It may be more apparent, but it’s definitely more awful.
Tangentially, I’ve always thought Talen Energy Center looked like a really cool stadium. I wish that the rest of the Chester re-development happened as it was anticipated to before 2008. I am not a Supporters Section person myself, but I love what our Supporter Sections do in terms of the atmosphere in the league. And Sons of Ben (one of yours) is a great name.
Not only that, but they list each team’s standings as Wins, Draws, Losses, like every other country does, rather than putting the draws after the losses like they (and everybody else) does with the NFL (and NHL, back when it still had ties).
MLS has never hid the fact that it is not targeting the average fan. When the league first started, the official time was kept on the scoreboard, the way it is in college, but the people watching were so used to having the time kept by the referee that they switched to that method.
Well they were mocked by soccer fans in America for that (and considering the US media and spectators have tended to do this annoying American exceptionalism “we can fix soccer” thing every 4 years during the World Cup, it was seen as akin to that). And average Americans really didn’t care for soccer that much (at least back in the 90s). So in order to appeal to those soccer fans in the States they made it conform the rest of the world.
A lot of the fans of European or Mexican soccer tend to ask why are you trying to change what already works around the world and so when MLS tried courting them (because they couldn’t survive with trying to get non soccer fans interested) they changed somewhat. You still have Americanisms like All Star Matches that get roundly criticized by MLS fans every year, but still persist. And MLS has kept playoffs and refused calls for Promotion/Relegation, so really MLS is following more of a middle way than a European way.
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Well, except that’s not quite accurate. While the teams were called the “Stanford Cardinals” from 1972 to 1981, that was intended to reference not the bird, but rather the color. It’s like calling Chelsea FC “the Blues”, or the Argentine national team the “Albicelestes”.
Why the Stanford president decided in 1981 that the term should be singularized is anyone’s guess. 
While the term “soccer” was indeed used in England, it has NEVER been the primary term for the sport, as indicated by the fact that the teams are part of the Football League, that they are governed by the Football Association, and by the fact that there are almost no clubs in England known as _______ Soccer Club (as opposed to _______ Football Club, or ___________ Association Football Club).
“Soccer” is generally considered to be derived from “Assoc.”, used in discussing Association Football (as opposed to Rugby Football).
Sadly, Pennsylvania taxpayers paid nearly $100 million for that stadium, and in turn the Union ownership have done little to invest in either the club or Chester. They haven’t even signed a commitment to say past 2020 which really irks me.
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MLS has had a team in New Jersey since its inception.
I think you’ve misunderstood my original post. I never said the fans were fake or pretentious. Indeed, that was my point - seemed to me that MLS was trying to impose a culture on those fans, rather than letting them - or, rather, y’all - develop one of your own. My irritation was about the faux-European names and styles - tables instead of standings, “Atlanta United play here”, big flags and scarves. The fact that they play in strips or kit, rather than uniforms.
But whatever the fans come up with, or adopt - flags, fan clubs, chants and team songs, whatever - is perfectly fine. Hey, if y’all want to use scarves, I’ll think you’re idiots (to wear scarves in July, in Georgia), but your sport, your choice. You, and ISiddiq before you, have explained how the evocation of European leagues is a deliberate marketing choice that MLS fans like, and contributes to the league’s resurgent popularity.
Still irritates me, though. But I’m not a fan, so my opinion means nothing.
Yep. I dislike the British construction, because it sounds weird to my American ears; but I can’t say it’s “wrong” in any way. And we very well may end up adopting it. No profit to railing about language change; as the Great Lexicographer said,
Well we do play in a dome.
Scarves are definitely one of the top sellers at the Team Store on gamedays though. People just buy them up. They offer different ones for different events - a St. Patrick’s Day scarf, 4th of July scarf, Pride Month scarf, etc, etc. and they sell extremely well.
On one level, I wonder if it is to established a slightly different identity in the stands, because most people are wearing the home jersey (if you buy a t-shirt you are generally going to wear it around town, not in the stands) - having a new scarf allows you to look a bit different.
I hope no-one sells match day scarves that are split 50/50 between the two teams. Those show up sometimes in the UK, mostly sold by unofficial vendors just outside the stadium grounds, and clearly aimed at people who have been football fans for about five minutes. 
Hey, ISiddiqui - I realized I misspelled your username in my previous post. My apologies. I feel especially bad about it because,while you may not remember, we’ve met IRL, at a Dopefest.
I do remember! And no problem, I didn’t take it personally (and I’ve heard Siddiq is a character on the Walking Dead, so I can understand thinking it that way :D).
Those are DEFINITELY sold and are OFFICIAL - they had some for the All Star match, half MLS half Juventus. And they had one for the first match (vs. RBNY) and then for the first match at Mercedes Benz Stadium (I forget who that was). And they get sold out quick. I don’t necessarily get it… but I guess having one for the first game is a cool memento. You buy it and it goes on the wall.
Well we wish you would become a fan because the Euro traditions are fun! I’d submit even the most jaded soccer hater would walk away from a MLS supporters experience with at the very least a fun story to talk about. Attempts to “Americanize” soccer have failed, and many MLS fans even hate the concept of “playoffs”.
The result BTW is a fan-team experience that none of the other four “major sports” can match.