Is there too much soccer? Also, the Lakers fetch a record price

New York Times

5 hours ago

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Good morning! Geaux Tigers, folks.
So many popular things in this world face the line of overexposure. Sports, companies, products, social media fads — they all arrive here, whether it takes decades or hours. When something becomes so big and so beloved, the abstract foundations begin to wobble.
Soccer is here in 2025, the most popular sport on the planet. There is more soccer than ever. The men's Club World Cup is ongoing, a year before the World Cup happens. In Europe, Nations League just wrapped. Women's Euros begins in two weeks. The Gold Cup is happening right now, too.
There is so much soccer. It might be a problem:
I went to Phil Hay, author of the brilliant The Athletic FC newsletter, first for a more Europe-centric view on all this:
What is our feeling on the CWC broadly? Excitement? Overkill? Capitalist greed run amok?
💬 Cynicism abounds. The prevailing view is that the Club World Cup is FIFA being FIFA: a mass of hubris which could easily be mistaken for a money-making exercise. To this point, the football has been lukewarm. FIFA ditching its planned anti-discrimination campaign is a terrible look, and its failure to explain why leaves us to draw our own conclusions. The questions I was asking in the run-up to kick-off, I'm still asking now: Is the sport enhanced by an inflated Club World Cup? And how many people outside of FIFA's bubble really need it in their lives?
To drill down further on that last point: La Liga's president is already calling for the CWC to end. Do you think there's any real momentum to change this format? Or will we just churn through because the prize money is so important?
💬 Here's a point to consider: Manchester City spent $148 million on three transfers before the Club World Cup started. If they win the tournament (playing all of eight games), they'll earn $125 million in prize money. So at an executive level, you can see why FIFA's new model might be a guilty pleasure. FIFA has been quite cute in that respect, dangling a carrot which is hard to resist in a world where cash is king. But something else to ponder: If the 2025 Club World Cup is a bit of a wash-out, will 2029 attract enough money to offer a similar prize pot? In the end, the only way this thrives as FIFA wants it to is if the public buys into it. Frankly, in comparison to the money on offer, I suspect the trophy itself means squat.
If you could make one or two changes to this tournament, what would they be?
💬 Firstly, level up the competition so that 10-0 routs don't happen. Secondly, if FIFA insists on having a 32-team CWC, make concessions elsewhere in the calendar to accommodate it. And thirdly, rather than banging on about how wonderful a show it is, let it speak for itself. Because in principle, I actually like the concept of clubs from all over the world mixing it with each other. I just don't like the manufactured hype.
I'm with Phil on the last point, because for all our hand-wringing now, we should get some excellent soccer (and coverage of it) as the CWC draws to a close. This is high time to see those poll results from yesterday, too:
Yikes. We may have crossed the overexposure line already. Let's pause for a quick news break before talking about the state of soccer in America:
Lakers agree to sell for $10 billion
The Buss family, which has owned the Lakers for 46 years, agreed in principle to sell the franchise to Dodgers owner Mark Walter at a valuation of $10 billion, sources told The Athletic, with the possibility of that number reaching $12 billion. Either way, it will be the largest sale of a sports franchise in history. Jeanie Buss will remain as governor of the team, too. Plenty more details in our full report.
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Let's go back to the pitch, but narrow our focus a bit. Here in America, soccer is also everywhere. MLS, NWSL, USL, all while hosting events like the CWC and World Cup. And yet American soccer faces a much different issue than the global game.
Two things:
For help here, I turned to our American soccer expert, Paul Tenorio:
Soccer in the States seems a little … disjointed. Is that your read, or am I off?
💬 I think soccer is immensely popular in the U.S., it's just divided up among many different properties. You have die-hard Premier League fans, loyal Liga MX followers, the sizable Champions League audience and the fans of international soccer who will latch on to the men's and women's national teams. This is the landscape in which MLS has to compete. Soccer fans in America can watch pretty much any soccer league they want — and many do. Access to the game has changed dramatically in the last 20 years, first on TV and now in-person as more events and tournaments come to play in the States. With parties settling in the Relevent lawsuit, we could see regular-season games of other leagues, soon, too. There is so much on offer. American soccer fans are spoiled.
I'm fascinated by the odd behemoth that is MLS, which, despite gobs of teams and money, can't seem to take a true national foothold in the country. Again — off there?
💬 No, certainly not. The major challenge that MLS has is growing from a strong local event business — they drive sizable crowds in many markets — to one that resonates nationally. MLS needs to find a way to pull bigger audiences in order to demand better media rights fees. It comes down to putting a better and more compelling product on the field. That requires spending more and spending differently. MLS' current salary cap structure means teams don't maximize quality compared to their spend. It looks like MLS is on a path toward change — but it'll be in 2027 instead of 2026, when the league could have fully leveraged the home World Cup.
Paul is writing a book on this exact topic, called 'The Messi Effect' — we'll keep you posted on it. Almost done:
📺 NBA: Thunder at Pacers
8:30 p.m. ET on ABC
Oklahoma City can claim its first NBA title with a win tonight. All eyes will be on the health of Tyrese Haliburton. It's hard to imagine Indiana winning with Haliburton hobbled, but the Pacers have defied expectations at every juncture in this series, so who knows?
📺 Gold Cup: Saudi Arabia vs. USMNT
9:15 p.m. ET on FS1
The Americans want to continue the goodwill after that 5-0 win against Trinidad and Tobago. The Saudis have also won their lone Gold Cup match so far, so this is for top spot in the group. Important.
Get tickets to games like these here.
I adored this story about Sabrina Ionescu, a global superstar, who can be illustrated best by her upbringing as a child of Romanian immigrants. Make time for this.
Yes, Gregg Popovich is one of the best coaches to ever grace an NBA sideline. But his best talent may be his mastery of tough conversations.
Need to smile? Read this story from Sam Blum, about a kid's cherished Mike Trout-signed baseball destroyed in a house fire last month. Trout got involved.
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🎧 Today's Juneteenth, and I reflected back on this episode of the 'Full Time' podcast from last year about the holiday itself and Blackness in the NWSL. Listen here.
🎥 'No Dunks' ranked the last 25 NBA Finals in advance of tonight's game. Watch that here.
Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday: Our story on Nick Castellanos' tiff with Phillies manager Rob Thomson.
Most-read on the website yesterday: The Lakers' sale news.