Former Juventus ace Sebastian Giovinco is one of a younger generation of players who is proving his worth for Toronto. Photo: Getty

The Major League Soccer season ends next Sunday, and that fact comes with a confession. This new fan is going to miss it.

It's not a fashionable hobby. Ireland is now packed with American sports fans, primarily followers of the NFL - and a decent portion of them even understand the game.

There is also a certain cachet in appreciating basketball or at least having a passing knowledge of Steph Curry and the brilliance of the Golden State Warriors.

And the crossover with rugby business last month led to a spike of Chicago Cubs-related baseball coverage; the visiting Irish fans suffered through a good 48 hours of the Cubs' 108-year wait for glory.

But MLS chat is unlikely to be a source of Christmas party small talk. In America, it remains the poor relation to the established national sports. The major networks are investing in Premier League and European football but MLS ratings are poor.

One Fox Sports broadcast in August, a game between Seattle and Real Salt Lake, attracted a TV audience of just 50,000. ESPN's figures are higher but, in the bigger picture, the MLS is still firmly in the 'And finally' category.

It's their loss.

From this end, the attraction can be blamed on erratic sleep patterns and enjoying a casual football bet, mostly on stacks of goals in games involving a New York City FC team containing Andrea Pirlo, David Villa and, latterly, Frank Lampard.

Maybe the fondness comes from a throwback to the low-budget production values of overseas sport back in the day, with Archie McPherson invariably commentating.

Sky's night-time schedule-filling broadcasts come live from a broom cupboard somewhere in their studios. "Welcome to Seattle," they will say, when they are always in London.

Delayed reactions to refereeing decisions expose the lie. Offside calls are confirmed only when pictures switch to an official holding a flag.

The co-commentators - an ex-pro such as David Prutton or Matt Lawrence, although Alan Curbishley sometimes makes a cameo to add gravitas - can offer no insight to the unseen developments off-screen because they haven't seen it either.

Yet in an odd way, the no-frills approach is refreshing. There are no interviews. It is devoid of manager speak, Jamie Redknapp and Thierry Henry. Game over means show over.

And here's the thing. The show itself, the football, is quite entertaining. With a strategy of splurging on high-profile attackers - defenders are way down the food chain - it makes for good fun and it's fast-paced, too.

Patrick Vieira did tighten up New York City after a debut campaign where they were an inverse Harlem Globetrotters - they humiliated themselves regularly. In 2016, they still managed to get turned over 7-0 at home by New York Red Bulls.

New York City are an extreme example of the MLS' dysfunction; they have to make compromises to break into the market.

Manchester City's sister club play at the iconic Yankee Stadium, but the stadium's primary function means the pitch is narrow and uneven. Yet, they're getting 28,000 fans through the gate regularly so, clearly, it's good for business.

Others play the percentages as well. Tragi-comedy struck ahead of the Eastern Conference final between Montreal and Toronto when kick-off in the first leg was delayed for 30 minutes when officials noted that the penalty area was two yards short of regulation size. The reason for the mortifying error was that Montreal had moved the fixture to the 61,000-capacity Olympic Stadium because so many people wanted to see it.

They had hospitality tables pitchside, which created the unusual sight of a full-back taking a throw while a corporate customer tucked into his tiramisu.

Two tables of rival fans even engaged in a shemozzle in full view of the cameras. Back in London, the Sky lads were appalled and confused. And it does make you wonder.

Would Eric Cantona have lunged into the Selhurst Park crowd if his path had been blocked by waiters starting the tea and coffee service?

Montreal were cashing in when they could, though, tapping into a curious market that is growing. The average crowd for an MLS game has risen to just short of 22,000 and another bump is expected for 2017, with new sides in Minnesota and Atlanta joining up.

Significantly, attendances don't necessarily run in parallel with results, although finalists Seattle, who travel to Toronto for the decider, draw over 40,000 fans for every home fixture.

By contrast, Orlando were awful for most of the year but they have the second highest average crowd with 30,000+ fans content to go and see Kaka strut his stuff.

The star names remain vital, of course, but the day has passed where old-timers can jet in and boss things. Steven Gerrard made little or no no impact and Lampard was poor for the majority of his stay, too.

Didier Drogba stropped when he was left on the bench by Montreal but he made little impact as a sub in the second leg of their thrilling 7-5 aggregate loss to Toronoto.

Next Sunday's final will be dominated by a slightly younger generation of enigmatic playmakers.

Seattle have Uruguayan Nicolas Lodeiro, a one-time next big thing who didn't quite crack it in Europe with Ajax but pitched up in the US after a spell with Boca Juniors.

Toronto have Sebastian Giovinco, who briefly became the highest-paid Italian player in the world when they lured him from Juventus. He's a little magician and it should be a lively affair.

Certainly, the MLS has a way to travel before it can be considered elite fare - Giovinco was excluded from Italy's Euro 2016 squad because he plays there - but they are doing a lot of things right.

Population size and the scale of investment means it is a stretch to say that struggling leagues in need of a rebrand, such as our own, can learn lessons.

Positivity

There is some food for thought, however. The stadiums are modern, the play-off system keeps the season interesting for a larger number of clubs, and the absence of relegation encourages positivity.

Some clubs are better placed to compete for blue chip names, yet centralised control and the draft culture allows fortunes to change.

Toronto and Colorado have endured whipping boy seasons in recent memory but their fortunes have flipped. The MLS has flaws, but it cannot be accused of predictability. Watching four live play-off games back to back is possibly a point where one must re-evaluate ones life but there should be no guilt attached to taking pleasure from this steadily evolving machine.

So come on board. If you're worried about the social stigma of the bloodshot eyes, just tell them you were watching the NFL.

Irish Independent