News has been circulating that Francesco Aquilini, owner of the Vancouver Canucks, has met with Greg Kerfoot to discuss entering a partnership with the Whitecaps MLS bid... but he has also been sniffing around Garber's office about bringing his own franchise to Vancouver. http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/sports/story.html?id=45da8ed1-8d69-4e7d-8070-86c8b30b9ced For those not in the know,. Aquilini recently won a lengthy court battle concerning his purchase of the Vancouver Canucks a few years back. A pair of former business associates alleged that the Aquilini family backstabbed them during sales negotiations, effectively cutting them out of a partnership that would have given them 50% ownership of one of the NHL's most lucrative hockey teams. Aquilini does not have the most stellar reputation in this town, and rumours persist about his connections to some rather unsavoury people and businesses. He's also been landlord to a high profile massage parlour / escort service in downtown Vancouver for several years, although he's currently in the process of attempting to evict them in order to build condos on the site. Die hards in Vancouver will refuse to support an MLS team that is fronted by Aquilini, especially after all teh work and money Kerfoot and the Whitecaps ahve poured into building the game here. Aquilini is a business opportunist attempting to protect his hockey business interests through control of potential losses to MLS soccer revenues. Kerfoot is a philanthropist who has poured close to $10 million into local soccer programs and infrastructure, and who paid out $25 million for waterfront land in order to go forward with a $60 million stadium (the numbers on the stadium could be much higher given skyrocketing costs for materials and labour). If Aquilini teams up with Kerfoot as a minority owner like Steve Nash, the fans could live with it. If Aquilini challenges for the MLS spot himself, I'm hoping the fans revolt.
First of all, thanks Big Soccer for our own forum. Aquilini seems like quite the scumbag for all the reasons mentioned above. I doubt he is going to get far since Kerfoot has all the contacts with the MLS and is richer than Aquilini as well. I'm guessing the die hards would loathe going to Burnaby instead of downtown Vancouver. I know I certainly wouldn't.
My friend and I had that chat in the grandstands yesterday when the Caps beat Carolina. I think Aquilini is just trying to find another reason to drive his real estate prices up, and play "EA Sports" with club infrastructure like his NHL team. If he is to put up any money and there is to be a partnership between the Whitecaps and Canucks (beyond the same colour uniforms), I'm sure the existing ownership group will have him on a leash and just as a minority investor with a synergistic business. They're not stupid enough to let him have a major part.
There's already been an "Aquilini Out!" chant at last night's Whitecaps game. He'd do well to steer clear of the MLS bid, or he'll wind up in a hornet's nest.
I often wonder why I don't here anything about a protest coming from Canucks fans about Aquilini. You have one of Vancouvers most infamous slumlord and crooked businessmen owning the team. He starts out by raising ticket prices 11% and then fires the GM who was on the right track but just had too many injury problems on the blue-line. Following that he replaces the team with an agent who most of the GM's won't talk to in the first place. Then they have a laughable draft by passing up on Kyle Beech a local kid with a lot of upside for Cody Hodgeson who has little upside in my opinion. Following that up by drafting Yann Souve who we could have gotten a round later and has declined in talent and ability since he was drafted first in the Q. With the exception of Demitra the free agent market has been a bust. Sundin is nowhere near being the best player in the NHL and was not worthy of that money 10 years ago let alone now. Sorry about the off topic rant, I guess what I was trying to say is that he is a mingling idiot who has no idea how to run a successful sports franchise and just is interested in the money. We need an owner like Kerfoot who is interested in the sport and is willing to spend money to see us succeed!
RE: canuckred Canucks fans are a strange breed. For a sold out stadium there is little atmosphere, maybe its the guys who sit in the "Prices Negotiable" seats and leave 5 minutes early to avoid the rush, or the Craigslist spenders who SkyTrain in from the suburbs who spend more time at the Molson Canadian tap lineups than in their seats. I'm not against watching the Canucks on TV as I do a lot, but the ticket isn't worth the price of admission, its a weird atmosphere. Also, they're used to just accepting whatever weird management and personelle changes happen because there is very little consistency over the years in defining what exactly is a Vancouver Canuck, besides all of us.
It would be cool to have a cross-promotional logo, where the orca from the Canucks logo is leaping over a set of white-capped coastal mountains...
I want nothing to do with Aquilini. I am dead-serious when I say that IF he were to land the franchise (in opposition to Kerfoot's bid) I would NEVER support the team. Kerfoot single-handedly saved the Whitecaps franchise (which many of you will recall was in serious trouble earlier this decade), and he has been the best thing to happen to soccer in BC ever. Add to the fact that if Aqulini got a franchise, it would not be the "Whitecaps". I hope that Garber is not seriously entertaining an Aqulini-only bid, and I personally hope Aqulini doesn't get any piece of the Whitecaps pie. I hope Kerfoot and Nash (and anyone except Aquilini) are enought o land the franchise.
http://vancouver.24hrs.ca/Sports/2008/07/28/6285586-sun.html http://vancouver.24hrs.ca/Sports/2008/07/25/6267311.html Former Yahoo! President (during their expansion and announcement of official FIFA event partnership beginning with World Cup 2002), Women's Professional Soccer (MLS equivalency for ladies) co-owner and founding member, San Francisco Giants co-owner and Vancouver native Jeff Mallet is also on board the ownership club, which will likely help raise the profile of the bid and keep Aquilini's dirty fingers from leaving crumbs of the pie all over the place. I think an Aquilini-only bid was just a dinner conversation, and his involvement if any will likely just be minority as the Whitecaps will likely have this team of Kerfoot, Nash and Mallet with Lenarduzzi as club President for all photo-ops when the team is likely to be announced.
Also, echoing most of the sentiments here. Where is the Southsiders' "Who Ate All The Pies?!" chant when you need it most?
This is outstanding news. Not only does Mallet have the bucks, he sounds like a true fan, just like Nash & Kerfoot. To think that we nearly lost this club into oblivion just a few short years ago...
That Championship run when the USL ran the club was one of the most inspiring things Vancouver ever had come out of its sports world too. To see the playoff and later season matches packed to the brim for a club that might not even play again, amazing up swing in fortunes since then. Greeting them at the aeroport too after, I can only imagine what an MLS Cup or hosting of MLS Cup would be like here.