The number of live and at home viewers for that game were about as inflated as PPV wrestling purchase numbers.
I think the miracle on ice is maybe the greatest moment in sports history, but that doesn't mean I know who won the Stanley Cup this year.
Commercials and myriad pitching changes have added a good 30 to 45 minutes to the average game over time.
In 20 years, the numbers for 12-17 year Olds will still be the same and the MLS will still be a shitty, meaningless league playing in band boxes filled with wannabe Eurotrash.
But the NFL didn't fully jump on board with it until 2009, when you saw the launch of RedZone and fantasy football incorporated in sponsor's advertisements. Up until the mid-2000s, the NFL was weary of FF as it was thought to primarily be played by gamblers.
It doesn't help that it seems like in between every pitch a guy has to step out, scratch, waggle his bat, unvelcro and revelcro his batting gloves, tap his shoes, and stretch.
They'll never be the NFL, but the league plays in some really nice league and has become a viable financial opportunity for the best American players. Now that they are getting investments from the larger European teams (like Manchester City and the Yankees), they are becoming more stable and entrenched in the sports world in this country. I think they will be fine and a solid league in 20 years.
Whoah, talk about a hop, skip, and jump to conclusions...I don't think anybody's saying he full-on whacked off to completion, but just that he touched himself enough to get a little chubby'd up is all.
The MLS will remain an afterthought for the same reason NFL Europe never took hold. American fans will watch the EPL or LA Liga because that's the best of the best. They aren't going watch washed up icons and never weres play here. If that model worked, the D League would play in front of packed houses.
How many "American fans" does it take to garner the "American fans" label? You don't need to dominate the sporting landscape, just get enough Americans to follow the sport here. It's already the case in a number of locales throughout MLS and well beyond the interest garnered by the D League. I also think the more money coming in will allow for more talent to stay and come here. Like I said, it's not taking over the top spot in American sports, but it is getting a more and more secure strong hold.
