No, the owners of the Dragons are creating a new professional team in USL. They may or may not keep the Dragons in existence.
Said this in another thread, but it's just as relevant here... Here we go again. Double penetration by the two leagues (USL & NASL) into a single market. It will get messy for one or both of them as it invariably does. In this case I guess turnabout is fair play. NASL dropped a team in Orange County, so now USL drops one in San Francisco. Question in both markets, which one will survive? Given Deltas struggles at the gate, their non-existent marketing, and their shitty stadium, my money is on the USL side. At least they're accessible right off a freeway in a SSS. In OC, same. I see USL being the winner there with the former Blues finally moving into an actual soccer stadium, being marginally more accessible (and removed from competition with the 3 LA proper teams (not to mention affiliated with one of them). And most importantly, having a real local identity unlike the new OC NASL team and their lame branding. All of which makes me wish the San Diego side was joining USL, not NASL. They're not going to have any California based NASL competitors by 2020.
Doesn't look like it. The nacent USL group that was rumored was supposed to announce in March, had a supposed investor whose since moved on to Mexico, their rumored stadium is now in the hands of the NASL side (Torero Stadium), and the last we heard from them was late last year. As they've not been forthcoming and we're 5 months beyond their desired launch date I'm calling vaporware/failed bid. Plus given the already announced Demba Ba NASL group approached USL themselves before moving on to NASL and were turned down because USL wanted to avoid the market until the MLS bid shook out I'd imagine the same logic applied to any other comers for USL (save maybe the MLS group itself). Remember the NASL group settled for NASL, they didn't want to be in NASL. NASL was their Plan C.
Dragons fold completely. No USL expansion bid. No more PDL. Nothing. Will the Quakes set up a U-23 deal with another PDL team? SF City? The proposed stadium in Burlingame without parking, forcing most attendees to take a shuttle, was bound to fail. Temporary digs at AT&T Park? Kind of out there. Oh well. I had fun supporting the Dragons. Remember the Victory? The Redwood City Ruckus? Shake up the dust bin. http://www.nbcsports.com/bayarea/earthquakes/quakes-affiliate-folds-withdraws-usl-bid
Wow, they were ambitious, and a bit crazy, weren't they. Seems they moved off the original plan of a modular stadium in Burlingame and wanted to play at AT&T Park? I mean it's a great location no doubt (one of the best in SF). But even their target of 5,000 fans a game would have been swallowed up in 42,000 seat baseball park. And the cost to rent AT&T could not have been cheap. Seems a bit TOO ambitious for a USL side. And it's now done them in apparently. Guess that's one knock against the Deltas gone... no new USL competition. Of course they have their own other issues to contend with like losing D2 status, still no fans, still playing at Kezar, etc...
Straight from the horse's mouth: http://nickswinmurn.com/withdrawing-sffc-usl-end-burlingame-dragons-fc/ I just skimmed Julio Lara's article before posting it. I missed that AT&T Park was going to be their permanent venue. Soccer works poorly there.
I'm using "Jeezus" in vain. That's the guy who always takes a penny, but never leaves one, never holds doors open for old ladies, will block a parking lane waiting for a spot that is 30ft from an open one, and is generally an IGMer Since he sounds like a total douche bag, I don't feel bad (I pulled all of that out of my ass- )
Two pages.........packed full of the answers to the questions you ask, over and over. Hence all the snark.
I'd say lock the thread, but with the Deltas likely folding, the illusion of a large, ripe SF market will entice another unlucky soul, ready to throw his money into the krakken pit of minor league bay area sports
According to SBI, the Deltas have been confirmed as folding after this year. Came out in the NASL trial today.
Looks like. Hopefully NASL and USL have learned a lesson about San Francisco... Somehow I seriously doubt they have.
Note they say, San Francisco Bay Area, not San Francisco. And they don't plan to start until 2021... Maybe, just maybe someone learned something. Like to take some time, market, sell tickets, build a proper venue in a proper location... We can always hope.