El Clasico
GOLD
I'm confused by the confusion. From a "Club" perspective, it really does make a lot of sense to have all these insulated leagues. Very similar to a mattress store putting a tag with a different name on the same mattress as it's competitor, they have no desire to actually compete on substance when parents are perfectly content to pay for the smoke and mirrors that clubs are selling.
Unfortunately today, parents want and need a scapegoat to blame when something goes wrong with little Susie's life plan (that her parents have scripted on her behalf) and clubs are happy to step in and assume that liability as the complaints only get lodged once the customer has reached the end of their life cycle.
In other words, clubs have no interest in top teams playing each other and the parents don't need their bragging rights diminished by reality so we can all expect things to remain the same for the foreseeable future. Only in club soccer can you have so many "National Champions" and nobody question it.
Put in perspective, what would the parents dishing out $3,000 a year for their DD's DA 2 team think if they were to play, and lose to, a $300 a year Flight 2 team? Anyone who thinks those $300 a year teams don't exist or that a DA 2 team could never lose to a Flight 2 team has their head in the sand. Fortunately for those fragile parents, the Clubs are aware of this possibility and have insulated your delicate egos by making certain that your DA 2 team (and your egos) will be protected from barbarians at the gate.
Ask yourself one simple question. Is there really any reason that we can't have open leagues based on a promotion/relegation model that truly identifies the best of the best?
Unfortunately today, parents want and need a scapegoat to blame when something goes wrong with little Susie's life plan (that her parents have scripted on her behalf) and clubs are happy to step in and assume that liability as the complaints only get lodged once the customer has reached the end of their life cycle.
In other words, clubs have no interest in top teams playing each other and the parents don't need their bragging rights diminished by reality so we can all expect things to remain the same for the foreseeable future. Only in club soccer can you have so many "National Champions" and nobody question it.
Put in perspective, what would the parents dishing out $3,000 a year for their DD's DA 2 team think if they were to play, and lose to, a $300 a year Flight 2 team? Anyone who thinks those $300 a year teams don't exist or that a DA 2 team could never lose to a Flight 2 team has their head in the sand. Fortunately for those fragile parents, the Clubs are aware of this possibility and have insulated your delicate egos by making certain that your DA 2 team (and your egos) will be protected from barbarians at the gate.
Ask yourself one simple question. Is there really any reason that we can't have open leagues based on a promotion/relegation model that truly identifies the best of the best?