I agree that they didn't have to have the press conference there but they did and it's a bad look. I'm sure they looked at the other 3 reasonable option in with the Marlins, Dolphins and FIU and determined that because of the reason you laid out Lockhart was the best option. My reaction was that Becks looked disappointed because his ownership group had to settle with a rundown facility instead of debuting in a flashy manner at a place like Hard Rock (beautiful stadium btw). The Fusion were a failed team because they are no longer around. That's the definition of failed sports team. Whether it's the fault are the market, owner or MLS makes no difference.
Your original post implied that there was something inherently 'cursed' about the site since it was where a 'failed team' played. I was pointing out that if they had an owner with deeper pockets, they would quite possibly still be there. I've often wondered if Troy Dayak hadn't scored that header to eliminate us in the semis, and we'd won MLS Cup in 2001, they would have purchased the franchise from Horowitz. Could you imagine shutting down/contracting the league champions? I can't either. There were a lot of moving parts back then. Those of us that were here remember.
Hudson has echoed this in the past.::that had they won that game the team would have survived contraction. Also the league needed to reduce by two teams. It wasn’t that the Fusion and Mutiny were the two worst franchises. There were a multitude of factors (for the Mutiny they had no local ownership). The fact that they were both in Florida probably made it even more convenient to package them up together Regardless that was almost twenty years ago and a lot has changed in that time.
All that said I would much rather Inter play in Lockhart if Freedom Park falls through than a stadium they wouldn't control.
Soccer legend Ray Hudson attended the meeting & threw his support behind the Beckham group’s plan for Lockhart Stadium. @CBSMiami pic.twitter.com/OpeIiu18gC— Carey (@ccoddcbs4news) March 19, 2019 Legend
RIGHT NOW: Fort Lauderdale city commissioners agree to move forward w/David Beckham’s vision for bringing his soccer & a training facility to Fort Lauderdale and injecting new life into Lockhart Stadium. Commission will take a formal vote during tonight’s meeting. @WPLGLocal10— Terrell Forney (@TerrellWPLG) March 19, 2019 Finally some good news
I was on the fence before but after watching the meeting today i thought it was pretty clear that FXE was not a very competitive bid. That’s not to say they wouldn’t have been eventually given time. But their big sales pitches were 1. USL championship side 2: Top Golf and 3. Retail. Commissioners seemed indifferent to the retail. Top Gomf already has a letter of intent with coconut creek and the USL team is not guaranteed. That last bit was something revelatory. FXE has said all along that it was a done deal contingent on the stadium being secured however the city reached out and confirmed that was not the case. Reynal did not deny that. Pretty telling.
I would hope that Hudson, Rongen and Robbie all coming out in favor of the Beckham plan would resonate with those in Ft. Lauderdale that were for the FXE proposal. Those fans are as passionate as fans come and certainly fought hard for their preferred vision for the sacred Striker site...but the conviction that the former Striker players had for the Beckham plan should serve as an official blessing, linking the past and the future. Hopefully, everyone can get behind things and unite for the good of top-flight soccer here in South Florida. It may be called Inter Miami, but this is no doubt a regional enterprise. As a North Broward resident and Striker season ticket holder going back to the late 70s, I appreciate that. Buckle up and warp speed ahead! Should be an interesting 11 months.
I'll go wherever they play and I live deep in Miami. I'll even take the Tri Rail to Lockhart for some games. I used to go to every Fusion game and several Strikers games a few years ago so it won't be an issue for me. I hope people from Miami will make the trip to Lockhart and I hope people from Broward make the trip to Miami when the permanent stadium is complete.