2008 MLS Season numbers so far

Just four weeks into the 2008 season and some trends are starting to appear. League wide average attendance numbers are pretty steady at a bit above 15,000, which is lower then last season's overall average, however a bit above where the numbers sat at a similar time last season (a year ago the average per game was just under 15,000).

As far as goals, the number is up against last year's start, however this past week saw the fewest number per game of the season. Is this due to better defending as teams settle into the long haul or is it just a momentary drop?

On the foul side of things, I am amazed by the consistency of these numbers. Each week the average number of fouls per game has been between 23.9 and 25.1. Certain individual games have had more or less, but in the end the numbers hold steady. I didn't track fouls last season so I don't know if these numbers are down.

But the most interesting number as I see it is the number of ties. Last season you could expect between 25 and 30% of all matches to end knotted up but so far this year less then one out of every five games have ended even.

Anyway, here is a week-by-week look at some numbers:

Week 4

	Season (28)	Week 1 (8)
Attendance	427,045	111,273
Att per game	15,252	13,909
Beckham Att	89,540	23,401
Beckham Avg Att (3)	22,385	23,401
Goals	82	15
Goals per game	2.9	2.1
Fouls	685	176
Fouls per game	24.5	25.1
Cards (red)	82 (8)	22 (1)
Inter-conference	East 6-1-3	East 1-0-0
Visitors	7-6-15	4-2-1
Ties	5 (17.9%)	2 (28.6%)

Week 3

	Season (21)	Week 1 (8)
Attendance	315,772	97,986
Att per game	15,037	12,248
Beckham Att	66,139	20,426
Beckham Avg Att (3)	22,046	20,426
Goals	67	24
Goals per game	3.2	3
Fouls	509	198
Fouls per game	24.2	24.75
Cards (red)	70 (7)	28 (2)
Inter-conference	East 5-1-3	Tie 3-1-3
Visitors	3-4-14	3-1-4
Ties	3 (14.3%)	1 (12.5%)

Week 2

	Season (13)	Week 1 (7)
Attendance	217,786	125,917
Att per game	16,753	17,988
Beckham Att	45,713	27,000
Beckham Avg Att (2)	22,857	27,000
Goals	43	28
Goals per game	3.3	4
Fouls	311	167
Fouls per game	23.9	23.9
Cards (red)	42 (5)	23 (3)
Inter-conference	East 2-1-0	East 1-0-0
Visitors	0-3-10	0-1-6
Ties	2 (15.4%)	1 (14.3%)

Week 1

	Season (6)	Week 1 (6)
Attendance	91,869	91,869
Att per game	15,312	15,312
Beckham Att	18,713	18,713
Beckham Avg Att (1)	18,713	18,713
Goals	15	15
Goals per game	2.5	2.5
Fouls	144	144
Fouls per game	24	24
Cards (red)	19 (2)	19 (2)
Inter-conference	East 1-1-0	East 1-1-0
Visitors	0-2-4	0-2-4
Ties	1 (16.6%)	1 (16.6%)

2008 MLS scheduling problems

The 2008 MLS schedule is just a few weeks away from release, but there are a number of problems they need to overcome. Here are the scheduling issues as presented by Steve Davis:

- SuperLiga
- Concacaf Champions League
- US Open Cup
- 2008 Olympics
- ESPN2 Thursday night broadcasts
- World Cup Qualifying (the league will play on international dates)
- No national broadcasts from San Jose
- Stadium scheduling conflicts
- Beckham
- International friendly competitions

That's a lot to cram into a 31-week regular season and no doubt some items (US Open Cup) are going to get the short end of things. This will upset some people (like myself), but instead of going off on why it is more important to support say the oldest team cup competition in the US instead of booking a meaningless game against a pre-season EPL side in July, I will need to remember that MLS is a business and although they are doing much better these past 5-years, they still are not in the position to pass up easy money.

I'll also have to remind myself that when MLS players are called away for international duty and miss a number of important games down the stretch, that the league can't take those weeks off because of their contract with ESPN2 requiring a game. Plus, with a 30-game schedule, if MLS took more then one a weekend off, that would mean there would need to be more mid-week games and we all know what the attendance at those are like.

So I will withhold any anger I might feel when the schedule comes out (provided there is nothing really stupid like a couple weekends with light play early in the season only to cram more games in late) and remember that a number of these problems are the result of the league growing (SuperLiga, TV contract, Beckham).

Now let's see if I can live up to this resolution.

DC sends Boswell to Houston gets keeper in return. Poll - Who did better?

And the trading of the Wells is done.

Bobby Boswell, the 2006 MLS defender of the year, is heading out of the nation's capitol for the warmer weather in Houston. In return, United gets goalkeeper Zach Wells.

First off, this is an excellent trade for both teams. With Cochrane moving on to San Jose, the Dynamo need a good center back and although Boswell did not have a great 2007 campaign, he still has the talent and will probably recover in 2008, while United got a keeper to replace Troy Perkins when he jumps to Europe during the winter transfer window.

That said, it looks to me like the Dynamo are taking the bigger risk with this trade. Yes, they still have the wall that is Pat Onstad in goal, however between his back issues and his age (he will turn 40 next month), the likelihood of him going down is a bit higher then most MLS goal minders.

Wells has a great deal of potential, as he showed during Houston's Concacaf Champions Cup run, and could step in for Onstad at any moment. With Wells gone, the Dynamo now need to find a quality backup keeper (as does United as they did not Jay Nolly's contract) that will probably see at least a few meaningful games in '08.

For United, the loss of Boswell will disappoint a number of fans but it will probably not affect their play on the pitch very much as his poor 2007 caused the team to work around him, if you will. Also, DC lose $20,000 of salary space as Wells comes with a $50,400 price tag while Boswell is a modest $30,870 (that number is shocking to me), but they do get conditional pick in the 2009 MLS SuperDraft. That said, when Boswell is on, he can run a backline like few others in the league.

One last bit of note, it looks like Wells will be called into the US men's training camp in January.

MLS 2008 Season - First two weekend fixtures

The 2007 season might only be three weeks past, but it is time to look forward to 2008. MLS released most of the fixtures for the first two weeks. The year will begin with a bit of a return to tradition, as the two MLS Cup finalists will face off when Houston travels to New England. Here is the full schedule:
March 29-30
LA Galaxy at Colorado
Houston at New England
Toronto at Columbus
Chicago at Salt Lake
DC at KC
NY-San Jose (match might change)
Chivas at FC Dallas (March 30)

April 3-6
New England at Chicago @ 8pm CT(April 3)
San Jose at LA @ 6:30pm PT (April 3)
Salt Lake at Chivas (April 5)
Columbus at New York (April 5)
Toronto at DC (April 5)
Dallas at Houston (April 6)
KC-Colorado (No exact information on this one)

So in case you missed it, there are two matches taking place on the first Thursday of the season (April 3). The times work out to make it look like there will be two matches on ESPN2 that night. Will this be a one time event designed to attract attention or will we see more of this in the future?

Interesting note about the first week of games, four of the five teams with the lowest 2007 attendance numbers open at home (KC, Colorado, Columbus, Dallas) while only one of the top six gets to play host (New England). Guess they are hoping a first week kickoff to get their numbers up.

England out of Euro 2008

After a disgusting first half, England looked reborn in the second thanks in large part to the work of Beckham (sub at the half) and Peter Crouch. They were down 2-0 at the half way mark, but they were able to fight back into it thanks to a pk and a fantastic cross from Beckham to Crouch's chest, but in the end a horrible night by Wyde Bridge and Scott Carson, combined with plenty of other poor play are the reason England will not be in Switzerland/Austria next summer.

With Russia winning 1-0 against Andorra, England has now missed their first major tournament since the 1994 World Cup. Lots will be written (the bloodletting is going to be fierce with this one) but in the end it was all about quality. England just did not have the depth and style to make it happen.

So will Steve McClaren do the honorable thing and resign at the post game press conference or will he wait to be fired? Where will England look to find a quality keeper? How must Beckham feel being one game short of 100 matches for his country knowing that this was probably the end?

For the record, as far as Beckham, even at his unfit level, he was one of the few bright spots on the pitch for the squad. That says something about him and the squad.

As I wrap this up, a few more questions pop into my mind. How ecstatic do you think Lalas in the LA organization is right now knowing that they will not lose their cash cow for two months next summer? Also, how soon till someone from US soccer gets on the blower and tries to setup a match between the two countries for June? Finally, how much will this hurt the beer industry in England?

MLS Expansion - Earthquakes have a home

The San Jose Earthquakes have a home for most of their matches next season as they will play at Buck Shaw Stadium on the campus of the Santa Clara University. This stadium currently holds between 6,800-8,800, however upgrades might take place for MLS games. The team will play 'bigger' opponents at a larger, yet to be announced, stadium.

As you can tell from the picture, Shaw was built as a multi-sport facility. However, both the baseball and football teams now play elsewhere, leaving it as soccer only. Also, this is where Brazil practiced during the 1994 World Cup, so it has some soccer cred.

In addition, this stadium sits within spitting distance of the land the 'Quakes hope to purchase from the city for a permanent home and the teams new offices.

As far as the size, they might not end up playing in the smallest stadium in the league, depending on where Kansas City ends up.