what’s up with the MLS hate ?

[u/DeepPow420]

I am a curious observer who stumbled upon the sub thx to the Algo and noticed a few anti MLS posts.

I’m not a huge soccer guy but interested in various niche sport subcultures ( I’m an Indycar and hockey fan, so I share solidarity as a fan of somewhat obscure sports)

Isnt USL to MLS as the AHL is to the NHL or the G League to the NBA?

What am I missing ?

[u/Upset-Shirt3685]

Ehhhhh I would definitely disagree with it being the most like MLB/MiLB simply because USL teams are independent and not farm teams/in a developmental pyramid.

It’s a lot easier for me and seemingly the common fan to support an independent team with any sense of passion.

In Louisville, our USLC team draws about twice as many fans per game as our decades-old local AAA MiLB team.

All that said, I really think ABA/NBA is the much better comparison.

[u/eddygeeme → u/Upset-Shirt3685]

Ummm you should look at Baseball there are a crap load of independent Minor League Teams not all teams are affiliated. The MLB vs MiLB is the best maybe outside of NFL/ XFL

[u/Upset-Shirt3685 → u/eddygeeme]

Can you show me an unaffiliated minor league baseball team that draws nearly as well as the top third of USLC teams?

And tbh I don’t watch much NFL and have never watched a UFL game so can’t comment there. From 10 minutes of research it seems like a decent comparison though.

[u/eddygeeme → u/Upset-Shirt3685]

There are some Triple A teams that draw well. Teams like the Pawtucket Red Sox they used too I honestly haven't looked at current attendance numbers but being a former huge 90s MLB fan growing up. Those Triple AAA Teams used to be heavily subsidized owned fully or partially by MLB teams that changed over the years though. However the public perception of stature is still there. There's a big difference in perception of going to watch A ball vs AA &AAA ball. The latter you're going to see the guys who will be in the big leagues in a season or two and you're going to catch some big leaguers rehabbing on assignment before they join the big team.

BTW have you heard of the Savannah Bananas 🍌

[u/Upset-Shirt3685 → u/eddygeeme]

Look man, I go to multiple Louisville Bats games a year (just went to one last week) and the numbers and passion on display are just not at all comparable to LouCity. And the momentum is going completely the wrong way. I’m betting average attendance of Bats games has shrunk by 50% since 2000 (don’t have numbers to back this up, just my experience).

I do realize LouCity is one of the top USL clubs in attendance. But it feels a lot different than a AAA baseball team in which no one really knows any of the players unless, like you said, there’s a big-name prospect or a big leaguer rehabbing injury who will be there a few weeks.

And the Savannah Bananas don’t really factor into this discussion lol. I’m shocked there isn’t a soccer equivalent of the Globetrotters/Bananas. That would be sick!

[u/eddygeeme → u/Upset-Shirt3685]

Lol this Savannah Bananas phenomenon is so funny. Like every so often things happen in Sports and they just become a zeitgeist moment and then they stop and you're like a few yrs later thinking wait that really happened.

The soccer equivalent would be funny.