With Seattle's triumph over Toronto in MLS Cup, the 2019 season is officially in the books. The league now hunkers down for a long offseason, as a result of the schedule changes for 2019. It's nice that the playoffs weren't interrupted by the November FIFA dates as has been the case for years, but it does mean there's no MLS for an especially long time.
Some big picture notes to kick off the offseason thread:
1. Inter Miami and Nashville SC enter the league, pushing the league to 26 clubs and considerably boosting coverage in the southeast quadrant of the state. Both will be in temporary venues until their own stadiums can be built. It seems likely that Chicago will move to the Western Conference for at least one season to balance everything. It also seems likely that Chicago will move back within a year or two, with Austin, Sacramento, and St. Louis slated to come into the league.
2. Unofficial reports suggest that the 2020 season will begin on February 29, which would be the earliest opening day ever. Pushing things up is probably more feasible with so many more warm-weather clubs than there were ten years ago. CONCACAF Champions League begins in mid-February. The qualifiers: Seattle (MLS Cup), LAFC (Shield), Atlanta (USOC), NYCFC (Eastern Conference), and Montreal (Canadian Championship). In theory, a pretty solid crew except for the Impact.
3. The CBA expires this winter. Will there be a labor stoppage? Who knows. The CBA negotiation isn't important just for the potential of a strike; it also serves as a potential inflection point for league spending and the byzantine roster movement mechanisms. I'd like to see the system simplified, increased free agency, and a better incentive structure around selling players abroad.
Today, in what's not a surprising announcement based on recent chatter, Zlatan confirmed that he will not be returning to the LA Galaxy:
View: https://twitter.com/Ibra_official/status/1194719897592315904
Zlatan is an immense talent and hugely entertaining, although LA Galaxy never won anything while he was around. Although he was their best player, I do wonder if LAG can come back next year with a stronger overall squad simply because I can't shake the feeling that the team arranged itself around Zlatan in a way that was never quite coherent.
MLS has long had a reputation of giving coaches a very long leash, but there's a bit of a coaching carousel this year:
ORLANDO: Fired James O'Connor, replacement TBD
HOUSTON: Interim Davy Arnaud replaced by Tab Ramos
MONTREAL: Wilmer Cabrera not retained, replacement TBD
NYCFC: Domènec Torrent left by mutual consent, replacement TBD
CHICAGO: Fired Veljko Paunovic, replacement TBD
Some big picture notes to kick off the offseason thread:
1. Inter Miami and Nashville SC enter the league, pushing the league to 26 clubs and considerably boosting coverage in the southeast quadrant of the state. Both will be in temporary venues until their own stadiums can be built. It seems likely that Chicago will move to the Western Conference for at least one season to balance everything. It also seems likely that Chicago will move back within a year or two, with Austin, Sacramento, and St. Louis slated to come into the league.
2. Unofficial reports suggest that the 2020 season will begin on February 29, which would be the earliest opening day ever. Pushing things up is probably more feasible with so many more warm-weather clubs than there were ten years ago. CONCACAF Champions League begins in mid-February. The qualifiers: Seattle (MLS Cup), LAFC (Shield), Atlanta (USOC), NYCFC (Eastern Conference), and Montreal (Canadian Championship). In theory, a pretty solid crew except for the Impact.
3. The CBA expires this winter. Will there be a labor stoppage? Who knows. The CBA negotiation isn't important just for the potential of a strike; it also serves as a potential inflection point for league spending and the byzantine roster movement mechanisms. I'd like to see the system simplified, increased free agency, and a better incentive structure around selling players abroad.
Today, in what's not a surprising announcement based on recent chatter, Zlatan confirmed that he will not be returning to the LA Galaxy:
View: https://twitter.com/Ibra_official/status/1194719897592315904
Zlatan is an immense talent and hugely entertaining, although LA Galaxy never won anything while he was around. Although he was their best player, I do wonder if LAG can come back next year with a stronger overall squad simply because I can't shake the feeling that the team arranged itself around Zlatan in a way that was never quite coherent.
MLS has long had a reputation of giving coaches a very long leash, but there's a bit of a coaching carousel this year:
ORLANDO: Fired James O'Connor, replacement TBD
HOUSTON: Interim Davy Arnaud replaced by Tab Ramos
MONTREAL: Wilmer Cabrera not retained, replacement TBD
NYCFC: Domènec Torrent left by mutual consent, replacement TBD
CHICAGO: Fired Veljko Paunovic, replacement TBD