Why Would MLS Want Steven Gerrard?

Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard continues to be linked with multiple MLS clubs for reasons that escape logic.

Major League Soccer has grown by leaps and bounds in the five years that I have been covering the North American top-flight. The same company, FOX, that used to stash live match broadcasts on a standard definition channel — that fans had to pay extra in order to access — overpaid for MLS television rights in 2014. MLS managed to rid itself of the failed experiment known as Chivas USA while still expanding to over 20 clubs, and more are to come (looking at you, Las Vegas, Sacramento and Minnesota). Big-name United States Men’s National Team players such as Clint Dempsey and Michael Bradley accepted massive contracts to play for MLS clubs.

The more things change, however, the more they stay the same. While DC United are on the verge of landing their own soccer-specific stadium, expansion side New York City Football Club cannot buy a stadium site in the Five Boroughs roughly 17 months after MLS announced the league’s latest pet project. David Beckham is no closer to being granted a team in Miami than he was when he embarked on that journey. MLS continues to court older stars who, while still talented, are past their primes, athletes who can only contribute so much to club soccer on this continent.

That is where Steven Gerrard fits in. The Liverpool living legend can undeniably still go in the Premier League, and he would be a first-choice player for any MLS club. Gerrard would bring a unique combination of skill, class and experience to a squad, and Stevie G would be a great get for the league; if this was the end of 2009.

Gerrard will turn 35 years old following his latest stint in the Premier League, one that will have included runs in European football and club competitions. He would understandably need some time off before linking up with the team of his choice, meaning that he would not officially begin playing in MLS until the dead of summer. MLS fans have witnessed numerous editions of that story before, and there is no reason to believe Gerrard would be any different. The European star would get off to a sluggish start, he would be weary and banged up, and he would largely be a non-factor during the second half of the MLS campaign, leading critics to resort to those played “retirement league” comments.

Odds are that Gerrard will be 36 years old before he is physically able to make significant contributions in MLS, leading to one of two outcomes: An aged veteran running circles around lesser opponents while adding to the perception that the league is a second-tier product, or a broken-down Gerrard cashing million-dollar paychecks that he isn’t earning with his in-match performances. MLS doesn’t benefit either way.

The notion that Gerrard would draw crowds of fans throughout a MLS campaign has been debunked thanks to names such as Thierry Henry, Rafa Marquez, Robbie Keane and, to a point, Landon Donovan. Liverpool fans living in and around New York would happily journey out to Harrison, New Jersey to watch Gerrard feature for the New York Red Bulls once or twice. Those fans would then remember that they weren’t watching the Stevie G of old wearing a Liverpool kit. They would grow bored and stop attending matches, just as Arsenal fans in the NYC/NJ region tired of paying to watch Henry play for RBNY.

The likes of Gerrard, Henry, Keane, Frank Lampard and David Villa are all recognizable to soccer fans in the United States, but none of them are stars here. None are now nor will they ever be a brand as is David Beckham. Heck, none of those players are comparable to New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham as it pertains to marketability in the US, and he has been in the National Football League for all of three months.

None of the three rumored destinations for Gerrard need the services of such a player. Toronto FC went down a similar road last winter, crashing a burning along the way. The Red Bulls should continue to get younger this offseason. LA Galaxy have won championships by signing such players, but that was when the Galaxy had Donovan, Beckham and Keane. Donovan and Beckham have since retired, and Keane is considering calling time on his Galaxy tenure.

Instead of searching for the next Beckham — who won’t be out there unless Cristiano Ronaldo signs for MLS after the 2018 World Cup — or the next Henry, the league would do well to find the next Bradley Wright-Phillips. Wright-Phillips was looking for a jump-start to his career when he joined the Red Bulls in the summer of 2013. He found that and then some, tying the MLS single-season scoring record (27 goals) in 2014. BWP was rewarded for his efforts with a designated player deal, one that is worth a fraction of what Gerrard would get from MLS.

Wright-Phillips turns 30-years old next March, and he could be the recipient of a call-up into the England Men’s National Team in 2015.

There is nothing wrong with MLS either acquiring European exports or selling young prospects and making profits off of those transactions. Like any pro sports league, MLS is a business-first organization. Signing Gerrard in 2015 is bad business for MLS in every way. Doing so won’t help the reputation of the league. It won’t grow the league in any way outside of generating fleeting headlines that will disappear as quickly as they arise. Acquiring a big name just to do it is fine for the A-League and for NASL.

MLS has outgrown the practice.

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