I understand your point but I think you would be in a stronger bargaining position saying you have 1000, 2000 , etc. signed supporters behind you before approaching than saying "he we want to build a website and get soccer fans to take over the victory." In other words Strength in Numbers is a better bargaining position
I think this is a great idea, so count me in. You guys might want to get in touch with the frogs organization they might be interested in something like this you never know. Plus they have the money to help kick start this thing
Hey Folks. Its your friendly neighborhood chairman of the California Victory Supporters Association, Bruiser. Maybe its because of my San Francisco upbringing, but I've always had a "do it yourself" attitude. Personally, I don't like the idea of sitting on my ass, desperately waiting for some white knight to come out of the darkness and save my boys from the obscurity that is US soccer history. Its just not my style. What is my style is the idea of owning my own team, sharing it with my friends, and having it represent me and my city to the fullest. Its an opportunity that does not happen too often and we would be foolish not to give it our very best to try. Now, I've read all the posts about how its unrealistic or how hard it would be. There are soo many discouraging things to consider. Its so hard. Its so difficult. We need help. Boo Hoo Hoo. Nothing great comes easy. Besides, who said its supposed to be easy? Was getting through high school easy? College? First Marriage? First Divorce? First Kid?...You survived, didn't you? Life has always been about getting knocked around and fighting for what you want. That being said, I've fully considered the options, and I like the one I am going to choose. I'd rather have the SAN FRANCISCO VICTORY be alive and well, withthe name of every 1906er behind it. And I think a great many of you don't think we can do it. I suspect that some of you might even be wishing our failure. Come to our games. Give us a try. If you don't feel the electricity when the drums are beating, the flags are waving and the cold foggy Frisco air fills up your lungs, then walk away with a free conscience knowing you gave us a fair chance. But then again, maybe thats too hard. Owning the Vics is a very realistic dream. It is something worth more than mere consideration. And if you are interested, let us know. The first step is to join us. It is that simple. ~Mike "Bruiser" Alonso Chairman of the CVSA
No doubt about it. But there are a lot of assumptions/variables in the equation. How do we know that Piterman hasn't already sold the franchise to another market? (Fresno has been speculated to make the jump from PDL sooner than later) How do we know that some other investor hasn't stepped in and is willing to take over the franchise and keep it in San Francisco next year and we don't know about it? Who would we be dealing with? Piterman or Marcos (the USL boss) I don't say these things to be negative, just as things to ponder and take into account. As Bruiser stated in his post, you have to take action into your own hands. Got to start now. If the 1906 is going to be the driving force behind this effort, perhaps a meeting either this weekend or certainly before next weeks game is urgent. The next AGM for the USL is in November and that is when they will be doing all the scheduling. I am all for this and its been great having a USL-1 team in San Francisco and am willing to do what it takes to keep having a USL-1 team next year. Yes, strength in numbers. But eventually we will have to take the next step. The next step being action.
Bruiser650, count me in...feel free to send me an email, along with my 2 cents (literally) I think I have a background that could be beneficial to the effort and hopefully, the team when we're successful with what we're trying to accomplish!
I live in over in South Carolina, but count me in as well -- I'll contribute $50 to $100 to try and save the Vics. This could be part of the marketing campaign -- 'for less than the cost of a replica jersey, you too can own a soccer club.' Some things to think about... If you can get a large number of people together to support this idea, it opens the door for sponsorship $$$ as well. In the case of myfootballclub, I believe EA Games is matching whatever is brought in. Also, if you go the myfootballclub route, it does not mean that all the money has to be raised by the fans. Again, with myfootballclub you are basically selling a subscription (not a share) which gives a fan access to decision making processes within the club. So if 51% of the money to purchase the money is raised by the fans, it still leaves the door open for investors to raise the other 49%. In addition, revenue from the fans will pour into the club every season. Its all about power in numbers... its interesting that the myfootballclub model not only brings in a lot of $$$ (not only from the $50 to $100 subscription, but from merchandise sales), its also brings together people with a lot of skill sets/talents -- in the case of the Vics, this manpower can be used in a multitude of ways -- guerilla marketing/promotions, game day volunteers, etc. The BIG question is... how many people can we realistically get to support this project? Its going to be a huge undertaking, but its worth a try...
Excellent points. Before even beginning -- its important to have a clear picture of the situation... so we know what we are up against.
I'll throw in some dough to buy the Vics. I also know about 15 other folks into owning a piece. Sounds like their is a movement starting to form-I think its time to start the Victory supporters trust.
I'm definitely in too. I love all this positive talk. I think it's time we take the next step and really take inventory on a website of how many people are interested without publicity. Next step would be to publicize and try to get some sort of sponsorship. Then finally, with enough members, we can all pay some dough and get this thing going. While all this is going on, not afterward or beforehand, somebody should address the issues that some of these Negative Nelly's have rightfully been bringing up. -Who would we be dealing with? Piterman? USL? -Is this legal? I think the second question is the only important one we need to consider. But this is worth a try even if it turns out to be illegal.
The MLB Twins AAA team in Rochester, NY used to be owned this way too. I think they changed their model but as a kid growing up there, it was common to see framed shares of Red Wings stock on people's wall at their homes.
if you guys still need a website design i can easily handle it, contact me ASAP: aim-walkingcityrecs msn-antihighstbass@hotmail.com thayward@student.umass.edu
In visiting Kezar twice with some of my TA folks, I found the 1906 supporters to be some great fans, trying to build something good down there. Kezar is a good stadium, and the pub near there is fab for watching footy. I'd love to see you guys survive this, either by finding new ownership and keeping the team there or having you all buy the team and keeping it there. I know with some of our past ownership issues, the topic was discussed on our boards to have the TA try and buy the team. We got very lucky with our new owner, who may not have completely understood footy at first but is beginning to see the magic unfold this year. I've posted something on our board, soccercityusa.com, asking for thoughts and ideas, and perhaps some of us up here could help the efforts with funds. GK
such loyal Vics fan, such crap FO, I feel so sorry for you guys It's important we keep top level soccer on the West Coast, we need this USL-1 team in San Francisco!! A great cause, I'll help with the jump start, count me in for $50. The way I look at it, small contributions here and there, it adds up and up, suddenly bigger things come along. Bruiser, put me on the email list: rjerand@hotmail.com LET'S KEEP THIS BALL ROLLING. There isn't much I can do from Portland when it comes to on hands stuff, except send cash down I-5, however this is a great movement, and you all have our support up North. We'll try and spread the word.
I know you mean well, and thanks for offering to contribute, but I must reiterate our front office situation. No money, not enough staff. However, the staff we do have works their ass off and does all they can with the money they have. They've given the Vics much better publicity than I could ever give them working in their position. Props to them.
myspace page just started http://www.myspace.com/savethevictory site is up, just waiting for the domain forwarding to be set up if anyone wants to register right away, heres the direct link: http://www.walking-city.com/savethevictory/index.html
we're currently collecting member email information, should be sending out an email in the next few days with some more information.