Fansided

Sounders vs. LA Galaxy should fetch MLS a monster TV rating

By Zac Wassink

Sep 10, 2013; Columbus, OH, USA; United States forward Landon Donovan (10) during a game against Mexico at Columbus Crew Stadium. The United States won 2-0. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 10, 2013; Columbus, OH, USA; United States forward Landon Donovan (10) during a game against Mexico at Columbus Crew Stadium. The United States won 2-0. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports /
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Major League Soccer has a week to alert you to the biggest regular season match in league history.

The Supporters’ Shield — the prize awarded to the club that finishes at the top of the MLS standings heading into the playoffs — will be decided on Saturday afternoon when the Seattle Sounders host LA Galaxy. Both teams are on 61 points, and the Sounders will win the title if they earn a draw or a win. LA must win in Seattle if they are to hoist the Supporters’ Shield on Saturday.

The two sides met for a four-goal thriller this past Sunday evening that was, unfortunately for MLS, competing for attention against a football legend making history. While Peyton Manning of the Denver Broncos was setting the National Football League record for most career touchdown passes in a game airing on NBC, ESPN2 was showing the MLS match involving the two MLS Cup contenders.

The Galaxy and Sounders put on quite the show for those who chose soccer over football. LA jumped out to a 2-0 lead at home, a result that would have put the Galaxy in the driver’s seat for the MLS regular season crown, but the Sounders rallied from behind on the road in the final half-hour of play. United States Men’s National Team player Clint Dempsey hit the back of the net in the 69th minute, and Lamar Neagle struck for an equalizer three minutes later.

MLS won’t have to worry about the NFL this coming Saturday. Coverage of the LA at Seattle contest will kick off at 2:30 pm ET on NBC and not NBC Sports Network. College football games will also be airing at that time, but none of them should be responsible for larger-than-normal ratings.

Michigan vs. Michigan State lacks luster due to the current state of the Wolverines. Mississippi State should handle their business with ease against Kentucky. Texas Tech at TCU is “meh.”

The news gets even better for MLS. Saturday’s Sounders vs. Galaxy tilt will have an English Premier League game as a lead-in. Granted, Swansea City vs. Leicester City is hardly a banner match for those who aren’t soccer diehards or fans of those clubs, but it’s better than no EPL game airing before the MLS clash.

Oct 19, 2014; Carson, CA, USA; Los Angeles Galaxy forward Landon Donovan (10) acknowledges the cheers of the crowd during pre-game warmups before the Los Angeles Galaxy match against the Seattle Sounders FC at StubHub Center. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports

A MLS match involving two teams anonymous to casual sports fans, maybe a Montreal Impact vs. Columbus Crew encounter, wouldn’t be much of a big deal as it pertains to television ratings even if a regular season championship was on the line. Good thing for the North American top-fight that LA and Seattle aren’t average MLS teams.

The scenes at Seattle on Saturday should be special to behold, and they should make for great TV. CenturyLink Field, home to the Seattle Seahawks of the NFL and also of the Sounders, will be filled with over 40,000 fans who will be hoping to celebrate Seattle’s first regular season championship in history. That raucous crowd should draw eyes from viewers flipping through the channels looking for sports programming.

Remember, also, that both LA and Seattle have players recognizable to those who only actively follow soccer once every four years. Landon Donovan, US Soccer royalty and a player who recently featured in his final international contest, will be in the starting XI for the Galaxy. Dempsey, Donovan’s USA teammate, will start for Seattle. Leftover Premier League viewers giving MLS some time will know names such as Robbie Keane and Obafemi Martins. DeAndre Yedlin of Seattle is set to join Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur next year, perhaps as soon as January.

It truly is a perfect storm for MLS.

How MLS and/or NBC handle matters throughout the week could factor into whether or not LA vs. Seattle will be the highest-rated match in league history. While I admittedly zoned out during the Sunday Night Football blowout, I did not see a single commercial for Saturday’s MLS match air on NBC. I also didn’t notice an ad for the MLS game during Monday’s West Bromwich Albion vs. Manchester United Premier League contest that aired on NBC Sports.

MLS has no business complaining about the amount of money it would cost to buy commercials during a Monday Night Football game or during European football matches that will air on cable television during the midweek. The league is getting $100 million a pop from expansion clubs such as New York City Football Club, Orlando City Soccer Club and other organizations.

You have the cash, MLS. Spend it.

Assuming that this past Sunday night was a sign of things to come, viewers could be in for the MLS match of the year candidate this coming weekend. Sounders vs. Galaxy should be a great advertisement for a league that needs all of the hype and media play that it can possibly get. Those running MLS would be foolish to let such a golden opportunity slip through their hands.

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