• DoiDoi [comrade/them, he/him]
    hexagon
    ·
    edit-2
    1 year ago

    Yeah, but like, it just hasn't been true except for a stretch of celebrity signings many years ago. Now the league has players like Thiago Almada (22 years old, was on the world cup winning Argentina squad) littered throughout the league. The LA Galaxy still try to wring some old players for one last run, but everyone else stopped doing that a long time ago. Now it's extreme scouting of South America combined with heavy investment on youth development. That's just the clear path the league has been on for years now so the retirement league comments are always coming from people who haven't payed any attention to the league since Beckham.

      • DoiDoi [comrade/them, he/him]
        hexagon
        ·
        1 year ago

        It's kind of silly to act like aging star players don't frequently take a step down to extend their careers. No one would ever accuse second tier Euro leagues of being unserious retirement homes yet MLS fans have to deal with this every time people who don't follow the league try to comment on it. Is the Belgian league a retirement destination because Komapany went back for a year? It just gets old hearing this when it isn't true. People who actually watch the league can clearly see how young, technical, and athletic it has become.