OPINION: SuperLiga Could Use Promotion

Good Competition Should Warrant More Attention

July 18, 2008

By Mark Goodman

Going into the Revolution�s SuperLiga match against Santos Laguna Sunday night, it would be fair to say I was against the whole concept.

Isn�t it somewhat repetitive, given the newly formed (and presumably, somewhat more prestigious) CONCACAF Champions League? And why exactly are all these games being held in the United States?

While I still have my questions about some of the logistics of the SuperLiga, I�m willing to rethink my stance on the competitive aspect of it. After seeing some of the DC United-Chivas and Chivas USA-Pachuca matches � and attending Revs-Santos live � I�ve come to believe there is plenty of potential good to come out of it, at least from an MLS perspective.

Sainey Nyassi is one of the players who impressed Goodman. (Photo credit: Joyce Furia).

The Revolution earned a deserved 1-0 victory on the power of strong midfield play and a well-constructed goal � finished by Kheli Dube in the 70th minute. With that said, the Mexicans were clearly superior from a technical standpoint (oh, those MLS first touches), and it can�t hurt for MLS teams to be exposed to the top teams from the region�s best league.

What I don�t understand � and didn�t understand last year, either � is the lack of promotion for this event. Sunday�s game at Gillette Stadium saw just over 10,000 spectators. Take away the Santos/Mexican contingent, and that number would dip toward 8,000.

For a team that draws about 15,000 for its average MLS match, it would seem to make sense that matches with quality foreign opposition would make that number go a little bit up (such as Revs-Celtic two years ago), rather than significantly down.

And therein lies the problem: I don�t think the average soccer fan knows much, if anything, about the SuperLiga. Heck, I barely heard anything about it until the competition actually started last year. Granted, that was at least partly due to the Revolution not competing, but there still remains a lot to be done.

How does Sunday night�s Chivas USA-Pachuca match draw only 14,528 fans to the Home Depot Center? Or Saturday�s Dynamo-Atlante match, which had 13,105 in the seats despite being in one of the country�s biggest Mexican markets. Only DC-Chivas, with 22,453 in attendance, put up a respectable number in that department.

The SuperLiga has the capacity to be highly successful, both competitively and at the box office. I like what I see from one half of that equation, and I no longer view the tournament as frivolous. But, surely, with a little marketing and foresight, there can be more fans in the stands.

And while the overall crowd may have been disappointing, The Fort was as strong as ever, with Santos keeper Oswaldo Sanchez bearing the brunt of most of Section 143�s verbal offerings. It was my first time viewing a game from there, and it certainly won�t be the last.

Also, Sainey Nyassi continues to impress. The first half was rather tepid, with only a couple zig-zagging runs from the Gambian up the right flank providing much flare. But it was clear from the outset that Nyassi was a marked man among the Santos defense, and it was his ability to frustrate the hombres in green and white that ultimately tilted the match in New England�s favor with Juan Pablo�s Rodriguez elbow to Nyassi�s face � and subsequent red card � in the 39th minute.

Two other players that stood out for me: Revolution left back Amaechi Igwe and Santos central defender Fernando Ortiz. The Santos No. 3 was always solid in the back and stopped everything that came his way, and with new Mexico national team coach Sven Goran-Eriksson in attendance, picked a good time to have such a quality match. Igwe, meanwhile, stepped into the starting lineup as part of Steve Nicol�s switch to a 4-4-2 formation. He defended well, always looked sure of himself on the ball and posed a threat on the occasions he went forward.

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