GARY Mackay-Steven is by no means the first Scot to move to the MLS.

The United States has been a regular port of call for footballers from this country since the league was founded back in 1993. From Mo Johnston in 1996 to Johnny Russell and Danny Wilson last year, the attractions of crossing the Atlantic have proved irresistible to many.

Yet, the departure of a first team regular who Aberdeen were keen to keep at Pittodrie for New York City FC was further evidence, as if any was needed, that it is no longer something a prominent player considers as he nears the end of his career in order to get a bit of sun on his back and top up his pension.

Playing for the MLS is certainly no impediment to a player’s international ambitions these days as both Shaun Maloney, who combined turning out for Chicago Fire with representing Scotland for a season, and Russell, who has added to his haul of caps since signing for Sporting Kansas City, have shown.

Ladbrokes Premiership clubs, who are already finding it harder to recruit players due to the wages on offer down in England and elsewhere in Europe, could face increasingly stiff competition from Stateside in the seasons to come.

The steady growth of the league and its increasing financial might could spell bad news for the game here.

The statistics – so beloved of all American sports enthusiasts – tell their own story. The MLS may still lag behind American football (NFL), baseball (MLB) and basketball (NBA) and ice hockey (NHL) in terms of revenue and television audiences. But it is making significant strides forward.

Atalanta United FC, who are managed by Frank De Boer, sold more than one million tickets last year, had an average of 55,000 fans at their home games and on five occasions drew crowds of over 70,000. Those gates made them one of 15 most-attended professional teams in the world. They have, too, only been in existence for five years.

The league’s attendances and tickets sales are up across the board. Over nine million people attended games between March and October last year. That is only going to increase further as more franchises are introduced. There are 24 sides, an increase of 14 on the 10 who formed the original league 26 years ago, competing this year. But Nashville and Miami will join next year and Austin the year after. The league will name its 28th club next year.

Significantly, television audiences are up too. Over two million armchair fans tuned in to watch the MLS Cup on Fox last year.

MLS doesn’t make its club revenues public. But Forbes estimate that the average team is worth $240 million. The salaries for marquee signings and squad players alike are competitive. Maxi Moralez, the once-capped Argentine midfielder who Mackay-Steven, inset, will play alongside at the Yankee Stadium next year, takes home $2 million a year.

The presence of renowned international superstars like Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Nani, Wayne Rooney and Bastian Schweinsteiger may not be cheap, but they have, along with David Beckham, Thierry Henry, Kaka and David Villa in the past, undoubtedly raised the profile of the league worldwide and generated significant income.

Their growing wealth was reflected in the Soccerex Football Finance 100, a list compiled to show the richest clubs in the world game, earlier this year. The MLS has no fewer than 14 franchises on the list in total. Only the Premier League has more. It also has three clubs in the top 30, the same number as Ligue 1 and Serie A.

Soccer is, contrary to common misconception, a popular participation sport in the United States. In fact, only basketball and American football are played more. Over 25 million people take part regularly. So the audience and appetite for the game were always there. The MLS has succeeded in tapping into that with slick marketing and a sound business model.

“Soccer is on the rise in our country,” says MLS Commissioner Don Garber. “Major League Soccer is driving a lot of that energy.”

Gary Mackay Steven will not be the last Scot to be lured away from his homeland in the seasons ahead.