nice. i think i'm going to do it this year with just the 12 problems, seems less overwhelming

Andor S2 straight into Rogue One is a vibe

gotta admit i was hoping to read that they have no wiggle room if only to see a line like "no cap FAM, frfr ong"

The TLDR is that the Japanese summer acts as a brick wall for players who have already been playing for 4 months: easier to get fatigued, get injured, slow down. Whereas if you’re starting in August, you’re hopefully doing so fresh and able to play better, then you ride that into the fall/winter.

I’ve definitely posted about it - they have some really interesting data on high-intensity plays and how they really nosedive in Japan over the summer vs. steadily rise in Europe over the course of the season.

oh totally, i remember your skeet thread. more people need to know about it!

I really hope someone picks this up because I'd love a drill down into the research the J. League did on how heat affects player performance

yum

Hell is real and it's the MLS playoff schedule

it's true there's no guarantee, but it is a big opportunity

i'm not even thinking about how MLS can siphon the best Europeans, more about growing to be a "best of the rest" league just outside top 5 leagues. a healthy growth, rather than try to pump gobs of money like the Chinese or Saudi leagues

IMO: take advantage of WC bump in interest + a new CBA by the end of 2027 (or earlier) that dramatically increases the salary cap and salaries across all percentiles. a more compelling product follows from the ability for the league to attract talent from better and better leagues