The Throw-In: MLS spreads its wings through Gold Cup
23.02.44
Major League Soccer’s goal is to be the dominant league in the region, right? That’s what we hear every time an MLS team signs a big-name player, every time MLS teams line up in anticipation of chasing the crown in CONCACAF Champions League play.
We all know that race consists of only two horses: MLS and Mexico’s Primera División. If you go by the metric of the Champions League, Mexico won the battle yet again. But MLS is winning the war.
I had been anticipating the release of the rosters for next month’s CONCACAF Gold Cup for weeks because I had a feeling MLS players would make their national teams in close to record numbers. Sure enough, MLS dominated as far as representation. But it wasn’t just domination. Major League Soccer crushed as far as sending its players to the region’s top tournament.
A record 32 MLS players will be suiting up for their countries next month. That’s a number that has been trending upward steadily since the league’s founding, so it’s not a huge surprise that this league is carrying the flag — literally, on players’ sleeves — in CONCACAF.
Source: Major League Soccer