Is MLS truly a major league in the US? It depends where you are

M LS is entering its 28th season and soccer’s popularity in the US is evident from the thousands who play the game, as well as the popularity of the Premier League, Liga MX … and even a team from north Wales. But many US soccer teams, including those in MLS, can sometimes fail to breach the wall of sporting consciousness in their own back yards.

That stumbling block is evident in America’s two biggest cities. While LA and New York City have a huge number of soccer fans, it is arguable whether their MLS teams are part of the identity of the cities.

For much of 2022, New York City had a major league champion, not that you would know it. New York City FC’s MLS Cup win in December 2021 was largely ignored amid discussions of New York’s major league championship drought. When the New York Giants won the Super Bowl in February 2012, the victory led the local TV news for days. NYC FC’s title, meanwhile, struggled to displace the Jets and Giants in the sports update. The Giants were also granted a ticker tape parade down Broadway after their title victory, while NYC FC were given a smaller reception at City Hall, although it came at a time when the city was discouraging large public gatherings as it recovered from the Covid pandemic.

The same goes for written media. In May 2021, longtime New York Post columnist Mike Vaccaro wondered which team would end the city’s title drought. He didn’t even mention NYC FC, the team that would do so seven months later. In August of this year, the same publication ran an article celebrating the impressive performance of the Mets during the 2022 season.

“Just take a quick look around New York,” the article said. “Overrun by people who wish their primary teams were operating as efficiently as