Go Tory Go! Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 Fabio Capello won't start Beckham at Real Madrid, so the ex-England skipper will join the Galaxy and bring some credibility to MLS. [quote]David Beckham will leave Real Madrid at the end of the season and join side Los Angeles Galaxy on a £128million ($250 million) five-year deal. The former England captain will leave Real in June and begin his new career in Major League Soccer in August. Beckham said in a statement: 'This week, Real Madrid asked me to make a decision regarding my future and the offer to extend my contract by a further two seasons. 'After discussing several options with my family and advisers to either stay here at Madrid or join other major British and European clubs, I have decided to join the Los Angeles Galaxy and play in the MLS from August this year. 'I would like to thank the supporters and people of Madrid who have made my family and I feel so welcome in my time here, making this an extremely difficult decision to make. 'I have enjoyed my time in Spain enormously and I am extremely grateful to the club for giving me the opportunity to play for such a great team and their amazing fans. 'I am proud to have played for two of the biggest clubs in football and I look forward to the new challenge of growing the world's most popular game in a country that is as passionate about its sport as my own. 'For the rest of this season I will continue to give 100% to my coach, team mates and fans as I believe Fabio Capello will bring this club and its supporters the success they truly deserve.' In terms of finances it is a mega deal and compares with the biggest in mainstream US sports American football and baseball. The MLS have recently changed their salary cap rules to allow sides to make 'marquee signings' of top international stars. The Beckham deal will see the 31-year-old benefit directly from all his image rights and related sponsorship deals which in the past have had to be shared with his club.[/quote] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nati Ice Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 told yall... credibility? not really... recognition? sure! but to be 100% honest, in terms of skill... the loss of a young clint dempsey is bigger than the gain of mr posh spice. however, this should bode well in terms of ticket and jersey sales. ronaldo to rbny and gooch to fulham within the next 2 weeks, btw. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ickeyshuffler Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 [quote name='Nati Ice' post='425337' date='Jan 11 2007, 11:19 AM']told yall... credibility? not really... recognition? sure! but to be 100% honest, in terms of skill... the loss of a young clint dempsey is bigger than the gain of mr posh spice. however, this should bode well in terms of ticket and jersey sales. ronaldo to rbny and gooch to fulham within the next 2 weeks, btw.[/quote] i agree 100% on the loss of dempsy. rondalo would be huge, and i already ordered a fulham jersey. Now if they would just make roster updates for fifa 07 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Go Tory Go! Posted January 11, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 [quote name='Nati Ice' post='425337' date='Jan 11 2007, 11:19 AM']told yall... credibility? not really... recognition? sure! but to be 100% honest, in terms of skill... the loss of a young clint dempsey is bigger than the gain of mr posh spice. however, this should bode well in terms of ticket and jersey sales. [b]ronaldo [/b]to rbny and gooch to fulham within the next 2 weeks, btw.[/quote] Too bad it will be the fat ronaldo, not the rising star, but I wouldn't be surprised with Capello cleaning house. The move perfectly suits Beckham and the league, Beckham's lack of pace won't be so glaring, and he will no doubt score plenty of free kicks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nati Ice Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 [quote name='whodey24k' post='425338' date='Jan 11 2007, 11:24 AM']i agree 100% on the loss of dempsy. rondalo would be huge, and i already ordered a fulham jersey. Now if they would just make roster updates for fifa 07[/quote] im currently out of a job and waiting to see how long all this gooch shit takes to develop... if/when he signs with fulham, my custom jersey order will be in the mail whenever they get next years design announced. for some reason i dont care too much for their current jerseys. oh, and i really really fell the need to quote someone from deadspin here: "Landon Donovan + David Beckham = Double the Underachieving Gayness" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Go Tory Go! Posted January 11, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 [quote name='Nati Ice' post='425341' date='Jan 11 2007, 11:29 AM']im currently out of a job and waiting to see how long all this gooch shit takes to develop... if/when he signs with fulham, my custom jersey order will be in the mail whenever they get next years design announced. for some reason i dont care too much for their current jerseys. oh, and i really really fell the need to quote someone from deadspin here: "[b]Landon Donovan + David Beckham = Double the Underachieving Gayness[/b]"[/quote] Nice...though I don't think Beckham deserves that title; after all, he has been a hard-worker for two of the world's biggest clubs, and has actually won numerous trophies as a key member of the team. If anything, he is overrated by non-savvy people who might liken his unparalleled worldwide renown to his skill. Donovan, on the other hand, is a puss who fled Germany when a starting place didn't fall into his lap. Classic underachiever. I, personally, would rather have the US team filled with people like Jon Spector, who is currently refining his game in the premiership despite not starting regularly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ickeyshuffler Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 [quote name='Nati Ice' post='425341' date='Jan 11 2007, 11:29 AM']im currently out of a job and waiting to see how long all this gooch shit takes to develop... if/when he signs with fulham, my custom jersey order will be in the mail whenever they get next years design announced. for some reason i dont care too much for their current jerseys. oh, and i really really fell the need to quote someone from deadspin here: "Landon Donovan + David Beckham = Double the Underachieving Gayness"[/quote] you don't like the 07 kits? or last years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nati Ice Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 [quote name='Go Tory Go!' post='425355' date='Jan 11 2007, 11:55 AM']Nice...though I don't think Beckham deserves that title; after all, he has been a hard-worker for two of the world's biggest clubs, and has actually won numerous trophies as a key member of the team. If anything, he is overrated by non-savvy people who might liken his unparalleled worldwide renown to his skill. Donovan, on the other hand, is a puss who fled Germany when a starting place didn't fall into his lap. Classic underachiever. I, personally, would rather have the US team filled with people like Jon Spector, who is currently refining his game in the premiership despite not starting regularly.[/quote] oh, i dont necessarily think he does either (landycakes sure as hell does tho), i just htought it was amusing. becks just seems to get put up on a pedestal by those who dont know a whole lot about soccer, or at least follow it closely, and then when he doesnt perform to their astronomical expectations he gets knocked down a peg in the press. either way, i like this signing and look forward to the future development of the sport in the us. oh, and spector is great and all but if you want a story id look more towards jay demerit. [quote name='whodey24k' post='425359' date='Jan 11 2007, 12:02 PM']you don't like the 07 kits? or last years.[/quote] the current ones, i loved the puma(?) ones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EnglishBengal Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 Jay DeMerrit - now that's a story. He's seriously kicking some ass for Watford right now. Shame they may be relegated by the end of this season. Also, Jonathan Spector isn't too shabby either, currently playing for West Ham. If Beckham could make a difference to the game in the US then I'm all for it. Apparently the problem that MLS is currently getting is that many of the clubs are currently losing money due to lower than expected attendances. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ickeyshuffler Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 [quote name='EnglishBengal' post='425491' date='Jan 11 2007, 01:59 PM']If Beckham could make a difference to the game in the US then I'm all for it. Apparently the problem that MLS is currently getting is that many of the clubs are currently losing money due to lower than expected attendances.[/quote] they had enough money to give becks 250 million. I tried to go to a few chicgo fire games last year and they were sold out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 [quote name='whodey24k' post='425499' date='Jan 11 2007, 02:13 PM']they had enough money to give becks 250 million. I tried to go to a few chicgo fire games last year and they were sold out.[/quote] I visited DC for a few days during thanksgiving and soccer is huge there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
|Bunghole| Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 $50 million dollars a year to play soccer....IN AMERICA!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! You've got to be fucking kidding me! Tiger Woods doesn't make that muchin a year playing golf, and that's a rich man's sport! (less endorsements)!!!!! The best players in baseball don't come CLOSE to making that in a year! Fuck, is the soccer franchise paying him that kind of loot even WORTH that much money? Where in the hell does that kind of revenue come from? I played soccer for many, many years from when I was about 5 until I was 21, every season, twice a year, and it was pretty popular then....There's NO WAY that MLS is drawing enough fans to dole out that kind of a salary! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nati Ice Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 [quote name='EnglishBengal' post='425491' date='Jan 11 2007, 01:59 PM']Apparently the problem that MLS is currently getting is that many of the clubs are currently losing money due to lower than expected attendances.[/quote] ah contraire! mls is officially pulling a profit these days, especially in areas with sss (soccer specific stadia) and large fanbases, most notably dc united, la galaxy, chivas usa, chicago fire, nyrb, and houston (ive also heard nothing but good news about torontos new squad). now hopefully this signing will ignite the charge to bring on more sss and put more butts in the seats for la's away games... even if many are little girls. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nati Ice Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 [quote name='Bunghole' post='425507' date='Jan 11 2007, 02:21 PM']$50 million dollars a year to play soccer....IN AMERICA!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! You've got to be fucking kidding me! Tiger Woods doesn't make that muchin a year playing golf, and that's a rich man's sport! (less endorsements)!!!!! The best players in baseball don't come CLOSE to making that in a year! Fuck, is the soccer franchise paying him that kind of loot even WORTH that much money? Where in the hell does that kind of revenue come from? I played soccer for many, many years from when I was about 5 until I was 21, every season, twice a year, and it was pretty popular then....There's NO WAY that MLS is drawing enough fans to dole out that kind of a salary![/quote]relax, hes only getting about 9 per year for 5 years from the mls. the rest all comes from the mls/galaxy relinquishing their rights to a percentage of his personal endorsements. for example, he made 44 mill for madrid this past year yet only saw 50% of it because it was claimed by real. ergo... 44x5 + 9x5 = whatever Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nati Ice Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 im listening to the q+a right now and in a minute or two there will be a press conference with becks discussing htis. i will try to get back to you all with the info, but as of right now ive found this... "The Galaxy will be going on an Asian tour in the spring of 2008, it is currently negotiating TV rights deals in the Far East and "other" markets, and the Galaxy will be re-branding itself (new logo, possibly new colours) in the summer of 2007, LA has sold 1000 new season tickets today alone." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Go Tory Go! Posted January 11, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 (Luis) Ronaldo is another obvious possibility for MLS this year, but I just read that Houston is making a run at Tottenham midfielder Edgar Davids. He is the sort of eccentric personality and talent that MLS would do well to add, with his signature dreads and goggles. [quote][b]Davids to follow Becks to the MLS?[/b] Edgar Davids is another big name midfielder who could be playing football in the United States soon. On the day David Beckham confirmed he would be joining MLS side LA Galaxy, FC Dallas boss Steve Morrow admitted his interest in Tottenham's 33-year-old former Dutch international midfielder. Ex-Arsenal midfielder Morrow said: 'We are actually in negotiations with Edgar Davids - we've been speaking for a couple of weeks. 'We were excited to hear about his availability, so we spoke to his agents and have been told he is available.' Morrow took over as manager of the Western Conference side last month, after playing 44 games for the side in 2002-03. And he added on BBC London 94.9: 'It appears Tottenham are willing to listen to offers. 'It's the transfer window in the United States now - and if a deal is going to happen it has to be done before the end of the month.'[/quote] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
|Bunghole| Posted January 12, 2007 Report Share Posted January 12, 2007 I don't think Beckham, on the decline of his career, is going to invigorate a sport that most Americans don't enjoy watching. Many people liked playing it when they were younger, have kids that play it, etc....but would rather watch tennis than MLS soccer. The Columbus franchise is a disaster. Only the largest markets are even making any money. Soccer is a sport for every country in the world EXCEPT the USA. Pele couldn't engender fans to come out when he came to the US (NASL?) in the 1970's/early 1980's, and I don't think Beckham can either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest #22 Posted January 12, 2007 Report Share Posted January 12, 2007 Maybe Soccer will finally do well in the States. Spending $250 Million Dollars on a player who in on the downswing is just the kind of disgustingly excessive thing people like in their pro sports these days. Shit, if MLS keeps signing these marquee guys over the next few years, maybe they will hit their goal of actually making a profit by 2010. Right now, they've only lost $350 million overall. Oh wait, make that $600 Million. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
|Bunghole| Posted January 12, 2007 Report Share Posted January 12, 2007 [quote name='#22' post='425781' date='Jan 11 2007, 11:29 PM']Maybe Soccer will finally do well in the States. Spending $250 Million Dollars on a player who in on the downswing is just the kind of disgustingly excessive thing people like in their pro sports these days. Shit, if MLS keeps signing these marquee guys over the next few years, maybe they will hit their goal of actually making a profit by 2010. Right now, they've only lost $350 million overall. Oh wait, make that $600 Million.[/quote] Banking on the "star power" of an aging European soccer player married to Posh Spice to revive interest in MLS soccer is akin to treating dandruff with decapitation, if you don't mind me using Frank Zappa's analogy towards the PMRC in this instance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Go Tory Go! Posted January 12, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2007 [quote name='#22' post='425781' date='Jan 11 2007, 11:29 PM']Maybe Soccer will finally do well in the States. Spending $250 Million Dollars on a player who in on the downswing is just the kind of disgustingly excessive thing people like in their pro sports these days. Shit, if MLS keeps signing these marquee guys over the next few years, maybe they will hit their goal of actually making a profit by 2010. Right now, they've only lost $350 million overall. Oh wait, make that $600 Million.[/quote] Double-check your ledger. Beckham's [b]salaried[/b] pay won't even come close to $250 million. On top of that, the league is only paying a fraction of his salary ($9 mil a year, I believe), with the rest funded by LA Galaxy, one of the most profitable franchises and one quite capable of supporting the additional pay, especially with Becks's presence. The rest of the league will no-doubt profit as well - what was Yogurt's mantra? Merchandising, merchandising, merchandising! Beckham's shirt is always among the top-sellers, and is popular even among people with only a cursory interest in The World's Game. Add to that the increased value of tv deals which own sport these days, as well as additional attendance, and you've got yourself a deal. As for Beckham's play, his game was never built on speed, and age hasn't dulled his ability to deliver the spot-on crosses, corners, and free kicks which have always comprised the bulk of his value as a classic winger. But I'm sure a fan such as yourself knew that already. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
|Bunghole| Posted January 12, 2007 Report Share Posted January 12, 2007 [quote name='Go Tory Go!' post='425810' date='Jan 12 2007, 12:12 AM']Double-check your ledger. Beckham's [b]salaried[/b] pay won't even come close to $250 million. On top of that, the league is only paying a fraction of his salary ($9 mil a year, I believe), with the rest funded by LA Galaxy, one of the most profitable franchises and one quite capable of supporting the additional pay, especially with Becks's presence. The rest of the league will no-doubt profit as well - what was Yogurt's mantra? Merchandising, merchandising, merchandising! Beckham's shirt is always among the top-sellers, and is popular even among people with only a cursory interest in The World's Game. Add to that the increased value of tv deals which own sport these days, as well as additional attendance, and you've got yourself a deal. As for Beckham's play, his game was never built on speed, and age hasn't dulled his ability to deliver the spot-on crosses, corners, and free kicks which have always comprised the bulk of his value as a classic winger. But I'm sure a fan such as yourself knew that already.[/quote] So Beckham may sell in excess of 300 shirts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Go Tory Go! Posted January 12, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2007 [quote name='Bunghole' post='425816' date='Jan 12 2007, 12:25 AM']So Beckham may sell in excess of 300 shirts?[/quote] Probably did in the first 5 minutes following his press conference. And, furthermore, it is quite difficult to quantify the credibility, nay, the sheer [i]gravitas[/i], that Beckham brings to MLS as the world's best-known soccer player among the uninitiated (who, I might add, are those whom the league must attract). Other than the inevitable dollar-sign, which, as an indicator, will likely point in MLS's favor in the long and short run. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest #22 Posted January 12, 2007 Report Share Posted January 12, 2007 MLS drew around 15,000 per game last year over the course of 190 games (http://www.kenn.com/soccer/mls/basic.html). By comparison the worst team in MLB, the Kansas City Royals drew just over 17,000 to each of their 82 home games. The Royals have been consistently bad (finishing at least 15 games back in 10 of their last 11 seasons), and [b]still[/b] averaged higher than all but 3 of the 14 MLS teams (the exceptions were clubs in the two largest cities in the US, and Salt Lake City's team, which can be attributed to the inherently flukey Mormons). The MLS has dropped in attendance by 10% since its inaugural season, and has failed just like all of the attempts at pro soccer in this country before it. In addition, they have already experimented with fundamental changes to the rules, which (according to your perceptions of hockey) is a characteristic deathknell of a sport's popularity. What I'm saying, if it isn't simple enough for you to see, is that you can't build a solid house on a poor foundation. Beckham's introduction into American Soccer will be quite like his wife's brief success-characterized by temporary media hype, then quickly forgotten. [quote]As for Beckham's play, his game was never built on speed, and age hasn't dulled his ability to deliver the spot-on crosses, corners, and free kicks which have always comprised the bulk of his value as a classic winger. But I'm sure a fan such as yourself knew that already.[/quote] Once again, I really don't care. What I do care about is this misconception held by a few prancing elitists in this country that sports sensibilities will degrade far enough to widely accept (or even, as you remarked earlier, endorse more than "American Football") watching a sport on television so boring and devoid of action. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nati Ice Posted January 12, 2007 Report Share Posted January 12, 2007 [quote name='Bunghole' post='425697' date='Jan 11 2007, 07:50 PM']I don't think Beckham, on the decline of his career, is going to invigorate a sport that most Americans don't enjoy watching. Many people liked playing it when they were younger, have kids that play it, etc....but would rather watch tennis than MLS soccer. The Columbus franchise is a disaster. Only the largest markets are even making any money. Soccer is a sport for every country in the world EXCEPT the USA. Pele couldn't engender fans to come out when he came to the US (NASL?) in the 1970's/early 1980's, and I don't think Beckham can either.[/quote] what are you talking about? pele sold out an 80,000 seat arena consistently in new york, and the attendance figures for all of his games were over 47,000, and if it wasnt for a lack of parity and coherent managing the nasl would have thrived. also, beckham is only 31, so saying he is on the decline of his career i like saying that chad is in the decline of his career. sure, its factually accurate, but its mostly nonsense. hes retired from international play with england but in all honesty still good enough to be on that team and just about every other team in the world. and sure, his image overshadows his skills, but he is still a world class player/image. soccer wont ever overtake american football, but can sure as hell fight it out with the others. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nati Ice Posted January 12, 2007 Report Share Posted January 12, 2007 [quote name='#22' post='425781' date='Jan 11 2007, 11:29 PM']Maybe Soccer will finally do well in the States. Spending $250 Million Dollars on a player who in on the downswing is just the kind of disgustingly excessive thing people like in their pro sports these days. Shit, if MLS keeps signing these marquee guys over the next few years, maybe they will hit their goal of actually making a profit by 2010. Right now, they've only lost $350 million overall. Oh wait, make that $600 Million.[/quote] im assuming you didnt read my last post... hes not getting paid 250$ mill, that is the very rough estimate of what he stands to make from this agreement. his contract is only 9-10mill for 5years and will only cost mls 400k with the rest coming from aeg (owners of the la operating rights). mls turned their first profit a year ago, and is doing better than any other league in the history of american sports. its attendance figures are better than the start of the nfl, and when you actually consider the fact that many of these teams, and soon to be all of them, have their own soccer specific stadia, they are actually doing quite well. the galaxy have a very nice stadium that holds 27k + general admission tickets to a hill on one side, and averaged about 24k per game in a down season. so when you add all of that in, plus the extremely low salaries other players are making, the fact that they hold other events at that stadium, and a college rents it out to play their home football and soccer games their... the galaxy and the mls are quite profitable. they are probably the most successful in terms of pure profits but they sure as hell arnt the only ones turning one... the columbus franchise, well, thats a different story. edit: fuck, tory beat me to it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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