Today I received a fresh email promotion from MLS promoting First Kick 2011. The first 2,000 fans to clickthrough and pledge to watch the MLS First Kick presented by Dick’s Sporting Goods tonight on ESPN would receive a free t-shirt. No details were provided regarding the size, design, or delivery of the t-shirt, but I have to assume they will be related to either MLS First Kick 2011 and /or MLS sponsor, Dick’s Sporting Goods. Nevertheless, based on the time it took the pledge to load on my computer, I am guessing that the promotion worked. I thought this was an innovative way to help soccer grow in the United States, but from an email marketing perspective, I noticed several opportunities for improvement that we can all learn from.