The new Major League Soccer season starts on Friday. There are going to be new players. There are going to be new teams: New York City FC and Orlando City SC.
There are also going to be new fans. Or there are likely to be. Total attendances at MLS games have increased every year since 2004, and the two new teams have large stadiums that will likely boost the number further.
The likes of Landon Donovan and Thierry Henry may have gone, but Steven Gerrard, Kaka, David Villa and Frank Lampard are on their way.
So there’s a lot for new people to get excited about. New people like me. I have been in the US for three and a half years. Learning the rules of American football has occupied every second of that time. Up until now. Now I am ready to turn to MLS.
But how to decide on a team?
In England I support Preston North End, mostly because I am from Preston. Preston are a team with a storied past. A very distant storied past. They won the Football League in 1888-89: the first season it existed. They then won it again the next year. They have never won it since.
They have had some good players since then, including Sir Tom Finney (known as the “Preston Plumber”, because he was also a plumber), and David Beckham (on loan, for five games, in 1995), but, compared to other teams, limited success.
Should I go with geography, then? Or a team that has had success in the past? Or a team that has some association with David Beckham?
New York City FC would seem to be a natural fit, in a geographical sense, at least. They are new to all this, too, and are my nearest team, playing in the Bronx. Except … there is the Manchester City connection. Would the discerning fan want to support a team with such a strong connection to a team that so crudely bought its way to Premier League success? Also, they have (finally) signed Frank Lampard. A man who spent 13 years at Chelsea and is now at Manchester City. The very embodiment of buying success.
What about the Red Bulls, then? My second closest team by proximity. I am not very keen on Tim Cahill (the punching the corner flag thing, the being Australian) but he has left now. But I’m also not keen on supporting a team that is named after a popular energy drink.
Going for a team that has been successful in the past but miserable ever since is difficult, since MLS is a fairly new league. Tampa Bay Mutiny were the first team to win the Supporters’ Shield, in 1996, but they do not exist any more. But then there are DC United and Chicago Fire, who both had early success in the MLS Cup without much to follow.
What about teams with a Beckham connection? There’s LA Galaxy, obviously, but also there could one day be a Miami-owned Beckham team to consider. One would not want to commit too soon.
So how about other reasons. How about basing it on players you like?
I have a soft spot for Jozy Altidore following his torrid time in the Premier League. I see a lot of my own football attributes in him. Mainly, being cumbersome, not scoring many goals, lacking confidence. But obviously Jozy has other attributes too. He is quite strong, and quite fast.
I’m excited to see how Kaka gets on at Orlando City. From the sounds of it he could do well. I can’t wait to see Steven Gerrard at LA Galaxy. Robbie Rogers, also at Galaxy, is admirable for openly coming out and continuing to play.
Is it fickle to start supporting a new team by looking at its badge? Portland Timbers has an axe. Dallas has a big bull. Both are cool. Houston Dynamo’s looks like an invitation to a fun party.
Philadelphia Union has a snake. I don’t like snakes. Orlando City has a lion. I do like lions. Toronto’s badge looks like a bedspread someone might have had in the 1990s.
So what about names?
I’m not that keen on Chicago Fire. It is also the name of a television show. Columbus Crew sounds like a haircut. I’m uncomfortable with the teams that have borrowed names from (more successful and storied) European teams, like Real Salt Lake and Sporting Kansas City.
I like the American-sounding names.. San Jose Earthquakes. Portland Timbers. Montreal Impact. (I know Montreal is in Canada.)
Obviously there are a lot of questions here. Commitment is not easy. I need some help.
But reading back, it seems what I’m looking for it a no-too-obviously-corporate team, with some pleasant players, an American-sounding name and a nice-looking badge. Since I will mostly be watching on television, location is not too important.
It can’t be too hard, right?
