Worst current sports commissioner?

[KamaAina]

Poll question: Worst current sports commissioner?

I just heard Bettman described as an "asshat of the superb variety". :rofl: Then it occurred to me, Which commisioner ISN'T a Superb Asshat?

Last year $elig would probably have been a shoo-in, but with the colossal Charlie Foxtrot that is the NFL lockout, Goodell is closing in fast.

[MrCoffee]

1. MLS does have a commissioner, and he sucks

Two primary complaints with Don Garber's commissionership (yeah, that's probably not a word)...

1) Retaining the conference/playoff format. I've yet to hear a good reason why US football needs a playoff.
"It's what Americans are used to" is a profoundly stupid reason. MLS should go single-table and award the league trophy to the team with the most points at the end. The Supporters' Shield is gaining some recognition for being a viable award to play for, but the stupid MLS Cup is still top priority for too many.

2) Promoting soccer-specific stadium development in the 'burbs. Garber's brilliant idea was that MLS needed to appeal to soccer moms, specifically, to soccer moms kids. Soccer moms won't take the kiddies into the big scary city to see a match, so Garber hounded teams to build facilities way out in the boonies (which is why we have the New Jersey Energy Drinks, the Carson Galaxy and FC Frisco). Well, guess what? Seattle plays at Qwest Field, right smack in downtown Seattle, and the rest of the league wishes they had the attendence/support of Seattle. Now teams like Dallas play in Frisco in front of 75 fans on a Saturday.

[KamaAina]

2. Good answer!

You forgot the Santa Clara Right-Wing Cultists, though. :-) Even their new pitch will be right at the boundary between San Jose proper and Santa Clara, out by the airport.

[MrCoffee]

3. The list would have been shorter to name clubs that play in the same town as their name

[KamaAina]

4. New England Revolution?

:-)

[MrCoffee]

5. Now you're just egging me on

[joeybee12]

6. Selig is the worst commissioner of any sport, at any time...EVAH! nt

[wilt the stilt]

7. Selig is the worst but he is only a nose ahead of Stern

The two worst decisions ever were the winner of the all star game is the host of the World Series followed by the suspension of the Suns when Horry through Nash into the scorer's table.
However Selig then followed that with inter league play and wild card. What s dick.

[lazarus]

13. sigh

Horry was suspended for a foul that Nash flopped on. Fair enough, it was good hard playoff foul, but whatever.

Suns players were suspended for leaving the bench during an altercation, a clear violation of league rules that carries an automatic suspension. You don't leave the bench, ever. That's what assistant coaches are for, to make sure the players stay in their seats. Phoenix's failed to control the team, they paid the consequences.

Now, if you want to bring up Stern's not giving Boston salary cap relief when Len Bias died, we can talk. :hi:

[HuckleB]

8. Selig is only slightly worse than Stern who is only slightly worse than Goodell.

It's just a bad situation altogether.

[madinmaryland]

9. $elig, without a doubt.

[givemebackmycountry]

10. Bettman of the NHL - No Doubt.

Everyone who loves the NHL and Hockey knows what a asshat this midget is.

[KamaAina]

11. One of the superb variety!

:P

[SidDithers]

15. Yup....

For his refusal to move clubs from southern US cities, where they're not wanted and bleeding red ink, to Canadian cities.

For refusing to allow Blackberry billionaire Jim Balsillie to buy either the Penguins, Predators, or Coyotes and move it to Hamilton.

But look, now the Atlanta Thrashers have been sold and are moving to Winnipeg, whether Bettman wants it or not.

Sid

[MrSlayer]

16. Agreed. He's been nothing but poison for the sport.

I hate Bettman.

[Chan790]

20. I also hate Bettman.

I'm from Hartford. I have reason to, he told a friend (since deceased sadly) involved in the negotiations to keep the Whalers in Hartford that he was committed to any course of action necessary to insure that the Whalers left Hartford; that it would be best if he could just make us all Rangers fans. Our team was damaging NYC as a key hockey market. The very things he's trying to keep the 'Yotes in PHX are the very things he kept Hartford from doing to save the Whale. (The city was willing to and discussed buying the team even.)

The man is a toad-minded idiot. He was convinced that the NHL was missing out on viable southern markets and that having NHL teams in places like Hartford, Winnipeg, Minnesota, Quebec City and the long-running effort to bring a team to Hamilton was destroying the league. Yes, it's better to have teams where nobody wanted them than having teams in small markets where they were wanted and mostly-supported; viable if the economics of the league were fixed. (He was pretty sold on losing Pittsburgh too, if possible) Now in the Salary Cap era, most of those markets are more viable than the odd corners he shoved the NHL into. Hockey will never be viable in Florida, Atlanta or PHX. It's a poor fit and there are 1000s of things to do better suited to the climate.

[JonLP24]

12. Goddell

Keeps changing the rules to the point football will be unrecognizable.

[Awsi Dooger]

14. Exactly; it should be a unanimous vote

The other commissioners may be inept in the short term but the sport itself can survive them.

I've studied NFL stats closely since 1987, in literally hundreds of Excel spreadsheets. I used old record books to back fit to 1978. None of the foundational aspects changed significantly until Goodell's term. Only in the last two seasons have I had to throw out or severely alter one reliable standby after another. You just had a Super Bowl winner with what, 11 rushes from the backfield? I try to block it out of my mind, like a nightmare.

Fans prefer finesse because it's simple to understand. I guess Goodell realizes that and is looking to accommodate them. The tipoff was when he immediately stressed a desire for more international games and exponentially increased global marketing. I've watched football games frequently with non-Americans, specifically a couple originally from Madrid. Invariably they think a rushing play is a waste, often asking me why a rush is ever called. I was somewhat baffled until the wife told me there's nothing in soccer that approximates a run in football. On the other hand, a pass is normally on the same basic trajectory as a kicked ball in soccer, and the same general idea, so they can relate to it. When you watch the annual game in London note the jeers whenever a series of rushing plays is called.

[jakefrep]

17. Not just that...

...he is presiding over a ridiculously unnecessary work stoppage.

[twogunsid]

18. Goodell and Garber are about tied IMHO. nt

[Jack Rabbit]

19. Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, president of the international chess federation

I don't call him the George W. Bush of chess for nothing.

He's corrupt and incompetent and even claims to have taken a ride on an alien spacecraft.