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Mid-Day Ticker: Scorpions land stadium sponsor, Robinho out a month and more

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The San Antonio Scorpions are making moves.

The NASL club landed Toyota as a sponsor for its new soccer-specific stadium, which is slated to open in time for the 2013 season. It will be the second soccer-specific stadium in America with the Japanese car company's name branded on it, joining the Chicago Fire's Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Ill. 

Toyota Field is set to be an 8,000-seat stadium with expansion possibilities that can make it grow to 18,000 seats, according to release from the club, which currently plays its home games at multi-purpose Heroes Stadium in San Antonio. While the Scorpions' distant future as a franchise looks bright, the near future could be fruitful as well. The club was the first to clinch an NASL playoff berth and sits atop the league standings, six points clear of the Puerto Rico Islanders and Tampa Bay Rowdies.

Here are a few more stories from around the soccer world:

ROBINHO OUT A MONTH

The news keeps getting worse for AC Milan. 

After the club dropped its season opener to Sampdoria over the weekend, the club learned that Robinho is expected to be out for a month with a right thigh strain that he suffered in the 1-0 defeat. With the club already dealing with an injury to Alexandre Pato, the options up top are increasingly thinner.

Reports have linked the club to make a move for Roma's Bojan Krkic, who would provide support to newcomer Giampaolo Pazzini and 19-year-old Stephan El Shaarawy.

TIMBERS TICKET PRICES REMAINING THE SAME

The Portland Timbers' disappointing season won't cost their diehard fans any more for next season. 

The club is freezing its ticket prices for the 2013 season in light of its 2012 struggles, despite attendance for home games at Jeld-Wen Field hardly being an issue and the club reportedly having 7,000 fans on a waiting list. Just this week Portland drew more than 14,000 to a reserve game, which rivals the home attendance for MLS regular season games.

"We're leaving some money on the table, and the business-side people are going to roll their eyes at me, but it just doesn't feel right," Timbers owner Merritt Paulson told the Oregonian.

SINCLAIR TO CITY FALLS THROUGH

It appears that Scott Sinclair's move to Manchester City won't be happening after all, at least not at the current price City are willing to pay.

Swansea City reportedly rejected City's £6.2 million bid for the 23-year-old English winger, who was left out of the club's team for its win over West Ham over the weekend. Sinclair has reportedly told Swansea that he will not sign a long-term deal with the club, but Swansea is not prepared to part with him on the cheap and has three days left to strike a deal for a suitor. 

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Impressed at the moves the Scorpions are making with their new stadium? Do you think AC Milan can stem the tide without Pato and Robinho, or is the club in danger of falling down the standings? What do you think of the decision made by the Timbers? Did it make sense for Sinclair to go to City in the first place?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. Look, I go to RBA every single game and there’s no excuse for not having a sold out building every (or almost every) game. If Seattle can 40,000 a game, we should be able to get 25k to RBA with a population many multiples higher.

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  2. The problem it looks cheap and San antonio is hot and humid- i would rather make a simple soccer stadium with roof cover for the fans . Another thing, doesn’t San Antonio have a 70 to 75 percent hispanic population and eventually all fans will be hispanic and when my local city made Mls headlines for planning on building a 120$million soccer stadium, most comments said is a hispanic city with 800,000 plus pkpulation who cant support a stadium . I think el Paso, texas sure can.

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  3. Counterpoint
    1) What’s novel about the team that has been around for 11 years now? With a team name that dates back to 1975 that had attendances above 30,000 a few times.

    2) Quality of alternatives on a warm summer evening in Portland = everything. Summer is short here.

    3) Good point.

    4) Grant you that one.

    5) Hubris is what you’re saying. Never mind NY still has money to blow on all those things.

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  4. Just 10 years ago, I would’ve jumped up and down at this development for most MLS (San Antonio type stadium/following) teams. And now it is happening in the 2nd division. Nice.

    Way to grow soccer!

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  5. This. I don’t understand why US soccer fans are obsessed with copying the model of other nations. We have playoffs, should we do away with those b/c most other leagues don’t? Every other US sports league does fine with fans knowing midway through the season who will make the playoffs and who won’t – we don’t need Pro/Rel to “keep it exciting” for fans of losing teams, and I’m sure players are motivated just playing for their jobs: roster spots are not guaranteed from year to year.

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  6. Total agreement on that, Old School: ACBF. Cannot stand Martin Jol or Fulham club management for trying to destroy Clint’s reputation. But I am not so sure about Roma anymore. Before watching most of the Roma-Catania match Sunday, I was thinking that Roma would be a good destination for Dempsey if either Liverpool, Arsenal or Schalke don’t happen. But after watching the game, my gut feeling is that Roma would not be a good fit at all for Clint. The Roma players did not like happy, Coach Zeman looks wired and there appear to be some huge egos on that team. I smell trouble. Plus, the home stadium is not a work of art.

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  7. Hey Quakes are breaking ground on new stadium this fall. Will be ready for 2014…until then your right Quakes at Division 2 football stadium. Heck Santa Clara University doesn’t even play football anymore.

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  8. seriously! how can you justify raising prices after finishing last. Just because your fans care about the team, that’s not a good reason to take more from that. Good to hear common sense somewhere in MLS management.

    P.S. im sure he is not compromising profits too much!

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  9. 21 comments and still no ” Time to relocate CHiVAS USA to San Antonio ” comments? Nice going San Antonio your new digs look amazing!!!

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  10. 1) novelty effect
    2) proximity of high quality alternatives in NY available on public transport(yes portland is cool, it’s not ny)
    3) Had almost 20k last year with mediocre team that has NEVER won ANYTHING EVER, beyond incompetent leadership who isn’t nearly as committed beyond money as Pauslon is, so season ticket holders declined to renew their tickets. Oh yeah and they increased prices. Next year if NYRB keep playing well should have big upswing in attendance.
    4) Not as well located as Jeld Wen.
    5) Yankees+Mets+Giants+Jets vs…nothing.

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  11. it can never become a legit idea until there is something to promote or relegate to! i wouldn’t want TFC or Portland relegated into the DIV II right now! The more Orlando City’s and San Antonio’s there are the more likely pro/rel can be seriously discussed.

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  12. Bit of a difference between markets , 2 professional team to 9 in NY , bit of the difference. One add in middle of city cost more than year of advertisements in PDX .

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  13. First and last time we ever see Robinho and San Antonio Scorpions in the same headline?

    All joking aside, I think it’s a great sign for the sport this is happening for San Antonio.

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  14. I think pro/rel will happen some day although probably in the distant future (i.e. 20+ years). There are so many cities that could support an MLS club or pro soccer in general.

    And yes I’m aware of the argument that no one would ever buy into the league if their club could be relegated and the argument that US soccer fans would immediately stop attending if their team dropped a division. I just don’t find those arguments persuasive.

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  15. There’s reports Bojan is going to AC Milan.

    On that front, and to play up a rumor previously, maybe this opens some transfer funds for Dempsey?

    This, of course, would be with the intent of playing him up top/in an advanced role.

    ACBF = Any Club but Fulham

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  16. So Portland has the worst record in MLS and still draws 14,000 to a reserve game but NYRB can’t convince enough NYC residents to cross the Hudson to sell out RBA? And yes, I’m aware you have to wait in a long line to get a PATH train back.

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  17. No it opens up the possibility of San Antonio joining MLS. Teams will be ‘promoted’ to the top flight when they have the right owner, stadium etc but there’s never going to be relegation.

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  18. While I doubt it will ever happen, having the NASL teams have their own stadiums opens up the possibility of pro/rel.

    If anything else, congrats to SAScorpions on the new digs!

    Reply

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