Author: Lon Jeske

  • The MLS Will Not Flourish Without the USL

    When asking Chat GPT what the MLS is, it will tell you the following: No problem! The Major League Soccer (MLS) is the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada. Founded in 1993 and starting its first season in 1996, MLS has grown significantly in terms of talent, popularity, and competition. It is considered one of the top soccer leagues in North America.

    What ChatLON will tell you, its a league that is so in love with money, that it will never be loved in the United States.

    I have a problem with the MLS. I do not take away the fact that they signed Messi, signed with Apple TV to make a ton of money, or really any other fact that they are the top league in North America, and they are doing pretty well.

    What I hate is the MLS is not a grass roots league. It is not a league that is exciting. Its an American attempt at being a Corporate League to make money. That is it. The product is horrid, the TV broadcasts are not good (they somehow failed doing a quality Golazo show,) and there is no buzz with 90% of Americans.

    Enough mean words about the MLS, now lets talk why I am even blogging about the MLS. Let me introduce you to the USL, the United Soccer League. Yesterday, March 18th, the USL Owners voted to become the First American league to adopt Promotion and Relegation. What does that mean for non ball knowers (The Operator if you are reading this, this is you) is that each game matters. You are at the bottom of the table – you are going to USL League Two (or whatever they will call it.) You are at the top of the Table – you are either winning or moving up a league. In a sport that American’s don’t really watch (or have not fully fallen in love with the team’s near them) this will bring eyeballs. It will bring passion. It will bring attention and pride, but it will also bring a grass roots fandom to the game of Soccer in America.

    Now Lon, you have been hating on the MLS a lot in this blog, what should they do? Fantastic question Lon, let me ask the reader a question here. If you had an asset that was worth $690 Million, would you do anything to depreciate that value? That $690 Million is the average worth of an MLS Franchise. If you introduce Pro-Rel to the MLS, what owner would vote yes for that? You are now depreciating the value of your team, and lets be honest, there isn’t many American MLS Fans die harding going to low performing teams.

    What the MLS should do is buy in to the USL, make the MLS the top flight, and figure out somehow how to let MLS owners keep the value of their club (or league if that also would work so they don’t lose money) and merge with the USL. Who loses in this arrangement? Small market teams now will have the opportunity to move up rankings to the top flight. There is a TV Deal (that is ass broadcasts Ill keep saying it) that they could use, and North American Soccer would be set for success. Small Markets = Win, Big Time MLS Owners = Keep their investment. Talk to me why I am wrong.

    Thanks, F the MLS.

    Lon

  • City of Indianapolis Review

    I recently spent a week in the city of Indianapolis, and I am going to rate it for you as an outside observer.

    I am about as Midwest as it gets, so this should come as a solid review. Its a nice town, bigger than Milwaukee, way smaller than Detroit. So lets get into it.

    People – People were fantastic. Nice folks. It sucks they have to root for horrible basketball teams such as Purdue and Indiana, because they were so nice I don’t like watching them in pain.

    Food – Food was pretty horrible. Never was blown away. Food in a Midwest city should be as I call “run the football food.” I tried a couple restaurants. none of it did it for me. Also, this made be jaded because I ate 15 hot dogs at an arena for four of the days. Overall though, not impressed.

    Downtown – Wow, this downtown rocks. Its sports heaven. There is beautiful stadiums everywhere and its safe. Even with all the yammed basketball fans (I was one of them) I didn’t really see anything wild. Strangest thing about this city, when you leave the 2 mile radius of downtowns, its FedEx, Amazon, and corn. Not sure if its my vibe outside the town, but its a good spot to watch copious amounts of sports.

    Beer- Excellent, it existed, need I say more?

    Michigan State Basketball – Elite.

    Michigan Basketball – Terrorist.

    How would I rank this on a scale of 1-10: This city gets a strong 6. I feel like that is fair for Indy. If you are from Indy, I am sorry because you probably feel like the city is at least a 7 (I live in Detroit, I think it is a 10 and I take full responsibility knowing it is not) but it is mid at best. If there is no sporting event going on, this place makes zero sense to live in. But I love the people.

    Thank you for reading The Lon Times.

  • Lon’s Big Ten Basketball Rankings – Hotel Insights

    Hello, I am in Indy for the Big Ten Basketball Tournament for my friend Birthday Bet’z bachelor party. I got to travel early due working in the Indianapolis Region, so I have had 24 hours to spy on other Big Ten Teams.

    Here is my feedback, and maybe (absolutely) how I will choose to bet on these teams.

    Oregon: Very tall team. They are all wearing the Oregon green, which in person is a bit gross. Additionally, they acted like they were very young (I guess the meme saying of they are just kids, is actually true they acted like me when I was 18.) I have some insider information however. I am a tall guy, six foot three (not a big deal.) The showers at this hotel are a bit small. I am betting that due to Oregon’s height, the showers are going to play a big role. Imagine sleeping in a foreign bed, then you get into a shower that you have to bend over. Dare I see, Injury/soreness prone? We take whoever comes out of the Minny/Northwestern game, and we take them big. (The sad part about this is I truly believe in what I am saying here. I was in the shower and it came to me.)

    Iowa: Okay, I really shouldn’t be the one to say this but they look really pale. I wouldn’t put money on them after seeing them ordering starbucks teas.

    Minnesota: I am new to blogging, someone please insert the “Minnesota” Joe Biden Meme. This team, for legitimately zero reason has me ready to hammer. Well, I lied. One reason is I shared the elevator with a coach. Old dude, probs 60 years old. Didn’t seem like in the best shape. But he was wearing full Minnesota Golden Gopher gear including the white spandex thing that cover the knees. He whispered to the dude in the elevator “Go to Ikes and Jones, don’t eat here. I worked plenty of Nike All American Games here, that is the place to eat.” Now let me be the first to explain, I am not 100% sure what that tournament is, but he said it in confidence. Therefore, I will be betting Minnesota to win two games. I will not bet them against MSU but will take my winnings in back to back Minny wins, and hammer MSU Spread.

    I hope this helps you all in your search for winners, and enjoyed my hotel blog.

    BTW, big Hyatt Guy, Hyatt in Indy, old, nice, gets the job done. A run the football Hotel.
    Peace,
    Lon.

  • Welcome to The Lon Times

    Hello and welcome to The Lon Times. This is a collaborative page that will be a conversational ground for random things. We will write about sports, culture, and other random stuff. We welcome you onboard. On our team we have the following:

    BirthdayBetz: Gambler of all things birthdays.

    NFCCommissioner: Writer on sports, and honestly a great internet troll.

    LockLord: Soccer sniper and gamlber, hot takes on food as well.

    CokeCanMike: Mike is a wild card, I apologize about what comes out of his mouth.

    Lon Jeske: Owner and Operator of The Lon Times. I will write about sports, and some cool international politics so you don’t have to read about them in long form.

    Welcome, follow @legalservicegod on twitter for more.