Inter Miami coach Phil Neville has criticized the delay in announcing Major League Soccer’s (MLS) playoff format for next season. It’s also not the first time Inter Miami have criticized his MLS.
Neville claims the lack of information about the proposed playoff format a week into the season is one of the reasons the league is not considered the top league in the world.
Proposed MLS changes
The format changes proposed by MLS are set to increase the number of games played across the league.
The proposed changes will also accommodate more inventory of MLS Season Passes on Apple TV, generating more game-related revenue for owners.
MLS also reportedly wants to ensure that every playoff participant hosts at least one postseason game broadcast.
Additionally, the proposed move to best-of-three rounds would see MLS expand the league to include nine teams from each conference. Under the new format, the 8th and 9th seeds will compete in a play-in match.
The winners will face the first seed in their respective conferences in the best-of-three conference quarterfinals. This format also features a minimum of 25 playoff matches.
The regular season is set to start next week, February 25, and the campaign is the first in a decade-long partnership with Apple.
The tech giant paid a staggering $2.5 billion to acquire the rights to watch every MLS match. The deal is believed to be one of the reasons the league is considering expanding the playoffs.
Inter Miami Critisize MLS
Frustrated by the lack of information, Neville said in an interview with The Athletic:
“Six, seven days until the first game of the season. I don’t know the playoff format. Poor.
“When you talk about professionalism and the ‘elite,’ I think seven days into the season’s start. day, ‘What is the playoff system,'” they said.
“I don’t know.” And I say, “That’s not elite.” Are you talking about the difference between England and America? Talk about the passion of the fans. (This is also) a big difference. ”
The former Manchester United player continued:
“If we want to be the best compared to the top leagues, this should have been decided two months ago.
“We plan the entire season, but we don’t really know when the season will end or how many games there will be after the regular season.
So, for me, seven days into the regular season, it’s a cross — we need to do it better… My question is, who understands that? Apple? who is waving the dog? ”
Major League Soccer Guide
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