Rarely in the brief history of MLSsoccer.com has there been a controversy that has riled up the fans like this one.
No, not the “crabs or wolves” debate. Not the Power Rankings. Not even Shaman Simon.
The issue at hand? The recent mysterious disappearance of the beloved logo for the Kick Off.
For more than a year, the Kick Off Mug (above, right) was the calling card of each morning dispatch curating all the best headlines around MLS and beyond. Now, his replacement (right) is doing his job admirably, so we were admittedly stunned that there was such a backlash, which has grown from a steady trickle of complaints at first into a stream of mug-related discontent.
So here’s the word. It was a sad day when the Kick Off Mug strolled into our offices and told us he was done. He’d adorned his last article, greeted his last reader. It was a career full of highs and lows for the Kick Off Mug, which was the brainchild of a graphic designer who was understandably too upset to comment for this blog post.
He was, without a doubt, the most respected mug on the site. He had his own desk in the office, his own direct phone line from the MLS executive committee, his own coffee mug. He was friends with folks around the league and the world of soccer. All other mugs wanted to be him, all the lady mugs wanted to be with him.
But now the Kick Off Mug has set sail on the sea of retirement, and we wish him well. We’ve asked him to stay in touch and to send us photos as he hangs up his handle in style (above), traveling the world and seeing all those places he never saw while he was hard at work on MLSsoccer.com.
So from all of us, thank you Kick Off Mug. Stay in touch.
