News: Expansion Bid News - catch all thread

ground zero

 

Hopefully we get some more info Tuesday.

Timeline for starting (looks like 2022). Which conference. Stadium plans/updates. Logo/colors. Etc.

Or maybe not.

Still, congrats again.

 

Just because the MLS is run more like the NFL doesn't mean that Garber can't be considered a soccer guy by now. I think being deeply immersed in the sport for 20 years would more than qualify him.

I personally enjoy the NFL and watch it every Sunday. I pay that much attention to exactly 0% of other soccer leagues around the world. And I'm pretty sure I'm a soccer guy...

 

I think Kroenke can't be compared to Garber. One is an owner of a team he doesn't have much to do with. The other is immersed in MLS. I don't think a soccer league run similar to European leagues would survive in the US, so it's run like the other leagues in the US. Perhaps he just doesn't seem grass roots, but rather manufactured?

How is Garber irrelevant? What makes him not a soccer guy in y'alls opinion? Honestly.

And I think MLS announces their announcements so that people show up. Perhaps like the Oscars announces that one Sunday evening they will announce the winners of the awards. I don't know really, just a guess.

 

It doesn't mean all of a sudden he has a love for the game? Yes, that would be true.....if the guy was in the job for a week, and not 20 years now.

But don't let me speak for him. Here's the man himself:

ESPN: You've been commissioner for 20 years. What are your thoughts on being in this position that long?

Garber: I never thought I'd be at the helm of the league for 20 years. I continue to just be amazed that it seems like yesterday that I was at an opening press conference in New York. It's been a really wild, but fulfilling experience for me, both personally and professionally. I've devoted most of my career at this point to building MLS, and trying to do my part to grow the game overall in North America and even around the world. I came into the league with very little knowledge of the sport, but take pride in how much I've learned over the last two decades and how passionate I am about the game, and the contributions that I've made to the sport.

https://www.espn.com.au/football/ma...oner-talks-legacypoliticsgambling-and-liga-mx

You don't spend 20 years trying to build something and not become a staunch zealot. I don't know why this simple concept is so hard for you to grasp.

 

A commissioner who is a passionate soccer fan might find that being so will cloud his judgement. A commissioner has to see all sides of an issue, be fair, be logical and be focused on the goal of having the whole league succeed.

 

2005 I couldn't care less if soccer ceased to exist. 2006 got my interest, Dynamo,World Cup. 2007 I was passionate about the game, went to as many Dynamo games as I could, sat in the supporters section, stood and sang the entire game. 2010ish realized football was a boring sport. THAT'S REALITY! I'm glad I don't have to be as unbiased as Garber or deal with owners and sponsors etc.

 

at We will televise the MLS4TheLou news conference live 11:30 am on FOX Sports Midwest. It will also stream on FOX Sports GO

 

Stream is up:

https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2019...ke-special-announcement-tuesday?autoplay=true

 

#28

2022

 

#MLS4THELOU! 😁 pic.twitter.com/IvjlJKwjZI

— Major League Soccer (@MLS) August 20, 2019

 

From Facebook....

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While I agree his job to make the league succeed (lets be fair- we all want the league to succeed , right?), I guess then maybe if he had a point person, a vice president or someone who would be the total "rah rah" type soccer guy- the soccer face to the media, the public, our fans and supporters. This person should be the head cheerleader telling any and everyone who will listen how great soccer is and how great our league is. I think the MLS has a second in command- isn't it Bentacourt or Bellencourt or something? What does he do?
Don gives boring interviews, fine when talking to financial institutions and owners.

 

But "passion" is a subjective term at best. Especially when you're judging someone else's level of it.

And Garber isn't just involved with MLS either. He serves on the Committee for Club Football at FIFA, he's the vice-chairman of the World Leagues Forum and he's a member of FIFA's Football Stakeholders committee.

You compared Garber to Kroenke, so I would wonder if you considered Lamar Hunt a "soccer guy"? Would you disqualify him because his roots are in American football? Hunt was a college football player and was heavily involved with pro football his entire adult life. Yet he helped found both the NASL and MLS, his name is on the US Open Cup, he's in the National Soccer Hall of Fame, and two MLS teams wear his initials on their jerseys. So he's definitely considered a "soccer guy" to at least some people out there.

 

https://www.ksdk.com/article/sports...-name/63-ea2bcbbc-80f6-491f-81de-505bf58585fc

Here's an article about possible names. I like the idea for the St. Louis Legacy FC.

 

I'm very pleased to see that list mention Confluence ^.^

Legacy sounds like a great name, but I really kinda question that means of honoring the past in particular... It's almost like handicapping the team to never really establish its own history if its name by default is in deference to what came before. How many titles would the Legacy have to win to step out of the legacies of teams past?

(I mean, the pedantic answer is 1, since no STL soccer team has won a national league - the USOC titles are a different issue - but hopefully you get my point.)

Rhythm sounds a bit to corny for me, but I'd be happy with "Gateway FC" (no need to actually put "Saint Louis" in the team name in that case, honestly).

 

Since news of the expansion team was confirmed a week and a half ago, I've listened to lots of local sports radio, watched a dozen or so news stories and tried to keep up with what's being discussed on social media. And the most popular names among fans and media seem to be:

Archers (a bit too hokey for me, but I'd take it)

Rhythm (sports fans like the way it ties into the Blues brand, but I think after we come down from our collective Stanley Cup high, this name won't seem as cool)

Steamers (while I understand the affection for this name and the fond memories people have about the original Steamers early success, for me the name is too closely tied to indoor soccer. If we can revive an old name from the past, I'd love to see St. Louis Stars come back - you can even add an F.C. at the end)

Legacy (I could live with it)

And a lot of people like Gateway FC (or some variation) but I'd be shocked if the ownership doesn't insist on the name "St. Louis" being part of the brand. They've spent so much time talking about the new team helping St. Louis gain more exposure (even to an international level), that I can't imagine they would choose a something that doesn't include the city's name.

 

Fulham just extended Tim Ream's contract until the summer of 2021. That would leave him open for 2022....

 

It was a day that will go down in #StLouis sports history. Here’s to everyone who helped bring @MLS to #STL – and to many more celebrations to come! #MLS4THELOU pic.twitter.com/jl4XoOIU0x

— St Louis CITY SC (@stlCITYsc) August 27, 2019

 

There is a survey on the official site for people to send in team names.
https://mls4thelou.com/team-name-survey/

MOD EDIT: If anyone is going to make suggestions on BigSoccer, please do it here, and not in this news thread. Thanks