Making the Most from Trading: Setting Your Team Up For Success in the MLS Transfer Market

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Making the Most from Trading: Setting Your Team Up For Success in the MLS Transfer Market

In Major League Soccer circles, the words and phrases “GAM”, “TAM”, “Allocation Order”, and “Superdraft” are commonplace whereas those same words and phrases are completely meaningless to fans of non-US leagues. This dichotomy of understanding comes from the uniqueness in MLS player acquisition rules. In addition to signing a player through a traditional transfer, MLS offers its teams many unique ways to acquire players, including trades, a draft of college players, expansion and re-entry drafts, and free agency. These different ways to acquire players also presented another opportunity to teams: they are able to trade for players in currency other than money. Teams can trade International Slots, College Draft Picks, GAM, TAM, and more.

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Determining the Best Lineup Formation for Controlling the Field

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Determining the Best Lineup Formation for Controlling the Field

From video games, to board games, to athletic competitions, having a well thought out strategy is vital to winning a game. In soccer, a major part of this pre-game strategy is deciding upon the formation, shape, and structure for a team to play. A variety of different factors would persuade a coach to structure their team into different offensive and defensive structures on a game to game basis. Some of these factors include, but are certainly not limited to: strength of squad, opposition strengths, squad availability, perceived space available, and more. Moreover, formations often are fluid and can change at half time or during the game based on a coaches instruction.

This article will analyze certain formations and shapes that are more spatially beneficial to offensive teams than defensive teams, and vice versa, and will be validated through both original metrics and metrics already used within the field.

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Comparing Players: Clustering and Style of Play

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Comparing Players: Clustering and Style of Play

For technical directors and front offices in professional soccer, finding the next great player to fit their team’s style of play is of utmost importance. Gone (we hope) are the days of picking up players just to fill a roster. Each move is calculated, aimed to fit a “system” of play that each manager, general manager, technical director, and assistant coaches have designed in order to give their team the best chance at victory. This change from the old days of soccer puts immense pressure on scouting directors and general managers to fill their team efficiently, gaining maximum talent from minimal pay; all while conforming to the manager’s desired style of play.

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War Strategy and Soccer: is a War of Attrition or a Perfect Strike Better for Winning?

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War Strategy and Soccer: is a War of Attrition or a Perfect Strike Better for Winning?

For the purposes of this article, we’re going to define a soccer game through the lens of the home team. It’s their turf, their fans, and their local pride. More importantly, the home team generally chooses the style of gameplay that will occur. This is dubbed “Home Field Advantage.” Home Field Advantage is backed up through data analysis as well, as MLS home teams generally win 53% of games season by season, higher than most every other league in the world.

War is the same way. The home country generally decides the style of fighting; Guerilla Warfare like Che Guevara, or a Battle of Attrition like the French in World War I? This is dictated by a clear strategy coming from the leadership at the top, as well as knowing the local land and intricacies of the surroundings, combined with the technology and mindset of the time.

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