I’ve been a fan of our local pro soccer team for a few years now. I started going to games back when they were called the NSC Stars, and then became the league-owned Minnesota Stars. After that season the team was bought by former United Health CEO Bill McGuire and became Minnesota United FC. Ever since he purchased the team he has done an amazing job building up a great organization, and I’ve been incredibly impressed with how this team has grown over the past couple years. Minnesota United FC plays in the North American Soccer League, which is considered the second tier of professional soccer in America.

Last week, news came that our Minnesota United FC is becoming one of the upcoming expansion teams in Major League Soccer (MLS). This news was greeted with enthusiasm by the soccer community in Minnesota and many of us are really pumped to see soccer grow as a sport in our state. I’m excited that it sounds like the ownership group is thinking creatively how to fund a stadium in a way that doesn’t require massive public subsidies. The future is very bright for Minnesota’s newest major league team. That is unless you’re a pundit who thinks that the MLS isn’t really “major league”…

One of the more interesting conversations I’ve heard lately, is how the MLS is really such a small player in the world soccer scale. They say that really, we shouldn’t consider ourselves a major league. I find this whole line of thinking silly, and it does little to add to any conversation. Just because a particular league is smaller than other leagues around the world, I don’t see any reason why that means it shouldn’t be considered a major league. If you are the top, tier 1 league in a country, you’ve earned the right to call yourself a major league team. Even if you can’t compete on the same level as some of the larger leagues like the English Premier League, you’ve still been given the role as the major league for your country or area.

I think it’s a height of American arrogance that we can’t fathom a ‘major league’ that isn’t the top league in the world. Just because we lead the world in baseball, basketball and American football, doesn’t mean that there aren’t other sports in the world that are worthy of being played. We may think that North American hockey is king of the world, but it has a huge rival in the KHL (Континентальная хоккейная лига). If the KHL ever overtakes the NHL in size and ability, does that mean the NHL isn’t a major league sport anymore?

Soccer is the sport of the entire world, and just because we’re late to the party, and our league is still growing, doesn’t diminish the accomplishment of all the people who are trying to build the sport. It’s time to get off of our high horse and acknowledge that it’s OK to not always be on top of the world in everything. I’m excited for the expansion of the MLS, and I’m looking forward to seeing where it grows in the future. Minnesota United is going to make a great addition to the league and the future of the sport of soccer couldn’t be brighter!