News: Expansion Bid News - catch all thread

I dunno - I posted like 14 of them.

 

It is quite possible that MLS feels a obligation to Sacramento and has told the St. Louis group that Sacramento needs to be taken care of first. In turn, they would be part of the next round, along with Phoenix. This may very well be what the commissioner was referring to during the State of the League address last month, when he mentioned expansion past the current 28. I don't think it's anything to worry about, I suspect that MLS owners are already prepared to expand to 30 clubs.

 

The only reason MLS would feel an obligation to put another bid on hold for Sacramento is if the Sacramento group has finally landed the lead investor they have been missing. I'm not saying that hasn't happened for them, but if it has then that information is being tightly kept under wraps.

Dan McLaughlin posted an interview with Grant Wahl about expansion and Wahl didn't give any indication of new developments in Sacramento.

In fact, the only real "news" I heard in the interview was when McLaughlin said the land for the stadium site had been bought. It's possible he misspoke though, and he just meant to imply that the land purchase is in the works.

Speaking of wealthy potential investors, I keep expecting Paul Edgerley's name to pop up sometime. His involvement with STL has clearly ended, but if he's still interested in MLS then he may be looking to invest in one of the other expansion bids. Could he be on Sacramento's radar? Would the previous MLS2STL group have made him sign a non-compete contract effective for a certain amount of time?

ARGH - MORE QUESTIONS...!

 

Well appears that Sacramento is very close to announcing their lead investor.

https://mlsmultiplex.com/2019/01/02/sacramento-republic-fc-edges-closer-mls-expansion/

 

How reliable of a source is 'MLSmultiplex'?

I read that article a few days ago and the only source the writer provides is from a seven month old news story. The link for the letter and video from the Sacramento Republic president doesn't mention a new investor (or even MLS) at all.

There's no related story or follow up in any traditional news outlets (neither in Sacramento or nationally). It hasn't even generated discussion on the Sacramento expansion thread on Big Soccer.

Could be something, but looks and sounds more like absolutely nothing.

 

Dan McLaughlin posted a new interview with Jim Kavanaugh last week at Scoops With Danny Mac.

The only real news that was revealed was further progress toward the land acquisition deal. Kavanaugh though has changed his guess for an official expansion announcement to 4-6 months (as opposed to the end of Jan or the end of the first quarter of 2019 as he originally predicted).

I can imagine MLS may have told the MLS4TheLou people to slow things down so the group can build anticipation and hype over the eventual reveal of stadium renderings and further promote a future visit from Don Garber. That also would give the league more time to shine the spotlight on new ownership in Columbus and a new team in Austin.

Expansion announcements in April or May have been made by MLS in the past, so it wouldn't be surprising if they go with that time frame again.

However the pessimist in me worries that another more attractive market will get their bid up to snuff during that time and jump to the front of the line for #28. Making an announcement any later for St. Louis would delay the start of construction and push the debut of a new club past 2022. And while I don't believe that would kill St. Louis's chances (as it's obvious expansion to 30 teams is definitely on the table) it would mean that we would have to WAIT even longer to get a team...

 

In terms of deadlines, the Columbus owners said they were told construction had to start in spring if '19 for it to be ready by opening day 2021. We are tentatively scheduled for August (June/July stadium open).

In warmer Miami, MLS set an October deadline. And Austin is also trying for a fall start.

Do you guys have a temp place to play if things get pushed back in 2021? Crew have Mapfre. Cincy is playing at Nippert for 2 years. Nashville & Miami will play in temp homes in 2020. Minny just did for 2 years.

Oh, MLS to 32 is a given. So even if Sac pulls a rabbit, do not sweat it. As long as your ducks are in a row, you have a spot. And soon. 2021/22. MLS will want 32 teams by 2026 WC.

 

There's really no ideal place for a team to play before a soccer specific stadium is completed. Single international friendlies and qualifiers have been played at Busch Stadium, but getting the Cardinals to share their home with a team that plays during the same time of year (even temporarily) seems like a long shot. And the dome (where the Rams used to play) has not only a narrow field (not a deal breaker by itself) but also plastic turf and a roof, not to mention a seating capacity that is 3X too big.

 

Cool. Like I said earlier, I do not have inside scoop on how aligned the ducks are in STL in terms of being shovel ready, plans finalized, etc. But I do know the timeline for cold weather cities to get it done in time for a 2021 spring opener is spring of 2019.

Which makes me lean towards SAC as #28, especially if there is no suitable temp home. Sac has been shovel ready for some time (or have they started already?) and could have their stadium ready for 2021 opener.

You guys & Phoenix come in for 2022 with new stadium ready to go and a tad more time to get there.

MLS is not stopping at 28, and your bid and market are strong enough to get you in before the crunch at 32.

 

I wouldn't mind them playing at soccer park for a year. sell out every game, get that intimate fan experience, and make it a hot ticket. I think San Jose (and Kansas City?) played in a 10000 seat stadium while their new place was being built. Could soccer park add some bleachers and get close to that?

 

I agree I believe the timeline for St. Louis has always been 2022. With this in mind, I can see MLS announcing Sacramento as team 28 to begin play in 2021 with Austin. Then turn around announce that expansion will continue to 30 clubs, with St. Louis and Phoenix slated to start play in 2022.

 

This is looking like the most likely scenario to me also (at least with the information available right now). But if there's anything the numerous expansion efforts in STL has taught me over the years it's that there are many a slip twixt a cup and a lip.

 

Yeah, Busch Stadium would definitely seem to be a more obvious option if the Cardinals owners were a part of the MLS ownership group (like the Yankees are with NYCFC).

 

FWIW:



https://twitter.com/mls4thelou?lang=en

 

BREAKING NEWS!
Team #MLS4THELOU met with MLS Commissioner Don Garber @thesoccerdon in NYC to discuss STL’s proposal for securing a team.

Still much to do, but #MLS4THELOU has put together a plan that has the league’s attention!

Keep showing your spirit STL, @MLS is watching!

 

Although things have been changing recently and will again as time goes by, the best rivalry across the league traditionally has been San Jose and LA.

If and when Sacramento ever gets awarded an MLS team, I think a huge rivalry with San Jose , especially for traveling fans will develop.

Same can be said for KC & St. Louis when they come in...

 

I know SEA-POR is newer than SJ-LA, but DC-NY would like to have a word...

I also found it interesting, but for a slightly different reason... in both baseball and hockey, and socially in general, the rivalry has been STL-CHI, not STL-KC. So why pick STL-KC?

I mean, I guess I could already see two reasons...
1) STL is likely to go in the West conference, and CHI is currently East, so the suggestion is there won't be many STL-CHI games (though I'm wondering if that changes as MLS adds FCC/NSH/MIA)
2) KC is better than CHI and the suggestion is that STL would pass CHI outright and instead challenge KC

 

MOD NOTE - Edited - we are not arguing rivalries in this thread.

 

On March 11, Major League Soccer (MLS) commissioner Don Garber visited St. Louis to discuss the MLS4TheLou Ownership Group’s ongoing progress to bring an MLS expansion team to the City.

In addition to spending time with Carolyn Kindle Betz and Andy Taylor, Garber met with the other Taylor family members involved in the bid, illustrating the full force and commitment of the majority women-led MLS4TheLou Ownership Group.

https://mls4thelou.com/mlsmarchvisit/

 

he said, proposed owners Jim Kavanaugh, chief executive of World Wide Technology, and Enterprise Holdings’ Taylor family must nail down corporate sponsorships, and quickly, to prove to the league’s other 27 owners that the St. Louis market can support a team.

“It would really help their bid if they had stadium naming rights and a jersey sponsor in place,” Garber said. “So there is a specific level of financial corporate support.”


https://www.stltoday.com/news/local...cle_dda8b616-db88-5abb-b716-bc0b04731fef.html