Alright we already have my NYRB, and for all intensive purposes we are considering that as an NYC team before someone says anything about that. We all know about the MLS Flushing stadium development and it looks promising. We recently have learned that the New York Cosmos will be financing and building there own stadium in Belmont. All three of these stadiums will be over 25,000 capacity and although Red Bull Arena never appears full their annual ticket sales still has NYRB averaging decent numbers. My question to you all is whether all if MLS proceeds with Flushing and Cosmos get their stadium in Belmont will there be 3 NYC teams? I find it hard that if Cosmos finance there own stadium with that marketability brand that MLS will not admit them in. This could be a ploy possibly by the Cosmos to possibly force MLS to admit Cosmos as the Flushing site team. There is no doubt that NYC would be able to support three teams in any pro sport. The rivalries would be fierce and I can hear the South crying already not to be left out. This move could rapidly increase the speed of expansion of MLS in the next few years. My question is could three MLS teams in NYC work?
New York has the capability to. They've proven it in the past with the Yankees, Dodgers and Giants. So I could see at some point in the future but not within the next 10-15 years.
Aren't the Belmont and Flushing site fairly close? Wouldn't they be fighting for the same fans? Please, don't give examples of how far Everton is from Liverpool, or ManU from City, etc. Not the same!
The Yankees/Mets/Giants/Jets/Knicks/Nets would beg to differ. There would be massive local pushback in all three sports if a third team was envisioned. Hockey is the only sport with three teams and the Rangers are the big boys in town while the others struggle despite multiple championships. Folks just got to come to town more often...
I could imagine 3, if one were in Brooklyn. Specially, in baseball. But if one is in Queens and the other in LI, and soccer?! No chance...
By the way, the whole idea to have ONE team in Queens is to be far away as possible from the Bulls. It divides the core of the fan bases (NJ, Bulls; Queens/LI, NY2), and let the rest of the city up for grabs.
The NYRB are a NJ team, the Cosmos are a NY State / Long Island team and the NYCFC will be the true and only NYC team !!!!
Let the people behind mls nyc and NY Cosmos just all fight to the death and see who will stand as the Victorious winning side...like in roman times...The drink are spared from fighting for the NY market because they DIED A LONG TIME AGO IN NJ......
If the Cosmos aren't NY2, I would not be surprised to see this stadium idea of theirs disappear, or be drastically scaled back. Just another ploy by the Cosmos to position themselves at the front of the line for NY2. They are just trying to win the PR war before the bidding war even starts.
Has anyone considered this may be carefully crafted WITH MLS? To your point, this may actually but pressure on a decision in Flushing as local politicians may have to crap or get off the pot. Once approved, Cosmos plan disappears and now they have first crack at the new team as recompense.
In fifty years I'll dig up my old comments suggesting 4-5 MLS teams in both the NY and LA metropolitan areas and say "I told you so!"
Perhaps, but it seems more likely to backfire than help, IMHO. The politicians that are opposed to Flushing can now just point at the Belmont plan and say, "They've got a plan over there. Why don't you go f**k yourself and build your stadium at Belmont and leave Flushing be." I'm also getting the impression that MLS is leaning towards a group other than the Cosmos. Unless MLS has been performing an extended period of head fakes to keep the other groups interested, whenever Garber is asked about the Cosmos, he seems to gloss over the question and talks about the other groups.
I only offer as a thought. The local politicians around Flushing as just as likely to say "look we are going to miss out on the private development if we don't make a decision." Similar to stadium plans where suburbs step up . . . puts pressure on the main city to make a call.
The Elmont renderings should be proof enough that though the Cosmos would like to be MLSNYC2, they know their relationship with the league is rocky. They talk in their proposal about developing and supporting Nsssau County. Their plan B all along could easily be D2 forever.
Except the opposition to the Flushing location isn't the development, but rather the sacrificing of park area for the development. I haven't been reading every article that has come out on the opposition, but it seems like most of the people that are opposed to the MLS stadium are in favor of the gentrification of Flushing, but also want to refurbish the park.
yes but the people opposing and the politicians are different groups. And the politicians would have to explain to the majority why they passed on several hundred million dollars of private development as opposed to spending public funds to redevelop the park area. Again, it is just a thought, because if MLS actually gets the stadium deal done the Cosmos deal is an absolute joke and they have to know that.
Cosmo strategy: Invest some money on some renderings and a competitive bid to MLS2. Try to look competent, despite history of not being so, and not being liked by MLS (for good reason). Hope MLS2 fails. If not, potentially either remain a LI focused D2 team, or sell brand and move on. If MLS2 does fail, push their plan as the only other show in town. Force selves in as MLS2 franchise owning the only SSS in NYC area East of the river. However, the Cosmos must know that they are probably going to lose a bidding war for MLS2. So it is interesting to see if they feel comfortable jumping ship if they lose that battle, or if they try and rearrange deck chairs as the fans depart and go to games in Flushings.
Could it be possible that the Cosmos intend to stay in NASL even with the stadium? I assume that NASL would allow the Cosmos to spend more than even MLS would and they could probably negotiate their own TV deal. In a sense they would be the Notre Dame of US Soccer. NASL wouldn't mind the complete lack of parity because it would be bringing a lot of money in. To most casual fans, playing the Atlanta Silverbacks makes no difference than playing RSL. I imagine most of them would rather watch the Cosmos dominate the Rowdies and Strikers than watch the Red Bulls mediocrity. They could still compete in CONCACAF by winning open cups. Just a thought.
Because what's the point in being a Rowdies or Strikers fan if you know that all you are doing is playing for second place? Not to mention, what makes you think that the Cosmos would be putting out a MLS or better quality club vs. putting out an extremely good NASL side and pocketing the difference in payrolls?
Well, it's possible. However, this group has claimed a lot of things but they never produce anything of substance.
If the Cosmos have the money to spend on a new stadium, they have the money to build a super club by CONCACAF standards. I think they realize that MLS won't let them in so they will have a go at it in NASL. I think they would love nothing better than to dominate MLS teams in the Champion's League and actually win it. Competition is good and it would force MLS to step up it's game. This can only be a good thing for soccer in the US.