How Manchester United and Barcelona Damaged Major League Soccer

Soccer in the USA is one of the fastest emerging football markets in the world, of that there is no doubt. A glance at the steady expansion in the MLS over the last five years is testament to that, with successful franchises having sprung up recently in Seattle, Toronto, Philadelphia and Portland.

Matches are now played in front of capacity crowds at soccer-specific stadiums—as opposed to the barely full NFL stadiums that were used to host the sub-standard matches of earlier years—with an array of international stars such as David Beckham, Thierry Henry, Rafael Marquez and Torsten Frings turning out for their respective teams. 

So business is booming—in football at least—in the USA and, inevitably, the European giants of the game want a piece of that American pie.

Dominant football powers such as Real Madrid, Barcelona, Manchester United and Juventus toured the country this year, playing money-spinning friendlies against eac...

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