Today. I only have one subject.........M. L. S.
MLS was founded in 1993. Didn't go on the field until 1996. MLS is a single-entity business, therefore all of the teams are owned and controlled by the League's investors. (Uh, oh).
As you may know--particularly if you've read my Blog in the past--MLS and the MLSPU (MLS Player's Union) are approaching the deadline for a new CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement) as the 5 year old CBA is expiring (actually DID expire on Jan 31). Right now there are 2 bones of contention that are pretty big....maybe HUGE....between MLS and MLSPU. 1. Free Agency, and 2. Minimum salary.
FREE AGENCY. As it stands now, if a player is cut (by the way, there are VERY FEW guaranteed contracts in the MLS) by a team, or if his contract runs out; the player does NOT become a free agent. The League still owns him and can assign him to whatever team the League wishes AND the player now has to re-negotiate his contract--most always for less money. HWITAT--Nowhere else in the United States is this legal. However, in the MLS it is the way things are. Why? Because, dear reader, the MLS Investors enjoy and appreciate the financial benefits of no Free Agency. It saves them--NO, makes them money--and they retain absolute control over their labor force. This concept falls somewhere between indentured servitude and slavery. It's great for the owner of the 'Plantation'.....not so much for the Laborer.
MINIMUM WAGE: As it stands now, the minimum wage for a professional soccer player in MLS is slightly higher than $12,000 annually. Yep, NOT a mis-print. That's the minimum. Now, as MLS will tell you (over and over and over.....) the average wage for a player is around $207,000. Thanks 'Empire of Soccer'. (Remember the fraternity 'hearing' scene in 'Animal House'? Insert coughing "Bullshit" here). The MLSPU will tell you that the real average MLS Salary is approx $80,000. So, "Houston, we have a discrepancy"..... HWITAT--MLS has grown and matured. MUCH more than I ever thought MLS would. (I had figured that the Investors and Powers-that-be at US Soccer would effectively 'fly the League into the Ground', but they haven't. Matter of fact, they've thrived.) Soooooooo......if the League has thrived, then it's time to share the wealth. Minimum salary should be $120K--for ANY player.
I know, I know. The Investors will tell me that they have not yet recouped their investment(s), and that the players are lucky to have a job. Really? Really?!? REALLY?!? Hey Daddy-Warbucks....did you really believe that 19 years in, your Labor force would be content to bust their collective asses and line your pockets with cash? REALLY? And, will it really destroy the League to have a Free Agency provision? Yeah, it killed NFL, MLB, NHL, NBA......oh yeah! Those Leagues are all doing well. Yeah, they have their problems and challenges......like every business in the US.......but they are making money. They are on TV. And they are thriving/surviving.
The clock is running on this. MLS and MLSPU have to come to a deal before the scenario comes to a Player Strike. The Players seem solid in their resolve. The Investors seem to believe that the Players will 'cave' once paychecks don't arrive (if the Players strike). Let's hope that 'cooler heads will prevail', and this whole affair gets solved. It would be a shame to have a work-stoppage in the year that MLS' excitement and anticipation is at an all-time high. I've said it before, and I'll say it again, "You cannot consider yourself a 'Major League' if your minimum salary is less than $120K per year and your teams don't charter airplanes for League travel". Just sayin'
What do YOU think?
May the ground beneath your dive be soft. May the other team shoot right at you. May your goalposts be 3 feet wide.
All the Best--EV