err, football -- fans in Toronto. They take it personally, even from a columnist who's clearly anti-Toronto. These fans of TFC (sorry about the Topeka Fried Chicken joke, really) are without a doubt the best fans in MLS, bar none, well, except for those vastly underrated fans (should I be calling them "supporters?" Because that seems to get me in hot water, too) in Kansas City and Colorado, who have accused me in years past of unfair treatment. By the way, did you know that the Colorado Rapids won the MLS Western Conference title in 1997?
4. At least one player reads First XI.
I won't mention any names here, but there's a guy out there who's scored a bunch of MLS goals who was disappointed in where I placed him and his assist-man on my all-time list of tandems. Oh yeah, and he didn't have much nice to say about a certain MLS newcomer who's married to a former pop star. But I'll keep it at that. I will, however, mention that Diego Gutierrez set me straight last year when I left him off my list of all-time best Colombian players in MLS history. It's good to be kept honest.
3. People go straight to the list.
I write this cute little thing at the top of this column that I like to call an "intro." As much as I like the "intro" it seems a lot of readers just skip to the numbered things. How else to explain, for example, when I wrote a list of the best players in MLS who played 10 or more years in the league, I get inundated with e-mails from people who wonder how I could be so stupid as to leave Carlos Valderrama, Peter Nowak and Marco Etcheverry off the list. Oh well, I'll chalk it up to the raw excitement readers (and players, coaches and GMs) must feel when it comes to reading First XI, and wanting to get right.
3. Soccer fans are sensitive.
Well, except for those thick-skinned football supporters up in Toronto, the rest of you Major League Football fans are really sensitive to jokes pertaining to your clubs. Really, you all should learn from the supporters of Chivas USA, the only team in MLS that I do not loathe with every ounce of my being. Lighten up.
2. Columbus fans lead the league.
In the eight-plus years I've been writing a column for MLSnet.com, the leader, hands-down, in e-mails sent to First XI are the fans of the Columbus Crew. Perhaps I should amend that. There's one fan from the Crew who, I believe, has e-mailed me every week for eight-plus seasons. ... But I'm going to assume this guy's a team player and wants club credit.
1. I'm the luckiest man on earth.
And this has nothing to do with all the cash that's being held for me, but simply because when I'm sitting in front of the TV on a Saturday night, or clicking around on MLSnet.com on Monday morning, watching all the goals and highlights and my wife asks me to take out the garbage, I can say, "Honey, I'm working!"
Jeff Bradley is a senior writer for ESPN The Magazine. Send your comments and complaints (200 words or less, please) to Jeff at jbradleyespn2003@yahoo.com and he promises to read (but not respond to) all of them. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author's, and not necessarily those of Major League Soccer or MLSnet.com.
