BIG announcement coming from the LA Blues…i

Well I guess the Blues announcement won't be about partnering with the Galaxy? Galaxy seem to still going alone based on the info in these twits.

Hearing that the LA Galaxy's USL Pro team will play its 1st game vs. Sacramento Republic at the end of March. USL sched coming soon.

— Brian Straus (@BrianStraus) January 23, 2014

Galaxy's USL Pro team, 1st of its kind, likely to be coached by LA asst Curt Onalfo, who turned down offer to be head coach at Chivas USA.

— Brian Straus (@BrianStraus) January 23, 2014

So Chivas USA then? The match made in hell. Speaking of Chivas... what a slap in the face that is by Onalfo.

 

Well there's always Chivas or one of the other MLS teams that have no partner. Not that the former is really something to be holding a presser about since you partner with Chivas you're likely to catch Chivasitis and watch what little crowd you have left disappear. Nice to see I wasn't the only one that read those twits as the Galaxy doing their own thing independent of the Blues.

 

Well look at it this way, both rosters could be completely interchangeable, with the same results on the field. Hell, they could just alternate the entire teams: "Today, the Chivas are playing against the USL team coming to town." Attendance would be about the same, either way

 

Well if your vibe was right not sure it'll be an affiliation then. Maybe they're announcing a new logo and their team self relegating to PDL. Or they new logo and that they've found a home stadium they intend to use full time. Or a new logo and a new marketing campaign that will involve more than playing and simply praying that fans show up...

 

What if... what if the Galaxy USL Pro team plays at some existing stadium in some other part of LA*, and outdraws Chivas USA.....

*(say Inland Empire or some other area where residents aren't close to the StubHub Center... I know there was an MLS website article identifying half a dozen stadiums as potential homes for CUSA)

 

Or maybe they are all going to sell Monavie. Or start making snuff films in a guy's backyard in Ventura. Maybe they're going to join the Peace Corps. Could it be they're thinking of buying an antique store?

I mean, vibes, man. Vibes are powerful stuff. Could be anything, really.

 

With the Blues the possibilities are endless. They've already show themselves willing to blow a ton of money for no result on or off field. Who knows what the upper limit of their insanity is...

 

@Batterybaudboy Nothing to do w/ the Blues. This is an LA Galaxy team in USL Pro.

— Brian Straus (@BrianStraus) January 24, 2014

 

Hey, cuts some travel costs for the Blues. They can just have guys drive their own cars to a road game or two. When San Diego comes in, they'd have Galaxy Junior, Real SD, Sacramento and (maybe) Phoenix bus distances away.

 

Indeed. By 2015 I expect USL Pro to have 3 regional divisions and unbalanced scheduling.

Heck, I suppose they could even start now if they wanted to. A 5 team West (LA Blues, LA Galaxy, Phoenix, Sacramento, OKC), a 5 team South (Orlando, Charleston, Charlotte, Wilmington and Richmond) and a 4 team North (Dayton, Pittsburgh, Harrisburg, Rochester).

 

I am hearing there will be an unbalanced schedule this year but not sure it will be straight regional division yet.

Still think LA will go with a complete rebrand. OC Blues new logo, et al. maybe new stadium

 

That would be absolutely hilarious. Of course it won't happen since Chivas will always inflate their numbers (like they have been for the last several seasons) to make themselves continue to look better. That said in reality I have no doubt a well marketed Galaxy USL side in the Greater LA area away from Carson could do better than the Chivas trainwreck. Hell LA Blues with good management could end up having more upside than Chivas, but that may be asking too much given LA's ownership thus far.

 

Sooooo, let me ask you this: how much better has Chivas USA been looking for the last several seasons? Their attendance dropped 36% from 2012 to 2013. Is anybody thinking they're looking good?

I do.

No, really, I do.

You're talking about a third division side with players adjudged to be not quite good enough yet for a team that many Los Angelenos already ignore. It's hyperbole, I know. Everybody pile on Chivas because it makes us feel better. If Chivas was doubling their actual attendance figures, they were still getting 4k a game. And a third division Galaxy side in LA - even away from Carson - ain't getting 4k a game.

The fact no lower-level team (shit, only one upper level team) in the environs of Greater Los Angeles has ever been successful doesn't make you re-think that at all?

The Aztecs couldn't draw, and they had Johann Cruyff and George Best.
The Salsa couldn't draw.
The Zodiac couldn't draw.
The Waves couldn't draw.
The Fireballs couldn't draw.
Teams haven't drawn in the Valley or in the Inland Empire or Fullerton or Santa Ana.

The Blues could have good management and would probably be a below-average-drawing Division III team. This product doesn't play well in big cities, never has, really.

 

Kenn, while their attendance "officially" has only dropped 36% and is now somewhere around 8300 a game, the reality is that less than 2000 fans are actually attending their games now based on press and fan views/counts at the games. And yes all teams inflate their numbers, etc..., but Chivas is back to MLS 1.0 level inflation of their numbers to cover the fact their playing in front of a vast majority empty stadium at this point.

While you may doubt it, I'd wager a USL side tied to the Galaxy can equal that if marketed properly. Hell if an indoor team in San Diego can double that, an outdoor side in an under served part of greater LA such as the Inland Empire could do 2k with proper marketing easily. The Ontario indoor team is already matching that.

And yes the Blues thing was hyperbole, as I doubt anything could save them at this point. Even if they'd start fresh they'd still have trouble in Orange County. And they've dug themselves a very deep hole over the last few years on top of that.

 

Yeah I didn't mean the 8k attendance number but the 2k reality. That's about in line with USL Pro avg attendance isn't it? I think LA Galaxy 2 in a decent location in another part of the LA area could achieve that, they will have more talent coming through (McBean, Mendiola, Haji Wright, etc.) than the average USL Pro team drawing those types of numbers. I think "they say this 19 year old kid could develop into a star one day" draws more interest than 28 year olds who are playing at the highest level they will ever reach... maybe these USL Pro teams will be like AAA eventually and you could even see injured DPs or other first teamers getting games there to regain their fitness?

 

Baseball isn't a contact sport though. I bet owners wouldn't want their million dollar DP playing vs. a bunch of part-time soccer players. They don't want a Falcao situation.

 

Gnarly.

 

Not surprising. With LA already having now 3 soccer teams, it made sense for them to try and differentiate themselves. That said, it hardly seems like something that required that "BIG ANNOUNCEMENT" announcement. Unless that's their "one more thing" I doubt we'll be seeing an affiliation. Same shit, different name.

 

Sooooooooo....not LA Aztecs, then?