MLS Clubs Getting Into The World

[Pounder]

http://www.mlsnet.com/MLS/news/mls_news.jsp?ymd=20050616&content_id=33439&vkey=pr_mls&fext=.jsp

Chelsea will play DC United at FedEx Field. Chicago Fire will play AC Milan at Soldier Field. All late July.

BTW, reportedly, LA Galaxy will be playing Real Madrid at Home Depot Center... still awaiting this announcement.

[UMBAUGH]

Is the MLS looking to expand in upcoming years? Or is that not an option with the state of the league currently. I'd like to see a few more teams.

[Pounder]

The two expansions this year sucked on the field... but Fake Salt Lake errrrr Real Salt Lake (sorry, had to do it) is likely to finish 2nd in attendance, and Chivas USA did themselves a lot of favors by moving one of their Galaxy games to Memorial Coliseum (in conjunction with a Chivas Guadalajara v Club America friendly) and drawing 88,000. Looked legit, too.

Meanwhile:

Kansas City and San Jose are both in trouble in their current locations. Kansas City may get a stadium proposal on the Kansas side of the aisle, however. While there are rumors of a South Bay stadium, there are also rumors that either AEG or a buying Televisa/Club America might move the Earthquakes to Houston. The rumors are pretty much published and public.

Expansion possibilities:

Toronto - if they get a site PICKED for a stadium designed to host 2007 World Youth Cup games, that stadium will likely be MLS-ready. Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment might jump in and start up the team. Time is running out and passions are high, however.

Milwaukee - Peter Wilt's response to getting demoted from the Fire GM position was to head a consortium looking to build a stadium in downtown Milwaukee. Odds look decent from the sound of things... but MLS targeted 2007, while Milwaukee says they wouldn't be ready until 2008.

Houston - There is a stadium proposal, whether or not the Earthquakes take advantage or not.

Philadelphia - MLS may have found an investor willing to look at stadium sites in Bucks County.

San Antonio - An agreement to all but turn the Alamodome over to MLS got exposed and squashed, and while this doesn't seem likely, there have been more overtures lately.

Other possibilities: Rochester (on their way to completing a stadium for the USL1 Raging Rhinos, wouldn't take much to expand for MLS), Vancouver (very hot rumors of a downtown waterfront stadium for the Whitecaps, for which the land has been bought), St. Louis (phantom claims of an ownership group have arisen, but where to play?), ????

Just one reminder... Salt Lake was on nobody's radar until they jumped in at the last minute, so "someone other than the above" could easily draw 2-to-1 odds.

[nksports]

From what I've read, the MLS won't go anywhere without a "soccer only" stadium ala Columbus or Home Depot Center. It's unsure how much of the KC Wizards sale is for real and how much Lamar Hunt is using it to get a new stadium for soccer. I saw one story that said a European team (and sorry, I can't remember who it was) was looking at KC. The Wizards may get 15,000 one game and 5,000 the next (those Wednesday night games are played to a near empty stadium), but they all look bad in a stadium designed to fit 80,000.

[Pounder]

nk's stadium comment is close to dead on. They're willing to listen if the owner of an NFL with control of stadium wants to OWN the MLS team... and treat it right. However, they've shown a preference to build a new stadium (alluding very much to the small crowds in big stadium comment NK made)... though they will allow 3-4 years of slack, like they're doing with Salt Lake. Salt Lake, BTW, announced a stadium site in suburban Sandy this week, though funding has to be finalized.

Also, Toronto has a conditional franchise award, provided the Maple Leafs have everything secured by October 31. That puts some pressure on Toronto to get the stadium done or get off the pot... though I wouldn't be surprised if the conditional award was MLSE's idea rather than the league's.

If Toronto got that far, the speculation opens on 2007 #2.

NK could be right on Lamar Hunt, and to this date the focus has been on local buyers. Ajax poked around, but they apparently didn't want Investor/Operator control, so they weren't really offering much.