By FRANCO PANIZO
In a surprising development, the New York Red Bulls have stated they will not be fielding a USL Pro team in 2015.
Red Bulls sporting director Andy Roxburgh told BigAppleSoccer.com on Monday that the club will not be following through with their plans to launch a third division side next season. Roxburgh had said in early 2014 that New York was in the process of creating a USL Pro side that would play at its training facility in Hanover, New Jersey, but things have changed and that is no longer the case.
“We will not have our own team, that much I can tell. We will not have own team,” said Roxburgh. “We will not be creating our own USL Pro team here. That much I can tell you.
“We’re in the process of trying to organize our relationship with someone else.”
No explanation was given as to why the Red Bulls made this decision.
Here are more notes from around MLS:
ORLANDO CITY NAMES CURRENT MLS ROSTER
With their final USL Pro season coming to a screeching halt this weekend with an upset loss in the playoffs, Orlando City began focusing completely on their roster for their inaugural MLS season.
Decisions were made as to which players from the USL Pro squad would continue on with the Lions as the club prepares for the 2015 campaign in the top division. Only seven made the cut, including defenders Rafael Ramos, Tommy Redding and Tyler Turner, and midfielders Darwin Ceren, Kevin Molino and Estrela. Designated Player Kaka – who is on loan at Sao Paulo FC until the winter – is the seventh player.
The rest of the players on the USL Pro roster were released, though the club announced that it is currently in negotiations with Luke Boden, Harrison Heath and Adama Mbengue.
WHITECAPS SCRAMBLING TO FIND HOME FOR USL PRO TEAM AFTER INITIAL PLANS FALL THROUGH
The Vancouver Whitecaps are still searching for a place for their USL Pro team to play in.
The Whitecaps had hoped to have their farm team play at a refurbished Queens Park Arena in 2015, but those dreams came to an end on Monday as the New Westminster city council did not vote in favor of a proposed refurbishing of the facility.
The club is now exploring other options and there are a few possibilities, including Thunderbird Stadium, Town Centre Stadium and Townsend Park.
Among the possibilities are Thunderbird Stadium at UBC, where the Caps train, Swangard Stadium in Burnaby, Town Centre Stadium in Coquitlam and even Townsend Park in Chilliwack.
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What do you think of these developments?
Share your thoughts below.
Pretty shocked Brad Rusin wasn’t offered an MLS contract, he’s class. The Rusin-Valentino partnership is more solid than several MLS teams.
The Whitecaps should consider Bellingham. They would get a favourable press towards the team where as in Vancouver they would be also-rans to the MLS Caps and far far behind the Canucks, BC Lions and even Vancouver Canadians in the media pecking order. More importantly, they may very well be able to expand their brand to northern Washington. Bellingham is only 50 miles from Vancouver. Bellingham may be more amenable to refurbishing an existing stadium than New Westminster was or they could talk to WWU about partnering at one of their facilities.
You know what? You guys should sell the NJRB!!!
And bring the MetroStars back!!
Then you will get me respect!
C’mon! It’s a Soda Company!!
It’s not a soda, its an energy drink.
Oh yeah my bad Energy Drink FC!!
I don’t know… MLS reminds me of the old NASL…
If you know what I mean…
I like the new NASL… They have learn from their mistakes…
MLS teams should come to the NASL and be more independent club!
And stop using adidas jerseys!!
So far NYCFC’s strategy of sign and loan seems to be coming out way ahead. NYCFC can probably easily find OCFC’s level of roster filler (Kaka aside), NYCFC arguably signed the better veterans so far, and then NYCFC has a fair amount of journeyman MLSers like Saunders and Jacobson signed and loaned. Add in an expansion draft and a college draft and some trialist signings and NYCFC could be mediocre quickly. Which is not bad for expansion. Where OCFC has a LOT of work to do, a bunch of minor leaguers and then Kaka, who has deteriorated enough to be out of the Brazilian picture.
There’s also the possibility of either OCFC and NYCFC picking up any of the worthwhile scraps of Chivas USA.
I know we want the U-23 bridge, and advocate its completion. But the easy roads to doing this are either (a) play at an existing facility and lose money (but prepare your players better) or (b) let minor league franchises own their own teams — the general pattern for the past few decades — and then link them to MLS teams in relationships.
Except a lot of MLS teams right now are trying the more expensive, “this is a business” third route of trying to set up their own second team at a second location. That combines the burden of ownership with the expense of stadium etc. logistics, while you try and make a profit on soccer that by definition is second tier.
yeah, I know a lot get excited by the idea. But it is relatively a lot of money for what ?
If you are the Sounders with a very deep team*, maybe, maybe it makes sense, because young guys like Eric Zavaleta are getting loaned to MLS teams ( ok Chivas ) and starting.
For most, just get players as needed and put them into the mix.
* I happen to think that the Sounders “caring more about US Open Cup” is more a function of a much deeper team than most.
Seattle and LA could probably afford to throw profits at a second team. If they play at the same park, it’s just salary cost. The parent team has a ton of money, and if anyone pays to watch, that’s just offset. You think Arsenal sets out to make money fielding youth and women’s teams? [Although if you produce talent you can use or sell, that can go to the bottom line.]
But to me it’s scary when teams with weaker finances are like, I want to try and make money at minor league soccer, after building a new park. The Rhinos went bankrupt trying to do that, and they were one of the few shows in town.
Like I said, farm it out to someone else, or have them play in a pre-existing facility and don’t even worry about making $.
An affiliation only lets you develop four players. Start your own team and you can fill it with young talent (especially when you have a huge youth system like RB). You have a better shot of finding a few players who can help the big club that way, and if you can sell one or two for a nice fee, you can plow that right back into the second team so it pays for itself.
Look who’s whining now!!
BTW the Sounders FC have big fans! Because they use to play in NASL!
You should worry about Hempstead Cosmos drawing 4,000 a game.
Yeah.. That’s because they don’t have money for marketing I guess…
How about big teams like NJRB? Cuz you have Henry’s face on a poster, ppl might come to see him… But the team and organization still are a joke!
And Cosmos which is smaller team.. Play way better!!
If u know what I’m saying son!
Btw.. What’s your team? You seen to be so proud son!! Of what?!
Yo whiner!! Go play Bowling or Lacrosse!!!
RBNY has shifted into neutral in many ways. They’re going to glide by on the calories burnt by others.
NYFC marketing will splash onto them a little bit – free of charge.
The overall growth of the league’s TV deal will help – free of charge.
That’s a lot of eyeballs seeing their soda logo and hearing the words “red bull”
No more swinging for the fences with an Henry or even a Rafa, but you’ll still see a lot of
kid camp / soccer mom stuff
I expect for them to continue spending because this is Red Bull, but the interesting question is going to be how NYRB copes with the coming City Era. They never did win the Big One spending all this money, so how many NY fans will be locked in there? It’s not like you’re Chivas trying to come in and rub elbows with Galaxy, who have won several titles. RBNY will no longer have automatic claim to players interested in NY, nor can they sell titlewinner cachet. So I’ll be interested how the two sort out over the next few years.
Nope, the guy in charge of RBNY’s non-soccer operations was interviewed recently by the excellent and awesome Red Bulls podcast Seeing Red and he pretty much said they’re going to do a bunch of soccer camps and somehow that will result in filling the stadium. I’m being a little flip but that’s basically what he said when asked how RBNY would respond to NYCFC’s arrival.
Personally, I couldn’t care less that the team is named after an energy drink but that bothers a lot of people for some reason so if new owners want to come in, that would be just fine with me.
Fairness to NYRB, they already have Wright Phillips and will be able to make over the team for Henry, Peguy, and Cahill in the next couple years. So I suspect they will do more than run camps.
But they already have a name sponsor who pumps a ton of money in. MLS limits your ability to buy the title. Unlike City, they can’t farm out players to their team. I don’t think they have a ton of options.
Not buying your own minor league team is probably the better business decision.
I’m not blaming the players… They are so many really good players!…. C’mon you have Henry!.. But is just that the MLS & NJRB are interested in something else… Besides soccer…
Yeah, just like every other sports league on the planet, they’re interested in money? So? I suppose Hempstead Cosmos are different right?
You mean any sport league in the USA! Right?
I like NASL cuz the clubs are more free and independent…
And the big plus is that they really look after the local community..
If u know what I’m saying son!
In the short term it might be a better business decision but for the long term I don’t agree.
Adama Mbengue is a quality player.. certainly could contribute at the next level. is Harrison Heath related to the coach?
Yep it’s the coaches son. He is a good very young defensive midfielder who definately earned his spot on the usl team but might be a bit of a stretch to be on the mls side. I believe he was offered at Norwich city and turned them down to play for his dad this season. Also if memory serves me correctly he was once in the houston dynamo academy system when adrian was coaching in Austin.
Any speculation about why the NYRB decision? Owners losing commitment to the team? Something else?
Whatever it is, it’s incredibly disappointing news. This is driving a lot of fans nuts.