After reading countless articles, and quotes on Beckham's move to the US, I have grown increasingly tired of reading about people misinterpreting everything involved in the circus that is Beckham, so I will do my best to clear things up for you.

 Beckham is getting paid 250 million dollars

I have seen the 250 million dollar mark, or 128 pound mark all over between American and English sites.  Let me clear this up, that is a completely estimated amount.  It is based on hypothetical figures, that estimate every game being sold out, a large amount of shirts being sold, and a whole lot more seasons tickets being sold, to put it simply as possible, which in all very likely hood, especially after how this season went, isn't going to happen.  David Beckham is guaranteed 32 million dollars over 5 years, the rest  is anyones guess.  I would not be surprised if he made 100 million after his five years are up.  Another important note, the MLS is only responsible for the 32 million portion of Beck's contract, the rest has to be paid by AEG, who can afford it, so he won't bankrupt the league.

 Beckham is coming to make soccer big in the US

This along with the money figure is the biggest misnomer about the Beckham move.   Beckham was brought here to raise the profile of the league and to make a lot of money for the MLS.  I don't care who the MLS brings in whether it be Beck's, Ronaldinho, or Kaka, no one player can make this sport more popular than any of the other big three sports.  With David coming to the US he has raised the profile of the game, he has gotten everyone talking about soccer, whether it be in a negative or positive light, and you know how the old saying goes, any press is good press.  Listen whether you like it or not soccer is here to stay, and will continue to grow in popularity, but I think it will take years for this to happen. 

My favorite sport to compare it too is basketball, and the NBA.  The NBA has been around for a long time, but before the 80's it really wasn't that popular.  My point being the MLS has been in existence for 11 years, this is going to take time if it ever happens, but I think people like Don Garber are being very smart in trying not to overextend the league and bankrupt it.  So it is unfair to say this league is not doing well, it will take a long time before we can make that opinion.

 The other reason Beckham is here in the US is for money.  The simple fact is his name and his image is worth alot, especially to the team who gets to put his name on their jersey.  I have no  idea if this is true or not, but when Beckham transferred to Real Madrid from Manchester United, it was said his transfer fee was paid for before he even kicked a ball because of all the shirts that were sold.  Not only that, but during Beckhams time at Real Madrid they surpassed Manchester United as the richest soccer club in the world, without winning a trophy in that time, and it was in larger part because of Beckham.

 Beckham is the greatest player in the world

"Is Beckham the world's greatest player?"  Is a question I get the most from people who don't know anything about soccer.  Beckham is not the greatest player in the world, nor has he ever been.  It can be argued that he has one of the best right foots in the game, but he is not the best in the world.  What he is is a player capable of delivering awesome free kicks, and cross field perfect passes for teammates to tap the ball into the goal.  He is not a great dribbler, or defender, nor is he very fast.  He is however very marketable, and is the most popular player in the world, and this is why the MLS did everything they could to bring him here.

 The MLS is a mickey mouse, or crap league

The British press has especially enjoyed taking potshots at the MLS, as does pretty much anyone I can think of, but people fail to keep things in perspective.  Is the MLS the greatest league in the world?  No, not by a longshot, but is it as bad as people make it out to be?  No it isn't.  Lets look closer at the league, and the country it is played in, or countries.  First off, the league has been around for 11 years, I would say you would have to wait at least 20 before you can make a real judgment of the level of the league.  We haven't really gotten a good set of young players into the league yet to raise the level.

I personally see three generations of soccer players in this country right now.  The first generation is the group that consists of players like Cobi Jones who is still playing, and Eric Wynalda and Marcelo Balboa, who commentate on ESPN, and Alexi Lalas who is the GM of the LA galaxy.  These players played in the 90, 94, and 98 World Cups, they were the first Americans we really got a chance to watch and idolize, and actually knew the names of, at least for me anyways. 

They paved the way for players like Brian McBride, Landon Donovan, and Claudio Reyna, whom I consider part of the second generation of soccer players.  These guys had the first generation to look up too, but still lacked the opportunity to watch alot of soccer on TV, and get to follow some of the european leagues, and thus help them learn more and help develop even more.  This generation made it so we actually had expectations at the World Cup, and when they didn't live up to those expectations, we were unhappy.  Whereas in years past, it was a feat to actually make it to the World Cup, now they were expected to win!

The third generation is the U-20 level and below, the biggest name you will recognize is Freddy Adu.  These players are growing up with soccer all around them, now it is easier than ever to catch soccer on TV, with Gol TV, Setenta, Fox Soccer channel, and ESPN, these players can follow their favorite players, and learn from them.  Not only that but more and more of these younger players are being snatched up by European teams, because they realize that these players are going to be good.  Sal Zizzo to Hamburg, Danny Szetla to Racing Santander and of course Freddy Adu to Benfica.  I feel when these players like this reach the age of 25 and older, you will see a dramatic improvement in the play of the MLS.

 The MLS isn't the greatest league, but it isn't a horrible league, I would put it on par with a 15 place EPL team to a championship team in England as to the level of the soccer here.  And to be honest, I really don't think that is that bad considering our brief history in the sport, I feel we can only get better.