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In a trend we have been following closely since the beginning of the "Beckham Era" of MLS, and the new international player rules changes, the league's Deputy Commissioner, Ivan Gazidis stated in a conference call recounted in this report that the league's sudden influx and of international players as well as departures of Americans to Europe this off-season is no accident.
Rather it is part of a conceted effort by MLS to raise the standard of play.
Gazidis appears to have answered critics of this movement of players and those who have questioned whether it is counter to one of the founding principles of the league, improving the American player:
"Jozy Altidore is a better player because he played with Juan Pablo Angel. I passionately believe that," he said. "The onus will be on American players to raise their game and I believe they're up to the challenge."
This movement of international players was pioneered by D.C. United who have always been looking for quality players south of the border and who owe much of their success and club culture to players like Marco Etcheverry, Raul Diaz-Arce, Jaime Moreno, and more recently Christian Gomez, Fred and Luciano Emilio.Following their most recent off season moves (and critics of them), some of their fans have defended the club's willingness to fill all 8 of their international sports.
Ivan Gazidis has been a key proponent of MLS's moves toward standardization with the world's game and was behind MLS's "Game First" initiative to focus the league more on appealing to American soccer fans who are not yet fans of MLS. That initiative included the development of theme music played during player entrances in the form of the MLS Anthem played at the start of all league matches.
Gazidis is also rumored to become the successor to MLS Commissioner Don Garber and is also co-chairman of the US Open Cup.
y fear entirely and why editorialized just a week ago on where I think things are going.
http://csrnusa.com/ussoccerspot/?p=781
So if the MLS wants to be a mini (albeit an inferior) Premier League get used to performances from the US like the one this past week in Olympic qualifying. Right now the US doesn't have a single player who could start for England, who is a nation that can't even qualify for their own continental championship. And now we are going to make the situation that much worse.
UNACCEPTABLE.
MLS wouldn't even be in business if not for the American player and the need to develop him. Now they consider turning their back on the whole development system here. As my post points out in a nation lacking a football culture developing a strong national program and a top tier league are for the current time mutually exclusive. So I hope MLS reconsiders their game plan, because believe it or not (some fans of European football don't see it this way but the number of people watching LaLiga or the EPL every weekend bear this out) a professional first division cannot sustain itself in this country simply on hardcore fans of other overseas leagues especially when so few people in reality have interest in those leagues. The typical American fan like myself will walk away if the product isn't truly an american one. I am a fan of international football, but we also need an American league to develop American players and a league that has an interest in improving and promoting the game among young people in this country. To this point MLS has been on the right path but for the last few months I have seen worrying signs confirmed by this piece that MLS is about to radically move in another direction.
Nice spin job by Gazidis
We disagree Karik: http://soccernet.espn.go.com/print?id=493437&type=story&cc=3888
I'm not disagreeing that it makes MLS better. It comes down to an issue of priorities: the club game or the national team. My priority in the national team and developing a soccer "culture" in this country.
The NASL did the same thing and for those of us that lived through it, for a few years it was great and then it was gone..........liked scorched earth.