MLS commissioner Don Garber explains ‘controversial’ U.S. Open Cup decision: It did ‘not drive value’

Like the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup prepared to start its fourth round of action, Don Garber was explaining why Major League Soccer has a lighter presence in the historic competition. With competition commitments being added left and right, the main MLS teams played around 50 matches last season, generating changes in participation in the US Open Cup. Only eight teams will enter the competition in the round of 16, which begins on Tuesday, when Concacaf Champions Cup qualifiers and other teams have been exempted from the oldest competition in US soccer and, according to the league’s commissioner, Don Garber, some of these changes may be here to stay. .

Speaking at the Associated Press Sports Editors Commissioners Meeting in New York City, Garber addressed the future of the Open Cup.

“The question really is: Are the squads big enough and are we developed enough for our teams to play 50 games a season? I believe we need to get to the point we are at, but I also don’t think we should play in tournaments that don’t create value for our players, our teams and our fans. It was part of the very controversial decision we made about limiting our participation in the US Open Cup,” said Garber.

“Less about who controls it, but unless you have a tournament that gets to the level where fans care about it and partners care about it and has a true endgame,” he continued. “The final game for a place in the Concacaf Champions Cup and a place in the Club World Cup where you are competing against Real Madrid and competing against Manchester United, forcing us to see what we need to do so our teams can compete. When our competition group looks at all the different competitions, we, like all professional leagues, need to make some difficult decisions and we need to prioritize those decisions.”

Garber mentions that other leagues like Mexico have abandoned their version of the US Open Cup due to concerns about load management of their players, but like Major League Soccer, some of these concerns are due to the expansion of the Leagues Cup, which takes place between the MLS and the League. Sides MX as it grows in stature as the premier cup competition in the United States.

To expand on what that means moving forward, Garber explained how he sees the league’s priorities moving forward.

“So we need to prioritize the league calendar, prioritize the Champions Cup, prioritize the Leagues Cup and where we can, we will support the US Open Cup and we believe in that. Our founder’s name is on it, we will continue to participate, We just have to think about how we’re going to do it.”

There is still nothing on what the future of MLS teams will look like and Garber emphasized that he would still like MLS Next Pro teams to compete as it is a great opportunity for player development, but these are things that are still up for discussion. Garber said, “Our federation should be paying attention and supporting this,” referring to the tension over the Open Cup format that exists between U.S. Soccer and Garber’s league.

Players and teams across American football have been vocal about their enjoyment of the cup and the need to preserve a strong piece of football history, but with the cup already changing as we know it, it could see more changes before next season .