http://www.insidemnsoccer.com/2010/10/22/austin-aztex-likely-to-announce-move-to-orlando-florida/ Excerpt:
Re: [NDR]Austin Aztex Likely to Announce Move to Orlando, Florida Not quite convinced that this will indeed happen, but if it did it would certainly hurt not only Fans in Austin but might impact San Antonio and their expansion as well. Funny, *rey* and I had a conversation about the lower levels of Soccer in this country just last night and then this drops.
Re: [NDR]Austin Aztex Likely to Announce Move to Orlando, Florida I am not seeing this happening-at least to Orlando. They were trying real hard to get a USL team last year but the investors backed out. These are the same guys that couldn't keep the NLL Titans (who reached the last two championship) afloat with the best players in the league. When the investors backed out the team died two months ago. Their UFL team is not drawing anything either. This is just not a good business deal. Travel costs are a lot but they are on the right track with the increased attendance in Austin. Of course I have seen these lower division teams do some pretty stupid things so who knows?
Re: [NDR]Austin Aztex Likely to Announce Move to Orlando, Florida you know if we could bottle our football conversations it would make for a great radio show!
Re: [NDR]Austin Aztex Likely to Announce Move to Orlando, Florida That sucks for Austin and soccer in Texas, but as juvechelsea pointed out in a different thread, 2nd division soccer in the U.S. is in poor shape when you take away the teams moving up to MLS. MLS has cherry-picked off the best cities and if they really do fully fund the reserve league and bump up minimum salaries, you'll see the USL/NASL rosters take a further hit. I think the best thing for the USL/NASL would have been to serve as quasi-reserve league affiliates for MLS teams but apparently that just won't happen. I'd be shocked if in the last 10 years any owner has had positive overall cash flow during the ownership period of 2nd or 3rd division teams in the US/Canada. Maybe an oddball like Charleston or Rochester in a certain year or two.
Re: [NDR]Austin Aztex Likely to Announce Move to Orlando, Florida This is going to make our road trips to see the Aztex a lot longer than 3 hours!
Re: [NDR]Austin Aztex Likely to Announce Move to Orlando, Florida Man this really sucks. http://www.austinaztex.com/news/headlines/index.html?article_id=466 AUSTIN, Texas (www.austinaztex.com) -- It was confirmed today that the Austin Aztex have accepted an offer from a UK led consortium to acquire the Aztex USL franchise, which involves the relocation of the team to the City of Orlando, Fla. “We have been actively seeking to broaden the investment base for the Aztex for the past 12 months. It has proven extremely difficult given the economic climate,” Aztex President Phil Rawlins said. “Our first and overriding preference was always to keep the Aztex in Austin. But after we exhausted all our options this has not proven possible.”
Re: [NDR]Austin Aztex Likely to Announce Move to Orlando, Florida Austin is gone: http://www.insidemnsoccer.com/2010/10/25/austin-aztex-confirm-move-to-orlando-flordia/ Rochester switches sides again and also goes USL Pro: http://www.insidemnsoccer.com/2010/10/25/rochester-rhinos-announce-move-to-usl-pro/
Re: [NDR]Austin Aztex Likely to Announce Move to Orlando, Florida deathbeforedallas is going to cry over the Aztex move
Re: [NDR]Austin Aztex Likely to Announce Move to Orlando, Florida Austin out, San Antonio in. Win and lose for TX. I feel bad for the Austin fans. Went up there for a game against the soon-to-be-champs of D2 PR Islanders and the Aztex fans were absolute class; very very friendly. Let's get Needham from them. His wife needs him close and closer than Houston nothing else. We need Ds. The guy was drafted by DC back in the day.
Re: [NDR]Austin Aztex Likely to Announce Move to Orlando, Florida Man this sucks. My brother and nephew practically lived in the shadows of the stadium at Reagan High, down the street from the Nomad. Nephew is 8, loves soccer, and attended the Aztex camp this summer. For Christmas last year, I bought them a ticket package that included the scarf. They were certainly part of that % attendance increase. And now this. Funny thing is, the kid was born in Orlando, so he'll get to continue rooting for them, even if he only gets to a game once every year or so.
Re: [NDR]Austin Aztex Likely to Announce Move to Orlando, Florida http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/2010...antonio-expansion-announced-no-word-on-austin
The gauntlet has been thrown down in the chase for MLS team #20, IMO. Austin was supposedly selling season tickets for next year, and a lot of the "excuses" sound like stuff you would have known going in......we're playing at a HS, can't sell beer, don't have corporate boxes. Really? I'm shocked shocked shocked. It sounds to me like Austin was made an offer it could not refuse for the team, which can provide the Orlando investors with a demo to show MLS. The expansion route might have been cheaper but it seems like they wanted to buy the players, too (but if they are spreading to the four winds, Johnson to Portland, Alvarez trialing, etc., what do you really get?). Meanwhile the Cosmos claim to have NYC stadium funding. Whether either idea would be wise for MLS -- I'd rather have 16-18 solid teams than the EPL-esque 20 teams with deadwood -- they seem to be stirring the pot by pushing both stories on their website. Austin can now move on to their head games with Bernie Ecclestone.
Maybe I'm just tired but I'm not sure I understand who you're saying could be trying to get a new MLS team. Why did you throw NY into this? Are you saying Austin could be considered also, or Orlando? In the link posted above it also mentions SA, though it says the poor attendance in Frisco would make it doubtful any Texas city would get another team. It does say there is a chance FCD could move to SA, though the public relations disaster of pulling out of a tax-funded SSS could be hard to overcome. They also write that HS football draws better at PHP than FCD. That's sad.
The Orlando ownership group, in conjunction with the City of Orlando, mentioned a 3-year plan to get into MLS today, so that is where the expansion talk is coming from. Although it would seem to me that Florida in general is a graveyard for professional sports franchises succeeding - almost all of the pro teams there have some sort of attendance issue (except for the Heat this year). The Cosmos are claiming they have financing backing a stadium to be built in Queens. We'll know more in 60-90 days. Austin would seem to me to be a perfect city for 2nd division soccer in the U.S., but the USL/NASL deal is really a train wreck.
This sucks. I better jump on getting my 2011 Season Ticket $$ back! At least I don't have to suffer thru another game of throw-in/goal kick ball. ----- THe idea for the Aztex to one day get into MLS (or Aztex owners to) was never well conceived. Similar to the plan to be a development club that brought young players up and sold them on. Neither plan was based on a reasonable assessment of facts.
I have to semi disagree here. Having known the plans from before the Aztex PDL season, I'd say they actually made things happen faster than anticipated. It was never a short term plan. The original idea was a 5-8 year venture and I think with the path they're now on it could actually happen.
I never thought Austin was MLS material. Too small and rebellious a town to show up every week and support soccer. I have friends there who like soccer and never saw the Aztex. I think Orlando, the Cosmos, and a few others will gun for MLS team #20. I think the Orlando investors, like St. Louis before them, are buying a team to try and show they should be in MLS. [It bears reminding the St. Louis second division team, a sentimental favorite of many soccer fans, fell apart financially. And I'm not sure if Orlando has factored in what the MLS CBA, roster increases, and franchise expansion will do to minor league rosters. I'm not sure Orlando has it all thought out well.] The Cosmos are now waving around supposed stadium cash. But it's not LA, NY can't even fill the house for a stacked team, and show up disguised as empty seats for less-competitive teams. I'll be interested to see how the new expansion drive plays out. Is Orlando the new Miami, the idea that sounds really bad but has traction because they sound serious? The only remaining minor league city that has been well-attended is actually Rochester.
Sadly, Austin is not even close to being MLS ready. Phil is a smart man and he went into this with a good idea of what was needed in order to go the full way. I expected them to leave Austin , I thought Florida was the likely destination, but it still hurts. I wish the team nothing, but the best even though we'll miss having them in Austin.
this was the gist of what i and Offenbacher were talking about. too many unrealistic expectations in the lower levels of US Soccer. due to the unavailability of promotion/relegation everyone wants to push to be a MLS franchise. "if i can't play my way up then i'm going to buy my way up". this is unfortuante, because a stable pyramid is also a cornerstone to building a strong federation/league/national team. if you're going to be a owner in the PDL, USL2 and the USL you have to accept the following: - you ain't going to make millions. sht, the majority of MLS teams still lose money. - being united and pooling expenses/tv money revenbues (if any) is better than bickering and diluting the product/money. see USL vs. NASL debacle. - local sponsorship is vital. you have to tap into the local market and get some backing from the Gallery Furniture types in your area. the blame for all this falls into the lap of the USSF and Sunil Gulati. FIFA has recognized you as the boss of Soccer in the US. act the part and stop all this nonsense.