Not that TFC needs the help filling the place, but it looks like the most overpaid athlete in the world will once again be AWOL for his only scheduled Toronto appearance.
The guy asking for $1,129 a ticket is going to be awfully disappointed.
However, the hardcore Toronto soccer fans are rejoicing that with Becks out of the line-up, along with (possibly) U.S. international Landon Donovan, three points should be in the bag for The Mighty FC.
Canadians need not fear however. The pop singer's husband is still scheduled to play in the Great White North this season. Tomorrow, actually.
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6 comments:
North American soccer teams should continue to sign injury prone, over the hill Euros to big money contracts. It worked for us!
Yours sincerely,
The NASL
The NASL never left a forwarding address.
The Beckham move makes much more sense than the NASL era in my mind. Sure, he's overpaid for his actual performance on the field, but his presence gave the league the credibility to draw in other stars (Luciano Emilio, Cuauhtémoc Blanco, Juan Pablo Angel, Ruud Gullit, etc). In my mind, it's like the WHA-era Winnipeg Jets signing Bobby Hull: all of a sudden, people take your league more seriously and you can start attracting other high-level talent.
The NASL comparison is also flawed because of the differing financial situations of the leagues. The NASL tried to be one of the best leagues in the world right away, and thus their teams (especially the New York Cosmos of Beckenbauer and Carlos Alberto, who my Vancouver Whitecaps destroyed in the 1979 playoffs) spent way more than they could afford on entire lineups of stars. MLS has been building a secure fan base for over a decade now, following in the wake of the 1994 World Cup. Most of their clubs are on sound financial ground, and the designated player "Beckham Rule" means that they can only overspend on one star, rather than try to assemble an entire roster of stars as the NASL teams did. Thus, in my view, the league's not going to collapse any time soon.
The publicity MLS has received in the post-Beckham era is also tremendous compared to the little notice it got before: the league is now all over ESPN2 and SportsCenter, and is far easier to find on TV in the States than the NHL. If not for Beckham, I doubt we'd have ever seen MLS getting free publicity on Leno and Letterman.
Beckham's footballing talents also shouldn't be disregarded: he's certainly not as good as he once was, but he's still a deadly passer and a terrific set-piece specialist. He and Donovan have formed a deadly combination in attack for the Galaxy. There's a good reason the U-Sector guys are happy he's not playing against TFC...
And of course, the Whitecaps are the club that takes on the Galaxy tomorrow in Edmonton...
There is no doubt that Beckham can still play the game, nor that he is a world class player. He's just not one of the absolute world's best, which his paycheque would seem to indicate.
That said, as Andrew said, it made a lot of sense to bring him to MLS. He does bring a lot more attention to the league both here in North America and, just as importantly, among world class players in Europe.
A lot of people dismissively refer to MLS as a retirement league--a place for aging Euro stars to cash one final paycheque before hanging their boots up for good. They are basing that perception on the Beckhams and Blancos of the world.
Although the characterization isn't entirely accurate--MLS is far more about Danny Dichio than David Beckham--it isn't the worst thing for the league to strive for at this time. One can argue to their face is blue about whether MLS is as strong a league as the Jupiler, the British Championship or the non-old firm SPL, but it's ultimately a pointless discussion. But, what one can't argue is this:
You never would have seen Beckham playing for Club Brugge, Ipswich Town or Dundee United. Even though the current quality of MLS is likely about the same as those leagues, its potential is far greater.
The so-called Beckham rule (based on the on-pitch results last year it really should have been called the Angel Rule)is the latest step in the slow, conservative road MLS has taken since its inception.
But, regardless of all that, Mr. Posh is still easy to make fun of....
And clearly Stephen Brunt read my comment and stole my points...
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