Grantland’s Noah Davis has an article up that asks the curious question: is Major League Soccer improving the USA’s potential rivals in CONCACAF?
The majority of players growing up in Central American nations or the Caribbean islands now see MLS as an aspirational league. For many, reaching a team in Europe is a bridge too far — either due to talent or distance — but the United States is closer, mentally and physically. International club tournaments like the CONCACAF Champions League give them a chance to gain familiarity with MLS teams, players, styles, and facilities, while offering MLS coaches an opportunity to scout talent and make inroads.
The result is more, and better, talent coming to MLS from CONCACAF countries. Last month, Soccer America reported that 68 of the 132 starters on the 12 MLS playoff contenders were internationals. Some of these players hail from non-CONCACAF countries — Colombians make up 4.7 percent of MLS, for example — but plenty are from the region. Which raises two questions: 1) Is MLS making CONCACAF’s national teams better? And 2) How does the affect the U.S. national team?
Davis is a good writer, but I’m not convinced of his answers. On the first, he argues it’s a “yes,” mostly on the back of a quote from US national team coach Juergen Klinsmann in which he remarks that “All of our opponents are better than they were a few years ago.”
First, is Klinsmann the right person to be making this kind of judgment? He’s been at the helm of the USMNT for just under a year-and-a-half, not exactly an enormous period of time in which to make sweeping statements about improved teams. Even if this notion of improvement is true, it doesn’t follow it’s because MLS exists. Davis at least concedes the obvious on the second question: if MLS benefits CONCACAF nations, it definitely benefits the US. I would say the latter benefits outweighs any and all concerns over potentially aiding the enemy.
That said, the whole argument doesn’t hold water. For many central American players, MLS is just one more option among several, and is not the most obvious choice for elite footballers when held up against Mexico, Argentina, or Brazil, and of course, Europe. It’s not even clear that CONCACAF nations have improved that much in the intervening years. If there’s a convincing metric, it wasn’t in this article.
I think the bottom line is it helps everyone, but primarily the united states.
Foreign players are needed to raise the level of the league. US players are better for it.
And if this is happening it’s good for the US raises their standard of play & will also benefit Canada giving it more quality opponents as well
I think Davis right. I’m guessing it is much easier for CONCACAF players to get visas to play in MLS than other leagues, especially if there is better competition for spots by local players. That being said, it’s good for everyone for all of CONCACAF to get better. If MLS helps, I don’t see why the USNT should be worried.
I think MLS is incrementally helping a lot of teams in CONCACAF, but that is good for the USMNT. The USMNT could probably use more competition in order to raise it’s own level and get to the next level in World Cups.
Although I will concede that Whittall is right that there was no evidence produced to suggest that teams in CONCACAF are getting better, and that Klinsman saying that it is getting better could totally be someone from Europe finally looking outside their little circle and realizing these teams that they discredit so quickly are better than they ever realized.
I suppose I would most like to see MLS help the Canadian side more. If we could get twenty-five or thirty players getting a run on an MLS team, coupled with our best players featuring in the better leagues in Europe, we would foster more internal competition for playing time. Perhaps this is beginning to happen. It seems to me, though, that MLS has a special place for Americans but Canadians are not privileged any more than players from any other nation.