As MLS season kicks off with Columbus Crew chasing rare reps, the league should seize the prospect to take the following step ahead

The teams that have won the two biggest trophies in Major League Soccer will open their season on national television on Sunday evening. This is a big deal for the teams involved. It should probably be a bigger deal for the league in general.

The Philadelphia Union won the Supporters’ Shield at the end of the 2020 season shortened by COVID, collecting 47 points from 23 games. It was the first major trophy the club ever won, but the celebration was shortened by the first-round playoff loss to New England.

The Union watched three weeks later as Columbus Crew SC won the league’s most coveted honor, the MLS Cup champions, on a cold Saturday night at Crew Stadium.

“We’re not unique in wanting the ultimate prize, which is the MLS Cup,” Union coach Jim Curtin told Sporting News. “We are disappointed that our season ended on our home field against New England last year. … It’s always devastating when the year ends. But I think that motivates us too.

“We’ve been able to raise the Supporters’ Shield, give our young players and our seasoned guys an idea of ​​what it feels like. For some of them it was their very first trophy. And that’s a taste and a feeling that you’ll want to have over and over again throughout your career. There are a lot of great teams in MLS this season. The league just keeps getting better. These are exciting times for the fans as they are slowly returning to the stadiums. “

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According to Jonathan Tannenwald of the Philadelphia Inquirer, this was the first time the Supporters’ Shield winner and the MLS Cup champion opened the following regular season against each other. This is likely something that the league should make a tradition. It is important enough that FS1 shows the game.

The 26th MLS season kicks off Friday with a game by Houston Dynamo-San Jose Earthquakes (8 p.m. ET, ESPN +) and a game that matches the Seattle Sounders and Minnesota United (9:30 a.m., FS1).

As MLS continues to seek to grow among US professional sports leagues, and in the broader football landscape, it continues to suffer from some sort of identity problem. Not a crisis, but maybe a mystery. It is less covered than a sports competition than the NFL, NBA, Major League Baseball, or the NHL. This is partly due to the fact that too few league teams are covered by major media coverage on a daily basis and there is so much talk about it that the league is run on a national level.

With Commissioner Don Garber taking the time Monday to speak to reporters about the 2021 season, the focus was on the launch of another new team, Austin FC, and the eventual opening of new stadiums in Cincinnati and Columbus. The comment he made that drew the most responses was about a player currently playing in England, Darryl Dike.

Dike was on loan with Barnsley in the English championship division and could return to Orlando City FC or be sold during the summer transfer window.

“That’s a $ 20 million player,” Garber told reporters.

“Today’s Major League Soccer story is really about the youth,” he said. “We are now the youngest we have ever seen on average in league history. We invest deeply in developing players with academies in every single market. And now there must be programs that give young players the opportunity to perform at their best, develop youngest and ultimately build a professional career. “

Those who cover MLS are generally of the opinion that it is positive for the league, players like Dike, Tyler Adams (now with RB Leipzig in German) and Brendan Aaronson (who started 23 games for the Union last season and has scored four goals for the Union) bring about move to RB Salzburg in Austria).

For the U.S. men’s national team, it’s probably best for players to develop and compete against each other on multiple fronts. It is certainly an advantage when young players develop in professional academies the way more established football nations have been doing for decades. And that’s part of the reason why MLS advancement is in what some would call the “sales league”.

However, to gain a foothold in the US sports market, it must be viewed primarily as a league. Fans have to worry about the race, the leaderboard, the playoffs and the champion, as well as how much any of his young stars could ask for in transfer fees.

This is where the crew could be of great use to the league this season. After star player Lucas Zelarayan injured part of last year, they finished third in the East Division. But his return to health enabled them to survive the playoffs and beat the favorite Seattle Sounders 3-0 in the MLS Cup final. The organization kept most of the line-up and deepened the roster by signing forward Bradley Wright-Phillips, who is sixth on the league’s list of career goals.

Columbus’ pursuit of a second straight championship could bring the league’s focus back to the field. Winning two in a row isn’t easy as Bruce Arena is the only coach to have made it twice – with DC United in 1996 and 1997, and with the Los Angeles Galaxy in 2011 and 2012. And that’s part of what makes it compelling.

“Last year was a strange year. I give all the credit to the crew for winning the MLS Cup and I give Philadelphia the honor of winning the Supporters’ Shield. But I think it will be very different this year, ”said Arena. “Columbus certainly have a good squad and I am sure they will expect all year long to not only fight for the Supporters’ Shield but also to return to the MLS Cup.

“I think it’s probably more difficult with the more teams. Also this year the schedule is different now. Now we’re playing conference schedules instead of everyone in the league. The league is certainly just as competitive as it is before. It is sure to be a challenging year for anyone trying to win the MLS Cup. “