Negotiations have officially started between the MLS players union and the league on the new collective bargaining agreement, and it doesn't appear to be going well.

At least, that's the feeling I got from reading the article. If the league is claiming poverty, as the labor experts quoted suggest they might, it's a very bad sign for all of us clamoring for some relaxation of the rules and an increase in base wages.

Pragmatism must win out of course, and it would be ridiculous for the players to make wild demands. The league will certainly attempt to maintain their vice-grip on the bottom line, so we shouldn't expect an entirely lovey-dovey negotiating session.

I just hope that MLS understands that they have to remove a few of the shackles for the league to continue to grow; mid-level talent is almost non-existent in MLS because teams simply can't fit those type of players into the current salary structure. Instead of a well balanced teams, you end up with well-paid veterans lining up next to ridiculously underpaid kids.

I may have more on this soon, and I'm going to go fishing for information as soon as I have a chance. The CBA is a hot-button issue at MFUSA, so you should expect to see it as a recurring theme around here for at least the near future.