From ABCNews.com: "On Dec. 7, 2010, the trustee representing Madoff victims filed suit against Sterling Equities, the Wilpons' investment firm, because the company was deemed a "net winner" in Madoff's multi-billion-dollar investment scam. According to trustee Irving Picard filing, the Wilpons withdrew $48 million more from their Madoff accounts than they invested." Here's the link to the story: http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/madoff-woes-force-wilpon-seek-mets-buyer/story?id=12788164 On behalf of Yankees fans everywhere, we are tired of hearing how Wilpon LOST money, and that is the reason the Mets can't compete. Sorry to jump off topic...go Red Bull.
So wait a second... I'll be honest I haven't been following this whole thing from start to finish, but if the Cosmos end up at the New Meadowlands how will that do anything other than split the RB fanbase? I was under the impression that the whole idea was the pick up the fans in Queens/L.I. who don't travel out to RBA but would support a more "local" team? Are they really hoping that a city rivalry will increase the amount of avid MLS fans enough to get an average attendance of 20k+ for two teams?
It shouldn't split the fan base as long as RB doesn't bomb it for the next few seasons.And yes there was the idea that theres an entire part of the tri state area thats big enough to build another more regional fan base on in LI. As for the adding of attendance because there are two teams, I guess we can look at LA as a model... Yeah, maybe when they face one another but not on a regular basis. To be honest I doubt that this would get much more than 20k a game for all their talk. I don't think NY2 wouldn't work, but I believe theres an over estimation for what they would accomplish simply due to their name. It'd be really awkward if they built a 40k stadium and only 2?k people show up on a consistant basis, which I believe is a much more likley number.
This thing could still play out in so many different ways but with the Wilpon/Madoff development one possibility moves front and center... the beginning of the end.
and on behalf of Mets fans everywhere, we all know in NY it's illegal to beat the yankees, therefore things will always be the way they are. We play with three outfielders (yankees need little boys to do their dirty work isnt that right jeffrey maier) . and when your playing in yankee stadium, assault is legal (isn't that right roger "batboy" clemens?) . and when your in pinstripes, you can have a nice dose of vitamin S with your coffee........ lets go redbulls
As a Yankees fan since 1983 I don't hate the Mets. In fact I think the Wilpon family has made a mockery of a proud NYC Professional Sports Team. So in my view this disaster and disgrace of an ownership family should sell the team and everything that they own with the stamp of the NY Mets to someone else, but their stupidity will keep on torturing Mets fans to no end. But whatever this new group tries to do to secure land for a new stadium, won't be at Citi Field since the Wilpons are now going to beg for a minority owner to help with their cash flow. They won't have any time to worry about a soccer team when their baseball club is starting to sink for no reason.
I can only visualize someone buying the majority ownership from the Wilpons, letting the Wilpons be the minority partners. No sane person would want to sit in the back seat while the Wilpons are driving the car.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sD_8prYOxo"]YouTube - John Cleese rants - Soccer vs Football[/ame] fast forward to 53 seconds. although i suggest watching the whole thing.
Funny how there's no mention on www.nycosmos.com of LAFC's break from their Cosmos "affliation." http://www.lafcsoccer.com/ I can see why a group hoping to become NY2 would abandon a grassroots project in LA but why would a soccer club abandon a sponsorship/affiliation barely a few months old? How many weeks since they posted a press release claiming their U14s were #1 in the nation? Further evidence they weren't operators, just sponsors (at most), despite Byrne's claims to have their u8s playing 4-3-3. What level of investment is there really? Big differences between operation and partnership, affiliation or sponsorship. Does Gio really have the influence in his current gig as he did when he was involved with our academy? Thanks to Red Bull, we can boast of having not only the best academy program in MLS, but also of having the best and most extensive grassroots youth development program in the region. But oh, Pinton can run his Cosmos camps again this summer, can't he? The 40th anniversary of the name release is surely worth attention but the claim "It is an incredible honor to be celebrating our 40th anniversary" sounds and looks awfully ill-conceived and ill-deserved. http://www.nycosmos.com/news/the-new-york-cosmos-celebrates-its-40th-birthday/ Could have sworn once I heard Pelé address us at Giants Stadium on the big screen, telling us Cosmos fans should now support the MetroStars. Could have sworn some years later I saw the same guy, along with Beckenbauer, Alberto, Chinaglia, and other former Cosmos march out with former MetroStars, all wearing Red Bulls jerseys. A shame a similar spectacle won't be seen at RBA, at least not for the forseeable future. But I think in the long run the Santos game at Harrison will mean more than the one v NY at East Rutherford. One marked an end while the other marked a beginning. You can't celebrate forty years when you only played fourteen.
Just to let you know Doctor K, clicking the link about the LAFC termination is on their website., but it's very true that you can't boast 40 years of living when 26 of them were kept in a closet. Collecting dust and getting shined once in a while.
DoctorK, google was my friend on this one and under "cosmos steal LA academy" I found a discussion on socal.com soccer or something like that. It appears there's a dispute over the nature of the program with F.cosmos wanting it to be by invitation only(?) and LAFC wanting more inclusion. Don't follow youth soccer at all so hard to judge how authoritative the discussion was. Also don't know whether F.cosmos will be in control of the youth teams they cited in their release. The tone of the discussion seemed to imply that F.cosmos really wants this LA academy thing to work. My working theory is that F.cosmos is keeping its options open. The desired conclusion would be MLS but if a viable business could be operated with clothes/music/youth development/all-star games that would be better than nothing and in some ways return Kemsley to where he started. Just a theory.
Yes, I saw they put some spin up today on their site. Very confusing. The thing is you really can't have it both ways. They'd come out and get that dust off at MetroStars and Red Bulls games and the former Cosmos would get the big round of applause every few years and with all the pomp and circumstance of ceremony we would celebrate the ongoing legacy in ritual fashion. That was done and Pinton was paid for it to be done. We've seen those Cosmos (now taking either money or the promise of future shares or units of shares) wearing Red Bulls jerseys, for Chrissakes. That's what we saw of the Cosmos since they stopped playing. Very interesting that Beckenbauer has been silent on this.
My sense is that Beckenbauer has mended fences with Mateschitz. He attended the opening of the Arena in what appeared to be something of an official capacity being interviewed on TV and such. Don't think he's breaking ranks.
An interesting theory that makes me think they really are content to operate outside of MLS. They can't do any of this "lifestyle" branding stuff as a part of MLS, anyway. And that's not just giving up the Umbro(/Nike) deal and wearing adidas gear. That would mean the Cosmos brand becomes the property of MLS - and paying a franchise fee to MLS to hand over the brand. I really don't think Kemsley et al. understand single-entity league structure. If they do, they either think MLS will rewrite its entire business plan to suit their interests or they really have no intention of ever joining MLS. Red Bull doesn't own our franchise. MLS does. Red Bull purchased "operating interests" from AEG. How does running an academy where there's already two franchises help you become the second franchise in another market???
For me the big question is how much money does F.cosmos have? Enough for MLS? And if not enough to hang on? I'm guessing they get the franchise or they close shop pretty quickly. The open question is if NY2 is more of a 2015-2016 affair can they sustain themselves over several years while building a stadium and waiting to play?
http://atlantasoccerblog.com/2011/01/mls-to-atlanta/ Many people have said that NYC expansion is dead, but it seems the league is still very focused on it.
Whether or not NY2 is a good idea is one issue. Whether or not the group who paid Pinton's ransom to claim the Cosmos brand as their own should be involved is quite another.
