It’s been no secret recently that I despise these silly friendlies played against the “big clubs” that get in the way of the MLS season. But yesterday, Real Salt Lake should have been thumping the Vancouver Whitecaps, but concerns about player safety on the new pitch at Empire Field — installed only for a friendly — removed any chance of that.
Let’s outline specifically what happened:
1. Vancouver and the MLS scheduled a friendly with European dynamos (yeah, right!) Manchester City at Empire Field, where the Whitecaps have been playing their games.
2. In order to accommodate Manchester City’s apparently exacting demands, a true grass pitch had to be installed. Because of weather conditions, the pitch at Empire Field is made of field turf, and City were apparently unwilling to play on the turf. (Please, let them go to Russia, where they very often play on turf.)
3. Because the Whitecaps scheduled the friendly between MLS games, the pitch had to be installed in a short time. The game against RSL fell only two days before the friendly, so the administration decided they would install before the RSL game.
4. The installed pitch, because of the installation requirements, did not have any significant drainage system.
5. Apparently, in Vancouver, they had not considered the possibility that it might rain between the installation of the pitch and either of the matches in which they would play.
6. Cue Murphy’s Law. It, shockingly, rains in Vancouver, and when the pitch is inspected, it hasn’t drained at all. Whitecaps groundsmen set about trying to drain the pitch, but are unable to in time for the match. When Jason Kreis inspects the pitch, he reports that large amounts of water come up with every step.
7. The match against Real Salt Lake is cancelled, and the match on Monday against Manchester City is set to go ahead.
8. Cue plenty of outraged fans on Twitter, prompting some Vancouver media types to lash against the friendly and others to lash against the bitter RSL fans. Opinion across the league varies, but most points to a desire to cut out the friendlies.
It’s all clear, right? The match had to be postponed or moved on Saturday, because player safety was a very genuine concern. The decision to cancel the match was an unfortunate one, but it was the correct one. But the decisions leading up to the conditions that created the cancellation necessity were wrong in every sense. The Vancouver Whitecaps and the MLS both decided that it was worth risking a league match for a high-profile friendly match. They decided that the league was nothing more than a vehicle for playing European sides: A glory tie was decided to be more important than something that would not garner the same level of advertising money, of viewership, or glory.
And that’s really the shame here. There are dedicated fans of these clubs — of all clubs in the MLS — and the decisions leading up to this cancellation, as well as those leading to other friendlies being played on American soil, are utterly disrespectful of those devoted fans who support their club. These glory ties, the ones designed only to boost league and club profile and, resultingly, associated income, are a slap to the face of those fans.
The friendlies set to be played this season probably can’t be easily cancelled without significant violations of contract law. We will have to live with the utter nonsense and consequences this year. But next year, the MLS should take a moment and think: Do we want to be a competitive league that garners international respect? Or would we rather be a league where aging football stars come to play and European clubs come to catch an easy win in a bid for pre-season fitness?
I know precisely where I fall on the scale. Where do you fall?
So if you’re disappointed that Real Salt Lake won’t be hosting Real Madrid, Manchester City, Barcelona, Manchester United, or any other big-name side, remember one mantra: Trophies, not friendlies.
Comments