Zlatan Ibrahimovic: The MLS name; not the MLS nature

Zlatan Ibrahimovic is set to sign with LA Galaxy. He is the name that is needed to push MLS forwards, but he is not the nature.

There is an inner conflict within those that govern Major League Soccer.

One the one hand, they manage a sport that is thoroughly global. It is not American. It does not come with the same natural history of baseball, the same razzmatazz of basketball, the same cultural significance of football. And so, those that are in power want to present themselves as serious on a global level. They are not a ‘Mickey Mouse’ retirement home. They are serious, competitive, high-quality league.

And yet, on the other hand, they want to advertise themselves, commercially, to an…