A full week has passed since a dreadful 90 minutes took the USA from part of the World Cup furniture to tournament spectators. A lot of blame has understandably fallen on the coaches this cycle, the system that developed the players and the federation’s leadership, namely its president, Sunil Gulati.

However, the influence of Major League Soccer deserves its time under the microscope too. MLS is very much indebted to the US men’s soccer program, having been founded as a condition to the country’s successful bid to host the 1994 World Cup. Ever since the league’s post-expansion revival in 2006, MLS and the US men’s national team have been frenemies – needing each other to coexist, but never agreeing on the terms of their interdependence.

As the league developed in the late 2000s, domestic talent was often overshadowed by glitzy, fresh faces such as David Beckham and Cuauhtemoc Blanco (it should be noted that “fresh” does not always mean young.) Save for eternal US torch-bearer Landon Donovan, many key figures of the men’s program left MLS for other leagues. Tim Howard made a famous move to Old Trafford. Clint Dempsey won the hearts of the Fulham faithful as compatriot Brian McBride was leaving. Even the young kids had wanderlust, with Michael Bradley starting his journey in the Netherlands and Jozy Altidore being picked off by Villarreal.

While these exits hit the quality of the league’s domestic players, the fissure didn’t truly surface until Jürgen Klinsmann took over the national team program. Like a footballing Roger Ebert, the German cast judgement over every one of his players’ moves – and he didn’t seem enthralled when US players returned home. The manager saw Dempsey’s move from Tottenham – a former home of Klinsmann’s – to Seattle as a challenge to “keep up his standard”. Meanwhile, Bradley’s relocation from AS Roma to Toronto FC was seen by Klinsmann as “a huge disappointment.”

In brief, Klinsmann wanted to ensure his players were at the highest level possible. While many national teams (such as those in Germany, Spain, and England) frequently field players from their domestic leagues, this isn’t always the norm – and isn’t necessarily a bar to success. Brazil and Argentina see a vast majority of their pool playing abroad, and have seven World Cup titles between them. Even the 1998 French squad that won their home World Cup had 14 of their 22 players playing outside of Ligue 1.

Still, there’s a serious case to be made that the league helps the national team (and not just USA: Honduras and Costa Rica, who qualified ahead of the US feature plenty of MLS players) . Young players are able to get first-team minutes in a top-flight division fairly comfortably if they’re in the national team picture. Having already fostered Chelsea’s “loan army” defender Matt Miazga, New York Red Bulls’ latest hot prospect is Tyler Adams, a defensive midfielder equally capable at right back. Goalkeeper Zack Steffen returned stateside from SC Freiburg and has started every match between the posts for Columbus Crew SC this year.

However, while regular football in MLS can help young players develop, the league’s bureaucratic sales process can often prevent players from leaving the league, and attempting to improve their game abroad. This past winter, Celtic were working hard to secure Portland midfielder Darlington Nagbe a move to Scotland. However, sales are negotiated not just with the club, but the league itself. Teams acquire two-thirds of the transfer earnings for most players, with Homegrown Players netting the selling club three-quarters of the profit. In Nagbe’s case, Celtic’s initial $1.5m bid was deemed insufficient, and their follow-up $3m offering still didn’t move the needle. The feeling around the league was that Portland weren’t happy with $1m or $2m for Nagbe. The single-entity league’s cut may have scuppered a chance for a key national team player to blossom.

And even when a player can move abroad, the comforts of home may stop challenging themselves. Jordan Morris backed out of a deal with Werder Bremen, preferring Seattle Sounders’ shade of green. Morris cited his desire to “play in his hometown” and deemed his long trial with the German side a “cool one.” While he was the star in the US’s Gold Cup win this summer, he’s failed to secure a starting role with the USMNT, falling behind Altidore, Bobby Wood, and team-mate Dempsey. Last week, Jermaine Jones teased a request from Klinsmann to persuade the young striker to head overseas. Instead, Morris prioritized regular playing time over a more difficult league – a choice every player must face.

Of course, not every player who goes to Europe or Mexico to spread their wings prospers. Two of this generation’s national team players left the league for Stoke City in 2013-14. While Brek Shea made three league appearances around loan stints to Barnsley and Birmingham City, Juan Agudelo was shut out entirely by the Potters, instead spending a year with FC Utrecht. Each returned to their home league and have yet to reach their lofty pre-transfer heights.

And what, then, of the mass homecoming that Klinsmann so publicly panned? While Dempsey, Bradley, and Altidore were the headliners, players like Jones, DaMarcus Beasley, and Alejandro Bedoya also came to MLS. Jones and Beasley were both past their prime, but Bedoya was at his peak when he left FC Nantes for Philadelphia and a $1m salary. He wouldn’t be a top-earner at many big clubs in Europe, but it’s hard to imagine many mid-table teams turning down his tidiness and determination for $20,000 a week.

However, Bedoya and others decided to help improve the American top-flight by returning home. The idea is that a stronger MLS helps grow the game in the States. So, too, does qualifying for World Cups. Home or abroad is a decision that each player must make for himself. While Omar Gonzalez parlayed a steady 2014 World Cup into a deal with Liga MX’s Pachuca, his international performance has been shaky at best during this past cycle.

Prime prospects like Christian Pulisic, Jonathan Gonzalez, and Josh Sargent will continue to leave the US in their teenage years to find competition in Europe. However, the US’ failure to qualify for two consecutive Olympic tournaments has left an eight-year window of prospects (firmly in their 20s) without major international play. The likes of Morris, Gyasi Zardes, and Bill Hamid turned down international interest to increase the quality of their home nation’s league, possibly at the expense of raising their ceilings. While the US men and MLS package their TV rights under the SUM moniker, it’s been far from a flawless marriage between the league and nation. If the USMNT is to get back on the right track, its relationship with Major League Soccer may need to change.