Rich dudes all claim a capitalist back story, red in tooth and claw.
But once they got it made, all oligarchs are Russian. They divide markets among themselves to make sure no one below can get in. This is why we need strict anti-trust laws.
Don’t believe me? Look at sports.
Every American sports league is run on a communist basis. Owners are guaranteed a profit. Revenue is shared, and costs are capped. Supply is artificially limited, so that governments can be extorted for new palaces the oligarchs control.
Americans have become blind to this. But when you get to soccer, the world’s game, the blinders come off.
That’s because in most of the world, where capital is limited, and where the word competition means something, the soccer business really is capitalist. Winners get most of the money, including the TV money. Losers get drummed out of the league and (eventually) out of the business.
It’s true this has created a “climax state,” in which the same few clubs dominate each national league. Manchester United isn’t getting relegated. Real Madrid is always going to be in the Champions’ League. But relatively minor reforms can tweak this. More revenue share with lower leagues, spending caps for the top earners. Governance can act as a brake on greed.
But there’s no governance if oligarchs control the government. The glories of European football can’t be imagined in the U.S. because our oligarchs, organized as “Major League Soccer,” act no differently than the NFL. This was put in sharp relief by the recent “granting” of an MLS franchise to San Diego.
San Diego soccer was built by volunteers, in a capitalist structure called the U.S. Soccer Leagues. The team was called the Loyal. But the Loyal was shut out when MLS came calling. Instead, the “territory” was sold to an Egyptian billionaire for $500 million. Local business media celebrated but true soccer fans were appalled.
That’s because global soccer is built on promotion and relegation. Promotion is what made the stories of WrexhamFC and Luton Town compelling. Relegation is why I can’t get over Sheffield Wednesday and its struggles. Bad ownership, or just cheap ownership, can take you down, down, down. Scunthorpe and Torquay, which were once in England’s second tier, will play next year in its 6th tier, in regional leagues a world removed from even the League Two experience Wrexham will have.
With promotion and relegation every game counts. Will you go up, or have a chance to do so in a four-team playoff? Will you go down, and what might happen then? Every point in every season leads to one of two destinations. Everything matters.
In MLS, nothing matters. There are 29 teams this year and 18 will make the playoff. The rest will just wait until next year. There are tons of “passenger teams” that spend as little as possible, take rake-offs on expansion deals like San Diego, and watch as their limited-supply investment goes only one way in value – up. It’s artificial competition played on artificial turf.
There’s another result. American sports fans still identify mainly with European teams, even after a generation of MLS. MLS ratings are abysmal. Outside the local franchise areas, identification with the teams is minimal.
The reason is simple. Capitalism is better than communism. It’s past time to break MLS and let real competition flourish. It’s also time to learn that lesson in our larger political discussions. It should be as easy for a billionaire to end up like Elizabeth Holmes as Jeff Bezos. Otherwise, what’s the point?
