Dormant MISL struggles with next move

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Fran
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Dormant MISL struggles with next move

Post by Fran » Mon Aug 04, 2008 3:41 pm

Here's a good article on the MISL from the Sports Business Journal


By TERRY LEFTON and TRIPP MICKLE
Staff writers
Published August 04, 2008 : Page 08

In late May, MISL owners pulled the plug on the latest iteration of the indoor soccer league. When dissolving it, owners, which include New Jersey Devils owner Jeff Vanderbeek, were adamant that the seven-year-old league would be back with a new face and structure in a matter of weeks. They all insisted, “We will play next season.”

Weeks have turned to months, and the future of the league, whether it be under the MISL name or another (as seems more likely), is murky. Officially, owners of the remaining eight teams are unwavering in their declaration that the league will play next season, but they have no timetable for deciding how to go forward.

“The only deadline we have is we want to be playing this winter,” said Charlie Krause, owner of the Milwaukee Wave.

Among the matters yet unresolved, however, are the timing and duration of the season, whether the league should be regional or national; whether it will retain a single-entity structure or adopt a local ownership model; whether it will have a commissioner and a front office; and how many more franchises could or should be added.

So where is the league formerly known as the MISL?

“Limbo is an understatement,” said Greg Howes, a three-time MISL MVP, who is waiting for the league to be reborn. “There are a lot of guys who had houses and families who are waiting to see what the league’s going to do, so limbo is a weak word.”

The owners’ hope for an MISL renaissance remains.


“It’s easy to say we’ll play again, but we won’t until those differences are bridged,” said John Hantz, former MISL chairman and owner of the Detroit Ignition. “If you look at our core competency as a league, we had no problems putting a good product on the field. It was everything else, including attendance and sponsorship. I still believe we could call everyone in September and they would be ready to go because of that competency. The problem is, that competency doesn’t keep our doors open.”

While the league wasn’t profitable, economics aren’t why owners pulled the plug.

“The financial condition is fine,” said Jeff Rotwitt, a real estate developer and attorney who has won two league titles since becoming owner/operator of the Philadelphia Kixx in 2001. “The decision was not driven over spending six dollars vs. nine dollars. It was driven by ‘why you would pursue what is a foolhardy option’ … Financially, we need to decide where our teams should be, how long the season needs to be and when it should begin and end.”

These formative issues were not new sources of contention. Baltimore owner Ed Hale (who declined numerous interview requests) put a motion on the agenda of a May board meeting to pull the plug on the league, believing MISL officials had long expressed an ability to discuss any issue. Considering the league was being deep-sixed, “there was some discussion, but not as much as you would think,” said a person who attended the meeting.

“Everyone was just tired,” said Hantz, when asked about the motivation for dissolving the league. “Everyone, including myself, was talking to molasses. We needed to pull back and open our eyes as to why we started owning a team.”

Former Cleveland owner Dick Dietrich, who invested $1.2 million in the league in 2001 and folded the team in 2005, said most ownership gatherings up until his exit three years ago were fractious.

“Every issue that ever came up in a board meeting was cantankerous,” he said.

One of the most divisive issues going forward is whether the league will be controlled by a commissioner. Some owners were tired of the overhead of a league office based in Westport, Conn., anchored by veteran NHL executive Steve Ryan. Ryan, who would not comment for this story, was hired as commissioner in 2001. The announcement of his resignation came days before the league stated that it was suspending operations.

After the league was dissolved in May, some league executives said they did so to get rid of the “owners” like Dietrich, who no longer owned teams. Milwaukee Wave Chief Operating Officer Michael Lafferty said, “You sat in a room and you didn’t know who had a right to vote and who didn’t.”

However, others called that issue a red herring. Dietrich said he didn’t attend meetings or get involved in ownership issues after he shut down his Cleveland team in 2005.

“The real tough calls haven’t been made, so it is easy to say, ‘I’m going to play again,’” Hantz said. “How much power will the commissioner’s office have? Is the league bigger than the teams or are teams bigger than the league? The league has to be the bigger entity.”

Not unrelated is the issue of whether the league will continue its single-entity structure, where every owner has a piece of the league, or adopt a franchise model. Interestingly, there seems to be more of a search for agreement here than a real preference.

“If you take for granted that many, if not most, sports franchises don’t make money year to year, then whether you are single-entity or an amalgam of individual owners is driven in part by the mood of the group,” Rotwitt said. “We just need to set one path.”

How the league will move forward remains unknown. Rotwitt and Hale are leading the effort in the East, while Krause and Hantz are leading the effort in the Midwest. Vanderbeek, who’s considered a linchpin, didn’t respond to repeated interview requests.

In an effort to control costs and promote regional rivalries, what consensus there is seems to be toward having a more regional league. The fact that the New Jersey Ironmen played the Monterrey, Mexico, team more times than they played the Philadelphia Kixx last season made many in the MISL wonder about the league’s geographic rationale.

“Don’t underestimate how big that issue is,” Hantz said. “I don’t really know where everyone wants to go, but regardless of structure, I believe it will be much more regionalized.”

Some opponents of regionalization say derisively that indoor soccer’s top circuit will be turned into a “bus league.” For those trying to control costs, however, there are other considerations.

“You want to concentrate your growth in areas that are proximate to create natural rivalries and economical ways of getting to games on a bus, as opposed to dealing with the long-distance travel ramifications of a $135 barrel of oil,” Rotwitt said.

Of course, not everyone considers regionality an advantage. “You can’t have a league with eight or nine cities,” said Paul Garofolo, a 13-year MISL club executive, who’s now vice president of business development at sponsorship agency Premier Partnerships. “You can’t go to [A-B vice president of global media and sports marketing] Tony Ponturo and say, ‘Let’s do a deal.’ He’ll look at you and say, ‘You’re barely regional.’”

It all comes down to a question of what the league wants to be. As soon as that is clear, the property once known as the MISL can talk earnestly about playing again.

“I’m not worried about a timeline, because one thing we do well is put on indoor soccer matches,” insisted Hantz, “but if we [owners] aren’t on the same sheet of music, I don’t think that matters.”

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Post by wellington » Mon Aug 04, 2008 8:22 pm

Its nice to finally see some news. Although there's a lot to be worked out, its good to hear that the owners have not given up on indoor soccer.

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Post by bectond » Tue Aug 05, 2008 1:35 am

Baltimore is toast, the arena has a date with the big wrecking ball in the sky.
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Post by Pounder » Tue Aug 05, 2008 2:55 pm

A date, or just a proposal?

Thing is, Philadelphia DOES have a date.

I'm not sure that matters. These owners are too stubborn to get anything going.

Now, will PASL Pro get off the ground? Or should the indoor game die a slow, grisly death?
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Post by preeths » Tue Aug 05, 2008 3:13 pm

Pounder's right. Philadelphia's arena has a date, and Baltimore is just an idea at this point.

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Post by stuharry » Tue Aug 05, 2008 7:02 pm

But if the league formerly known as Prince oops, I mean MISL goes to a 16 game schedule as I had read about recently, I don't see why the Kixx could not play their 8 games in Wachovia Arena. Surely they can squeeze out 8 dates out of the Sixers, Flyers and Wings. As for the Blast, maybe they can do what another Philly team, the Barrage are doing right now and become a traveling team. This sport needs to test market other cities anyway I would think.

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Post by Fran » Tue Aug 05, 2008 7:49 pm

From what I read from the KiXX press release they plan to say in Philadelphia.

They will play in the Spectrum this season.

Next season they will play at arenas in either Temple or Villanova.

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Will they play this year?

Post by Panthers14 » Wed Aug 06, 2008 6:29 am

So Will they or Won't they play this fall? I would think that the MISL would need a commitment in place long enough in advance for all sponsors, television contracts, arena schedules, etc. to have a season this year. From this article, I have the impression that all of the owners have the attitude that they can put on matches without a league structure anytime that they feel like doing so since they believe that they are greater than the league; and that maybe so in some cities such as Baltimore and Milwaukee; but what about Orlando? Hale may think that the Blast can just schedule games with anybody in indoor soccer like Manchester United or Celtic now do in non-league games outdoors; but I disagree. The Blast are a great team, but what made them great were the fact that they were part of something more important...and yes, that did include the bottom feeders such as Orlando. The article leaves me with the impression that the current ownership in the MISL has no sense of urgency to resolve their issues and that this venture is Dead. They can just pretend that their franchises never really folded. Remember the USFL? Well, they never really closed up shop. They just never had a fourth season. Will this be the case with the current MISL? I hope not, but as time lapses, so does the hope of ever putting on a show again! I get the impression that the owners motivations and goals have changed. What happend to having a stable and profitable venture that will grow from a regional sport to a national sport as it once was in the mid-1980's? Until the MISL can sustain stability and grow beyond the Bus League that is now envisioned, then they can not expect a major network to offer serious coverage. Maybe they can talk ESPN to buy into them as ESPN has done with Arena Football to help grow the sport, but I do not see this happening without stability and a consensious among all ownership groups. The sad fact is that few people are now following this situation as the Summer moves into FOOTBALL SEASON. Need I say MOOOORE!!!!!!! Go OHIO STATE!!!

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Post by wellington » Thu Aug 07, 2008 1:39 pm

Yeah. The 'league' seem to be floundering at the moment with no sense of direction. They'll probably end up playing a shortened season this winter and try to regroup. The arena issues along with the struggling economy only make things more complicated. A 'bus league' is probably a good thing at this point -- its better than the alternative -- no league.

The verdict is still out on PASL-Pro, but its possible that 2-3 strong markets could emerge from this league. In a few years, we may see some of these teams eventually merge with what's left of the remaining MISL teams.

In general, I think for indoor soccer to survive teams need to take a page from the MLS gameplan. Teams should partner up with minor league hockey teams/indoor football/indoor lacrosse and build their own 4,000-5,000 seat arenas. Its going to require a major investment, but without their own facilities its going to be tough for indoor to survive.

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