My belief is that the existing I/O's have agreed to manage and maintain the teams that they currently do. The Krafts, I would imagine got tired of have to pitch in for the league run teams, thus the change and having an I/O for each team after contraction. I believe that this is the main reason there has been more talk of new investors. As a new investor, you are responsible for the costs associated with your team, but without the added expense of covering league wide losses. St. Phil and Mr. Hunt have ponied up in that area.
Much cheaper for him to come to Los Angeles. I have been to eight different stadia in England, and in terms of fan facilities and views, Victoria Street doesn't have to take second place to any of them. It is, by the way, a "real soccer stadium." Come see it some time.
Kroenke has been out to the HDC and came away impressed. It may have contributed to his decision to invest in the league.
yeah there was a quote somewhere i beleive where someone from MLS HQ, it might have even been Peter Wilt mentioned that there had been a change to SEM to make it more attractive for investors to come into MLS. That was all the quote was about in terms of substance but I honestly can't remember where I read it or who said it. It would stand to reason though that there has been tweaking of the SEM structure and will continue to be for expansion owners and trying to attract new investment.
Very true. I was there for the United-Galaxy match on Saturday and the place absolutely erupted when the OT goal was scored. I was also impressed with the reverberating upper-deck and the noise level whenever the home side (erroneously) thought the ref was giving the shaft. Take Koenke to LA for a few matches and let his imagination go. MLS is bound to get a fantastic facility in Denver. This has been fantastic news for the league. BTW: was this expected? I don't read the Rapids boards or pay much attention to them, so perhaps I simply missed the build-up.
Garber for President. (or for Cali Governor, seriously, he can turn things around Cali). GREAT GREAT GREAT JOB GARBER IS DOING FOR MLS. Keep up the good works. Ever since he got on board, MLS started turning around. congratulation to MLS and especially Rapids fans for getting their own dig by 2006.
      Congratulations, Rapids fans!       SSS count: 4 down, 6 to go (not counting the expansion teams)! -G
I read this news at work today, couldn't wait to get home and read more about the good news. It was so frustrating being the only person at my job who realized what a great, great day it is!
Of course not. The average newspaper sportswriter, to be honest, is very limited in their grasp of anything except the team(s) they cover. When it comes to anything outside of the so called "major's", most of these guys come up empty. And that includes the business end of sports, which really exposes their limitations because the business end, more and more, dictates what happens with personnel and on the field. But beyond that, this really is huge news for MLS. Look at the history of the NFL and how long it took for those owners to get control of their stadiums. The existing MLS owners are going to accomplish it in less than a decade. More and more, the foundations for longterm success are being laid. I'm really starting to feel that this league is here to stay. There's still an incredibly long way to go, but Kroenke's involvement and news of the stadium is a huge step in the right direction.
Congratulations to all Rapids fans. I use to look down at the club for the low attendance figures, but last year proved me wrong, and now you guys have a new I/O and a stadium on the way. Truly a great day for MLS. And to whomever doubted Garber's impact on MLS during his tenure, shame on you! I only hope that Donnie G. sticks around for many, many more years. He has been the leader our league needed at the outset. Even if he is not directly responsible for all the good news we've heard in the past twelve months, he has had a hand in it, which is important. Thank you, Kroenke.
No because Uncle Phil still owns half the clubs. Perhaps when Chivas jumps in and perhaps a 12th team, and the Monkey's Heed gets Unc to divest of another club, then he will get props.
What a great day for MLS. Now the questions is who gets National Team qualifiers. It looks like DC will be left out in the cold.
No doubt these negotiations with Kroenke and others have been in the works for a year or two - so for those ripping on Garber in 2001 and 2002 - this is what he has been doing. Good job, sir. I think in 20 years we will look back and say Don Garber did for MLS what Pete Rozelle did for the NFL. And Kroenke buying into SUM is significant too. He is buying hook, line and sinker into MLS - which means he is buying the whole sport, not just the league. The last investor was Horowitz in 1998 - this guy is in a completely different league. (is Krat in SUM yet?) Lets hope his plans happen a bit more smoothly than in NY/NJ. Great day for MLS. Victoria Street opens and a new MLS owner all in the same year. Let us all bask in the warm glow of MLS' warming glow.
Great day I agree with you. Now we just have to get these people that are not sure the league is here to stay to be taken out and beaten with chains.
I think you are being too hard on him. The league has done a 180 since they made the difficult decision of contracting two teams. I think your arm chair attitude of NO! Blah blah blah is a bit unfair. I think it is time credit is given where crediot is due. Congrats to Don G.
I think his position is more comparable to Leiweke. Payne is only in charge of US soccer operations, IIRC. Leiweke is in charge of the whole enchilada. Then again, Leiweke and Elliman may be more comparable... More on Leiweke: http://sportstravelmagazine.com/t2002/TimLeiweke.htm More on Ehrlich: http://www.pepsicenter.com/About/Bios.asp
The question of "is MLS here to stay" is all but answered. But the question of "is bigtime soccer here to stay" has been definitively answered. No matter the doomsday scenario you can come up with that ends with MLS folding within the next 10 years, it's obvious that immediately after that, the "A-League on steroids" would somewhat fill the void. The MLS SSS teams, plus Rochester, Minnesota, and Charleston, would join together. The games would be on FSW, not ESPN2. It'd be a decent level of soccer. To me, that's what the SSSs mean. We ain't going back.
I believe after initially declining, he did indeed join in after the success of the WC 2002. I think that's what I read somewhere at some point.
Never mind. I was the only person in this city who got excited and send congratulatory e-mails. But in years to come, thousands will share in our excitement... Hang in there...