Last I checked, you can take a bus from Charleston to other cities. Can't do that in Anchorage. You can disagree all you want. There are big differences from Elmira and most Alaskan towns. You are within 2 hours of many cities/towns. So why haven't you started a NASL team in Elmira? Seems like it'll be, without question, a success. Then whats your point? They already have such leagues there. http://www.socceralaska.com/index.php Sorry to bust your dream but you're changing your point. You wanted a NASL pro team in Alaska. I'm telling you that unless you have an owner who actually has a great deal of money, a WILD dream, and a desire to lose said money, it ain't gonna happen. Its all about being practical. I'd love for everyone to own a home, make 100K a year, and for world hunger to go away. However assuming it'll happen just because I want it to is well, dumb.
...Because I'm 19. If I'm successful enough in my career, it's my dream to start a professional soccer team in Elmira. Check back in 20 years. No no no, I want the avenue for a pro team in Alaska or Hawaii. I'm not saying NASL should grant an expansion franchise to Anchorage SC or Honolulu Islanders or whatever, I'm saying that they should, given the right financial circumstances, be allowed to play their way in. I'm not saying that this situation even exists now, but with the way everything is set up, Alaska and Hawaii are essentially excluded from the professional soccer setup in the United States, and I think that's a bad situation, and I also think it's avoidable, given what I've laid out prior to this. A more structured Alaskan league with just a few teams in the bigger cities, rather than that entire league in Anchorage, and some scattered around the southern/coastal part of the state would provide a set-up in which a team could, theoretically, build themselves up to be viable on the nation-wide professional level. Oh, also... Can't do that from Puerto Rico or Bermuda either.
Well, you can't take one to Juneau. I'm serious, the only way in is by plane. And it's a 1 1/2 day ride from Edmonton to Anchorage.
I don't really think that there would eb an Alaskan team in the NASL for the forseeable future. The ECHL's Aces do draw well and have survived for almost 15 years. Beyond that it would be questionable. As for Hawaii, the odds are much better now. Travel costs are certainly less and an agreement for the hosts to cover some of the travel issues might make it viable.
I could see Hawaii; Honolulu is a big city and flights there aren't THAT bad especially from the west coast. Alaska, no. Just too small of a population and too damn cold. When would they play and who would want to play there.
Distance from Antigua to Puerto Rico? Distance from Hawaii and/or Alaska to any other current D2 team? I'll let you google. And if you can give me air fares that are significantly cheaper, you will have convinced me.
St. John's in Antigua is closer to Venezuela than Miami. The entire country of Antigua and Barbuda has 1/4 the population of Anchorage. Combine that with the fact that the GDP per Capita of Antigua and Barbuda is ~1/2 of that of Canada or the United States and there is basically zero chance that a team in Antigua and Barbuda would be more economically viable than Anchorage or Honolulu. As for travel I'll put it this way. The closest International Airport to me in Pearson in Toronto. From there Air Canada has 1 flight per week to Antigua, it has multiple daily flights to Anchorage and Honolulu.
I don't think anybody is trying to argue that Honolulu and Anchorage are good expansion ideas. As bad as they are, however, Antigua is worse. I'm still not 100% convinced that the whole venture isn't a joke. Part of problem with lower-division soccer in this country is that serious investors were drawn to MLS and so the lower leagues got the leftovers as well as clueless foreigners, all of whom had delusions of grandeur and a poor conception of what's necessary. But lately the noises coming from the lower levels have been more level-headed and more rational. Hope. And then.....expansion to a country of 85,000 people? It's like the USL is parodying itself.
Get the Priceline Negotiator on the case!! Seriously, any D-2 team outside the lower 48 and eastern Canada (and yes, I'm talking about Edmonton) is a pipe dream (Edmonton's going to have a very tough row to hoe financially with the travel they're about to ensue). In order for Western Canada to work, D-2 will have to implement a Western division/conference wholesale, with team far enough north (Tacoma, Boise, Spokane, etc.) to keep teams like Edmonton from taking a bath over travel expenses (they say they're viable now; wait until after next season and see if they still say that). NPSL teams in Alaska would be a possibility (3-4 teams), and maybe even Hawaii (2-3 in Honolulu/Oahu, 1-2 on the Big Island, 1 on Maui maybe, and possibly 1 on Kauai), but they would almost have to be a division unto themselves, with only the division champs going to the mainland for the finals, and perhaps a play-in with the California or Washington state region for the USOC. The old NASL learned the hard way about having teams in Hawaii.
Just found out that the Barracudas have cancelled their games against the Impact and the Battery. This looks very promising for the 2011 season (lol)
I like this idea, although I've thought for a while that given the travel expenses of lower level soccer in the USA, perhaps high level amateur soccer in this country should be played in state leagues with state champs having the opportunity to earn their way up. My other thoughts on Hawaii: I wonder what the expenses of the Hawaii Rainbows NCAA Division I program look like & what they do to deal with travel that an equivalent athletic department like say Fresno State doesn't have to. Also, how do other athletic departments in Alaska & Hawaii deal. I imagine they charge students to support the athletic department, which is different from a soccer club, which has to be self-sustained.
Re: Respuesta: Re: Honolulu and Anchorage suggestion? Seriously? The Australian League? That's twice is far away as the US is. Over 5,000 miles. Pure insanity. Unless you meant the old USL/A-League, in which case they would need some sort of time machine lol. I've always wanted to see a professional sports team in Hawaii, but it just doesn't make financial sense, at least until they invent some sort of cheap supersonic airplanes. The University of Hawai'i is an interesting case. They have to travel over 2,000 miles, at least, to play any road games, and the other colleges in the WAC have to do the same to play them. The conference probably covers most of that cost. Considering the NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL do not have teams there for obvious financial and travel reasons, it's pretty unlikely a D2 soccer team would be successful.
Re: Respuesta: Re: Honolulu and Anchorage suggestion? The NFL could easily do it, they have a ridiculous amount of money and travel for a 16 game season isn't a big deal. There just isn't the right capital investment in Hawaii. The other leagues like NHL (rofl) and NBA are unlikely and MLB is just impossible.
Respuesta: Re: Respuesta: Re: Honolulu and Anchorage suggestion? yeah, I meant the Australian league. I really didn't know the distance. It was innocent insanity
Hawaii was San Antonio the year before. Of course, they then moved to Tulsa, and lived happily until 1985.