WORLD SERVICEor MLS, 2020 marks
a 25th season –
which is quite an
achievement in
the US, where
professional soccer’s
history is strewn with the corpses of
leagues that didn’t make it.
Even the vaunted North American
Soccer League – the league of Pele
and Franz Beckenbauer – lasted only
17 years, from 1968 to 1984. But MLS is
doing more than survive, it is expanding.
The 2020 season will see the addition
of Inter Miami and Nashville, bringing
MLS up to 26 teams, with more clubs
on the way to what is considered the
minimum of 30 – which is half as big
again as most of the world’s top leagues.
A large-size league is necessary for
national coverage of the USA’s vast area.
It is a measure of MLS success that
those next four slots have already been
assigned to Austin and Charlotte (to join
in 2021) and St Louis and Sacramento
(2022). Commissioner Don Garber
has let it be known that “32 teams
will happen at some point but it is
not happening any time soon”.
The growing strength of MLS is
reflected in what it charges cities to
purchase a franchise. Where Toronto
paid $10million to join the league in
2006, the franchise fee has now risen
to over $200m.
That figure came up recently in a
hearing before the Court of Arbitration
for Sport (CAS). Two small, second-
tier American clubs were suing FIFA,CONCACAF and the United States
Federation, alleging that FIFA was acting
against its own regulations in allowing
clubs to buy their way in with a franchise
payment into MLS. They claimed that
FIFA regulations demanded instead a
promotion and relegation system.
CAS disagreed and ruled that, for
the United States at least, the franchisesystem was fine.
So MLS, unlike other top leagues, will
continue to operate without promotion
and relegation. Another huge difference
is that MLS, using what is known as a
“single-entity” structure, closely controls
how much money its clubs can spend.
Player contracts all belong to MLS, not
to individual clubs.
This unusual system has causedtrouble in the past when it has been
time – which is every four years – for
the league and players union to sign
a collective bargaining agreement.
But not so this year when negotiations
were completed three weeks before
the deadline.
MLS agreed to increases in spending
on player salaries: from $9,225,000
per club for 2020, rising each year to
$11,643,000 in 2024. The minimum
salary for a senior player, currently
$70,250, will be increased yearly up
to $85,500 in 2024. Agreement was
also reached on assuring players a
percentage of the increased money
expected from new contracts with
television companies, which is something
also handled centrally by the league.
The franchise fee was not a problem
for newcomers Inter Miami. After his five
years playing with LA Galaxy, DavidBeckham was granted an option to
purchase a franchise for $25m. He
chose Miami as the city for his club, but
it has taken six years for the club to be
ready to play due to the problem of
finding suitable land for a stadium.
The stadium has yet to be built but
the site has been purchased. For at least
one year, Inter Miami will be playing at
the refurbished Lockhart stadium in FortFirst boss...Inter
Miami’s Diego Alonso
Veteran...Dax McCarty brings plenty of MLS experience to league newcomers NashvilleEven the vaunted North American Soccer
League – the league of Pele and Franz
Beckenbauer – lasted only 17 yearsF
Star...
Javier
Hernandez