I think the problem with NY has been the high cost of living there. Even in Jersey, it is expensive for developmental players and base senior salary.

Besides the salaries, NY Soccer fans demonstrate that they will come out and see a quality team. The largest media market should get the ability to build a good team.

How do you do that? You allow NY to pay players a Cost of Living adjustment for being in NY. They keep their base salary, but get paid CLA in their paycheck. If they move to Chicago, it gets taken away from the player. LA teams should probably be given the same.

The biggest frustration I hear from MLS fans and non-MLS fans who live in the U.S. is that they want a league with higher quality soccer NOW!

Although I sometimes grow weary of the 'MLS is not quality' argument from fans who are sometimes labeled as 'soccer snobs', the fact is other leagues overseas have higher salaries, better players, and therefore, more exciting / higher quality football.

I have watched hundreds of MLS games over the past 5 years and my opinion is that the league quality of play gets better each year. More teams is providing greater competition. There are also other tournaments to play and this all bodes well for the future of MLS.

If you read the UK press, every season there is talk about how high salaries have escalated and some executives like Arsenal's Ivan Gazidis [an American] have proposed a salary cap to contain costs. So this is the flip-side of unfettered / uncontrolled growth – Manchester City paid £14 million for an average player like Craig Bellamy. MLS could not sustain these types of player prices and transfer fees at their current level of attendance and financing.

So even though MLS fans want it to be on-par with a top tier European league, the league is being fiscally responsible with their growth, including the salary cap. I hope they will expand it in the next collective bargaining agreement and that MLS squads will pay their players better wages and attract better players.

I think we forget that MLS has existed only for 13 years. The league has done a great job of getting soccer-specific stadia and inking major sponsorship deals in such a short period of time. Compare their efforts with other sports like professional lacrosse.

If you look at the history of the Football Association in England, there are many twists and turns – new league folding and forming, etc. throughout the past 100 years of professional football. For example, the English Premier League as we know it today has only existed in its current incarnation since 1992.

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