Presented with the chance to give his MLS adventure a Hollywood ending, David Beckham did not falter. Nor should we be surprised given that Beckham's CV includes assists for Manchester United's two dramatic goals against Bayern Munich in the 1999 Champions League final, a last gasp free-kick that sent England through to the 2002 World Cup and a league title in his final season at Real Madrid just as he was being written off.
Beckham was involved in the attack that led to Landon Donovan's MLS Cup-winning goal on Sunday against the Houston Dynamo and put in a typically composed display in the centre of the LA Galaxy midfield. A proud man, it was a night that really mattered for Beckham, as evidenced by his euphoric celebration with Donovan at the final whistle.
But with his five-year contract set to end next month, what next? And where does the MLS stand after half a decade with Beckham on board?
The first question is rather more clear cut than the second. Beckham has refused to show his hand thus far but it would come as a big surprise if he was in a Galaxy shirt in 2012, especially given the interest shown by the likes of PSG and several English clubs. A swansong on a bigger stage seems a more appropriate direction. However, until he confirms his intentions, it is possible that factors like not wanting to uproot his family could sway him.
But the progress made by the MLS is more debatable. First, it should be said that for all the Brand Beckham hype that surrounded his arrival, it was never realistic to think that one player - however famous - could lift the sport to the next level. The market in the US is enormous, meaning that fans are not short of options when it comes to watching sport on a Saturday afternoon.
The NFL remains the biggest business, with the NHL (ice hockey) and MLB (baseball) part of the chasing pack. The uphill battle faced by the MLS has been put into perspective over the past few weeks by the underwhelming reaction of NBA (basketball) fans to the fact that the first six weeks of their season have been cancelled. At the end of the day, there are plenty of other sports - at professional and college level - for fans to turn to.
This is the level of competition that the MLS is fighting against - and the battle is tough for the big market and small market teams alike. Take Thierry Henry's New York Red Bulls - yes, the potential is huge for securing a solid fanbase and the funding is there to recruit stars like Henry and Rafa Marquez, but the city also boasts two NFL teams, two MLB teams, two NHL teams and, soon, two NBA teams. Meanwhile, smaller market teams like the Columbus Crew or Sporting Kansas City face their own challenges. For obvious reasons, the smaller teams are unable to pull off the “designated player” coups to match the big boys.
Since Beckham arrived in LA in the summer of 2007, the average MLS attendance has risen, jumping from close to 15,500 to almost 18,000. Though the MLS has not made major inroads on the greater popularity enjoyed for other US sports, the Beckham factor has certainly proved a talking point and, while the tendency has been to portray the midfielder’s time in LA as either a roaring success or a dismal failure, the truth falls somewhere in between.
His manager Bruce Arena and his team-mates have not been shy about praising Beckham’s contribution, particularly during this season’s playoff run, and further evidence of his value to the Galaxy can be found in the $55M, 10-year TV deal that the club just signed. Make no mistake, that deal does not happen without Beckham. And Tim Leiweke, president of AEG, the Galaxy’s owners, did not try to conceal that fact.
Beckham was involved in the attack that led to Landon Donovan's MLS Cup-winning goal on Sunday against the Houston Dynamo and put in a typically composed display in the centre of the LA Galaxy midfield. A proud man, it was a night that really mattered for Beckham, as evidenced by his euphoric celebration with Donovan at the final whistle.
But with his five-year contract set to end next month, what next? And where does the MLS stand after half a decade with Beckham on board?
The first question is rather more clear cut than the second. Beckham has refused to show his hand thus far but it would come as a big surprise if he was in a Galaxy shirt in 2012, especially given the interest shown by the likes of PSG and several English clubs. A swansong on a bigger stage seems a more appropriate direction. However, until he confirms his intentions, it is possible that factors like not wanting to uproot his family could sway him.
But the progress made by the MLS is more debatable. First, it should be said that for all the Brand Beckham hype that surrounded his arrival, it was never realistic to think that one player - however famous - could lift the sport to the next level. The market in the US is enormous, meaning that fans are not short of options when it comes to watching sport on a Saturday afternoon.
The NFL remains the biggest business, with the NHL (ice hockey) and MLB (baseball) part of the chasing pack. The uphill battle faced by the MLS has been put into perspective over the past few weeks by the underwhelming reaction of NBA (basketball) fans to the fact that the first six weeks of their season have been cancelled. At the end of the day, there are plenty of other sports - at professional and college level - for fans to turn to.
This is the level of competition that the MLS is fighting against - and the battle is tough for the big market and small market teams alike. Take Thierry Henry's New York Red Bulls - yes, the potential is huge for securing a solid fanbase and the funding is there to recruit stars like Henry and Rafa Marquez, but the city also boasts two NFL teams, two MLB teams, two NHL teams and, soon, two NBA teams. Meanwhile, smaller market teams like the Columbus Crew or Sporting Kansas City face their own challenges. For obvious reasons, the smaller teams are unable to pull off the “designated player” coups to match the big boys.
Since Beckham arrived in LA in the summer of 2007, the average MLS attendance has risen, jumping from close to 15,500 to almost 18,000. Though the MLS has not made major inroads on the greater popularity enjoyed for other US sports, the Beckham factor has certainly proved a talking point and, while the tendency has been to portray the midfielder’s time in LA as either a roaring success or a dismal failure, the truth falls somewhere in between.
His manager Bruce Arena and his team-mates have not been shy about praising Beckham’s contribution, particularly during this season’s playoff run, and further evidence of his value to the Galaxy can be found in the $55M, 10-year TV deal that the club just signed. Make no mistake, that deal does not happen without Beckham. And Tim Leiweke, president of AEG, the Galaxy’s owners, did not try to conceal that fact.
“We don't talk about this deal without David Beckham,” he admitted. “We wouldn't have gotten the Herbalife deal [in 2007, worth as much as $25 million over five year] without David Beckham. We certainly are not touring Indonesia, Asia and Australia without David Beckham, and we're not getting the kind of guarantees we're getting [for the trip] without David Beckham. I don't even think we get Robbie Keane without David Beckham.”
To read the rest of the article, visit http://www.insidefutbol.com/2011/11/24/slow-progress-for-mls-despite-david-beckham-factor/53190/
No comments:
Post a Comment