MLS Players Could Strike on Monday

In some respects, I am behind the owners because they atleast realize the consequences of a work stoppage. 

The players using the threat to strike shows:
-a lack of respect for the millions of dollars spent by the owners in this league.
-a lack of respect for the fans who have supported this league
-a lack of understanding of how this will impact their league.  It’s just like the Boeing strike last year; they lost money, and they lost jobs to SC.  If the MLS strikes they will lose fans, they will scare away investors, and they will put their own jobs and the league in jeopardy.

100% behind the players.  Gonzales makes $40k.  That’s absurd.

I think your post Mark shows a lack of respect for everything Unions have done for this country.  Unions built this country and made the middle class what it is today.  Striking is the only tool Unions have to fight against corporate greed and abuse.

Now I think it’s a shame that no one has any respect for unions anymore.  In the past when 70% of Americans were members of a union if Boeing tried to move to another state all the union have to do is call a boycott and all the unions will force Boeing back.  Today the war on unions is so bad that Boeing actually told the South Carolina plant that if they get rid of their union then they can have jobs.  Low wage, unsecure jobs with no future.  Who wants that.

Now speaking as a fan of the game instead of a union member.  I don’t want a strike, I want everyone to work out their differences and make the league better in the long run.  To me that means Free Agency.

I agree that this can sink the league.  There aren’t a ton of clubs that can stand to lose money if there is a strike.  They both need to compromise and meet in the middle somewhere. 

Brian, that is a ridiculous political argument for why we should bow to the mighty Unions. You could go around this country and find many faults with Unions and what they provide to consumers. You simply do not have a right to work at any particular company. Stand up on your own two feet and take care of yourself.
 
Henceforth, the players should be able to ask for as much money as they can get. If they have talent, they’ll get it. It’s very simple. I have no doubt that if the Sounders spent big bucks on players and we won the MLS we’d continue to fill the seats and bring positive revenue to the owners. The players will find a balance as to what they can ask for in a contract and life will go on. All without the Unions.

Wooh… calm down there Brian. 

I was not nah-saying unions at all in my comment (though I have been part of several and I am not a huge fan).  I was merely pointing out that a strike, although sometimes a good bargaining tool, will not help anyone in the MLS right now; it will hurt the players, the owners, and the fans.  Then, as an example, I pointed out that the Boeing strike hurt the company and the workers.

I think some people see this as a fight between the greedy millionare owners and the poor working soccer players.  What you have to keep in mind is that the owners did not become rich because of their teams.  They were already rich and they decided to invest in an MLS team.  Many have sunk millions of dollars into there teams hoping to turn a profit in the future. 

Right now they have to find a balance between keeping the cost of the league managable while giving as many rights to the players as possible.

But this is not just about salaries. Its also about free agency, transfer rights, and a whole host of other things. Plus league mandated salary caps don’t allow teams to simply pay what they want for talent. 

There is also the fact that the MLS is basically a monopoly. You want to play pro soccer in the US you play for the MLS. that coupled with the fact that contracts are with the league and not individual teams are you have a low competition environment. Hell even revenue is shared amongst the teams. 

I agree that Unions are in many cases obsolete, but in this case the structure of the league makes them necessary. 

I’m a union guy from a union family and I can’t support the players 100% anymore – Yes they need more money.  Yes they need some kind of contract gurantees.  No they don’t get free agency.  This league still exists because of it’s structure.  MLS can’t have EPL-style competetive imbalance with 4-5 big teams.  The rest will go out of business because there’s not enough money to go around.  NASL had that problem.  Cosmos were great, and nobody wanted to see the other teams.

Soccer Fan- that’s not a counter arguement to what I said, that’s an insult.

That is just typical of the right wing/Fox News/Tea Bagging Terrorist way of fighting.  If you don’t have a good counter argument then attack the messenger and then say a bunch of lies to make your attack sound better.

LOL

Firstly— 2 out of the 16 teams are profitable.! They’re are teams in absolute shambles. If the players strike I blame the players union solely.
Yes some type of a sal cap increase, movement of free agents through dispersal draft would be good moves. The training wheels need to stay on for many years to come if mls wants to be a long term success

If the owners have been in business for a decade, losing money all the while, then they are hypocrites for suddenly claiming they can’t afford to lose money anymore.  They hide behind the free market when it is convenient, then they clamor for protection (anti-trust) when the market behaves in a way they don’t like.

Regardless of how they spin it, the owners have gotten something out of their investments over the past 10 years (ego stroking, advertising, writeoffs, positive cashflow but not profits, etc). 

People all around us are walking away from their homes when they realize its a bad investment. But somehow these ‘brilliant’ businessmen suddenly got dumb? Of course they are gaining something out of their investment.  Otherwise they would have walked long ago.

Those who own sports teams do it for ego, not for the money.  Yes they get a payday when the sell the team, but that is part of the problem.

What the players want is for the league to work, and what I want to hear is a schedule of when things like free agency will come into play.  It doesn’t all have to happen in 2010.  The way out of this is to do small bits where needed, and over time things will adjust.  If the owners want another 5 year deal, they need to give up a few things more over that time than they would with a 3 year deal.  It may be best to do shorter deals just so they can get together more frequently as PARTNERS in this business.

UR one dimensional. Damn near flat lining! Open your mind. Put yourself in the shoes of a self employed person, athlete, or whatever. You may find yourself coming to a different conclusion. I’m just say maybe….cause UR damn near flat linin’.