The chance of the yanks to pull on over the Europenas, and vice versa of course, would be quite exciting. And it woudl raise the profile of the US game in both continents.

More than this I don’t know however.

I’d just like the ability to provide original content to readers that they aren’t getting elsewhere. But in some cases, without the cooperation of MLS or USSF, that is impossible. Sure there are still things to do – sometimes it forces one to dig deeper which could lead to an even better story – but a big (and potentially popular) piece of the editorial pie is out of reach.

Admittedly, I come at this from working as a journalist outside of soccer where getting access is rarely a problem for me. But say the word ‘blog’ and all of a sudden it becomes an issue. I’ve seen the smirks, heard the cackling.

It is sad that the diction brings negativity, but It is not unlike the mainstream need to build basic trust and respect. A new magazine or newspaper for example launches and needs to prove to their subjects that they act professional and reasonable. At first, it may be hard to get access to certain things, but over time that may change. Do a good job with your newspaper, magazine, or blog, prove your worth and the access should come. You could also just call this building contacts. I’m guessing Steve Goff doesn’t wait for MLS to grant him access. He just calls the player on the phone.

I know I have seen this predicament change in the almost three years I’ve written TIAS. It’s still a battle, especially the big corporate battles, but many more people are open to my questions now than in 2005.

Am I allowed to do the fly-on-the-wall features with MLS players and teams that I would love to do? No, but I might with the USL or a college team. And I have with high school teams, whose stories are as worthy of coverage as any.

From my experience USSF does a good job for the most part in this regard. MLS is less focused. The quality of their respective on-line products pretty much paints the picture.