A key investor has rejoined the fold in Sacramento’s bid to join MLS.
Hewlett Packard CEO Meg Whitman and her husband Griffith Harsh have rejoined the bid’s investment group after initially appearing to back out, This news comes at a key time as Sacramento, and the other three MLS expansion finalists, are making their final presentation to Don Garber and the MLS expansion committee this afternoon in New York.
Whitman issued the following statement:
“After careful consideration we are delighted to join in Sacramento’s bid for Major League Soccer. We wish Kevin Nagle and the team great success today in their presentation to Commissioner Garber and the expansion committee. Sacramento has proven itself a great soccer destination worthy of entry into MLS.”
Long considered a favorite to land a bid, Sacramento has a solid stadium plan and can begin construction at any time. They also have a large following at the USL level with the Sacramento Republic, who have finished second in the league in average attendance after leading the pack for the previous two seasons.
The 2 clubs added OUGHT TO BE Sac and Cincy. The 2 clubs that WILL BE added are Cincy and Nashville.
Detroit isn’t ready yet, and MLS knows Sac is there and available when it best suits the league owners. Add in the fact that Cali already has 3 clubs, and with the anticipated relocation from Columbus to Austin, it just seems to be shaking out like this…
Problem is, MLS is already heavy down the I-5 already and very light in the Southeast. Only Atlanta and Orlando have MLS franchises in the Southeast…and both have been massively successful.
Nashville may benefit a lot from this.
In a perfect world MLS would take all the top markets and keep right on expanding. If the league gets too big, well, that’s what relegation and promotion are for. Personally I think MLS ought to be targeting 40 or even 60 teams with MLS 1, MLS 2, even MLS 3 if necessary.
The support is more than there for that.
MLS is going where the large TV markets are. They are less concerned with geographic coverage and more focused on putting teams in the largest markets.
Columbus is #34 and Austin is #39.
Agreed on the number. Keep going. I don’t ever see Pro/Reg but I do see regional intra-divisions. Pacific could be a division. Strong regional rivalries like college sports is the key to saturation.
Sacramento has to be a given. After that .. there are serious pros and cons with the rest.
Cincinatti and Sacramento are my 2.