the 20th Major League Soccer Team?

                     It has come to the attention of those who watch Major League soccer that the twentieth team will definitely be in NYC. It will most likely be the New York Cosmos because of the stars that are associated with it, and the marketability of the Franchise name. The name was made famous by Pele, and has touched generations of Soccer or futbol lovers. The commissioner of Major League Soccer wants the team to be the Cosmos in New York City because of the Market place, and it will definitely of the future of the League. New York City is a proven success of supporting the growth of franchises, and providing leagues with extra revenues. Everyone does business here, there are tons of tourists attractions, a lot of money is spent, and  there is more diversity than almost anywhere else in the United States. Just look at how the Yankees have carried Major League baseball for years, and without them baseball would lose a considerable amount of money.

                       I am not against the NY Cosmos becoming a Major League Franchise I am just not sure they should make it the 20th team. In order to create a franchise and build a stadium in New York City it will take a very log time to get started and finish it. First there is finding a space to build a stadium, building the stadium, and then getting everything in order. This will take two to three years to complete, and that is the best case scenario. There are plenty of rewards to make up the costs, however I do believe we will hinder the growth of future Major League Soccer teams by waiting on the NY Cosmos. I think that we should give two other Cities the oppurtunity to become official teams, and within then let the Cosmos Franchise in when everything is complete for them to begin their first season.

                         Instead of New York I have seven Cities instead who would make better choices to invest in now to help the growth of Major League Soccer. These Cities are as follows  Cleaveland, St. Louis, Detriot, Orlando, Pittsburg,and phoenix. These Cities are great to help grow the game of soccer in the United States, and provide more options for extra television money. Cleaveland and Detriot are easy places to start up Franchises. Detriot already has a stadium that is not being used, and all it needs is a year or two to revenote it to be more soccer specific. Cleaveland does not have a soccer specific stadium, however the City is craving entertainment, and a successful soccer team could provide it. They have had soccer teams in the City before and fan turnout has always been very positive. They also have plenty of land in the City that is not being used so they could get one built within seventeen months, and play one season at the Cleaveland Browns stadium to get people use to going to games.  Both Detriot and Cleaveland will also help television ratings for the MLS.

                         Orlando is the only City in Florida that I could see a soccer team doing well. Miami is the worst City for Franchises because even when they do well most people are to busy doing other things. There is a night club in the Dolphins stadium, and more people would rather do that than go to the game. The florida Marlins are not a horrible team, and yet they can never get the stadium filled. Tampa Bay is just as worse because some fans will not even show up for playoff games. That is horrible when people will not show up to see their team qualify for the playoffs. It is not because fans do not want to go it is mostly because those things cost money, and the job market it terrible. Orlando is a great City with a lot of wealthy people, and those who are willing to spend their money. Even when the Magic are doing terribly, the stadium is full. I say would say its the best way to keep a soccer franchise in Florida.

                       St. Louis is a City that loves soccer and has a rich history of it. It may seem like a dying City, but it is really busy during the day, and people love night life. Also a lot of people who work in St.Louis own homes outside of it to avoid high taxes, but are regularly ticket holders for the Cardinals and Rams. A team here would do well, and help create rivals in the Midwest. As for Pittsburg and Phoenix they would serve mostly one purpose to create rivals within their regions. Yes they would help the league gain television money, and add extra reveue. The rivalries would be great to watch on television for people of Pennsylvania. Pittsburg vs Philadelphia is always a great rivalry and helps clients create strong bonds with teams who represent their cities. Phoenix would rival those in Califonia and texas. Arizona has a gigantic Latin poppulation like most states in that region, and would give clients more options of teams to cheer for. Regional rivalry is a big part of why Euope and other countries dominate soccer. Without regional rivalry it is hard to get people involved with the sport.

                      Lastly I think that unlike most leagues around the world Major League Soccer should go up to 30 or 32 teams. We are a bigger country unlike most soccer nations, and need more teams in order to stay compete, and cultivate the talent that is available not only in the country, but from around the world. All other leagues have at least thirty teams, and they are able to compete with everyone else in baseball and basketball. FIFA will not stunt the growth of the United States because of the differences between other countries, and if we are going to succeed in ways that work for us.

Thanks for Reading
JonnySoccer
                    

Reaction to America Losing to Spain 6/4/11

              The United States soccer team did not produce any real results against Spain. Wait you know what that is not true at all because we did come out of this learning a few things about ourselves. I remember getting things ready for the game. I got the chips, a 12 pack from taco bell, and a six pack of Coronas. Do not worry I am 21 years old so I just made it as my local bartenders have told me. I sat down and turned my television to ESPN. I was very excited until I saw the line up that Bob Bradley chose to play, and I immediately began to get worried. I am felt like I had wasted time buying beer and instead should have gotten something to do shots with because I did not want to remember this game.

                As a New Yorker I was very happy to see Tim Ream and Juan agudelo  of the Red Bulls play for the U.S. They are both young and talented players who will have great careers as time moves forward. However, a lot of other players that have gotten caps for the U.S were not present. A lot of young players that played for the World Cup a year agao, and in some international friendlies that have provided a lot of talent for the U.S were not there.  Also Davies who is a proven scorer as his time with D.C United has shown, but was not chosen. Most people that Bradley chose were people that were not heard of and some were not even starters for their respected clubs.

              Bradley said he needed to see what his team was capable of as well as how this line up would fair against the best. Honestly I do not think you even need to try this experiment to know the results. The least Bradley could have done was start Clint Dempsey to help with the attack and take some pressure off the younger players. He did put in Clint, however the damage was already done and the fans were not happy. I am really surprise Freddy Adu was not given an oppurtunity to play at all for this match. I would have definitely given him an oppurtunity to showcase some of the skills he has been able to learn in Europe.

              As a coach I think Bradley has helped the United States a lot since Bruce Arena. We are a competitive team, we do the best we can, and we have played descent. However, I think that we need to change of philosophy of football. We produce a lot of Mid-fielders and defenders as a country, but not to many proven scorers. As much as I love Bradley I would like to see an International coach from Spain, Italy, or even Mexico to take over in order to get us a winning recipe. As well as help our players develop into better scorers.

              The only thing that was really good about the match this week was seeing the new talent that the MLS showcased this weekend. A lot of the starters were gone so a lot of guys who would not get a chance to play a lot this year were able to. I think this needs to continue in a way to get more of the younger guys playing more. I wish the MLS was more like the MLB. Set up a couple of minor league teams so that your younger players could be fit for league action, and get more playing time. If you have the most talented player in the Super Draft then why would you keep him benched. I would rather play him or send him to the minor league system to get him in Shape. We need to invest more into our players and give them not just time, but oppurtunities to develop.

Thanks
Jonnysoccer