The fans of the Columbus Crew aren’t the only party that feels MLS hasn’t been telling the whole truth.
The San Antonio expansion bid, which has come under direct threat from the possibility of the Crew moving to Austin, Texas, could be making more noise in the coming weeks.
Bexar County judge Nelson Wolff has inquired with Bexar County district attorney Nico LaHood to see if MLS violated any laws when they supported the city’s purchase of Toyota Field in 2015, per the San Antonio Express-News.
The report states Wolff sent a letter to MLS commissioner Don Garber on Friday about the recent news that Crew owner Anthony Precourt had a clause built into his purchase of the Crew that he could relocate the original franchise to Austin.
At the time of the Toyota Field purchase, Bexar County officials were not made aware of the clause involving a potential move to Austin, and that Austin and San Antonio wouldn’t both get an MLS franchise.
I didn’t realize that San Antonio and Austin were only an hour drive apart. . . which is around the block in Texas.
I just don’t get Precourt’s pre fixation on Austin when it seems there are both larger and more passionate markets still available such as San Antonio, Sacramento, Phoenix, Detroit, StLouis, Carolinas, Cincy, Why Austin? Great town but similar to Columbus in some ways too, ie large universities and state capitals. Is Precourt from there? Didn’t the Austin Aztecs move to Orlando and eventually become an MLS team? I’m sure its a great city but it just seems odd that he seems to have had it picked out as a market from the time he bought the Crew.
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I get that Precourt wants to bring his franchise out of MLS 1.0 with its old stadium and lack of night life and lower attendance, but is Austin the answer? Couldn’t he build near downtown Columbus or find another city nearby like Cincy to build him a downtown stadium.
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Also, if Cincy is awarded one of the two expansion bids later this year that will tell you right away the Crew are doomed. MLS has to keep a market in Ohio, its too big a state to ignore and would hurt them with tv contracts if they pulled out of the state altogether.
Austin is a sexier city than Columbus and is growing twice as fast. Although they were similar in size 5 years ago Austin will be much bigger in 5 years. Also he’d be the first pro team in town and is likely to get much better deals from the city and Texas does not have state income tax.
Again you missed the point. Austin is a better option than Columbus but the questions is why Austin when better larger and more passionate markets are still available. If he’s convinced to move the franchise why not pick one of the larger more passionate markets? Why Austin over Detroit/Phx/StL?Carolina/SanAnt/Sacramento?
Sorry, Austin is sexier than all of those cities you named as well and faster growing, and I am guessing since all of those have expansion bids in the works that would cause problems too since they would have agreements with those cities.
“If these reports are accurate, this presents a clear conflict of interest,” Wolff wrote to Garber.
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Conflict of interest with Don Garber? This is the face of utter shock. Next thing you’re going to tell me is SUM, MLS and USSF is also a “conflict of interest”.
I know right. Seems like me and you are the only ones on this site who regularly mentions the MLS/SUM/USSF business relationship and how that control effects our federations soccer related decisions. Too bad we don’t have any real soccer media willing to write about it much less investigate the situation and its implications. Soccer United Marketing is like Traffic Sports on steroids folks. Old School thank you for keep bringing it up so the rest of us learn.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soccer_United_Marketing
Too bad we don’t have any real soccer media willing to write about it much less investigate the situation and its implications. Soccer United Marketing is like Traffic Sports on steroids folks.
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Keep preaching, Joe D. If the echo gets loud enough perhaps a professional will finally feel compelled.
Some more tin foil hat stuff for those of you who aren’t aware of SUM. They sold a 25% of MLS and USSF tv and marketing rights to a Private Equity firm back in 2012. If the buyback hadn’t happened in June you would still have a PE firm received 25% of the proceeds from our tv rights from our NTs and MLS contracts. Anybody saying USSF and MLS/SUM are independent and don’t coordinate whats in their best commercial interest is naive. OH and Gulati is a boardmember for SUM and MLS and president of MLS, but he used to do contract work for MLS and SUM before being “nominated” to become USSF president. Hint, Gulati doesn’t even run sh-t, Garber is the man.
Forget the link from the Sports Business Journal
http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Journal/Issues/2016/04/18/Finance/MLS-Providence.aspx
**Meant Gulati is a boardmember at SUM and MLS and president of USSF
Joe Dirt, why is any of this labeled “tinfoil hat” material? It is common knowledge that MLS/SUM/USSF are corrupt and flirting with unsavory to illegal activity on a regular basis!
it is refreshing to see entities like Bexar County and others not involved in the soccer world call them out from time to time. It reminds us that these jokers are still quite amateur
I was being sarcastic Beto. To me and to you and some people it is but just a few months back anytime you mention something like SUM/MLS controlling USSF you would get labeled a tin foil hat conspiracy theory believer. Any of us who’ve followed to business side and know what SUM is know that private company essentially controls our federation but you’ll see a lot of others post here about me making this a conspiracy when we know it isn’t, which actually sucks for soccer fans because it’d be better if we were wrong.
Joe puts on his tinfoil hat when he starts trying connect dots about MLS controlling roster selection. MLS gains in popularity when the US makes it to the World Cup it doesn’t matter how many mlsers are on the team. SUM just lost millions of dollars by missing the World Cup in rights and advertising fees so to think they were some how orchestrating a weaker team to help market MLS is nothing more than a conspiracy theory. There certainly should be more transparency but the revenue from SUM makes MLS a viable investment and thus grows the league, sport, and spreads development.
Johnny, if you really thing MLS/SUM don’t control certain aspects and can pressure our NT manager to make certain MLS call ups over Euro based call ups I’ve got a bridge to sell you. Don’t be so naive to think MLS/SUM doesn’t have this control it was pretty obvious and explains a lot of the snubs of players playing at high levels while instead calling in players who essentially play in a second division league.
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MLS/SUM were just so arrogant about how great MLS has become that they thought they had it in the bag. The sideline report for BeIN during the broadcast was telling the booth that half way into the second half Gulati and all the heads at USSF were panicking. They apparently never thought the scenario was in the cards, which seems ridiculous to us because one match can always go anyway and didn’t even seem to worry too much after the second goal, they didn’t realize what they thought impossible happening until the second half.
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MLS/SUM didn’t think it was possible and thought they could hire their preferred manager and call in their MLS asset players and qualify no problem. It backfired into their and all of our faces and now we don’t get o watch the US at the WC.
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You are underestimating the arrogance of MLS/SUM. That BA quote about Euro teams struggling in Concacaf qualifying really says it all.
You are right Joe, Arena is very arrogant, and because of that, he isn’t going to listen to Don Garber or Sunil Gulati. Arena had players that were good enough, he just didn’t prepare to play against a team that was trying to win. Why would Arena listen to MLS, his contract was over next Summer anyway they had no leverage?
I don’t know about this. I just can’t see mls doing something this shady or underhanded. They’re not like that.
Whoops.
It was pretty obvious from Precourt’s presser and the language used in the relocation clause that the fix was in as far as moving to Austin…and seemingly had been for awhile.
If they can prove it, God help Garber if he had a hand in that.
Still seems odd on the face of it, though. San Antonio’s a significantly bigger market than Austin. Is there something particularly appealing about the stadium situation or demographics of Austin that would make Austin more appealing to Garber, though?
Garber was at SXSW with Precourt, which should speak volumes.
Austin has much higher median household income than SA. Austin: $81,634 and SA:$63,981. Columbus has a median household income of $72,068. Austin’s demographics is more like California than the rest of Texas. Also, Austin Lonestar’s Development Academy is more established in Austin (they have a branch in SA, but the home games are played in Austin). SAFC is starting up a USSDA program.
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As an Austinite, I would love to see a MLS team here, but I am skeptical that attendance would be any better than 18k per game. A MLS team in Austin would help fill a gap in Texas for youth development with a pipeline to the professional level. Currently, Austin youth have to move to Dallas or Houston to get into a USSDA team with a chance of HG contract.