Five Things That MLS Does Better Than The EPL
You might look at this title and think, what could MLS have on the EPL? Well, taking a closer look, there are several things that Major League Soccer is doing better than the Premiership.
The English Premier League is often regarded as one of the (if not the) best league in the world and the most popular. It takes in billions dollars globally from television contracts, has many of the top players in the world, and has fans all across the world.
Major League Soccer is a relatively new league, especially compared to European domestic leagues, but has steadily grown in popularity and quality. It’s still not near the level of the top European leagues but is starting to attract big names from Europe and expanding the number of franchises.
So, let’s take a look at what are five things that MLS is doing better than the EPL. I do understand that the reason MLS does some of these better is because it’s not as popular and has to build itself up while the EPL doesn’t want to give away things (like video highlights) for free when they can make money off them. Tis is just my opinion and feel free to share your comments below.
- TV Coverage – The EPL has limited matches broadcast in the UK as they don’t want attendance to be affected. For example, no matches broadcast during a Saturday at the 3 PM (UK time) are ever televised in the UK. Now, because the UK isn’t as large a country as the USA, it’s expected there will be differences. However, in the USA every match of Major League Soccer can be seen through an online subscription or a TV package. Also, all the matches are broadcasted by local and regional sports networks. In the UK, matches are available on ESPN and Sky Sports which are premium channels that require a subscription fee. ESPN and FSC are usually part of cable packages (FSC might be part of a sports tier). Overall, the television coverage of MLS matches are much more available to fans and less likely to require getting a channel with a monthly subscription.
- Video Highlights – One thing that MLS has done which I think other leagues should look at closely is with their video highlights. The Premiership doesn’t legally allow video highlights for free but leaves it up to each club. The clubs then will have subscriptions services that one can pay to get extended highlights and replays of matches. This has led to a large number of sites who have video highlights unofficially and caused EPL to hire NetResult to protect the rights. Major League Soccer allows all their video highlights on their website free for viewing and the ability to embed them on other sites. While it may be tough for MLS to charge as they aren’t as popular as the EPL, they recognize that by allowing the highlights for free, they are getting more exposure and traffic to their site. The EPL, by not allowing fans any free highlights, is pushing traffic to sites who post unofficial highlights.
- Website – While some don’t like MLS website, it’s definitely better than the EPL’s website. For one, they allow a lot more content which doesn’t focus strictly on the league and has a lot of features. There are original features on the league which includes video, live radio during weekdays, and other things. Overall, there’s a lot of content available to follow the league and it’s much more in-depth and better than the Premier League’s site.
- Competitive Balance – The EPL has become a league where there are a handful of teams or less who can realistically challenge for the league title. In Major League Soccer, the playing field is much more even which gives every club a fair shot to win the MLS Cup. While the relegation battle makes things exciting for the Premiership, there’s often a very noticeable gap between the top teams and the bottom half. It usually results in matches that aren’t very competitive or exciting. If you are a fan of Birmingham City in the EPL, can you ever reasonably think you can challenge for the EPL title? But if you are a fan of any MLS side, it’s not unrealistic to think your club could win a championship within the next 10 years.
- Financial Structure – Major League Soccer is a league with a salary cap that has kept it financially stable and able to avoid the mistakes of the NASL. The Premiership has several clubs with a lot of debt and has too many clubs spending too much money. It’s unsustainable and is eventually going to result in clubs selling players or salaries dropping. MLS has a structure in place that keeps salaries in check and avoids teams from spending outrageous amounts on salaries. They have instituted a designated player rule which has seen some large signings but overall the league is on a sustainable path which can’t be said for the Premier League.
July 23, 2010 - 2:19 PM
Re: the debt difficulties… I have read that this is a problem for a lot of clubs in Spain’s La Liga as well. Is it possible that MLS might be able to benefit from players being sold off? Or would they cost way too much? I am all for nurturing homegrown talent, but the best (Altidore, Dempsey, possibly Donovan now) get picked off by the big Euro clubs. Why not try and do the same and get some ballers who are in their prime, as opposed to someone like Henry, a good pickup no doubt, but still someone whose biggest years are behind him.
July 23, 2010 - 5:57 PM
Yeah, it’s a possibility MLS could benefit by being able to get players from European clubs at a cheaper rate.
July 28, 2010 - 1:19 PM
I thought your article was very interesting especially about the Major League Soccer financial structure. As we all know the English Premier League has been ruined by not having a financial structure like this. There are so many teams losing alot of points for going into liquidation, which never seems fair to the supporters especially.