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Promotion and relegation is one of the most controversial topics in American soccer. Everyone has thoughts and conversations often get heated. Most of us are speaking just as fans though. Our points of view are just as informed or ignorant as everyone else’s. That’s not true in the case of Tim Bezbatchenko.
Bezbatchenko spent years working in the MLS league office and with the player’s association. Before that, he was a player for the Pittsburgh Riverhounds. He eventually left MLS to become the general manager of Toronto FC and later the President of Columbus Crew. Bezbatchenko now leads Bill Foley’s multi-club ownership group Black Knight Football Club (BKFC).
All of this is to say that Bezbatchenko is extremely knowledgeable about how American soccer works at almost every level. This week, he came out in favor of promotion and relegation.
Pro/rel is the easy answer for MLS
In an interview with David Gass on the Soccerwise podcast, Bezbatchenko was asked by the host about the first thing he would do if he were given complete control over soccer in the United States.
“The easy answer is–now having been over here (in Europe)–is pro/rel,” Bezbatchenko responded.
The former Columbus Crew President also addressed some of the criticism of pro/rel that he often hears, then explained why that criticism is sometimes misguided.
“Everyone always says it costs so much to be in the league,” he said, addressing the argument that MLS club owners would never agree to pro/rel after spending so much on MLS expansion fees to guarantee a spot in the league.
“People say it’s impossible, but then when it happens, they don’t talk about it, and they don’t dive deeper into ‘How would that look?’ or ‘What are the challenges would we face if we did it?’ I think it is a question worth exploring,” Bezbatchenko added.
He was then asked if his stance on pro/rel and the growth of soccer changed once he left…
Source link : https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/former-mls-team-president-says-pro-rel-would-benefit-us-soccer/
Author : Cody Aceveda
Publish date : 2024-10-22 20:51:11
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