David Beckham Time in MLS

Back in January 11 2007 David Beckham announced he would be moving to L.A Galaxy to play his trade in the MLS. Some were surprised but his main reason of going to America was this:

I'm coming there not to be a superstar. I'm coming there to be part of the team, to work hard and to hopefully win things. With me, it's about football. I'm coming there to make a difference. I'm coming there to play football ... I'm not saying me coming over to the States is going to make soccer the biggest sport in America. That would be difficult to achieve. Baseball, basketball, American football, they've been around. But I wouldn't be doing this if I didn't think I could make a difference.

Sep 4 2012 5 years later do you think hes made the sport bigger and more popular. I think he did what about you guys.

Others are following him and it's certainly improving.

I think Beckham and LA Galaxy have been a perfect fit and he can be proud of his career there.

Others are joining because they see a lot of money and USA has more entertainment then the Chinese (in area)

Most Americans didn't even know that the MLS even existed until he came over here. He definitely has made the sport more popular.

Since Beckham arrived its been the only time that the US has seemed to have a last interest in the sport. I can think of three different occasions where there stints of popularity but it only quickly died out after that

-The late 70's early 80's when Pele played with the New York Cosmos. They were a super popular team back in the day, but as soon as Pele retired the league died out and its popularity with it.

-1994 when America hosted the WC. It started a lot of interest and the MLS actually came from it and there was just enough popularity to keep the sport and a few teams alive

-2002 when America beat Mexico and went farther in the WC than they ever had before. Ratings and attendance of the MLS after that period went way way up. But after a year or so because of lack of star power, lack of competitiveness and low quality in the product it dropped back down again.

But since 2007 when he arrived here, the MLS has gotten more consistently popular every single year. Numbers and attendance continue to grow regardless of the WC. I think there has been something crazy like 5 or 6 expansion teams have been added since he arrived with a 20th team coming with in the next 2 years. Most likely the Cosmos or a Florida team. Not only have there been more teams but the teams are a lot better now then they were back then. The league is more competitive with teams that actually perform year in and year out. you can predict who is going to be good and who isn't before the season really starts, where as before it was just a crap shoot, random teams won and there was no real competitive nature to it.

Now a lot of teams have their own stadiums and more importantly almost all the teams play on legitimate football fields, not American football fields with lines going through the pitch like before. It was like a joke it was like watching kids play in the back of a highschool or something.

He has done SO much for the sport in america its crazy, and I think what he did will continue even after he retires, and the league wont' collapse like it did back when pele retired. It still has a long way to go but there have been so many strides since his arrive towards the MLS becoming a legitimite recognizable league.

+1

the mls cup final will be his last game with la galaxy.

Didn't really make much of an impact for the Galaxy until last season, but for the league and state of the sport here on a whole, he has been simply instrumental. MLS wouldn't have landed Henry, Nesta, Keane, Frings, without Beckham simply put.

That said, I think MLS will continue to get on fine without him in the spotlight. He's shown that this league isn't the retirement home that many people called it. If it had been, he'd have won 5 titles instead of 1. I think it's that challenge that will draw more stars and as the league gets better and better, the stars coming over will eventually get younger and younger.

Based on the numbers and statistics I've seen around, I'd say he certainly achieved what he set out to do. Can he do it for the A-League

Without Beckham the MLS wouldn't have been able to get former star players who are close to retiring to join the league.

All I know when Beckham came to Toronto the stadium was full of girls. Thank you David.

1 small pet-peeve of mine: It's just "MLS", not "the MLS." You don't say "the Major League Soccer."

RedOranje wrote:1 small pet-peeve of mine: It's just "MLS", not "the MLS." You don't say "the Major League Soccer."

Fixed.

the name of the league inherently makes little since in the first place.

vanDEEZ wrote:the name of the league inherently makes little since in the first place.

Right, a soccer league in the US using the same type of nomenclature as all of the other major US sports leagues makes little since [sic].

Wasn't Becks thinking of buying a MLS club a year ago?

RedOranje wrote:

vanDEEZ wrote:the name of the league inherently makes little since in the first place.

Right, a soccer league in the US using the same type of nomenclature as all of the other major US sports leagues makes little since [sic].

having it pair with the rest of us sports makes it make sense?

nice logic.

hey we all dont make sense but sense we all dont make sense, we make sense..

Nothing makes sense outside of the context where it's originally encountered. A major sports league that's very young following a century old naming system in a nation where people recognize the sports leagues based on said nomenclature makes perfect sense, really.

Just because you don't like it doesn't mean it doesn't fit within the context of the culture.

He didn't accomplish what everyone hoped he would back in the day, i remember analysts predicting MLS would become a new super league.

And i don't know too much about what went on in his stint over here, but my kneejerk reaction is that he did exactly what he said he wouldn't do. He became a superstar and didn't carry his team to a whole bunch of trophies.

Am i wrong?

i think he has been a success when you see the growth of the league since his arrival thru expansion and such, not just in America but there are also 3 MLS teams in Canada now as well.

but so long as there is a salary cap in place, MLS will never attract the big stars to come in there prime.