5-0

Yes, an MLS Select Team lost to internationally renowned Spanish club Real Madrid 5-0. Yes, that's a terrible scoreline, even against Real Madrid, even in a meaningless friendly. But the hysterical overraction, not only from MLS fans on Bigsoccer (here, here, and here, among others), but from none other than Jamie Trecker. He's (mostly) right about the game itself. Indeed it was "an embarrassing loss, another missed opportunity for a still-young American league that maddeningly manages to blow chances with abandon." But his outlook on the future of American soccer is maddening.

Trecker has every right to bring up contraction, wasted money, declining attendances, and sparse media coverage, but it is missing the point. I'm glad that Trecker is willing to bring up troubling issues, but he paints a picture of the league that is only half right. On the other side there are new investors (Kroenke, Checketts, Vergara, Payne), new stadiums (six soccer specific stadiums for 2007 by my count), and steadily improving quality of play. Yet, it is this last issue that is most contentious for Trecker. He argues that "[MLS] will have to stop pretending that international no-names like Donovan, Taylor Twellman, Tony Sanneh and Ante Razov (to name just a handful) are 'stars'." However, Trecker fails to offer any solutions to MLS' marketing conundrum. Must MLS run ads telling potential fans to "come see the continent's most average talents"?

I must give Trecker credit for generating a lot of healthy discussion about the league and about what exactly this match means in the grand scheme of things. However, this doesn't make his article any less of an overreaction. Frank Dell'Apa has written a much more balanced story, but he is wrong when he writes, "instead of inviting clubs on exhibition tours during the summer, the MLS could revive the NASL's Trans Atlantic Challenge Cup, offering big-money incentives." No Frank, what MLS ought to do is negotiate with MFL and other Concacaf leagues to put more money and time into the Concacaf Champions Cup. The other step is to support D.C. United in the Copa Sudamerica next month.

Oh, and Jamie, where were you when D.C. United lost to Pumas 5-0? Just asking.

Last night, a journalist from the Orlando area, posted a story that linked Ajax Orlando (the Dutch club's American affiliate) with potential minority investment in San Jose or Kansas City. This was confirmed today in the San Jose Mercury News, and by Soccer Silicon Valley. This confirms several things:

1. San Jose has local investors working to keep the team in the area.
2. A sale is probably still contingent upon a stadium plan.
3. AEG lied.

Today also features quarterfinal matches of the U.S. Open Cup:

LA Galaxy at San Jose Earthquakes
Kansas City Wizards at Minnesota Thunder
Chicago Fire at Rochester Raging Rhinos
FC Dallas at D.C. United

Other soccer stories:

Adu is back!

Youri is for real

The Orlando take on the Ajax announcement