MLS sets second expansion-study Portland visit

If Garber is looking to expand into Portland, then he's not stopping at Fifa's 20 team rule. It would make no sense to maximize coverage in the US and Canada by putting in Portland. That said, Portland would be a great option. I'm guessing he's looking at a league of 24....which is overkill in my opinion.

 

I would think that at some point contraction might actually come into play as well.

 

20 team rule? There's is no such rule. It's more of a guideline than an actual rule.

 

I wouldn't suprised if this is all an attempt to stay balanced between East and West. To wit:

2008: San Jose (7 teams per conference)
2009: Seattle, St. Louis
2010-11: Philadelphia, Portland

Maybe?

 

Highly unlikely. There are no more league owned teams (which were always prime targets for contraction) and the only owner owned team to be contracted was Horowitz who never had the cash to run with the big dogs in the first place. When he was contracted out, the value of a franchise was probably 10 million.

Now, there are multiple cities that want in and the value of an MLS franchise is $30 million plus. I don't think we will see contraction unless the league takes a drastic turn for the worse. Moving is another story. I don't want to see teams move, but this is America and these things happen. With individual owners, that is kind of up to them.

 

Can Garber please just focus on St. Louis, Philly, and Seattle. Since these cities are so much further along in negotiations than Portland and others. It seems like Garber has a deep love for Canada and Pac NW and doesn't care about anywhere else. It looks like Seattle will be in and then St. Louis looks just about ready. Garber should work more closely to finalize these plans and wait for the next round of expansion to look into other cities.

 

A good businessman always puts all his eggs in one basket. Diversification is for **************.

Considering the success of the one Canadian side in MLS, the fact that the two other likely Canadian expansion cities (Vancouver and Montreal) already have a stadium or, at the very least, the shovels have hit the dirt, why not look towards Canada?

As for the Pacific NW, adding Portland and Vancouver would see a three-team "derby" that would be as intense as anything we've got in the league thus far.

Why? Strike while the iron's hot.

 

I hope this is exactly what happens. It will be so much better for both Seattle and Portland if they are both in the league - great rivalry. Not only that, it will keep the number of teams even and allow for a balanced schedule.

 

Since he took over, the league has added Chivas, RSL, Toronto and announced re-expansion in San Jose. The next two appear to be Seattle and St. Louis/Philly.

Two teams in CA, one in the west, one in Canada, one in the PNW, and one in either the mid-west or mid-atlantic. How is that showing deep love for Canada and the PNW only?

 

Of course, if he were to go with Philly/NY in 2010-2011, then he could move K.C. back out West and all would be well. But this is probably a moot point, since MLS might be in a single table by then. After all at 16+ teams, each team would logically play all others home and away and if that is the case, then it would make no sense to have conferences. And hey, you never know, we could see Portland/NY in 2010-2011.

 

Actually, Portland is arguably farther along than all of them -- or any potential site. Portland already has a properly sized stadium, in a great location, and run by the owner of the Timbers. Yes, it needs some renovations, but that's much easier than build a new stadium from scratch. Given, say, a year's lead time, Portland could quite easily start their first MLS season in a permanent home in a team-run SSS.

 

If St. Louis joins the league, I don't think they'd want to split St. Louis and KC into different conferences if they are planning to keep a conference/unbalanced schedule format (which I believe they will retain despite the desire by many here for a single table/balanced schedule).

 

Without going into detail to those who haven't been to Portland - it would be a perfect city to expand into. They have public transit that roles right by PGE park (which is not a bad venue if they can get a better pitch), a great downtown, headquarters for both Nike and Adidas, and is a great youth soccer city.
I imagine that MLS might want to get the NW region out of the way in terms of expansion. 2 and done. The rivalries can grow together and the West Coast would be done as far as expansion......maybe San diego in the distant future?

 

Vancouver doesn't have a stadium, unless you consider Swangard to be an appropriate MLS venue. I sure as hell don't. Ownership wants to build a beauty of a facility on the waterfront, but they are running into all kinds of roadblocks on that one.

 

Except for the whole, silly, negotiating with the MLS, putting up the expansion fee, etc. business. PDX is well behind all locations in terms of actually dealing with the business end of the MLS. Stadium? Needs some work. Also, there's the pesky fact that PGE is actually owned by the city of PDX, and operated by the Paulson group (Shortstop, LLC).

 

And they also start with a very sophisticated (in the ways of soccer fandom) and rabid supporters group, the Timbers Army.

 

The problem with PGE is the Beavers playing baseball and then when they are done PSU plays football there. I guess the Timbers make it work. I'd bet Portland's support of a team would be similar to Toronto. It would be perfect if those other two teams didn't use that stadium.

 

Unless you are privy to information that is not available to the public, we have no idea where Portland stands in in terms of the "actually dealing with the business end of the MLS" part of things. Perhaps those concerns have been addressed and worked out. Or perhaps that is what they are doing at this meeting. I mean, Garber is, after all, meeting with Paulson himself, right?

Paulson owns the Beavers too and the rumour is that he wants to build a baseball stadium elsewhere for the Beavers while keeping the Timbers in PGE Park. I would presume that PSU would continue to use PGE as a football stadium, however.

 

It must be true, because you just said it.

That is interesting, because there is one Canadian team, and there has yet to be one officially announced team in the Pacific NW. Although like I said above; it must be true, because you said it

You should be a consultant, because you clearly know all the answers and best strategy


it must be hard work to sound like a pompous, insufferable know-it-all. Nice job.

 

If each team plays all others home and away, then it won't matter which conference K.C. is in. Home and away will be the format by the time St. Louis is in the league...what else makes sense???

 

I have always been impressed by the stadium and the fans in Portland. Of course, I don't like the turf and the baseball set up, but if the beavers move, they can add a section of stands in the outfield and it would be awesome. I never saw an aerial view until I clicked on this:

http://www.worldstadiums.com/stadium_pictures/north_america/united_states/oregon/portland_pge.shtml

 

Unless that isn't the scheduling format. Lots of people on here seem to think that a simply home/away for every team schedule is in the works in the future and will remain that way forever for MLS, I'm extremely skeptical that this would be the case. I think long term MLS plans to expand way past the 16 or 18 teams that would make such a schedule reasonable. Instead, I suspect that they will retain conferences and an unbalanced schedule where teasm play conferences members more often than teams from the other conference.

We'll see. But I do think that in any conference format -- if it is retained -- that KC and St. Louis will be kept together unless it is otherwise impossible to do so.

 

Perhaps more informed Timber's fans could chime in here, but, isn't having the Beavers in the stadium the big problem for Portland MLS? I know the Timbers make it work in USL-1, but, don't they need to find a new home for the Beavers before they pump $20 million into it to make it a nice SSS?

 

Portland already has a team. Can St. Louis or Philly say that. And PGE Stadium is built. In fact, there in a WNT game there tonight. Where's yours?