Part of the reason I wrote this article was to make the case you cannot do PRO/REL effectively on this calendar and if MLS shifts (which seems inevitable at this point), P/R might be impossible. Because what would be created by the current calendar would be a closed shop in terms of player transfer - a self contained player market which doesn't allow for reinforcements in an open market except in the MIDDLE of the season. That won't work IMO.
Just a reminder in this discussion that in USL S this past season, Spokane and Brooklyn were both able to compete on a Fall to Spring calendar. Scheduling was strategic for both those sides.
I’m with you 100% on the need for changing the calendar.
My concern would be that the cold weather in a place like Minneapolis could impact attendance. Sure, supporters will still come out, but I’m not sure how many casual supporters will. Will season ticket holders re-up if it means a homestand in February? Also how might the high school and/or club calendar play into all of this? Parents are gonna choose to go their kids’ game every time.
Yes, given that most USL teams are still not yet profitable AND trying to launch their respective women's sides (USL-W and USL-S), the business consequences of the schedule cannot be underestimated!
If you look at the current schedules, the proposed change would have them playing at almost the same days, weeks, months (June & July excluded). The difference is the playoffs would be moved from winter to spring. There is a proposed break in December and January with the season restarting in February. USL Super League has just proven this schedule is viable.
You just laid out a logical myriad of reasons why changing the calendar makes so much sense.
Me not being interested in freezing to watch a match now seems really trivial and insignificant. My reasoning is really simple and maybe I’m an outlier. I’m unashamedly soft and not trying to be uncomfortable while I am attempting to be entertained. While I live in Mid-Atlantic region.
For the change to work, a lot of people motivated to attend matches during December, January and February are going to have to continue to buy tickets. Even with a break in January, I’ll believe it when I see it.
I don't think we're looking at matches in February necessarily in cold weather climates. As for MLS they already play (A little) in December and (more) in February.
Honestly, as I have gotten older and in many cases am less obligated to go to matches June/July is when I skip in-person. I agree on the winter with most critics but we won't be playing through. Look at how USL S structured their schedule. This would be similar.
A counterargument is that the USL should recruit more heavily from local and young talent, for whom the current "academic-friendly" schedule is better! For example, high school or college players who finish their academic year could then try out for the USL clubs in the spring and then sign pro contracts as the school year concludes and the pro soccer season starts! Furthermore, the international pros tend to be those who are hoping to resurrect their careers or hoping to demonstrate prowess in the spotlights that the USL allows (aka "exposure"). They can earn transfer or go on loan mid-season?
From an MLS (and to an extent USL) perspective, alignment with the global tournament calendar is as big a benefit from a scheduling change as anything. This will only become a bigger issue if the Club World Cup is played every two years. I used to oppose a calendar switch. But now, I have no interest in attending matches in July and August in Texas anymore. The heat and humidity has gotten even more oppressive. I am empathetic to winter concerns in northern climates. The leagues will need to get creative about a winter break and minimizing cold weather matches. NFL Football fans will willingly risk frostbite to attend below zero playoff games in January. MLS and USL fans won’t. All said, the time for a calendar change has come.
The USL could codify scheduling practices so that the early and late season games take place in Texas and the south, when the weather is still brutally cold in the northern states, and then flip in midsummer. This way, you can enjoy cool weather in Boise or Portland Maine in July and August, and the games in Texas in May and September!
I think it was fine, what I didn't like was the night games, those got cold and we had to wear layers and blankets but they had hot chocolate so it was okay. More day games in Winter, night games in Spring and Fall.
If you look at the CONCACAF leagues, Canada and the US are the only two nations that don't follow a fall to spring calendar. Even the amateur leagues in those countries play fall to spring.
Canada and US may also be the only nations where there is a substantial pipeline of college players entering the pro ranks? See my comment elsewhere here in the discussion about needing to make opportunities for as many domestic young talent as possible, yet not robbing them of education.
Considering that those leagues are much older than US/Canadian leagues, I'm more inclined to think they chose to follow FIFA's calendar to fit in a lot easier. As Kartik said, using NFL stadiums in the summer had more to do with why we play over the summer.
Even if the change makes since that does not mean it will work. With so many teams in areas that have serious winter from December to March, how willing will people be to freezing to watch games. Also the pitches do not have heating under them. Games on frozen pitches are not fun.
They already play in December, may add another week, so it's the 1st two weeks. Currently don't play in January and won't in new schedule. Already play in 2nd half of February and all of March. So everything you're concerned about is already in place with the current schedule.
playing in extreme heat is a player safety issue or is playing an extreme cold while inconvenient probably isn’t going to kill you as easily as the heat.
Here is another example of the USL pipeline of players getting exposure and then ascending to higher levels. TLDR: Let USL keep doing it's very successful thing of providing more opportunities for players to play professionally! (Insiders have confided the transfer fee was more than $300,000!! )
The shift will hundred percent have to happen if MLS makes the shift. USL will have nothing really going for it if they don’t.
Those people who say the summer months will be an easy time to compete for France don’t realise that once MLS is on the traditional calendar as the European giants are soccer fans are just going to tune out during the summer
Part of the reason I wrote this article was to make the case you cannot do PRO/REL effectively on this calendar and if MLS shifts (which seems inevitable at this point), P/R might be impossible. Because what would be created by the current calendar would be a closed shop in terms of player transfer - a self contained player market which doesn't allow for reinforcements in an open market except in the MIDDLE of the season. That won't work IMO.
The MLS is never going to do Pro/Rel!
The Major League Soccer!
I don’t know when we all started seeing “the MLS” but it is pretty common parlance these days
Just a reminder in this discussion that in USL S this past season, Spokane and Brooklyn were both able to compete on a Fall to Spring calendar. Scheduling was strategic for both those sides.
I’m with you 100% on the need for changing the calendar.
My concern would be that the cold weather in a place like Minneapolis could impact attendance. Sure, supporters will still come out, but I’m not sure how many casual supporters will. Will season ticket holders re-up if it means a homestand in February? Also how might the high school and/or club calendar play into all of this? Parents are gonna choose to go their kids’ game every time.
Just thinking out loud here…
Yes, given that most USL teams are still not yet profitable AND trying to launch their respective women's sides (USL-W and USL-S), the business consequences of the schedule cannot be underestimated!
If you look at the current schedules, the proposed change would have them playing at almost the same days, weeks, months (June & July excluded). The difference is the playoffs would be moved from winter to spring. There is a proposed break in December and January with the season restarting in February. USL Super League has just proven this schedule is viable.
You just laid out a logical myriad of reasons why changing the calendar makes so much sense.
Me not being interested in freezing to watch a match now seems really trivial and insignificant. My reasoning is really simple and maybe I’m an outlier. I’m unashamedly soft and not trying to be uncomfortable while I am attempting to be entertained. While I live in Mid-Atlantic region.
For the change to work, a lot of people motivated to attend matches during December, January and February are going to have to continue to buy tickets. Even with a break in January, I’ll believe it when I see it.
It makes a lot of sense to switch.
I don't think we're looking at matches in February necessarily in cold weather climates. As for MLS they already play (A little) in December and (more) in February.
I also don't like being uncomfortable watching soccer in june-sept. Also i doubt they would be playing in January.
I should mention i live in the north and still rather have a fall to spring schedule.
Honestly, as I have gotten older and in many cases am less obligated to go to matches June/July is when I skip in-person. I agree on the winter with most critics but we won't be playing through. Look at how USL S structured their schedule. This would be similar.
try sitting through a match in Saint Petersburg in the summer.
Folks tell me it’s really, really rough. It doesn’t sound like a lot of fun.
The closest that I have ever probably came to it is attending matches in Puerto Rico during the summer.
I guess it really is a case of “pick your preferred poison”.
A counterargument is that the USL should recruit more heavily from local and young talent, for whom the current "academic-friendly" schedule is better! For example, high school or college players who finish their academic year could then try out for the USL clubs in the spring and then sign pro contracts as the school year concludes and the pro soccer season starts! Furthermore, the international pros tend to be those who are hoping to resurrect their careers or hoping to demonstrate prowess in the spotlights that the USL allows (aka "exposure"). They can earn transfer or go on loan mid-season?
That is a pretty good counter-argument I must admit!
it’s a good counter argument if you’re not thinking about getting fans beyond what you have currently
From an MLS (and to an extent USL) perspective, alignment with the global tournament calendar is as big a benefit from a scheduling change as anything. This will only become a bigger issue if the Club World Cup is played every two years. I used to oppose a calendar switch. But now, I have no interest in attending matches in July and August in Texas anymore. The heat and humidity has gotten even more oppressive. I am empathetic to winter concerns in northern climates. The leagues will need to get creative about a winter break and minimizing cold weather matches. NFL Football fans will willingly risk frostbite to attend below zero playoff games in January. MLS and USL fans won’t. All said, the time for a calendar change has come.
The USL could codify scheduling practices so that the early and late season games take place in Texas and the south, when the weather is still brutally cold in the northern states, and then flip in midsummer. This way, you can enjoy cool weather in Boise or Portland Maine in July and August, and the games in Texas in May and September!
I think it was fine, what I didn't like was the night games, those got cold and we had to wear layers and blankets but they had hot chocolate so it was okay. More day games in Winter, night games in Spring and Fall.
If you look at the CONCACAF leagues, Canada and the US are the only two nations that don't follow a fall to spring calendar. Even the amateur leagues in those countries play fall to spring.
Canada and US may also be the only nations where there is a substantial pipeline of college players entering the pro ranks? See my comment elsewhere here in the discussion about needing to make opportunities for as many domestic young talent as possible, yet not robbing them of education.
Could be that the other countries have tropical climates.
Considering that those leagues are much older than US/Canadian leagues, I'm more inclined to think they chose to follow FIFA's calendar to fit in a lot easier. As Kartik said, using NFL stadiums in the summer had more to do with why we play over the summer.
What are the two most northern countries in CONCACAF? But as Kartik mentioned, lots of reasons led to this originally.
Wow. Thanks a lot for sharing. I never thought of it from that perspective. I will have to dig deeper into that. Very interesting.
As someone else mentioned the climates, I wonder if hurricane season is any sort of factor.
Even if the change makes since that does not mean it will work. With so many teams in areas that have serious winter from December to March, how willing will people be to freezing to watch games. Also the pitches do not have heating under them. Games on frozen pitches are not fun.
They already play in December, may add another week, so it's the 1st two weeks. Currently don't play in January and won't in new schedule. Already play in 2nd half of February and all of March. So everything you're concerned about is already in place with the current schedule.
playing in extreme heat is a player safety issue or is playing an extreme cold while inconvenient probably isn’t going to kill you as easily as the heat.
MLS's season starts in February currently.
Here is another example of the USL pipeline of players getting exposure and then ascending to higher levels. TLDR: Let USL keep doing it's very successful thing of providing more opportunities for players to play professionally! (Insiders have confided the transfer fee was more than $300,000!! )
https://x.com/tombogert/status/1958509071687954829
The shift will hundred percent have to happen if MLS makes the shift. USL will have nothing really going for it if they don’t.
Those people who say the summer months will be an easy time to compete for France don’t realise that once MLS is on the traditional calendar as the European giants are soccer fans are just going to tune out during the summer
Sir, your point regarding the summer is well noted.
FIFA and serve of continental federations will still be playing their championship tournaments during their cycles.
I believe that a lot of fans will continue to tune in for those.
We’re living in an age when the beast never sleeps. It’s been a long, strange road to how we got here and where we go from here.