The Beckham Experiment has its final chapter and it’s exactly the way Don Garber and MLS would have wanted it to end.
The biggest celebrity to ever play the game got his Hollywood ending with back-to-back titles and two Supporters' Shields in the last three years of his time in L.A. It’s a success story by any measure.
And, as MLS players go, Becks is pretty good – he’s at least the fourth most important component of the Galaxy. The fans in Paris or Sydney can look forward watching a solidly average player play for their club for the next couple years.
Passive aggressive sarcasm aside, is the league going to miss the hype machine that is David Beckham? Hell, he’s famous enough that I can break every journalistic rule in the book by not writing his full name until the fourth paragraph of this article and it’s doubtful that a single reader noticed. So, it's silly to think his leaving won't be noticed by some -- many, even.
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Clearly, Mr. Posh is a very big deal and it doesn’t matter how much the more serious football fan demands that he be put in context. To the vast majority of sports fans in North American, MLS was dealt a fatal blow when he decided this would be the end of his time here. To them, the hoards of fans in Seattle and Portland were there because of No 23, those wearing paper bags over their heads in Toronto were protesting his leaving, and the Texian Army travelled to L.A. in numbers this weekend to say goodbye to the only player that ever mattered.
All over North America, there will be conversations on sports radio about whether MLS can survive the loss of the icon. The consensus will probably be no. They will argue that Beckham failed to make the sport relevant because they don’t know anyone (in their 50-65, white male, demographic) that can name another player in the league. Well, maybe that HEN-rey guy in New York, but he doesn’t really matter.
In one (surface) way they’ll be right. They won’t be talking about MLS moving forward. Then again, they never did talk about MLS. They talked about Beckham. And, Beckham has never been even close to the most important person in North American soccer.
That’s not to say he didn’t have an impact – he clearly did – but (and I appreciate I’m preaching to the choir here) one player is just that -- one player.
The Galaxy discovered that in 2007 and 2008 when they were a terrible, traveling sideshow and in 2011 and 2012 when they were an incredible team surrounding an underwear model that was pretty good in dead ball situations.
The Galaxy will still be a pretty good team next year (although if Donovan walks -- and, especially, if Omar Gonzalez goes to Europe -- their repeat hopes might go straight to Kaka), and MLS will continue marching on.
Those that only see hype might not notice, but, frankly, the sport doesn’t need their approval. It can survive on its own just fine. The Days of MLS 1.0's fight for survival and MLS 2.0's fight for recognition are over.
Welcome to MLS 3.0: It’s just about the football now.