Summary: The off-season suddenly takes a quick and newsworthy turn as Toronto FC takes the lead with two huge player deals that look to tilt the balance of power in the Eastern Conference, but also deliver another US National Team player in Michael Bradley in his peak years in advance of the 2014 World Cup, lifting a window to a few important questions about its implications both for him and a league seeking additional star power at a time when a framework for a new TV contract comes into view. We begin with the real and present possibility that Clint Dempsey was the beginning of a new strategy by MLS to seize upon the popularity found within the event viewing audience of the national team during a tournament year, and whether this trend could continue well into summer as the league seems ready to use allocation and retention funds to expedite these player moves with elevated transfer fees. Then we turn to the matter of a new TV deal with details emerging by the day on its value and duration in terms of years and digital media rights, done in tandem with US Soccer matches to fully leverage those lucrative rights. In the final section we also look back at the recent Jason Kreis press conference introducing him as the first manager of New York City FC and we dig into some of the large and undervalued considerations that await this club as it seeks to leverage both the Manchester City brand and all that entails, while also conforming to the real and pressing concerns of building a franchise from the ground up within the financial ecosystem of Major League Soccer. We examine the advantages and some of the bigger concerns awaiting Jason Kreis and Claudio Reyna in the months ahead.
