SoccerA missed opportunity for U.S. Soccer Federation, MLS

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The USSF had the chance to reshape not only second division soccer in the United States and Canada, but also to reshape the game at the top level, in Major League Soccer.

This is what they could have done:

• Allow each MLS team to either own, part-own or simply affiliate with a second division team.
• Allow MLS teams to move players between divisions, based on performance, similar to the minor league system in baseball.

This would solve a number of issues that are hindering the development of the game in Canada and the United States.

Doubling resources

Teams in Major League Soccer are fairly well matched when they are able to field full-strength lineups. However, this rarely happens in soccer, and the combination of injuries, suspensions and international call-ups can drastically reduce the quality of play on the field.

By affiliating with a second division club, MLS teams would effectively double their squad sizes from 20 senior players to 40, without having to double the salary cap. The ability to call up a second division player when needed would make the quality of play in MLS more consistent.

Second division soccer has not met with particularly strong fan support, outside of a few markets like Vancouver and Montreal. By affiliating with an MLS team, fans in those second division cities could see the MLS stars of tomorrow in their own backyard today.

MLS teams would be able to send their younger, inexperienced players down to the second division to gain valuable match experience. In Toronto, players like Fuad Ibrahim, Gabe Gala and Amadou Sanyang would certainly benefit from some competitive match practice.

Affiliation would also provide the second division clubs with access to the resources and knowledge of their parent clubs. What club wouldn’t benefit from having the support of MLSE in Toronto, or the Anschutz Entertainment Group in Los Angeles?

Waiting on a CBA

The biggest issue facing MLS right now is the lack of a collective bargaining agreement with the players. There are a number of issues that are being negotiated, but in my opinion the single biggest factor is the lack of guaranteed player contracts.

The players are not willing to sign a new CBA without getting guaranteed contracts, and the league does not want to relinquish the upper hand when it comes to their financial destiny.

An affiliation with the second division could solve this problem for both parties.

If the players were to have guaranteed, two-way contracts, whereby they earned a guaranteed MLS wage while playing in the top league and a guaranteed second division wage while playing in the lower tier, it would provide them with the security that they deserve.

The MLS, on the other hand, would avoid the risk of having to pay players long-term MLS contracts when the players are not performing. If a player were underperforming for his MLS team, he could be sent down to the second division – along with a lower salary - and replaced by another player.

Are there obstacles to making this work? Absolutely.

An initiative to play well

For starters, the players probably wouldn’t be happy about the possibility of being sent down to the second division. Mind you, most of them have very little job security under the current system, so I don’t see it as being that big of an issue.

If you want to be successful in soccer, you have to back your own ability to make the grade. If you play well, you will get rewarded financially by having the long-term security of a contract in MLS. If you don’t, you will find yourself plying your trade in the second division.

It isn’t really that far removed from the present system, where the players have no security whatsoever. The difference here would be that the players would have the fallback of a second division salary, as well as the opportunity to work their way back onto the parent club in MLS.

As for the league, it might balk at the thought of having to give out guaranteed contracts of any length, regardless of whether or not they are at a lower wage in the second division. Keeping costs to a minimum has been a priority for MLS from day one.

Taking a page from minor league baseball

There are plenty of logistical headaches that go along with this plan, as well.

For example, how does MLS mandate that each team operate a second division franchise? The MLS reserve league was scrapped to keep costs down, and the owners might see the second division as just another financial black hole that will eat into their profit margins.

How many players could be sent down or called up at any one time? How often could a player be sent down or called up during a season? Would there be a cut-off point during the season when there would be no more movement of players?

All of these questions raise valid concerns. Nevertheless, the idea is worthy of a discussion. If baseball can make a minor league system work, then surely the soccer powers north and south of the border can put their collective minds together to sort out this mess.

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