U.S. SOCCER REJECTS MLS’S OPEN CUP REQUEST
There are layers to the U.S. Open Cup situation unfolding over this past week, but one important thing shines through: a statement issued by U.S. Soccer denies MLS’s request to pull their first teams from the competition. This is a huge victory for both U.S. Soccer and American fans, and it comes at a time when no one expected such a position to be taken due to the nature of U.S. Soccer’s relationship with MLS.
Blowback for MLS
MLS’s decision last week to pull out of the Open Cup was met with universal criticism online from casual fans of both MLS and lower-division soccer (specifically fans of USL Championship and USL League teams).
Social media accounts from USL teams even made light of the situation. But American sports commentators did not, taking the announcement with severity and voicing their own disappointment with MLS on their podcasts, broadcasts, and all over the Internet. The unwavering support for the Open Cup was unprecedented in American soccer and goes to show the reach the sport and the organization now has in this country. We’ve all heard that soccer in the U.S. is a growth segment, but it has never been more apparent.
Why Were We Uncertain About a Statement?
The federation of U.S. Soccer was formerly involved with MLS’s main corporate marketing arm Soccer United Marketing (SUM). The dependent nature of the relationship gave MLS and their interests more power over U.S. Soccer than any league over any governing body in the history of the sport. U.S. Soccer independently operates the U.S. Open Cup to serve as an intermediary between all leagues for the good of the competition and the sport domestically.
U.S. Soccer also operates the U.S. Men’s National Team and Women’s National Team.
U.S. Soccer and SUM’s split from each other in 2021 finally led them to pursue their interests independently, allowing MLS to set up broadcasting rights with Apple TV+ and U.S. Soccer to set up broadcasting rights with Paramount and their networks.
Now separated, MLS was able to pursue and govern its own fixtures and competitions. With this, they established Leagues Cup with Liga MX, made famous this past year for Lionel Messi’s MLS debut and Inter Miami’s success story.
Open Cup’s Institution
MLS has reported claims from their players’ association and individual teams of schedule congestion, especially after LAFC played 53 matches in a calendar year due to their runs in the CONCACAF Champions League, U.S. Open Cup, Leagues Cup, MLS Cup Playoffs, and their appearance in the Campeones Cup.
MLS directly cited this schedule congestion as their reasoning for the decision to pull their first teams from the Open Cup. The backlash, though, reminds fans, the league, and the U.S. Soccer federation where power lies in United States soccer governance.
Lacking a European-style promotion and relegation system, many domestic soccer teams struggle to find fans and develop a culture, especially as they compete with a now readily-available direct-to-consumer MLS as well as the premiere leagues for the sports of basketball (NBA), baseball (MLB), and hockey (NHL) in the world, not to mention American football’s own dominance in the U.S. sports space with the NFL.
First Statement of Its Kind from U.S. Soccer?
U.S. Soccer’s stance against MLS is one of the first of such stances against the D1 league in America. It comes after the folding of USL Championship (D2) team Rio Grande Valley FC following the announcement of MLS’s desired Open Cup strategy.
It is a victory for the sport in the United States, and it flies in the face of MLS’s claim that the Open Cup is a poor example of top-level soccer in the country.
Just because Division 2 teams have recently upset MLS teams in the cup (most notably Sacramento Republic FC making the Open Cup Final as recently as 2022) doesn’t mean that there is a poor reception of soccer in this country. It means that MLS needs to stay competitive in North America. It means that fans of smaller, more local lower-division teams get to experience top-level competition. It means the sport gets to grow, and it means a culture of competition is retained in the country for today and hopefully for the future.
And MLS can already bench their everyday starters in the Open Cup if they so desire.
Looking Forward
MLS still has a long way to go to be fair and equitable to not just global soccer institutions but also to North American lower-division leagues. There are things that need to be unraveled in roster management, salary caps, and the open or closed status of a league. But it is not time for those yet.
Today, fans celebrate a victory and can now look forward to the 2024 U.S. Open Cup the same way they have with previous years: with wishes for upsets and a fair amount of excitement. And maybe this year some new fans will get involved too.