Personally, I'd rather let the free market decide which club survives, folds, relocates, or merges before trusting Tim Holt or Bill Peterson to make that decision before a single ball is kicked.
Clubs fold in pro/rel systems as well ... quite a bit. There are AT LEAST 18 clubs in China that have folded since 2000. Just in China and that's literally what I found in a 1min Google search. Of course that's not even getting into the merging of clubs that happens in pro/rel countries (the list of Asian defunct Asian clubs would grow if we talked about that). However, just looking at this: http://www.footiemap.com/defunct.php?co=usa&type=w I've got a feeling you have zero clue just how often clubs fold in pro/rel. The free market has decided/formed the system we have ... but you know, let's just ignore that.
With all of this said pro/rel in the minor leagues of the US probably could work, because the money you bring in has more to do with local efforts than prestige of the league. There is just this huge gulf between top tier sports and second tier sports that will just prevent pro/rel between the NASL and MLS practically impossible. Either way though I don't think pro/rel would save these clubs.
Unless he stated otherwise, I imagine Wilt was just saying "bummer" about a club folding and just happened to quote notorious P/R Meathead Ben Fast to show the news. Also, are we just going to let go the fact USRufnex called himself "reasonable"?
The "free market" is a pretty nebulous concept, period. As far as applying it to professional sports teams--even if you accept the idea that an ideal, truly "free" market exists--it makes no sense. The "free market" wouldn't determine whether or not a club had solvent ownership, or a sustainable stadium arrangement, or shrewd/savvy/knowledgeable ownership, or a capable training/medical staff, or better outreach to community youth clubs, etc. Another problem is that many people think that a "market" for something like pro soccer exists as a static, definable, pre-existing fact outside of the creation of opportunities to watch pro soccer. That the "market" exists in full, and all you need to do is tap it. Just like "public opinion", a "market" for a spectator sport is amorphous and subject to the quality and nature of the team/league seeking to appeal to it.
Photographic proof? I gotta see this. This might be WCW advertising Monday Nitro airing on Thursdays levels of carelessness.
Isn't that exactly what happens in the US now? The "free market" is pretty much the primary thing that determines whether a team moves up or down in our pyramid...your buddy Kenn has done some pretty extensive analysis of "economic pro/rel" in the US over the years and it's rampant...heck, that's more or less exactly what Minnesota is doing next year. There are lots and lots and lots of teams who have moved up a division to take on a bigger market and bigger challenges, or self-relegated to continue to play at a level equal to their market and ambitions without taking on more debt. The only thing keeping that from happening here is the feud between USL and NASL, and between OKC ownership groups in particular. (That's also the only reason Rayo OKC exists in the first place, but I digress...) And to be completely clear, the voluntary, economically-driven mobility we have in the US - and that you seem to be talking about - has absolutely nothing to do with pro/rel driven by "results on the field." There are tons of huge, rich clubs in other countries who are (temporarily) languishing in lower divisions on the back of a bad season or two, or minnow clubs who get lucky one year and then spend themselves into oblivion trying to compete in a top flight their market can't afford...
Rayo Vallecano sit 17th after stumbling out of the gate in the opening weeks of Segunda Division. I think it'd be safe to say they'll sell the NASL team if they continue to play poorly. Can't imagine a 3rd division Spanish team being able to run a NASL side.
In all honesty, I can actually see Rayo going to Segunda Division B next year (which, ironically, is the level they have been the most successful). It's amazing how, even with them being the most noteworthy of the three Madrid teams in Segunda A, they prove they are the worst. So, based upon this, there is no way they can keep this franchise.
Turf wars? However, per Jones, neither ownership side (Jones & Rayo Vallecano in Spain) has reached a signed agreement regarding using the turf.— James P (@James_Poling) August 30, 2016 Rayo OKC: This has ultimately led to Jones having 40 artificial turf pallets hidden and the majority ownership releasing today's statement.— James P (@James_Poling) August 30, 2016 Rayo OKC missing turf update: Minority owner Sean Jones has released a statement
If only USSF would recognize the NASL as DI this could have all been avoided. J/k. Talk about Busch League, geez...
I happen to have more knowledge and insight about this particular situation over the last 3+ years than both of you put together. http://forums.bigsoccer.com/threads/battle-of-oklahoma-city.1989234/page-3
Knowledge and insight? Be nice to see evidence of either of them, but since both character traits are very closely correlated with the ability to organize your thoughts and express them briefly, I'm not holding my breath. I don't think anyone else is holding his breath either.
Would you like to post about the subject of the thread rather than engaging in personal attacks on my character? Or is that going to be too much to ask?
Yes, I'm afraid it is. I started reading BigSoccer's minor league team threads because I'm interested in the fans' perspectives on the how and the whys of developing successful minor league football teams in difficult situations. That's perspectives, plural. One of the regions was Oklahoma (Oklahoma City and Tulsa) and I tried some of the threads. Your insistence on dominating each and every thread, your compulsive derailing of threads into petty squabbles where you just had to have the last word in each and every argument, no matter how trivial and/or irrelevant, plus your fondness (addiction, really) to Donald Trump-style word salads instead of posts made all the Oklahoma threads unreadable, so I bailed years ago - literally. I hadn't checked in for ages, but with the Rayo situation I thought I'd take a look and I encountered this doozy Why do you always have to make every discussion about you? Just give others a little bit more airtime. It'd be pleasant for them. Might even be pleasant for you.
Kenn is a selective troll. I am passionate about this particular subject, because of how it directly and indirectly affects Tulsa. I won't back down and be told by certain bigsoccer regulars that I can't even mention Pro/Rel when discussing this situation in a thread I started. So, if you don't like it, don't post. There seem to be any number of other threads in which you also have that option. Simple, eh?