No limit on MLS potential: chief
Commissioner expects league to have 28 teams in future
The e 22nd season of Major League Soccer (MLS) MLS) kicks off Friday with all eyes on two newew expansion teams as the competition continues es its steady growth across the American sporting landscape.
The arrival rrival of Atlanta United FC and Minnesota United FC is the latest example of the league’s increasingng maturity and the US’ ever closer embrace of the world’s most popular sport.
After a 2016 season which saw another set of record attendance ttendance figures – MLS is now the sixthbest attended nded domestic league in the world – league officials are bullish about the long-term prospects of the sport.t
“Whenn this league was founded over 20 years ago, its primary goal was to build a true soccer nation in n America and it’s clear when I look at where we are today that we’ve been able to achieve ve that,” MLS Commissioner Don Garber told old AFP in an interview.
“Theree has been a long history of soccer in n North America and it’s had its fits and nd starts at professional level. But t Major League Soccer has proven that we’re one of the he major sports leagues in n North America and one of the more ore important nt soccer leagues ues around the he world. That’s hat’s our biggest est achievement.” ment.”
Two more expansion n teams are set to join the league ue in the coming years.
Los Angeles Football Club will enter the W Western Conference in 2018, while the David BeckhamBeckham backed Miami franchise are expected to becom become the 24th MLS side.
Unlimited potential
Ultimately, Garber expects MLS to comprisecompris 28 teams, a far cry from the league’s inaugural 10 10-team season in 1996. “When we started we had no idea that we’d be sitti sitting here toda today with soon to be 24 te teams and soon to be 20 soccer-on soccer-only stadiums,” Garber s said. “I’m happy to say I don’t think there’s a limit on what Major League Soccer will be i in the landscape of North America. But I would be v very surprised if it involves more than 28 teams.”
Garber was unwilling to disclose a deadline for Beckham’s long-gestating Miami project, whic which has been mired in delays over the site of the te team’s stadium.
However, he hinted that the uncertainty su surrounding the franchise would not be allowed t to drag indefinitely.
“We’ve had great patience and worked hard with David and his partners for many years no now. We are at the point where it is beginning to im impact our expansion plans as we roll out teams 25 to 28,” Garber said.
“We remain very focused with them on tryingtryi to finalize the right scenario to ensure they wi will be successful in Miami and we remain hopeful theyth will be able to achieve that,” he added, declinin declining to disclose what, if any, deadline had been set for Miami. “That’s between us and them.”
Garber was more emphatic about the chan chances of arguably the most famous club in American s soccer – the New York Cosmos – ever becoming part of MLS.
The Cosmos are currently rooted in the tro troubled North American Soccer League, the de facto s second tier of US soccer, with no chance of elevation t to MLS in the absence of promotion and relegati relegation between the leagues.
Promotion/relegation no ‘Holy Grail’
With New York already home to two teams – the Red Bulls and the New York City FC – there w was no room for a third.
“I think it’s fair to say that the Cosmos had a chance to come into MLS several years ago an and opted not to do that. We respected that decisio decision and don’t see a scenario where they come into our league.”
Garber indicated there was little chance of promotion and relegation being introduced on his watch, questioning the characterization of the format by its supporters as the “Holy Grail.”
“It’s not the Holy Grail for clubs that are relre egated,” Garber said. “I don’t see it coming int into the MLS any time soon. But someone might ask the MLS commissioner that question in 20 years and get a different answer.”
Garber, meanwhile, is an enthusiastic advocate of the US hosting the 2026 World Cup, believing bringing the tournament back to North America after a 32-year absence would “set an entirely new bar for World Cups.”
“We have the facilities, we have the market, we have the support,” he said. “We believe it’s the right time and we’re hopeful that our federation and the rest of the group that will be leading the effort will be successful in bringing it here.”