What a week for the West Coast.
First, Vancouver gets an MLS team. Not sure if it technically counts as a West Coast town since it's in Canada, but it's west enough. Then, Seattle spanks New York 3-0 in their franchise opener. And now, Portland gets invited to the party.
Portland was officially named the league's 18th team on Friday and will begin play in 2011, along with Vancouver. This gives the Western part of the US (and Canada) a full eight teams. That's eight teams that are West of the Rockies anyway (is Dick's Sporting Goods Park officially west or east of the Rockies? They're part of the eight).
It won't happen but the league should stop at 18. This is a good number of teams to have and provides plenty of geographic equality. But the league likely wants a presence in St. Louis as well as possibly another Canadian team so we'll probably get to 20 soon enough.
Anyway, I'm looking forward to Portland-Seattle, Seattle-Vancouver and Vancouver-Portland.
As far as 18 teams goes... I hope the league keeps the schedule at 30 games. That could mean teams play their eight conference rivals twice (nine teams per conference), each team from the other conference once and then there would be a final game which probably would be a rivalry match so we may see Chivas-Galaxy and Seattle-Portland three times a season. I'd really like that number to be two so the games are more special and more meaningful (too many can water down the product) but the league is not about to cut down those types of games.
All those matters will be sorted out in the weeks, months and years to come. For now, rejoice Portland! And Vancouver! Welcome to the league!
Showing posts with label MLS expansion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label MLS expansion. Show all posts
Friday, March 20, 2009
Thursday, March 19, 2009
BC reaction
With Vancouver having received an MLS franchise, I wondered what some of the reaction there would be like. Hockey is king in Canada and Vancouver is home to the Canucks but I wondered if the support from the public would be as ardent as it has been in Toronto.
It's hard to say after one day, really. Ticket sales will give a bit more of an indication to the level of excitement, but the mayor of Vancouver said "we are a soccer city." Apparently the mayor watched the Whitecaps of the NASL play in person.
The president of the new club, Bob Lenarduzzi, seems like a perfect person to head the team. He's a former player, a Vancouverite who is committed to his city, and he's known as Mr. Soccer for chrissake.
The new club is also excited about hosting some of the world's big clubs and talked about adding on a DP and even has some sort of residency/youth development system in place already.
It's hard to say after one day, really. Ticket sales will give a bit more of an indication to the level of excitement, but the mayor of Vancouver said "we are a soccer city." Apparently the mayor watched the Whitecaps of the NASL play in person.
The president of the new club, Bob Lenarduzzi, seems like a perfect person to head the team. He's a former player, a Vancouverite who is committed to his city, and he's known as Mr. Soccer for chrissake.
The new club is also excited about hosting some of the world's big clubs and talked about adding on a DP and even has some sort of residency/youth development system in place already.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Morning ramblings
I've got some links for you this morning. Strangely, my PE column was not linked. It happens sometimes. When I have time later, I'll get to the meat of the column as I wrote about how the Galaxy and Chivas USA will struggle to compete in the Western Conference.
Mark Zeigler of the San Diego Union-Tribune takes a look at the MLS season. Zeigler is always worth a read.
Nick Green wrote in his Tuesday column about the local teams' struggles with injuries. Galaxy could be hurting for players on Sunday. Not good. At least they're hosting DC, which is expected to finish towards the bottom of the Eastern Conference.
Vancouver may indeed get an MLS team. Vancouver is set to be announced as the league's 17th team - and second Canadian entry - in MLS. I know some think that Canada should get its own league and why should MLS bother with Canadian teams but I'm all for bringing in Vancouver. It's a city that seems poised to support an MLS team, and while Toronto isn't exactly nearby there could be a rivalry there. Of course, there likely will be a rivalry with Seattle and if Portland gets a team that would add to that as well. Exciting times for Vancouver.
In case you're wondering - because I was too - it's about 140 miles or so from Seattle to Vancouver.
Many on the Goal.com staff, including yours truly, made their predictions for the upcoming season. While not all of my picks are on there, I do chime in on the Rookie and MVP honors.
Don't forget to check out Goal.com's Mexico page for news on Mexico en ingles.
My man Bruce McGuire, formerly of DuNord, has been contributing to the new Bunky County blog. It's not the same wealth of info but some updates nonetheless. Good to see Bruce up and running.
Mark Zeigler of the San Diego Union-Tribune takes a look at the MLS season. Zeigler is always worth a read.
Nick Green wrote in his Tuesday column about the local teams' struggles with injuries. Galaxy could be hurting for players on Sunday. Not good. At least they're hosting DC, which is expected to finish towards the bottom of the Eastern Conference.
Vancouver may indeed get an MLS team. Vancouver is set to be announced as the league's 17th team - and second Canadian entry - in MLS. I know some think that Canada should get its own league and why should MLS bother with Canadian teams but I'm all for bringing in Vancouver. It's a city that seems poised to support an MLS team, and while Toronto isn't exactly nearby there could be a rivalry there. Of course, there likely will be a rivalry with Seattle and if Portland gets a team that would add to that as well. Exciting times for Vancouver.
In case you're wondering - because I was too - it's about 140 miles or so from Seattle to Vancouver.
Many on the Goal.com staff, including yours truly, made their predictions for the upcoming season. While not all of my picks are on there, I do chime in on the Rookie and MVP honors.
Don't forget to check out Goal.com's Mexico page for news on Mexico en ingles.
My man Bruce McGuire, formerly of DuNord, has been contributing to the new Bunky County blog. It's not the same wealth of info but some updates nonetheless. Good to see Bruce up and running.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Expansion bids
Miami seemed the favorite for an expansion team until the whole deal unraveled in a matter of days. After Atlanta and Montreal had pulled out, the field was narrow enough already but now it looks as if at least one team is all but a shoo-in.
Portland's city council approved a plan that would clear the way for a new stadium. That last part, the "new stadium," is what MLS likes to hear. If Portland can build a stadium, the city will almost certainly nab one of two expansion bids.
All along, I've been a believer in Portland. I have no connection to the city, have never been to Oregon, but I feel that a presence in the city and another West Coast team would not be a bad thing. With two SoCal teams, San Jose, Seattle and Portland, we've got a nice little West Coast thing going on here. Add Real Salt Lake and Colorado and the league will have a solid presence West of the Rockies.
(Okay, not sure if the Rapids are technically east or west of the Rocky Mountains, but you get my point)
If Portland gets a team and if the team is named the Timbers, we'd have an instant rivalry. Seattle and Portland have a long-standing rivalry and this would add to that. We've seen how great passion rivalries can bring out, and this would add to the benefits of a Portland-based club.
St. Louis also appears to be picking up some steam but for now it seems a toss-up between St. Louis, Vancouver and Ottawa for the other spot alongside Portland as the league's 17th and 18th clubs.
Portland's city council approved a plan that would clear the way for a new stadium. That last part, the "new stadium," is what MLS likes to hear. If Portland can build a stadium, the city will almost certainly nab one of two expansion bids.
All along, I've been a believer in Portland. I have no connection to the city, have never been to Oregon, but I feel that a presence in the city and another West Coast team would not be a bad thing. With two SoCal teams, San Jose, Seattle and Portland, we've got a nice little West Coast thing going on here. Add Real Salt Lake and Colorado and the league will have a solid presence West of the Rockies.
(Okay, not sure if the Rapids are technically east or west of the Rocky Mountains, but you get my point)
If Portland gets a team and if the team is named the Timbers, we'd have an instant rivalry. Seattle and Portland have a long-standing rivalry and this would add to that. We've seen how great passion rivalries can bring out, and this would add to the benefits of a Portland-based club.
St. Louis also appears to be picking up some steam but for now it seems a toss-up between St. Louis, Vancouver and Ottawa for the other spot alongside Portland as the league's 17th and 18th clubs.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Crisis management
Now that Barcelona/Miami is out of the running for an MLS expansion team, we are left with more than just four bids seeking two spots available for expansion.
We are left with questions regarding expansion in general and whether the economic crisis will knock other potential investors out of action.
Barcelona officials pointed to the United States' sagging economy as a major reason why they decided to pull out.
According to this story, Bolivian investor Marcelo Claure, the point man for the Miami bid, the league is asking for $40 million to join, and getting the actual club up and running would cost an additional $60 million.
Are there those sorts of funds out there right now in the United States for professional soccer? It seems difficult to imagine that now, when employers lay off workers by the hundreds on a seemingly weekly basis, when school districts across the country are struggling, when some state governments are scrambling to pass a budget and raising taxes, that there would be $60 million available for soccer.
Stadiums are a must for new teams, and what city would be willing to invest the types of monies necessary for constructing a new stadium for an MLS team?
The expansion bids originally went out to seven teams but three have dropped out. Two of the remaining bids are Canadian, whose economy is not in the dire straits the American economy is. However, the crisis is not limited to the U.S.
Still, season ticket sales are strong in Seattle and the club is anxiously awaiting the start of their own franchise. And the existing teams are seemingly operating as per usual, in the red, trying to increase their own season-ticket base.
Maybe I'm being too pessimistic in thinking that the crisis will expand over to MLS and the expansion teams, but this failed Miami bid has me scratching my head and wondering just that.
We are left with questions regarding expansion in general and whether the economic crisis will knock other potential investors out of action.
Barcelona officials pointed to the United States' sagging economy as a major reason why they decided to pull out.
According to this story, Bolivian investor Marcelo Claure, the point man for the Miami bid, the league is asking for $40 million to join, and getting the actual club up and running would cost an additional $60 million.
Are there those sorts of funds out there right now in the United States for professional soccer? It seems difficult to imagine that now, when employers lay off workers by the hundreds on a seemingly weekly basis, when school districts across the country are struggling, when some state governments are scrambling to pass a budget and raising taxes, that there would be $60 million available for soccer.
Stadiums are a must for new teams, and what city would be willing to invest the types of monies necessary for constructing a new stadium for an MLS team?
The expansion bids originally went out to seven teams but three have dropped out. Two of the remaining bids are Canadian, whose economy is not in the dire straits the American economy is. However, the crisis is not limited to the U.S.
Still, season ticket sales are strong in Seattle and the club is anxiously awaiting the start of their own franchise. And the existing teams are seemingly operating as per usual, in the red, trying to increase their own season-ticket base.
Maybe I'm being too pessimistic in thinking that the crisis will expand over to MLS and the expansion teams, but this failed Miami bid has me scratching my head and wondering just that.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Miami's out
MLS won't return to Miami after all.
The statement from MLS:
"Major League Soccer, FC Barcelona, and Marcelo Claure have jointly agreed that Miami is no longer a candidate to be one of the next two MLS expansion teams. After extensive discussions and collaborative evaluation a decision was made that at this time because it was determined that it was not feasible to launch a Major League Soccer team in South Florida in 2010 due to adverse market conditions.
Notwithstanding, FC Barcelona remains committed to Major League Soccer and the U.S. market and will continue to work with MLS and Marcelo Claure on other soccer-related projects."
This isn't completely surprising as a report broke a week ago from Spain in which Barca folks were second-guessing the move into MLS.
Let's see now, we've got Miami and Atlante and Montreal out of the running, so the next two expansion teams will come from: Vancouver, St. Louis, Ottawa and Portland as the remaining cities.
I wonder if more of these remaining bids will falter due to the economy. With so many jobs going by the wayside and money become increasingly tight throughout the country, I wonder if these bids will have enough funds and support behind them to expand. It's not cheap to expand into MLS after all.
The statement from MLS:
"Major League Soccer, FC Barcelona, and Marcelo Claure have jointly agreed that Miami is no longer a candidate to be one of the next two MLS expansion teams. After extensive discussions and collaborative evaluation a decision was made that at this time because it was determined that it was not feasible to launch a Major League Soccer team in South Florida in 2010 due to adverse market conditions.
Notwithstanding, FC Barcelona remains committed to Major League Soccer and the U.S. market and will continue to work with MLS and Marcelo Claure on other soccer-related projects."
This isn't completely surprising as a report broke a week ago from Spain in which Barca folks were second-guessing the move into MLS.
Let's see now, we've got Miami and Atlante and Montreal out of the running, so the next two expansion teams will come from: Vancouver, St. Louis, Ottawa and Portland as the remaining cities.
I wonder if more of these remaining bids will falter due to the economy. With so many jobs going by the wayside and money become increasingly tight throughout the country, I wonder if these bids will have enough funds and support behind them to expand. It's not cheap to expand into MLS after all.
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