Whitecaps MLS news

[Rusty Gull]

Philly still flying into MLS in 2010

BY GREG DOUGLAS, VANCOUVER SUN
JANUARY 17, 2009

SCENE & HEARD: Those six ownership groups that have submitted applications to become 2011 expansion franchises in Major League Soccer can forget about gaining an earlier entry date should the 2010 bid from Philadelphia fail.

"Everything is moving forward in Philadelphia," MLS senior vice-president Dan Courtemance said Friday afternoon. "In fact, the county just today voted to approve $30 million in financing for the stadium."

After Philadelphia had been approved as a 16th franchise, MLS commissioner Don Garber said two more teams would be added for 2011, the first of which would be announced "during the fourth quarter of 2008" and the second "in early 2009". Yet the waiting game continues for Vancouver, Ottawa, Miami, St. Louis and Portland.

Courtemanche now says the two successful bids will be made public before March 19. The delay stems from the fact Garber has visited every potential city with the exception of Ottawa. "That's his next stop," Courtemanche says, "and it will happen before the end of this month."

[Rusty Gull]

Hmmm... if we assume that Miami is a lock, that the bids in St. Louis and Atlanta are going sideways, and that Ottawa is too dark of a dark horse... this would pit Vancouver against Portland for the final expansion spot.

---

Money is holdup in bid from St. Louis
By Tom Timmermann
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
Friday, Jan. 16 2009

MLS Commissioner Don Garber said Thursday the main thing standing between St. Louis and an expansion franchise was money.

"We really want to be in St. Louis," Garber said prior to the league's draft at America's Center, "but in order to be here, we have to be sure that every
aspect of Jeff Cooper's bid is solid and one of the weaknesses it has today is that Jeff has not been able to secure the investor who has very deep pockets.

"And that's not just to satisfy the league's needs, that's to assure that the team will be successful in St. Louis, that it can make the right investments in the community, that it can make the right investments in player development, fan development, marketing, promotion, both on- and off-field staff. Lastly, should there be economic challenges for the league, we need to know that the group can have a couple of rocky years. Right now, we're not secure that his group can satisfy the objectives so the team will be successful. Now, other bids have other weaknesses."

St. Louis is one of six cities vying for two expansion franchises that Garber
said would be announced prior to the start of the MLS season on March 19 and would start play in 2011. The other cities are Miami, Portland, Atlanta, Ottawa and Vancouver. The Miami bid, which has the backing of Spanish club Barcelona, is considered a favorite for one of the spots.

"What we're doing," said Cooper, who met with Garber on Thursday morning, "is continuing to work, as we always have been. We've got a gigantic project which requires a big ownership group. Like we've been doing for the past nine months, we're trying to strengthen our group. I don't perceive it as being that big a hurdle. I think we are close."

During the MLS draft, Garber heard repeated pleas from the Eads Brigade, a
group of local soccer fans who are sort of a fan club in waiting for an MLS
team. During pauses in the first round, they waved signs and implored Garberfrom the rear of the ballroom at America's Center for a team, including a song sung to the tune of "Yellow Submarine," that included the refrain, "All we want is a team to call our own."

[raggedy13]

Well, more good news for Vancouver then. Our chances seem to be looking better all the time.

[NetMapel]

I can almost guarantee you that if money is problem for any of the candidate cities, they will be out. Any kind of money problem is bad news for business. I'm sure MLS would rather have Vancouver with a semi-problem with the stadium (Not SSS) than Portland which is said to have money problem... that's just my opinion, of course.

[Rusty Gull]

... true... at the end of the day, it's about the money.

In Vancouver's case, it has not only the franchise fee, but also the government funding for the stadium overhaul.

[Vancity]

Originally Posted by Rusty Gull

Hmmm... if we assume that Miami is a lock, that the bids in St. Louis and Atlanta are going sideways, and that Ottawa is too dark of a dark horse... this would pit Vancouver against Portland for the final expansion spot.

Yep. I see Miami is a lock for one of the two spots for the expansion franchise(s) in 2011. Vancouver against Portland? I would take Vancouver over Portland. I'm assuming that the MLS would want to expand the game of soccer all across North America, not just the USA. Vancouver has deep roots in the game of soccer, and has passionate fans here. If Swangard was any larger of a stadium, we'd still sell out every game. Portland - I can't really comment on their bid, because I am unfamiliar with their soccer history/success. But if MLS came to Vancouver, that would be huge for our city.

If I'm a betting man, I'd bet Vancouver's in. How can the league ignore such a soccer-hot bed?

[Vancity]

Originally Posted by Rusty Gull

... true... at the end of the day, it's about the money.

In Vancouver's case, it has not only the franchise fee, but also the government funding for the stadium overhaul.

All the more reason why it's looking better and better for Vancouver and the Whitecaps

[cornholio]

Like i have been saying for a while now Vancouver "won" the bid a long time ago. Vancouver is guaranteed a team and there is NO competition with other cities, and there never was. Not because of the city(though the city is obviously a good potential MLS location anyways) but because of the connections certain people in the city have with certain people running the MLS. Honestly though I could care less, the MLS will mean considerably higher ticket prices for a marginally better product(for now).

[Distill3d]

has anyone here been to a Vancouver Whitecaps vs. Portland Timbers match? its intense. I personally think that rivalry could translate into something massive for MLS

[jlousa]

If Swanguard were bigger I doubt the attendance would be much higher, fact is it doesn't sell out every game now. The place is just in a mediorce location, it's a long walk from Skytrain, there is limited bus service (19 and 49) and not enough parking for the current capacity. Thats why they want to move Downtown, and aren't looking at another suburban location.

Anyways Go Whitecaps Go.

[Vancity]

Originally Posted by jlousa

If Swanguard were bigger I doubt the attendance would be much higher, fact is it doesn't sell out every game now. The place is just in a mediorce location, it's a long walk from Skytrain, there is limited bus service (19 and 49) and not enough parking for the current capacity. Thats why they want to move Downtown, and aren't looking at another suburban location.

Anyways Go Whitecaps Go.

There are other places that have a decent transporation hub. Richmond (once the Canada Line gets going) wouldn't be a bad place to have a stadium, would it? Maybe I'm biased, 'cause that's where I live. The obvious choice is downtown Vancouver, but if that's not looking promising, then what to do? just not build the stadium for the whitecaps? I'm not sure how long Kerfoot is willing to wait on the Port, but don't you think he's considering other viable options, other than the downtown location?

[mr.x]

Originally Posted by Vancity

There are other places that have a decent transporation hub. Richmond (once the Canada Line gets going) wouldn't be a bad place to have a stadium, would it? Maybe I'm biased, 'cause that's where I live. The obvious choice is downtown Vancouver, but if that's not looking promising, then what to do? just not build the stadium for the whitecaps? I'm not sure how long Kerfoot is willing to wait on the Port, but don't you think he's considering other viable options, other than the downtown location?

Line up into a Canada Line station would be 3 kms long. kidding.

[djmk]

i have to admit that i am a little tentative about this MLS thing.

North America has seen these soccer leagues before (NASL) with star power (Pele) which has failed. and i do not know what kind of grassroot support this league has and whether they can support professional salaries into the future. i also do not know the financial situation of the other teams and even if the MLS will even exist in 10+ years

also, BC Place SUCKS for soccer (and i have watch soccer in it in 1983!) Attendance dropped when the whitecaps moved in.

i'm just saying that this is a risk. USL soccer is pretty much the same caliber as MLS with just more hype. I am worried the hype will die and take our whitcaps with it.

besides, swangaurd has serious potential. it just needs more seating, better seats and more parking!

[jlousa]

Downtown offers the advantage of having 60K+ people within walking distance, ample parking for thousands of cars, and the terminus of dozens of bus routes, 2-3 rapid transit lines, sea bus etc etc. It's pretty obvious that no other part of the metro can match that. They are hoping to quadruple their existing attedance, they are going to have to make it as easy as possible for people to make it to the games.
I don't beleive Kerfoot has any interest in building his stadium elsewhere, if the waterfront stadium doesn't happen I'm pretty sure they'll just contunue using BC Place.

[LeftCoaster]

Word is Kerfoot is also looking at other sites around downtown, although quite clearly the current site would be his preference Im sure he hasn't lumped all his eggs in one basket. If the current site fails I would not be surprised to see them play af BC Place for a few years, but I would be surprised if during those years new plans for a stadium were not in motion.

I think Kerfoot has said publically that he is only interested in having the stadium in/adgacent to downtown, so that would effectively rule out the other sites discussed. I know personally I would be far more inclined to go to a caps game if they were downtown than Richmond, despite any transit connections the suburban site may have.

Also Miami is not necessarily a lock. Sure they do have Barcelona backing them, but most people overlook that Miami was already once awarded an MLS franchise and it failed miserably and folded only a few years later. I still think they have a strong bid, but a history like that would certainly raise a red flag with the MLS brass.

[Rusty Gull]

Originally Posted by Vancity

There are other places that have a decent transporation hub. Richmond (once the Canada Line gets going) wouldn't be a bad place to have a stadium, would it? Maybe I'm biased, 'cause that's where I live. The obvious choice is downtown Vancouver, but if that's not looking promising, then what to do? just not build the stadium for the whitecaps? I'm not sure how long Kerfoot is willing to wait on the Port, but don't you think he's considering other viable options, other than the downtown location?

Is there space next to the speed skating oval -- along the Fraser? That could make for an interesting, transit-friendly location.

[Rusty Gull]

A Whitecaps Stadium would make a wonderful "stimulus spending" project, would it not. I'm sure PM Harper could twist the right arms at the port to make this happen... especially because it wouldn't cost the feds one red cent!

[djmk]

Originally Posted by Rusty Gull

Is there space next to the speed skating oval -- along the Fraser? That could make for an interesting, transit-friendly location.

they are called vancouver whitecaps, not richmond whitecaps....

but i guess, swangaurd is not in vancouver either...

[mr.x]

Originally Posted by djmk

also, BC Place SUCKS for soccer (and i have watch soccer in it in 1983!) Attendance dropped when the whitecaps moved in.

Those were the 1980's....you seem to have disregarded the fact that BC Place is getting massive improvements that will change its image entirely.

besides, swangaurd has serious potential. it just needs more seating, better seats and more parking!

Swangard has little potential given its location.

[Vancity]

Originally Posted by LeftCoaster

Word is Kerfoot is also looking at other sites around downtown, although quite clearly the current site would be his preference Im sure he hasn't lumped all his eggs in one basket. If the current site fails I would not be surprised to see them play af BC Place for a few years, but I would be surprised if during those years new plans for a stadium were not in motion.

I think Kerfoot has said publically that he is only interested in having the stadium in/adgacent to downtown, so that would effectively rule out the other sites discussed. I know personally I would be far more inclined to go to a caps game if they were downtown than Richmond, despite any transit connections the suburban site may have.

Also Miami is not necessarily a lock. Sure they do have Barcelona backing them, but most people overlook that Miami was already once awarded an MLS franchise and it failed miserably and folded only a few years later. I still think they have a strong bid, but a history like that would certainly raise a red flag with the MLS brass.

I wasn't aware that the MLS had granted Miami a previous franchise (Miami Fusion FC). I did some resesarch and found that their attendance was horrible. They started from about 10,284 (approx) in 1998, and then dropped to 8,869 in 1999, and then dropped even more in 2000 to 7,460. They folded in 2001, when the attendance was 11,177 (site ishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miami_Fusion). The stadium they played in Lockhart Stadium, after a 5 million dollar renovation, held 20,450 fans. I can't imagine playing in a stadium where more than half of the stadium is empty.

That's pretty bad attendance. Another reason why the Miami Fusion FC folded after only four years of operation was because of a bad stadium deal. I cannot see Kerfoot and the Whitecaps renting out BC Place for more than just a few years, I would think that during their time there, they would be in the process of building their own building, so that they don't have to pay rental fees for using the stadium. Hopefully they do go and find another site to play (build a better stadium, if the port doesn't allow the 'Caps to build there) in, in downtown. I understand why Kerfoot and the 'Caps want to build downtown, it makes sense. Hope they just find a way to build.

I can only see Miami and its bid as something the MLS would consider simply because of who is backing them up (Barcelona). Could they ignore so much $$$ coming into their league? Personally, if Miami had failed before with a franchise, I would also be hesitant to grant them another go, but then again, has the market for soccer changed over the last 8 years (since 2001)? I hope that if Miami does get a franchise (one of the two spots for 2011), that they are not the NHL's version of the Florida Panthers (which for many years have not been doing so well - they are doing pretty good this year, however).