Portland Power??? (or an All-Star game)

[nsa]

WUSA NEWS ADVISORY

MAJOR SOCCER ANNOUNCEMENT TO TAKE PLACE
IN PORTLAND ON MONDAY, JULY 29 AT 11:30 AM
- Portland Family Entertainment and WUSA Executives Will Unveil Plans -

ATLANTA (Friday, July 26, 2002) - The Women's United Soccer Association and Portland Family Entertainment will announce a new soccer initiative on Monday, July 29 at 11:30 a.m. PT. A brief overview follows:

WHAT: News conference announcing new soccer initiative in Portland

WHEN: Monday, July 29, 2002 11:30 am PT

WHO: WUSA Commissioner Tony DiCicco - Head coach of the 1999 Women's World Cup champions and 1996 Olympic gold medallists
Portland Family Entertainment President Mark Schuster
WUSA players - TBD

[FearM9]

I just got this too.

Let the speculation begin.

Portland is only an 8 hour drive from Happy Fluffy Town!

[númerodez]

Expansion or relocation of New York? Hmmmm. "Portland Power" IS nicely alliterative.

[piper]

OMG. :D

I would be the happiest girl in Portland if we got a team!!!!!!!!

[FearM9]

Portland Family Entertainment:

http://www.pgepark.com/about.shtml

Portland Family Entertainment Limited Partnership (PFE) is a professional sports team and entertainment facility management company. Established in 1998 and headquartered in downtown Portland, Ore., the company owns and operates the Triple-A Baseball Portland Beavers, A-League Soccer Portland Timbers and Single-A Baseball Tri-City (WA) Dust Devils. In a public-private partnership with the City of Portland, PFE is overseeing a $38.5 million renovation of PGE Park.

In addition to being home of the Portland Timbers, PGE Park also hosted Chivas v Cruz Azul on July 7th.

CHIVAS TOUR COMES TO PORTLAND
Famed Mexican professional team to take on Cruz Azul Sunday, July 7 in World Class soccer match at PGE Park

June 18, 2002

PORTLAND, Ore. - Portland Family Entertainment, Lotus Satellite Network and Portland Oregon Sports Authority announced today that a World Class international soccer match between Chivas of Guadalajara and Cruz Azul of Mexico City will be played at PGE Park on Sunday, July 7 at 1 p.m.

The match is part of the Chivas preseason tour of select U.S. cities. The tour begins in Los Angeles.

“PFE is thrilled to play host to such a world class soccer match featuring two of the top teams in Mexico,” said Jim Taylor, general manager of the Timbers. “It’s especially rewarding in that it’s a World Cup year and fans will be seeing players that played with the Mexican National Team.”

Tickets for the match go on sale at PGE Park on Friday, June 21 at 9 a.m. On that date, tickets will be made available at PGE Park in addition to all Portland-area Ticketmaster outlets, including select Fred Meyer and G.I. Joe’s locations. Tickets are also available by calling Ticketmaster at (503) 224-4400 or on-line at www.ticketmaster.com .

Tickets are $30 in advance for adults and $35 at the door. Kids tickets (4-12) are $15. Kids three and under are admitted free of charge.

"As Mayor, I am delighted that Portland will play host to such a major international soccer match,” said Portland Mayor Vera Katz. “PGE Park is a wonderful place to watch soccer and this game is sure to bring great excitement to the Rose City."

Representatives from PFE, Portland Timbers, Hispanic Metropolitan Chamber, Portland-Guadalajara Sister City Association, Mexican Consulate and POSA were on hand to make Tuesday’s announcement.

"The Sports Authority is ecstatic to bring world-class soccer and the famed Las Chivas club to Portland," said Drew Mahalic, executive director of Portland Oregon Sports Authority.

The Chivas team was founded in 1906 by Don Gregorio Orozco and has traditionally been one of the most successful teams in Mexico’s Premier soccer league - claiming 10 national championship titles - and has a large fan base around the world. Cruz Azul was founded in 1927 and was called “la maquina cementera de el Cruz Azul.” The team has acquired six national championship titles.

“We are delighted with the progress of the preseason Chivas tour,” said Jim Kalmenson, president/CEO of Lotus Satellite Network. “We are delighted to be brining the tour to the Portland market and expect a great match between two amazing teams.”

Select members of both teams represented the Mexican National Team in this year’s World Cup.

"As is many countries of the world, soccer in Mexico is not just a sport, it's a way of life," said Frank Garcia Jr., president of Portland-Guadalajara Sister City Association.

“By bringing Las Chivas, the most popular Mexican soccer team, to PGE Park, we are strengthening and supporting our diverse communities,” said Clara Padilla-Andrews, president of the Hispanic Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce. “ I want to encourage everyone to come share in the culture and atmosphere of Mexican soccer.”

[M9fanatic]

Well it makes sense given that they have two fans in NY. Millie I bet is excited.

You know Chicago would roll out the red carpet for a new team. We love our teams.

[piper]

You know, as much as I want this to happen. I'm gonna feel bad for the fans who loyally make it to the Power games. :(

But I WANT A WUSA TEAM! :D

[DennisM]

While it would be good for Portland to have a WUSA team, I hope that they do not get one before a team in the midwest gets one. All of our teams are less than 200 miles from an ocean. We should build up support in places like Chicago, Kansas City, St.Louis, Dallas even. I just think the women's game will suffer if we ignore such a large part of the fan base in this country.

[númerodez]

It's an inspired move on several levels. Millie is wasted in NY, but will be a huge draw in Portland, and the Power also have UP alumni Baumgardt and McIntosh. There are also several strong UP players graduating this year, and the Power is in a position to draft Aly Wagner, who is well known to WCC followers. If the Portland Power can add Michelle French to their roster (trade for Christie Pearce?), marketing should be a piece of cake. It will also help equalize the East-West coast travel factor.

This should put to rest rumors of the league's premature demise.

[cachundo]

Originally posted by M9fanatic
You know Chicago would roll out the red carpet for a new team. We love our teams. I suspect it has something to do with the Fed being based in chicago?

[cachundo]

Portland Family Entertainment Limited Partnership (PFE) is a professional sports team and entertainment facility management company. If the speculation turns out to be true, then this news is good more ways than one. This might mean Woosa is amenable for other entities to buy in. Woosa burned up $40 mil to get this whole thing started that it would be difficult for them to make it as a stand-alone entity. By having other entities buy a franchise, they get to spread the costs and the risks of a nascent sports league.

numero dos, pearce is damaged goods for anyone to take a chance on her. Someone also posted before that she just got married, so she may want to stay in the NY area. Maybe Krikorian can do something about her, since he has a knack for turning into gold someone else's garbage. But her knee and that 'nova rug may not like each other . . .

Aly would be thrilled at the prospect of staying in the left coast than playing out east.

[XYZ]

The Oregonian SOCCER NOTEBOOK (http://www.oregonlive.com/soccer/oregonian/index.ssf?/xml/story.ssf/html_standard.xsl?/base/sports/102569742464560.xml)
07/03/02 by JOHN NOLEN
A women's professional soccer all-star game will likely be held Saturday, Sept. 21, at PGE Park

-----

Is the WUSA more likely to move a team, or expand?
How can they not have a team in New York?
If they expand, will it be in 2003, or later?
If the WUSA expands, isn't it likely to be by 2 teams, rather than just one?

I love speculation.

[FearM9]

Originally posted by XYZ
The Oregonian SOCCER NOTEBOOK (http://www.oregonlive.com/soccer/oregonian/index.ssf?/xml/story.ssf/html_standard.xsl?/base/sports/102569742464560.xml)
07/03/02 by JOHN NOLEN
A women's professional soccer all-star game will likely be held Saturday, Sept. 21, at PGE Park
Also just confirmed with someone affiliated with the Timbers.

[piper]

:| :( :| :(

*sigh*

I'm grateful for an All-Star game, don't get me wrong. But I'd much rather have a team here. Also, what's the point of having an All-Star team here if no one really knows about the league? Well, we all know the Big Name players will be there. Might as well just have a fricken NT game. *sigh*

Don't mind me, I'm just a little disappointed.

Here's my take on it, even if it's a biased one:

I think relocating the NY team to Portland would be a great move. NY isn't obviously getting the attendance it had hoped for, and having players whom are UP Alums would be great. Just because NY is NY doesn't mean that they have to have a Pro Sports team.

[DennisM]

As good as a team in Portland would be, this is not the time to announce it. Not before the season ended and not now for the Power who showed what they could do on Wednesday. Also Pearce largely stopped Marinette Pichon on Wednesday. She is getting better after her injury.

[FearM9]

From my SA WUSA newsletter:

1. ALL-STARS PORTLAND-BOUND: There's been talk in WUSA corridors of
an all-star game -- a real all-star game -- since last year. It'll be
more than talk come September.

The WUSA and Portland Family Entertainment have scheduled a "major
soccer announcement" Monday morning in Portland to unveil a "new
soccer initiative." The news, several league sources confirmed, will
be that the league's first All-Star Game will be held Sept. 21 at PGE
Park in Portland, Ore. PFE operates the former Portland Civic Stadium.

The game will begin at 1 p.m. PDT and be televised on PAX TV.

WUSA Commissioner Tony DiCicco on Friday was en route to the West
Coast for Saturday's San Jose-New York game and Monday's news
conference and couldn't be reached for comment. League spokesman Dan
Courtemanche and PFE officials declined comment.

The league has been working feverishly much of the season to add an
all-star match to its schedule, and Portland -- Tiffeny Milbrett's
hometown and a soccer hotbed -- was targeted early in the process.
Most of the work had been completed by the start of July, according
to one WUSA official.

[FearM9]

The league had to fit the game into a crowded September schedule. The
U.S. national women's team will meet Scotland on Sept. 8 in Columbus,
and WUSA exhibitions are planned for Sept. 14 in Boston (Boston vs.
Washington, with Michelle Akers) and Pasadena, Calif. (San Diego vs.
Philadelphia, part of a WUSA/MLS doubleheader).

An informal all-star match was held in February in conjunction with
the WUSA draft in Fort Lauderdale. The South (players from Atlanta,
Carolina, San Diego and Washington) topped the North, 4-3, on goals
by Atlanta's Homare Sawa, Charmaine Hooper and Cindy Parlow and San
Diego's Shannon MacMillan.

New York's Tiffeny Milbrett and Kristy Whelchel and Philadelphia's
Mandy Clemens tallied for the North. New York defender Sara Whalen
suffered fractured ribs and a collapsed lung in a collision with
MacMillan and was sidelined for all of preseason and the first month
of the season.

No word on how the teams will be divided nor on how the players will
be selected. The WUSA hoped to involve fans in determining the
rosters, most likely through voting on its Web site. I'm gonna stuff the ballot box so Jen Lalor makes it!!! :o:o

[Chiefs]

If there was a Portland team, French might go there since Ian isn't playing her anyway!

[FanOfFutbol]

Since the game will not break up the season it is OK. However, it will be, as virtually all of the all star games are, a showcase not a soccer match.

It is unlikely that any real defense will be played and the laws will be interpreted to help the top stars look good.

Fortunately injuries are unlikely for this very reason so the game should be mostly injury free.

IT is unfortunate that here in the USA we seem to think that having these fiasco games is a good thing, they are NOT they just look silly to the rest of the world and serve no purpose for the players or the sport generally they are not even revenue producers to any reasonable extent.

The league would be MUCH better served by expanding the pre-season and getting some of the pre-season game on TV, on the sports chs, at least late night on tape delay.

I will, of course, watch the game if it really happens to be on TV but I still think it is a silly excuse for real substance and unlikely to produce any competitive or quality soccer and I VERY much doubt that any new fans will be created.

[thegoofy1]

Originally posted by FanOfFutbol

Fortunately injuries are unlikely for this very reason so the game should be mostly injury free.


Tell that to Sara Whalen from last years 'all-star' game. (Broken rib, punctured lung...)