Some readers will hate this thread and its subject matter. It's also probably too early to make a megathread about it, given it's still just rumors and speculation about something that might happen by the end of the decade. <Insert stadium thread joke here.> But I find it fun to speculate and track these developments and rumors.
A few semi-recent articles to get things started:
www.starsandstripesfc.com
www.theguardian.com
www.theyucatantimes.com
www.espn.com
I personally think a merger of some form is more likely than not, and by that I mean more than just an expanded interleague tournament. The benefits are largely about media rights, and I think in the end they will need to package actual league play together in order to fully leverage the potential -- LigaMX owners will want equity in SUM. Its possible they hope the Leagues Cup will somehow overtake league play in importance and therefore eyeballs and media value, but I don't think a knockout tournament alongside regular league play will accomplish that and they will have to go bigger.
My biggest question is whether the LigaMX owners will stick together to negotiate a full merger with all teams, or if they'll immediately cave to an MLS request to only accept the most valuable. Knowing capitalists, I think it'll be the latter.
And all that said, the next question becomes which teams are incorporated? My knowledge of LigaMX is extremely lacking, but in any scenario, (1) Club America and (2) Chivas are surely in. Assuming more than two, (3) Monterrey is also surely in. The next tier is tough because there's a mix of younger and older fanbases and it's hard to say whether MLS would want rivals from the same city or broader geographic coverage, but here are the rankings according to Forbes Mexico:
(4) Santos Laguna
(5) Toluca
(6) Tigres
(7) Xolos
(8) Cruz Azul
(9) Pumas
(10) Pachuca
Things line up well for a 36-40 team league, with my preference being 36. There's a few good ways to structure a 36-team league:
(1) Add two more US-based expansion teams and add four from Mexico. Divide the league into two conferences and each conference into two divisions of nine. Two Mexican teams join each of the two divisions in the western conference. Each team plays their division twice (16 games), the other division in their conference once (9 games), and one division in the other conference on a rotating basis (9 games) for a total of 34 regular season games.
(2) Freeze US-based expansion and add six from Mexico. Divide the league into two conference and each conference into three divisions of six. One of the divisions in the western conference consists of all six Mexican teams. Each team plays their division twice (10 games), the other divisions in their conference once (12 games), and 12 of the 18 teams in the other conference on a rotating basis (12 teams) for a total of 34 regular season games.
Both setups control for travel without skipping any matchups longer than a single calendar year. They also guarantee an original MLS team in the MLS Cup Final each year.
Does anyone else have some good speculative proposals?
A few semi-recent articles to get things started:
What would a Liga MX-MLS merger look like?
There’s a couple scenarios that could work.
www.starsandstripesfc.com
Will MLS and Liga MX merge to form a North American behemoth?
Executives from both leagues have talked up a proposed united competition. And there are reasons to believe it would work
Could Liga MX and MLS merge? What North American soccer super league could look like | Goal.com US
The organisers of Mexican, American and Canadian football are working closer together than ever before, throwing up the possibility of a 50-team cross-border super league
www.goal.com
Mexican and US Soccer Leagues Rumoured to be in Discussions Over Merger - The Yucatan Times
The US and Canadian Major League Soccer and Mexican Liga MX are the two largest soccer leagues in North America. The two have been working more closely together in recent years after the launch of the Campeones Cup and the Leagues Cup. With the joint North American World Cup, which is scheduled...
www.theyucatantimes.com
AC Milan exec: MLS-Liga MX merger could work
AC Milan executive and former MLS deputy commissioner Ivan Gazidis said that a MLS-Liga MX merger is something that should be considered.
I personally think a merger of some form is more likely than not, and by that I mean more than just an expanded interleague tournament. The benefits are largely about media rights, and I think in the end they will need to package actual league play together in order to fully leverage the potential -- LigaMX owners will want equity in SUM. Its possible they hope the Leagues Cup will somehow overtake league play in importance and therefore eyeballs and media value, but I don't think a knockout tournament alongside regular league play will accomplish that and they will have to go bigger.
My biggest question is whether the LigaMX owners will stick together to negotiate a full merger with all teams, or if they'll immediately cave to an MLS request to only accept the most valuable. Knowing capitalists, I think it'll be the latter.
And all that said, the next question becomes which teams are incorporated? My knowledge of LigaMX is extremely lacking, but in any scenario, (1) Club America and (2) Chivas are surely in. Assuming more than two, (3) Monterrey is also surely in. The next tier is tough because there's a mix of younger and older fanbases and it's hard to say whether MLS would want rivals from the same city or broader geographic coverage, but here are the rankings according to Forbes Mexico:
(4) Santos Laguna
(5) Toluca
(6) Tigres
(7) Xolos
(8) Cruz Azul
(9) Pumas
(10) Pachuca
Things line up well for a 36-40 team league, with my preference being 36. There's a few good ways to structure a 36-team league:
(1) Add two more US-based expansion teams and add four from Mexico. Divide the league into two conferences and each conference into two divisions of nine. Two Mexican teams join each of the two divisions in the western conference. Each team plays their division twice (16 games), the other division in their conference once (9 games), and one division in the other conference on a rotating basis (9 games) for a total of 34 regular season games.
(2) Freeze US-based expansion and add six from Mexico. Divide the league into two conference and each conference into three divisions of six. One of the divisions in the western conference consists of all six Mexican teams. Each team plays their division twice (10 games), the other divisions in their conference once (12 games), and 12 of the 18 teams in the other conference on a rotating basis (12 teams) for a total of 34 regular season games.
Both setups control for travel without skipping any matchups longer than a single calendar year. They also guarantee an original MLS team in the MLS Cup Final each year.
Does anyone else have some good speculative proposals?
