 behind him, while the Red Bulls’ new coach Jesse Marsch has to prove to New York that it was worth replacing Mike Petke in the top job and that the club has a bright future in the absence of Thierry Henry. It will also be an early bellwether for the overall state of the East.
What will a Donovan-less Galaxy look like?
Despite the urge to compare the LA Galaxy to the Galácticos-era Real Madrid – if not in pure caliber then in its blueprint of handpicked international stars to complement its homegrown heroes – the story of LA’s success has always been more about the brooding 63-year-old New Yorker standing in the technical area than any player on the pitch. Bruce Arena shaped and re-shaped the team through the Beckham era, and chances are he will do so again with the departure of iconic star – Landon Donovan – who retired as an MLS Cup champion last year.
LA fans know better than most however that their club has never been a one-note team, and last year’s squad was no exception. Whilst Donovan turned it on in the second half of the season after his infamous World Cup fallout with national team coach Jurgen Klinsmann, the team featured a dangerous cross out wide from Stefan Ishizaki, the deadly runs of Robbie Keane (en route to MVP honors), the promising talent of Gyasi Zardes and one of the most reliable midfield anchors in MLS with Juninho and Marcelo Sarvas.
That pairing is now finished with the departure of the 33-year-old Sarvas to the Colorado Rapids, and when LA opens the MLS season opposite Chicago on Friday (10pm ET, UniMas), we’ll get a tiny look at how Arena will steady the defensive midfield until Steven Gerrard arrives in the summer. The real transition for LA, however, won’t come in Donovan’s or Sarvas’ absence, but in Arena’s, who will eventually have to call it quits – perhaps even as early as the end of this season.
Just enjoy it
Shortly after the results come in after the first weekend in an MLS regular season that will stretch to the end of October, there will be the same familiar refrains of ‘it’s too early,’ ‘this doesn’t mean anything,’ and ‘don’t rush to judgment’ depending on the result. This is all true, of course. New England dropped eight straight matches in June and July of last season and ended up MLS Cup finalists. A DC United side that lost their two opening matches in 2014 – with little to suggest the side would rebound from their awful 2013 season – would finish first in the East.
Yet that’s all beside the point. Fans of the league have suffered through an uncertain February, with the threat of a work stoppage lasting all the way until within 48 hours ahead of kickoff. Perhaps this is a good thing; look for example at the raw ecstasy of fans on the MLS subreddit upon learning a deal had been reached. You never how much you value something until it nearly disappears.
The best analogy here might be the first day of school: it doesn’t mean much for your final grade, but it’s a great opportunity to get to know everyone. With two new clubs, another completely new-look Toronto FC facing off against Carl Robinson’s strengthened Vancouver Whitecaps, DC United taking on a Montreal Impact team high off an epic CCL quarterfinal win against Pachuca, and Seattle facing New England in a match pitting the respective best of their conferences, there’s a lot to simply sit back and enjoy without any kind of forced extrapolations. It’s been a long winter – you’ve earned it.
