From inception, All-Star games have always been about marketing. The inaugural Major League Baseball All-Star game was held in 1933 Comiskey Park in Chicago as part of the World's Fair, and it was intended to be a one-off affair to boost morale, and finances, amid the Great Depression.
Its success made it a staple of American culture, a tradition that transcended eras and, ultimately, sports.
It's easy to see the allure. All-Star Games are typically mid-season events that celebrate the sport, pit the best against the best, featuring every marketable star imaginable on the field at the same time. It's fantasy come to life. For one night only, icons clash and, just as importantly, play together in ways fans could only dream of.
But what happens when those icons are more accessible than ever? What happens when actual competition turns into an exhibition? And what happens to a league such as MLS, which - like its brothers and sisters across American professional sports - faces the challenge of making its All-Star Game a meaningful main event, rather than an afterthought?
All-Star games are evolving - or de-evolving, in some cases - and for years, America's supposed showcase events have struggled to maintain relevancy.
The MLB tried to make its Midsummer Classis more meaningful by putting home-field advantage for the World Series on the line, and then added gimmicks such as a swing-off to attract viewers. The NBA has tried format after format, instituting a marquee player draft system designed to create drama and talking points leading up to the game. The NFL dropped it's end-of-season Pro Bowl entirely, replacing it with a high-priced game of flag football.
And MLS has shifted formats repeatedly, too, bringing in some of Europe's best for a ratings boost before relying on rivalries to sell and MLS vs. Liga MX.
All of that is to say that All-Star Games are changing. They're no longer the attractions they once were, no longer as as relevant to a modern generation of fans that consume sports in different ways. Staples of American sport for nearly 100 years, these one-time showcase events are at a cross-sport crossroads - and the MLS All-Star Game, which kicks off Wednesday night in Austin, Texas - is caught in the same wake of change.