MLS aim high on global stage

Major League Soccer chief Dan Courtemanche has predicted the American competition will become one of the world’s best in the next decade.

The MLS has attracted stars such as David Beckham and Thierry Henry in recent years, but Courtemanche maintained it was just the beginning for the league founded in 1993.

“Major League Soccer’s ultimate goal by 2022 is to be among the best soccer leagues in the world, and we’re making significant progress,” Courtemanche said.

“We’ve brought in a lot of young players from the United States and Canada, combining those with international stars such as David Beckham, Thierry Henry, Rafa Marquez or even US national team stand-outs such as Landon Donovan.”

“We want to be a place where players aspire to come. We’re able to pay them the appropriate salaries, and many of those players are getting salaries very similar to other leagues throughout the world. And by 2022 we want to have people thinking about MLS in the same light as they do the English Premier League, La Liga or Serie A in Italy.”

The MLS held its ‘Super Draft’ on Thursday in Kansas City, with new side Montreal Impact having the honour of top pick, and selecting Duke University defender Andrew Wenger.

The 2012 MLS Supplemental Draft will take place on Tuesday.