I'm not an MLS fan by any stretch of the imagination. I've never watched an entire game or even had the desire to attend one. The league, in my opinion, is equivalent to that of the WNBA: it's irrelevant.
That's not to say, however, that it doesn't entertain me every now and then.
The Chicago Fire welcomed the LA Galaxy to Toyota Park last Thursday for one of their last home games of the season. The Galaxy, invigorated by their 5-2 coast past DC United last week, were looking to continue their push for a playoff spot with just four regular season games remaining. The Fire were hoping to end their recent slump and solidify their playoff spot.
The match was televised on ESPN, but not because it was a vital game for both teams, but by virtue of David Beckham.
To be honest, "Becks" is the only reason I initially tuned in.
I've been mindful of the Fire's ongoing success ever since the team's first season in 1998 when they won the MLS as well as the U.S. Open Cup. Since then, the team has continued to collect Cups and has made an appearance in the playoffs nine out of the last 10 years. Still, there is something about the team and league itself that feel amateur to me.
Across the pond, fútbol is a way of life. An average of 43,561 Kopites fill Anfield for every Liverpool home match, which is 99.7 percent of available capacity. In Spain, Real Madrid has the highest average all-time attendance in Spanish fútbol, attracting over 65,000 fans to Santiago Bernabeu for every home game. And according to a 2007 report by the Italian newspaper La Repubblica, Juventus is one of the most supported fútbol clubs in the world with more than 170 million advocates (43 million of them in Europe alone).
The Galaxy draw the highest average attendance of all MLS teams with 22,252 fans. The Fire draw an average of 15,658. Amateurism at its finest, or so I thought before I scrutinized Thursday's game.
Just 13 minutes into the start of the match, the Fire grabbed the game's opening goal when Chris Rolfe fired the ball into the lower left hand corner of the goal. Fans across the stadium went absurd as soon as Rolfe's shot hit the back of the net.
Minutes before halftime, however, the Galaxy retaliated when Eddie Lewis got position on his defender to flick Chris Klein's cross inside the far post to level the game at 1-1.
As I flipped through the channels on my 60-inch HDTV during halftime, I repeatedly caught myself returning to ESPN to see if the second half had begun. Was I actually intrigued by the game or was I simply caught up in the ballyhoo surrounding Beckham?
Ten minutes after the restart, the Fire regained the lead as the enigmatic playmaker Cuauhtemoc Blanco capitalized on an empty net from 30 yards out when Galaxy goalkeeper Josh Wicks and defender Troy Roberts got tangled up.
Little did the Fire supporters know that their lead would increase just two minutes later when Gonzalo Segares' through-ball sent Rolfe clear on goal and the striker made no mistake, netting his second goal of the game.
With a two-goal advantage and momentum on their side, I was confident the Fire would hold on for the win. As stoppage time approached, various chants began to echo throughout the stadium, with the ESPN broadcast being able to intercept one: "Late last night, while we were all in bed, Miss O'Leary left a lantern in the shed. When the cow tipped it over, she winked her eye and said, 'It will be a hot time in the old town tonight.' FIRE! FIRE! FIRE!"
I was pleasantly surprised when I heard this. Whoever said American soccer fans lacked enthusiasm and passion? Whoever said MLS fans were not creative? Well, up until that point, I had.
The final whistle was met with loud cheers from all 20,156 people in the stadium. As the camera showcased the Fire supporters waving their signs, shirts and scarves, it dawned on me how far U.S. soccer has come in recent years. The zealousness and vibrancy throughout Toyota Park was as good as any other professional sporting event I've ever witnessed, if not better.
Although it was memorable to watch Beckham, a player who's contributed so much to fútbol in Europe, it felt better knowing that I became, in a sense, a very small part of the progression of soccer in the U.S. by simply monitoring the game.
And while I still won't consider myself an MLS enthusiast, it is good to see that a momentous sport such as fútbol is finally getting the respect it deserves by Americans. Perhaps the league isn't as irrelevant as I thought it was. The WNBA, however, still is.
Be the first to comment on this article!