Gabriel Brener acquires AEG’s interests in Houston Dynamo, BBVA Compass Stadium and Houston Dash MLS Soccer This is officially the first day ever when MLS can say that every team in MLS has a different ownership group.
Here's the Houston Chronicle take: http://www.chron.com/sports/dynamo/...exican-businessman-Gabriel-Brener-6700348.php
This will probably go down as one of the quietest big milestones in MLS history, and I'm OK with that.
After the Chivas problems, I'm curious why anyone in Mexico would want to own an MLS team. Is he super-rich? Otherwise, I see This sale as going from a huge corporation to a businessman with probably not very deep pockets and a lot of micro-management. Could be a repeat of Chivas or the new RSL. Could be a disaster?
Why would Chivas USA have anything to do with a Mexican investing in another club? Vergara is a crap owner of the Guadalajara club as well. And exactly what disaster at RSL?
This is very different from Chivas USA. Brener himself is a billionaire whom has part-owned the Dynamo since 2008, owns no other sports franchises and is simply acquiring a majority stake in the franchise to have have a bigger say, as essentially he puts it today. In the previous ownership setup, Brener was by far the most engaged (even routinely flying in from LA to attend home matches) compared to AEG & De La Hoya. A Brener-led ownership group was the best case scenario the franchise could possibly hope for and IMO, gives us the brightest future possible. Side note: Ben Guill (whom is also buying into the Dynamo ownership group) is also a minority owner in the Astros, our next door neighbor.
Honestly, I don't know. Way too early to tell but it seems at the moment like it's a good thing. The question is whether Brener is serious about taking the Dynamo to the next level or will just try to leave the team idle like AEG did. Will he invest in DP that compete in name recognition and skill as the Galaxy, Toronto, even Montreal? Will he add amenities to the stadium? Will the players FINALLY sit in professional soccer seats and not some basic metal benches? What will be his business model to improve the product? Will he be engaged and become Houston's Merritt Paulson? Too many questions left unanswered, but it all depends on how hungry the new ownership group is to trying to win.
Gotta appreciate everything AEG did (and tried to do) for this team. Now time to see what Mr Brenner can do. Hopefully he can find a way to push Oscar out as he's been dead weight since Day 1 (he's the owner that should get everyone upset...only in it for the increase in value, nothing else).
Dynamo "arrives" (now) with something very important that CUSA didn't have (or was unwilling to fully pursue) -- their own soccer venue in the market. Acquiring the stadium is just as (if not more) important as in acquiring the controlling/majority interest in the MLS franchise and SUM shares.
Can a Houston fan comment on how he's been as a minority owner? Over the years I've seen comments from AEG that the lack of spending on "big players" in Houston was because the minority owners were not willing to pay their share. I'm sure some of that is AEG blowing smoke, but if that is even remotely true, hopefully there is a change of heart.
Players want amenities. Good amenities will help attract good (better) players. Perception is important. Nobody wants to be playing (long term) in a baseball stadium or in a stadium with cheap bleacher benches for the players and sideline staff.
Not saying there isn't value to having fancy sideline seats, but its really not something I see any reason for fans to get worked up over. In the very long litany of things that KSE has fouled up while running the Rapids the fact that "the bench" still sits on a bench never even occurred to me to be listed. Its a complete non-issue IMO and I can't imagine its much of an issue for a player either (On its own. As a symbol for lack of player amenities maybe).
I'm not sure anyone was worked up over it. Although the all caps "FINALLY" could probably be read in a few ways. I thought it was an insightful comment and point that could be indicative as to the level of possible future involvement/commitment by the new majority ownership (relative to what AEG was doing with the Dynamo as their second club). ymmv
What exactly is a "professional soccer seat" as mentioned by @flippin269 above? Is this one of those "it should be like those in England" deals? Cause I've watched soccer games from all over the world, and it seems to me the places players sit when not in the game varies very widely.
We don't know. We've heard the minority owner roadblock story before too. Brener showed up at games more than De La Hoya and Anschutz. His brother, Alfredo Brener, owns grocery store chains among other things and is based here in Houston so there is more of a connection. Alfredo was even part owner of the old Houston Hotshots indoor soccer team back in the 80s. There is a lot of suspicion that De La Hoya was the roadblock mostly, I think, because he has the least amount of money. And he never showed up for anything. De La Hoya still owns 25% so if that is a roadblock then it still around. It could also have been that he and Brener didn't want to spend a lot of money to make the team more expensive. Now that Brener controls the team that may change.