"How long can the MLS management go on violating FIFA players regulations..."

http://msn.foxsports.com/foxsoccer/usa/story/022310-recession-deal-the-best-mls-option


"Player salaries are the biggest expense and that is where the single-entity concept comes into play. The single-entity structure has been very successful in keeping players' salaries low."

"Perhaps the single-entity scheme has run its course."

"MLS players are rebelling, MLS fans could get turned off, and MLS sponsors may also start to grumble."

"MLS fans, by and large, remain quiet and apparently willing to endure the mediocre soccer MLS offers and will continue to offer until it achieves its long-term goals."

"MLS fans should not have to wait 100 years to enjoy a high-quality MLS soccer product."
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YEP, I agree.

1 - "Bleacher Report." Laughs.

2 - If MLS was violating FIFA regulations, do we think FIFA would have something to say about it? And yet, they have said they're not getting involved.

3 - FIFPro doesn't represent MLS players, as much as they'd like to act as if they are the shop stewards of our little backwater.

4 - In fact, single entity is almost entirely about keeping players' salaries low. Artificially low, but not incredibly artificially low. Because the rank and file just aren't tremendously gifted soccer players worth incredibly high wages.

5 - "MLS fans could get turned off, and MLS sponsors may also start to grumble" is called "throwing something against the wall and hoping it sticks, regardless of whether or not there's anything behind it. "Could" and "may" are vague words used by people who know that what they really want to say doesn't stand up to scrutiny. The simple fact is that, despite single-entity and low salaries, MLS has more fans today than ever and continues to add sponsors. Does that sound to you like people are as fired up as the players are about the players' lots in life?

I do agree that MLS fans shouldn't have to wait 100 years. But neither should they expect that you can put a league in a microwave and have it become the EPL next week or next month or next year. Nor should they hide behind "I'm waiting for the quality to get better before I support it."

MLS is absolutely an average league, a cheap league. That's what happens when the ceiling on the revenues you can reasonably hope to generate based on prudent investments is fairly low.

But people like you don't think that stuff through. You just bash, or link to some other wannabe writer with a half-baked opinion on what's going on.

The next thing that people like you normally do is follow this up with a proclamation about how great the second division in and how there's more passion and no salary cap - meanwhile the second division gives us the Cleveland City Stars playing on permanent football lines in a crap high school stadium in the middle of nowhere, and a schism brought on because Selby Wellman couldn't get a deal on renting vans.

Talk about the business of soccer and Bernie re-appears like magic.

"I agree 25,000 pounds is plenty pay for an average player in a top league..."

"MLS sponsors may start to grumble..."

Yeah. If there is a work stoppage, I'm pretty sure that they will. And some will walk if they can. Otherwise they will just go with the status quo because bigger stars means them forking over more ca$h. If they want to do that, they can just dump money into the Big 4 leagues.

"MLS fans, by and large, remain quiet and apparently willing to endure the mediocre soccer MLS offers and will continue to offer until it achieves its long-term goals"

Pretty much. Because I am old enough to remember not having a national "top flight" league. So yeah, I will continue to deal with mediocrity. Most of the whiners fail to realize that most of the sports leagues, in all corners of the globe are "mediocre". Every league can't be the top dog. Resources are limited and viable econmic models vary from countyr to country and region to region...