Because we all love getting our hopes up...

[TheOtherBastard]

Something expansion-related on Wednesday (http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=357194)

[BulaJacket]

Interesting to say the least....

Only ones I could see with an expansion "announcement" would be Cleveland or St Louis (likely), Philadelphia or San Jose (less likely), or (out of the blue/unlikely) Chicago, Vancouver, or Rochester, so I'll be paying attention.

[Sirk]

The A's web site has a one sentence blurb in their news and notes that the Athletics will be making a major announcement Wednesday about their involvement in Major League Soccer.

[BulaJacket]

Wow.

In other news (posted in stadium thread), though likely unrelated to this now...
Don Garber: 3 pillars of the league plan and method 1. Hispanic market. 2. Youth Market. 3. Aesthetic: media, stadiums, broadcasting.

Stadiums.... Chicago couple weeks.
Toronto start 07

Colorado May or June 07

RSL hope to happen soon

NY groundbreaking (did he just say 6 months?)

DC some things in the works.


Expansion: Cleveland or St Louis is next. Cleveland close to a stadium deal.

New 8 year TV deal coming with Univision and ABC/ESPN. Both will pay rights fees.

One owner per team is the goal, AEG and Hunt are committed to that.
http://3rddegree.matchnight.com/thirdindex.cfm?page=article&show=19015

[BulaJacket]

San Jose Earthquakes look to be back again...
MLS Expected to Announce Return to Bay Area Wednesday
Sources: Bay Area Franchise Will Enter MLS as Expansion Club; Oakland Athletics Involved in Ownership

Chad Reynolds - May 23, 2006

Reliable sources confirmed to MatchNight on Tuesday night that a Wednesday afternoon MLS conference call will announce the return of a Major League Soccer franchise to the Bay Area as an expansion club. Major League Baseball's Oakland Athletics organization will be involved in the ownership and operation of the team.

MLS announced on Tuesday that Commisioner Don Garber will hold a conference call on Wednesday and join a leading sports industry executive to make an expansion-related announcement. Later in the day, a report surfaced on MLB.com that the Athletics are expected to make a major announcement regarding their involvement in Major League Soccer on Wednesday.

The team looks to be the third incarnation of the storied Earthquakes club. It is unclear where a permanent home will be erected for the team, which will wear the same blue and white that the MLS San Jose Earthquakes wore before moving to Houston following the 2005 season. MatchNight could not confirm that the "San Jose" monicker would remain with the team.

Athletics owner Lew Wolff, long rumored to be a potential investor/operator of an MLS club in the Bay Area, made a statement saying he would have the Earthquakes playing in 2007 on December 15 of last year when it was announced that the franchise would be leaving for Houston, TX.

The readmission of the Earthquakes as an expansion team would bring MLS up to a 14-team league. Toronto FC will begin play in Canada in 2007
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(more)

http://www.matchnight.com/matchnight.cfm?page=ARTICLE&articleid=19021


M.L.S. ON TV, IN SPANISH Major League Soccer will be back on Spanish-language television next season after an absence of several years. Telefutura, a network owned by Univision, will show 25 games Sunday nights at 8 o'clock Eastern. It will also broadcast the All-Star and championship games. The agreement is part of a new overall TV pact with ABC/ESPN that will for the first time pay M.L.S. a rights fee to televise league games. ... M.L.S. will announce an expansion, the league's 14th team, during a conference call today.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/24/sports/soccer/24soccer.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1

[TheOtherBastard]

14th, 16th, whatever! Just get us in.

Its always darkest before the dawn. Or before a massive tsunami wipes out the whole ********ing town. Too soon?

[eplnut]

It would appear that the expansion team to replace San Jose will not be the 14th team, but rather one further down the road. Potential new owners have three years to put together stadium deal, which appears a precondition to getting an expansion franchise.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/soccer/05/24/bc.soc.mlsexpansion.ap/index.html

[Big-Time Crew Fan]

MLS sez...
http://www.mlsnet.com/MLS/news/mls_news.jsp?ymd=20060524&content_id=60098&vkey=pr_mls&fext=.jsp

[BulaJacket]

It would appear that the expansion team to replace San Jose will not be the 14th team, but rather one further down the road. Potential new owners have three years to put together stadium deal, which appears a precondition to getting an expansion franchise.http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/soccer/05/24/bc.soc.mlsexpansion.ap/index.html
Oakland A's ownership group purchases option to bring Major League Soccer back to Bay Area
Lew Wolff, John Fisher acquire a three-year exclusive option for an MLS team
http://www.mlsnet.com/MLS/news/mls_news.jsp?ymd=20060524&content_id=60098&vkey=pr_mls&fext=.jsp
Well it could be the 14th team (and even 2007 for that matter, though not easy) if San Jose gets their stuff together quick; they do have a place to play somewhat suited to a MLS team (and extremely familiar with fans) in Spartan.
Cleveland is still a couple of years from having a SSS ready to play in (though nearing a concrete SSS plan to procede on), and not a lot of options (nor as good of one) to play elsewhere temporarily.

And yes, a SSS should rightfully be a precursor to getting a team.

[eplnut]

Link to article in today's San Francisco Cronicle re proposed new Earthquakes expansion franchise:


http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/chronicle/archive/2006/05/26/RATTO.TMP

[Big-Time Crew Fan]

Link to article in today's San Francisco Cronicle re proposed new Earthquakes expansion franchise:


http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/chronicle/archive/2006/05/26/RATTO.TMP
Hardly an article (i.e.-news). It's a bitter commentary by someone who doesn't have his facts straight and who hates soccer. It's more of a Rohrshach that reveals more about his personal problems than about the Bay Area soccer scene. This man needs counseling!

[SamPierron]

Hardly an article (i.e.-news). It's a bitter commentary by someone who doesn't have his facts straight and who hates soccer. It's more of a Rohrshach that reveals more about his personal problems than about the Bay Area soccer scene. This man needs counseling!

Ray Ratto absolutely does not hate soccer...he has a long track record as a soccer an, though not necessarily a fan of MLS in general. He hates what has been done to the Bay Area soccer community.

[eplnut]

Another MLS expansion related newspaper article in today's Kansas City Star, quoting Garber, in his teleconfrence of last week, that Cleveland is "close" to being awarded a 2008 expansion franchise.

http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/sports/14695409.htm

[ClevelandMark]

Another MLS expansion related newspaper article in today's Kansas City Star, quoting Garber, in his teleconfrence of last week, that Cleveland is "close" to being awarded a 2008 expansion franchise.

http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/sports/14695409.htm

Very interesting. I like what I read.