Are you interested in Beckham's MLS debut?

[boro_boy]

Are you interested in Beckham's MLS debut?

There's a poll on ESPN.com's front page:


38% voted Yes and 62% No (total votes: 88,141)

Is he going to be a flop? Will people start to like him? Will he improve the image of "soccer" in the US?

[westboy]

Not particularly excited but it will be if he can turn soccer into football, so to speak. I think there's a danger of the yanks loving a big name celebrity coming over but not caring about the football. I know nothing about MLS but I imagine the first game against Chelsea for LA will be a sell-out. People who have no interest in the game will probably watch it on TV - wonder how many will get bored if there's no goals after 2 minutes...

I really hope it goes well for him over there, although not too fussed about his debut.

[boro_boy]

I really hope he does well over there also. I really want the game to come a live over in the US. Football is a great game and it plays with your emotions something rotten but that's what's so good about it.

[westboy]

I think the whole culture is why it doesn't and won't though. I went to a hockey match in Washington a few months ago and the crowd get bored easily (and also have no original chants, just "Let's go Caps"!!). I can't imagine American's spending 90 minutes watching a 0-0 match. It happens over here because football is like religion and people get so nervous during the matches that it makes up for the relative lack of goals but in America I think they just get restless.

[boro_boy]

I think the whole culture is why it doesn't and won't though. I went to a hockey match in Washington a few months ago and the crowd get bored easily (and also have no original chants, just "Let's go Caps"!!). I can't imagine American's spending 90 minutes watching a 0-0 match. It happens over here because football is like religion and people get so nervous during the matches that it makes up for the relative lack of goals but in America I think they just get restless.
Well the MLS seems to be doing ok I suppose. Its just like the Scottish league really, with only a few selling out their capacity and the rest having half empty seats. The premiership is staring to get like this now.

[westboy]

Nice dig there comparing the US to Scotland!! The thing about the premiership is that it will always get interest from all over the world even if only a select few can afford to watch live.

How much is an average premiership ticket though, full paying adult?

Haven't been to a prem match for 18 months or so but last time I went it was £25 at Fulham (I know it's cheap club), which you can't complain about.

[boro_boy]

Middlesbrough's is £24. For the South and North Stands which are behind the goals.

[westboy]

You can't complain about that, costs much more than that to go to the theatre or see a live show doesn't it?

Charging £90 for Wembley is what I call a rip-off but people are prepared to pay it.

[boro_boy]

Yeah £90 is way way over the top, I wouldn't even pay that to go to a cup final

[Nafe]

Wouldn't mind watching a few games, haven't seen an American 'soccer' match before. And obviously to see if he makes an impact.

[Caesarius]

I really think despite what the poll says that their is a genuine interest in Beckham over here. After all their getting their own tv show(which i imagine will be horrible). People may not watch but im sure that many will tune in to see Beckham. Also the thing about Hockey, the Caps are an awful team. I went to a Florida Panthers game this year, oddly enough against the Caps, and the audience was pretty enthousiastic even though it wasnt sold out. The chants may be lame here and really stupid, but i think they are making changes for the better and most teams are now being bought by local business'. The league hopes to have 3 more teams by 2010 and many cities seem to be sparking interest with a possibility of adding another team in New York. Even though the league is getting better i just cant watch it because the play of the game looks so bad and most of the goals scored are so pathetic. As for ticket sales, the LA Galaxy sell out nearly every game and Toronto do too. The others arent as high.

[Matt2]

Is he going to be a flop?

well that depends on what you expect him to accomplish and what his ambitions are. Is he going to play well, of course, but only if he puts effort into it. The MLS is a physical league so if he only puts a half-hearted effort out on display he wont do well. Ask a few other europeans who came here for a paycheck.

Will people start to like him?

some will, but surely some wont.

Will he improve the image of "soccer" in the US?

simply put NO!... overall i cant see one player making much of an impact on the basic american sports culture and where soccer lies in comparison to more mainstream sports here TODAY (obviously i wasnt around when Pele came to NY Cosmos but he was at the top of the world when he did which does make things different)... As far as making non-fans of the sport watch, they will for a while but i expect after a month the hype machine of american sports will move on and once the NFL starts no one will give a f*ck about Beckham outside those that already watch MLS.

[FourOneFourOne]

Is there any sort of backlash against him over there?

I imagine that if a big basketball player came over here and said he wanted to convert us (which beckham has said more or less) they'd be met with some hostility.

[I_AM_CANADIAN!]

Well he is speaking the truth, most Americans don't know a thing about football. I don't think it'll make that much of an impact in the States, but up here he's already worked wonders... Season's tickets for TFC sold out remarkably fast after his signing was announced.

[Caesarius]

The only way that Beckham would be a flop is the fact he's too good for the league. This league is bad and the ball hardly gets off the ground. Beckham will just be the class of the league, just look at Angel this league is third tier football at best

[boro_boy]

Is there any sort of backlash against him over there?

I imagine that if a big basketball player came over here and said he wanted to convert us (which beckham has said more or less) they'd be met with some hostility.
yeah if that happened I would ignore him lol.

[westboy]

Is it fair to say he's going over there firstly as a big name celeb and secondly as a football player?

[domcassells]

I think it will have a positive influence, but it wont be visible for about 10 years, some kids, will realise there's a lot of money to be made in football, and will continue it past high school

[Evertonized]

Another person who I really like, he HAS gone for the money, but he HAS also gone to imrpove the profile of soccer for defintly, why would he reject Premiership or Spanish Premier Football, be serious critics

Good Luck my old English Captain Friend ;) :thumbup1:

[boro_boy]

Yeah it is totally for the money side of things that he has moved to the MLS. Was he interested in returning to the Premier League, if LA Galaxy never made an offer then I think he would have stayed in the Spanish League.

[Evertonized]

Real Madrid made a bigger contract offer for Beckham, and he rejected and still left for LA Galaxy

[westboy]

It's a new experience for him, he probably reckons he can get soccer going again. Incidentally did anyone here him (probably deliberate) sayiing 'foo...soccer, I'll have to get used to that!'

[bluemoon]

Too be hionest, i couldnt care less, i am sick of seeing his flipping picture and that talentless wife of his on the TV Screens. It's not that a bigger deal that the media are portraying.