When will the MLS adopt the Relegation/Promotion System?

I really hope that the MLS eventually adopts the relegation/promotion system that pretty much all the major soccer leagues across the globe are currently using.

Let me explain how it works for those who are not familiar with this system by using England as the primary example. In England there are many divisions of soccer, with the English Premier League being the first (and best) division.  Below the English Premier League are 4 more professional divisions, and even more divisions underneath that are considered semi-professional.

Each year, and in each division, the top 3 teams move up to the division above and the bottom three teams move down to the division below. It should also be noted that there are no playoffs; only the points accumulated during the regular season are used to determine league positions.

This system allows for a lot of excitement. Not only is there the prospects of rooting for the top team to come in first place, but as importantly, you can root for your team to finish in second or third place. Along with that, there is also the excitement that the bottom of the table brings, with teams doing all they can stay in their current division (teams that get relegated lose a lot of money from TV revenues). In the United States, there is no reason to watch the games between last place teams.

I don’t really know anything about the politics or the amount of work and change that would be needed in order to implement the system. I do believe is would be great for the fans, however! Especially the fans of USL or NASL teams that would be given hope that there is a possibility that their team can join the top-tier MLS.

While I know I’m not the only one who thinks that this should be the system that is in place in the MLS, there are likely just as many people who would be opposed to the system. American fans who haven’t been exposed to European leagues, and die-hard soccer fans, probably won’t get the appeal of the system. They probably wouldn’t welcome the change. Regardless, I’m sure there have been discussions about it amongst MLS officials and I hope they seriously consider the idea in the future.

~ Steven Hold