Chivas USA failed at the MLS level because of the microniche of targeting fans of one Mexican team and because they had no geographic separation in a sprawling market from the LA Galaxy. If they had a brand that appealed broadly to Mexican-Americans like the Aztecs, perhaps with a green-white-red color scheme and a Mexican eagle logo, it could have worked better based out of a separate part of the LA market with a strong Mexican-American population like East LA. That being said, I think there are two places where an association with a Mexican club could work. Club Tijuana placing a San Diego Xolos team could work at the NASL level because of the existing fan base in San Diego and proximity of the towns across the border. Similarly I think a shared ownership with FC Juarez (MountainStar Sports) could work in El Paso. In both cases in think you need to use the city name like Rayo OKC and NYC FC do for their colony clubs. Which is what makes Celtic hard. They should be in Boston, maybe New York, maybe Philly all three of which have the largest Irish population and several of Celtic supporters groups. But the name in Boston is problematic because of the NBA team. I think they ought to partner with the NBA team and share ownership like Man City and the Yankees in NYC FC. Celtic USA, and they should NOT use that name, should be Boston city or bust.
Well, Kraft didn't exactly receive a handout from anyone. Rather, he was able to leverage the threat of moving the Patriots to Connecticut into getting then-Massachusetts House Speaker Tom Finneran back to the negotiating table. That ultimately led to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts ponying-up the cash for some infrastructure improvements surrounding the new stadium that Kraft privately-financed on land he already owned in Foxborough. Ultimately, the deal called for Kraft to reimburse the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for said infrastructure improvements, which he's been doing ever since. Kraft's deal with Connecticut "paid" off in the construction of a new stadium in Massachusetts, but it was Kraft who ultimately footed-the-bill for construction of said facility, the price of purchasing the land on which it was built, and the cost of reimbursing the state for up-front infrastructure payments.
could be Mass Celtics and could sign kind of partnership with Boston Celtics, I still don't understand how you americans are getting crazy about names like City, United and so on....
Thanks for that. For some reason I recalled that Hartford gave him a bunch of non-refundable money that he kept even when the deal fell through. But that very well may not have happened.
....it's the same types who become die hard, love the history and my beloved club, Man Citeh, Man U, Chelsea, Real overnight. I bleed for them. IOW's....self loathing, insecure posers. Woops...what Kenn said, but my description is better.
Possible effort to bring soccer team to Hartford: http://www.courant.com/news/connecticut/hc-hartford-soccer-team-revival-0608-20160607-story.html
He did say professional league, so might be ASL. It definitely doesn't sound like an NASL or USL level though.
As much as the ASL tries to position it as such, they bear no resemblance to a professional league. They may have some players who are receiving remuneration, but that doesn't make them a professional league. They may put "professional soccer" on their website, but that's bullshit. There are three levels of bona fide professional outdoor men's club soccer in this country, and they can't meet the standards for the lowest level. But, then, people lie all the time.
June 24, 2016 The Honorable Luke Bronin Mayor of the City of Hartford Hartford City Hall ·Office of the Mayor 550 Main Street Hartford, CT 06103 Dear Mayor Bronin & esteemed members of our City Council, We write you this letter today to urge you to allow us to volunteer our time and energy to make Dillon Stadium viable for professional soccer. We represent the elected leadership of a local soccer supporters group and we wish to mobilize our love of the game to help the city attract a professional soccer team. You will find that we arc not associated with any ownership group-·past, present or future. We arc supporters of the capitol city and want to do our part to see it successful. We arc asking you to consider a practice that worked in another economically challenged region. For these reasons, we hope that the city will embrace our volunteer spirit to bring soccer to Hartford. Agents of Hale arc an independent supporters group and so1(c)(7) not for profit corporation with no tics to any owners or investors. We have no stake in this other than as fans of the sport and the city. As we have in the past, we will sit down with literally anyone if it will help bring professional soccer to the capitol city. The city of Hartford, more than ever before, needs the support of its citizens and we are offering our support. Soccer supporters in the city and state have proven on multiple occasions that we have the passion for and capability to support soccer at a high level. We are willing to donate time and resources in an effort to bring profossional soccer to Dillon Stadium. We believe that profossional soccer will act as an economic driver for the region over time. We arc certain that professional soccer at Dillon Stadium will add to the city's social capital, attracting further investment. To attain these positive results, we ask for no resources from the city, only your approval to take action. There is precedent for what wc arc asking of you. Detroit City FC is a homegrown semi-pro
soccer dub with aspirations of full·time profossional soccer. DCFC's supporters have refurbished a stadium in order to make games possible. They were faced with a situation in which if they did not grab paint brushes and get dirty, they would not have a stadium and furthermore, not have a club. Today, the club attracts thousands of fans to a facility the community helped create. Agents of Hale's members have voiced an enthusiastic willingness to do the same for our city, if possible. We can use our reach on social media to further gather such community involvement. We recognize that our independence as an organization, dedication to our city, and willingness to put in more than our fair share of work are all must·havcs if wc want to reach our goal. Again, we arc happily willing to meet with you in order to do so. In short--plcasc tell us what we can do, and where to sign on which waivers, so that we can make it happen. Respectfully, Agents of Hale, Inc. Michael S. Kane, President Andrew J. Thurston, Treasurer Micah N. Kerr, Vice President John T. Reaves, Jr., Club Ambassador Matthew Rafala, Secretary Thomas W. Lovkay, Fan Ambassador cc: Court of Common Council
http://touch.courant.com/#section/-1/article/p2p-87779147/ July 6, 2016 NEW HAVEN — James C. Duckett Jr., who was charged last month with fraud in the ill-fated development of Dillon Stadium, made his first court appearance in Connecticut Tuesday and pleaded not guilty to all charges. Duckett, 44, appeared in U.S. District Court, where Judge Sarah A.L. Merriam set a $100,000 non-surety bond. Duckett was originally taken into custody in Las Vegas and a judge there released him without bond. Merriam noted that courts in Nevada have "a slightly different approach to things," and said she believed a bond was appropriate, given Duckett's past criminal conviction and the amount of money allegedly misappropriated in the Dillon Stadium project.
one down and one to go: http://m.hartfordbusiness.com/article/20170206/NEWS01/170209935 An Avon man involved in a scheme to redevelop Hartford's Dillon Stadium and bring pro soccer to the city was convicted Monday of money-laundering charges related to the scheme, federal authorities say. Mitchell Anderson, 52, pleaded guilty in Bridgeport federal court, Connecticut U.S. Attorney Deirdre M. Daly said. Mitchell, who has been free on $100,000 bond since his arrest last June, faces up to 20 years in prison when he's sentenced on May 1, authorities said. He already has agreed to make $1.13 million in restitution.
They do apparently have an NPSL team that humbly describes itself as being "one of the most talked about soccer teams in North America." Okay, then. www.hartfordcity.com
Hartford City is an NPSL team that is working hard to get past the NASL fiasco. The new ownership group has absolutely nothing to do with the old ownership. In addition, there has been leadership change in the city of Hartford. It will not be easy with the Yard Goat stadium troubles only adding to the long list of sports failures in Hartford. But HCFC played against UCONN this past Saturday falling 2-0 against their A team.
I'm surprised they kept the name and logo. Feel like they would be a bit tainted so recently after everything that happened. Granted I am sure the majority of people were completely or mostly unaware,