That's not for sure yet, just something PDX ownership have talked about. I'd say these are good signs, indeed. Just remember who (hopefully) got their FIRST, PDX fans.
And if it does end up happening, it isn't going to help much unless the Padres get a better farm system.
So...? Eastern Conference--------------Western Conference New England------------------------ LA Galaxy Red Bull-----------------------------Chivas DC United---------------------------San Jose C-bus------------------------------Colorado Toronto----------------------------Salt Lake City Philly-------------------------------Seattle Chicago----------------------------Portland St Louis----------------------------Dallas Kansas City------------------------Houston Notes: 1) This is just using the expansion possibilities mentioned above. 1) The Playoffs are here to stay making it most likely that single table will never happen. Much more likely is eventually moving to a division/conference format like the other major leagues have. 2) Talent dilution is a consideration but not a prime consideration as the other major sports all show. 3) For futher expansion, there are more potential eastern sites than western. Thus the midwest teams might move to the west, depending on how further expansion goes.
Portland is pretty much turn-key, as long as they take care of the baseball team that currently shares the stadium. However, I am not sure how you can call PGE Park an SSS while also claiming that Qwest Field is not. Both stadiums are owned by civic authorities. Football teams play at both stadiums (Seahawks at Qwest, Portland State at PGE). A baseball team even plays at PGE right now. In both instances, the primary operators of the stadiums will also own the resident MLS teams. The only difference is seating capacity, and it would be ridiculous if this single trait is what sets SSS apart from any other stadium. As soon as we go above 40K, it stops being an SSS? 45K? 50K? I am not sure if you and most of the SSS nazis really know what an SSS really is. It seems to change with the wind depending on the particular poster's idealistic notions. That said, PGE Park (nee Civic Stadium for the traditionalists) is a great venue, and MLS will succeed there. - Paul
There are not really rules, they are more like guidelines. rep for the first person to identify where that phrase came from
A baseball team, PSU football as well as the Catholic High School district (or something like that). I love the location, but the stadium still needs work.
The best part of MLS in PDX? BigSoccer all-star poster ursula will have a local MLS team to root for. - Paul
I think keeping Chicago and St. Louis together is more important than KC and St. Louis. Chicago and St. Louis have much more history of sports rivalries, and in this case both teams will actually be in the same state.
I don't know if I'm "more informed" than anyone, but that's never stopped me from posting before. In essence, I think you're correct -- the Beavers are a roadblock (although not the only roadblock) to MLS in PDX. How big a roadblock depends on how bad Paulson wants MLS in Portland, I suppose. I mean, he owns the Beavers. He can do what we wants with them, including (presumably) selling them to an owner who moves them or outright contracting them (caveat: I don't know whether he can actually do that -- the Beavers may have contractual obligations to the Pacific Coast League that would prevent it or make it economically unfeasible -- but I seriously doubt he's committed to life to running the Beavers in Portland). If MLS in PGE brings in more jing than USL + Beavers in PGE, wouldn't it make more sense to just dump the Beavers? I have no idea if that's the case - MLS is lots of things, but a license to print money isn't one of them. However, I think a forward-thinking owner looks at the growth potential of both arrangements and sees that in 10 years, MLS will be a much bigger deal than it is now. USL, on the other hand, might not even exist, and the Beavers will continue to be what they have always been -- a thing people do after work on Thursdays for cheap beer (not that there's anything wrong with that). I don't think we'll see anything more than these overtures and feelers and expressions of interest until we get closer to the expiration of the current PGE lease in 2010.
As I understand it, there is absolutely nothing tying the Beavers to PDX. That said, I still think it'd be a shame if they left. He could sell them, move them to Tigard, whatever the hell he wants to do. I say move them to Pacific City, so at least you'd get a view of the water...
Well to continue on this thought - few of the "SSS" are actually "soccer-specific" in that almost all use the stadium for non soccer activities in the off-season and even in-season. Dallas hosts football, LA has X-Games, Chicago is a concert venue etc etc. "Soccer Oriented" stadium is a better term. The key here is control of scheduling and revenue stream. If Portland (and Seattle) have that then the rest doesnt matter as much.
Get Portland in the league. Move 'Rebrandus Sagrado' outta the HDC and up there if need be. Great soccer culture up there in Portland. USA vs CR back in '97 and here we are 10 years later and the passion for pro soccer has obvioulsy only gotten stronger. Aren't some of you guys being way to hard on the Beaver.
St. Louis just drew 10K+ for the exact same USWNT matchup, on turf, in a domed NFL stadium. Lack of a facility is a problem for us. Lack of fans is not.
No, I think "soccer-specific" is the right term - as in, designed and built primarily for soccer and with a soccer team as the primary tenant. "Soccer-specific" was never intended to mean "soccer-exclusive". When the Beatles played Shea Stadium, did it stop becoming a baseball-specific stadium? "Soccer-oriented" could still mean Qwest Field. "Soccer-specific" couldn't.
Very well said. My own idea was when asking the common person who the primary tenant of the building is.....that will give you the idea if it is a SSS or a SOS.
This is the most important part. But not everything. 2nd is having an appropriately sized venue. Portland would probably be fine here. I assume if the baseball team moves out, they would build a new stand that would effectively downsize the stadium. 3rd if having enough pull over operations that the field is appropriate. For example, in Chicago, there is Lacrosse and womens football, but you would hardly know it, because the field is maintained for soccer. In Giants stadium and Gillette, the field is designed and maintained for the NFL.
We can after Garber's announcement on November 16th. Seeing as how the USWNT played here last Saturday, ours is in downtown St. Louis. We're just building a better soccer stadium across the river, because that's the kind of fans we are. (Before any Portland fans get mad, I'm just responding to the "we're more ready than you are" argument. I've been to Portland once and it was a great city, so I'm all for you having a team.)
I would rather have Portland in an appropriate sized facility then Seattle at Qwest. But I am not Don Garber.
I've been to PGE numerous times. The sight lines for soccer are not that great. They will need to use all of that $20 million to get the fans closer to the pitch than they are right now, and not just on the outfield portable seat side. The permanent stand is not a very good place to view a match. It is set pretty far back from the pitch. Here are two photos of roughly the same spot in both stadiums, near the corner flag. Top is PGE, bottom is Qwest Field. Even though it is a huge venue, you are actually closer to the action at Qwest. PGE park will need to address these kinds of issues. I am just not sure $20 million will cover what is needed, but I do hope to see it happen.
I can't believe I'm going to say this, but isn't it from Postcards from the Edge? Dear Lord, how do I know this....