the #1 sports league in the US is the NFL...they have how many canadian teams? exactly... MLS will at max be a 18-20 team league, give us US citites... MLB had two canada teams, now has one... NBA had two canada teams, after a few years now has one... NHL had many canada teams, now the league is dead... think about it...
the NHL didnt have canadian teams the NHl had american teams. And we all know the MLB never had a strike right? Well on topic I would love to have an MLS team but I dont think they should, it would make more sense keeping it in the states.
NO! THe MLS shoud not expand to Canada because plain and simply it is a domestic league and should stay within the country. We should also not expand to other countries like Mexico or other island nations. We need to focus more on our infrastructure for the league we have now. I think the move to a first division and second division is HUGE! It is a good move. The next move would be to see what other changes we can make to look more like European leagues because they know what they are doing. I think of England first off. Another great idea would be to make sure that we have teams in every area. We don't have any MLS teams in the Southeast. Atlanta, Charlotte, and (my favorite) Charleston would be good cities for a MLS team. We also need to have reserve teams or PDL teams that are connected with MLS and divisional teams for scrimmage and moving players up and down. I don't mean to harp too much on the Southeast but we need more teams there. What is the deal? Sorry this is so long.
I don't really see any of these as being relevant, except MAYBE for the NBA. The NHL did not fold because of the Canadian teams. They folded because of ridiculous over-expansion in the sunbelt of the U.S. Phoenix? Atlanta? Two teams in Florida? If there's one place I say we stay out of, it's Florida. The Expos used to have great attendance, they were really well supported. Then the ownership just decided to jump ship and screw the fans. Toronto is still a good place for Baseball. The NBA was the same way as the NHL, only northern. Raptors? Does that sound like a Local idea? I don't know about the "domestic league" issue. That's probably the strongest argument in my opinion. I'd like to see Canada just stop bitching, and start building strong regional leagues. The other issue is the currency exchange rate. Lord knows how expensive it would be for a Canadian to pay MLS expansion fees and wages.
MLS is for the U.S., not Canada. If they wanted to be in a league so bad, why not create there OWN league. There are investors who are intrested in a Canada who wants a team, so why not put them all together and create their OWN league. If there were Canadian teams in MLS, then it would probably be very difficult to calculate salaries because of the different currency. Also, the player policies would be difficult to handle.
the nhl hasn't folded. they are in a labor (or as they would say in canada, "labour") dispute over a salary cap. you are right in that the weak canadian dollar does make it difficult for any sports team to operate there. that is the chief reason I vote no for this.
I agree. I'd love to see Canada have a strong domestic league, just like ours. Makes the CONCACAF Champions Cup more interesting.
To be fair, the Thrashers weren't the first NHL team in Atlanta--the Flames were, before they were moved to Calgary. So it wasn't unprecedented. Concerning the Expos, you're kind of ignoring the fact that they've been maybe the worst team in the league the past decade and their attendance has recently been abysmal. Now that wouldn't matter much in the NFL--they can cope with having a few teams like that. The Cardinals have been in the basement for, what, 20 years? The Bengals seem to be coming out of the worst ownership reign in football, although to their credit they did go to two Super Bowls in the '80s. But the Expos had neither the past success of the Bengals nor the overall environment of success that allow the Cards to live on. Toronto is indeed still a good place for baseball--a couple of World Series wins can go a long way with fans.
whats does MLB having a strike have to do with anything...the NFL went on strike in 83 and 87, NBA was on strike in what, 99-00 when the Spurs won the title... a strike in 1994 (10 YEARS AGO!!) didn't kill baseball in canada, canadians did... i'm from seattle and the M's were also having a great year along with Griffey who would have went after the HR record that season if it were allowed to continue..sure the expos looked good but NO ONE will ever know what would have happend that season, it was 10 years ago...
It would be nice, but where? You might be able to get eight teams into Canada, but I doubt it. There were five A-League teams last year and two folded (Edmonton and Calgary). I think Canada would be better served by just trying to get the remaining ones into MLS (Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver). I could deal with those three in MLS, especially if they can reach a cross-promotion deal with their national team, with double headers, etc., and MLS could let Canadians take on equal status to US players, so they wouldn't have to count against international roster slots.
The fans are there in Calgary and here in Edmonton and we know there are the people who are willing to put the money in. It's getting smart people in charge and better facilities. Montreal and Vancouver would never get an MLS team despite being better candidates than Toronto. All the MLS sees when it comes to Canada is TO. Forget the NT idea, any owner would hardly care about cross-promotion. As for the Canadians as equals, that's a can a worms a lot of people don't want to see open.
That's what calculators are for. Seriously, the exchange rate issue is so overblown. We're not talking about millionaire NBA or NHL players here. As long as any Canadian team is well supported and well run, the team will survive. The Canadian dollar is $0.85 US, not exactly a staggering difference.
Yes. Toronto. (Wth Detroit and Rochester) MLS shoudl expand with an eye on building regional rivalries. A team should only be added in Canada if they have a natural rival: like Detroit or Rochester or, maybe, two Canadian teams (Toronto and Vancouver) Don't plop teams down in the middle of nowhere/somewhere just because you want to have a "presence". A presence in Canada, or a presence in the South isn't as valuable as adding teams near other MLS franchises -- a team in Atlanta isn't going to draw from the South, they'll draw from Atlanta and that's it. Chivas is good for the Galaxy and good for the Quakes. I'd rather see two teams in LA, or NY, or Chicago. Or better yet a team in Philadelphia to rival a team in NY. Or a team in Cleveland to rival Colombus. Or a team in Houston.... as long as they're not the Quakes
I agree that they should have a league that rivals MLS, and that new Canadian franchises in MLS would not be as valuable as say a franchise in San Antonio or something.
$0.83 USD now. The exchange issue isn't overblown since players will be paid in USD while revenue for any Canadian club in MLS would be CAD.
who says? . . . in Toronto. . . . in Toronto. . . . one of the NHL's healthiest franchises? Toronto. I am. My conclusion is that Toronto is a good sports town. So I dunno about expanding to Canada. . . but expanding to Toronto might be a good idea. (With the usual caveat that ownership and stadium are the most important factors. In the case of Toronto, that means the lease.)
I voted no, but only because there was no "not right now" option. Any expansion into Canada should be a few years AFTER we have proven stability at a 14- or 16-team level. Say, 5 years after we hit the 14-team level. Test the waters then. If the Canadian teams should go a year or two then fold, there should be no doubts in anyone's mind, that the league is in any danger of further contraction. A "we survived without them before, we'll survive without them again" mentality, if you will.
That's okay, Dubya is already working to fix this problem! After another four years MLS players will demand to be paid in Canadian dollars!