Don Garber on Rowdies v OCSC Rivalry (VIDEO) (twitter.com)

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https://www.reddit.com/r/TampaBayRowdies/comments/5xr6k1/don_garber_on_rowdies_v_ocsc_rivalry_video/

Don Garber on Rowdies v OCSC Rivalry (VIDEO) (twitter.com)

daynkn1ght

More on #MLS2StPete from Don

SoccerForEveryone

He's not avoiding it at least. Interesting though that Scott actually contacted him about the team.

David21538

All aboard the hype train

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https://twitter.com/ODonnellFox13/status/838599365451206656

Kevin ODonnell Fox13‏Verified account @ODonnellFox13

#MLS Commissioner @thesoccerdon asked if Orlando City hurts the Tampa Bay #Rowdies chances of joining the MLS. *Must Hear*
@TampaBayRowdies

7:57 PM - 5 Mar 2017 from Orlando, FL

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https://twitter.com/ODonnellFox13/status/838605085533962240

Kevin ODonnell Fox13‏Verified account @ODonnellFox13

More from #MLS Commissioner @thesoccerdon on Tampa Bay #Rowdies bid for a MLS team.
@TampaBayRowdies

8:20 PM - 5 Mar 2017 from Orlando, FL

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https://www.reddit.com/r/TampaBayRowdies/comments/5x6x18/beckham_united_are_at_the_point_where_it_is/

"Beckham United are at the point where it is beginning to impact our expansion plans" -Garber (worldsoccertalk.com)

David21538

phat7deuce

Just move along Mr. Beckham. Move along.

howdjadoo

lol ok

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http://worldsoccertalk.com/2017/03/01/no-limit-on-mls-potential-commissioner-garber/

No limit on MLS potential: Commissioner Garber

March 1, 2017

Garber was unwilling to disclose a deadline for Beckham’s long-gestating Miami project, which has been mired in delays over the site of the team’s stadium.

However he hinted that the uncertainty surrounding the franchise would not be allowed to drag indefinitely.

“We’ve had great patience and worked hard with David and his partners for many years now. We are at the point where it is beginning to impact our expansion plans as we roll out teams 25 to 28,” Garber said.

“We remain very focused with them on trying to finalize the right scenario to ensure they will be successful in Miami and we remain hopeful they will be able to achieve that,” he added, declining to disclose what, if any, deadline had been set for Miami. “That’s between us and them,” he said.

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https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2017/02/28/how-watch-stream-and-follow-mls-2017

How to watch, stream and follow MLS in 2017

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http://www.freep.com/story/sports/2017/03/05/mls-orlando-soccer-only-stadium-detroit/98785550/

Orlando's soccer-only stadium opening mirrors Detroit possibility

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http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/sports/MLS-in-San-Diego-Group-Adds-US-Soccer-Star-415429683.html

MLS in San Diego Group Adds U.S. Soccer Star

Landon Donovan has joined FS Investors, wants to helm SD youth academy

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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2017/03/04/could-mls-team-called-footy-mcfooty-face/

Why there could be an MLS team called Footy McFooty Face

Bob Williams

4 March 2017

Boaty McBoatface has a lot to answer for - for there soon could be a Major League Soccer team called... Footy McFooty Face.

The ownership group looking to bring an MLS expansion team to San Diego has released 50 potential names for its franchise, which fans will help vote on.

They range from the acceptable to the ridiculous: as well as Footy McFooty Face, there is San Diego Surfer Bruhs, San Diego Taco Trucks and San Diego Bad Hombres.

With 12 cities going for just four MLS places - the final four places, according to MLS Commissioner Don Garber - expansion groups are using innovative means to draw publicity to their campaigns.

And this fan vote will certainly help - though it remains to be seen how binding it is. For according to the vote the final 10 names chosen by the fans will be submitted to MLS "for review".

Of far more significance for the San Diego bid was the announcement that former LA Galaxy legend Landon Donovan - a resident in the city - has joined the ownership group.

Two MLS expansion teams will be announced later this year - at a fee of $150 million - with the remaining two at a later date.

Fans of Footy McFooty Face should take note - despite Boaty McBoatface winning a public vote last year, a new polar explorer in the UK was in the end called RRS Sir David Attenborough.

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http://www.sltrib.com/sports/5011648-155/real-salt-lake-in-utah-visit

Real Salt Lake: In Utah visit, MLS commissioner lauds small market RSL’s ability to stay competitive

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https://mlsmultiplex.com/2017/03/04/atlanta-united-redefining-atlanta-sports/

Atlanta United: Redefining Atlanta Sports

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http://www.kare11.com/news/big-crowd-of-minnesota-united-fans-usher-in-mls-debut/419718328

Big Crowd of Minnesota United fans usher in MLS debut

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https://www.lagalaxy.com/post/2017/03/03/congrats-ld-landon-donovan-joins-ownership-group-san-diego-mls-bid-insider

Congrats LD! Landon Donovan joins ownership group for San Diego MLS bid | INSIDER

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http://www.sportspromedia.com/news/mls-and-the-kellogg-company-agree-official-snack-deal

MLS and the Kellogg Company agree official snack deal

Multi-year deal announced ahead of new MLS season.

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https://www.chaffeybreeze.com/2017/03/04/major-league-soccer-looks-to-become-major.html

Posted by David Stone on Mar 4th, 2017

Major League Soccer Looks to Become Major

Teams in the MLS on average are worth $185 million which is 80% higher than just four years ago.

That boost in overall value comes while the league promotes itself as being truly major or as popular and important as the NFL, MLB, NBA and the NHL.

However, that is a tall order of business to accomplish. While other sports leagues in the U.S. represent the top of the line when it comes to their sport, the MLS must compete with soccer leagues around the world that are much more established.

Nevertheless, Don Garber the MLS commissioner believes the league, which began its season Friday, has a selling point that is very unique related to courting players – an opportunity to live in Canada or the U.S.

Many players in the league come from places where living might not be as easy as in the U.S. and the economic opportunities might not be the same. Educational opportunities could be even better in the U.S. said Garber.

The MLS has focused as well on building players from the U.S. A movement exists for the sport. Both girls and boys play on the same pitch when young. The same balls are used, as well as the same size field and same rules.

Garber and the MLS want children to start younger as clubs spend millions of dollars in their own soccer academies for the country’s younger players.

Garber took the reins of the MLS in 1999. At that time, only 12 teams played in the league. Now the league is 22 strong. Los Angeles will debut its second team during 2018. Miami should launch the 24th team with backing from David Beckham the former England captain and star with the LA Galaxy.

Twelve other cities are bidding at this time to receive the rights to begin four other teams. The most likely locations would be Detroit, St. Louis and San Diego.

Expansion teams increased in value and now are approximately $150 million starting their first season.

The league is finalizing a new deal as well with a company on social media to broadcast its content online as well as reach a wider audience. Something the NFL as well as NBA and even other companies have done.

The demand for tickets to soccer games is increasing as well. The league in fact has the quickest growing market in resale tickets.

The league also is able to count on Spanish coverage and the language is part of its DNA. Thirty-five percent of the league’s fan base is Hispanic.

At the same time, the younger people have become a huge demographic for soccer in the U.S.

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http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/article136365588.html

For David Beckham, a scrapped Miami announcement and promises that a deal really (really) is near

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http://www.cbs8.com/story/34664238/soccer-to-san-diego-fans-celebrate-start-of-mls-season

Soccer to San Diego? Fans celebrate start of MLS season

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http://www.mysanantonio.com/opinion/editorials/article/Taking-our-best-shot-to-score-MLS-10975937.php

Taking our best shot to score MLS

Express-News Editorial Board Published 12:00 am, Saturday, March 4, 2017

Spurs Sports & Entertainment recently submitted its more than 300-page application for an expansion slot with Major League Soccer, the rising star of American professional sports.

We’re bullish on this effort.

For a city that pines for another major league team, this is our most realistic option. It’s far more realistic than luring the Florida Marlins or the Oakland Raiders, past misadventures that were never possible.

Unlike more mature major league sports in the U.S., soccer has enormous growth potential with our younger demographic. Our fast-growing market and proximity to Austin and Mexico make us unique. This is clearly within the realm of possible.

Probable, though, is a different question.

Local officials express optimism, as they should, but the competition to land an expansion franchise is steep.

San Antonio is one of the smaller TV markets bidding for expansion, and the league has goo-goo eyes for Austin, even though that market isn’t even vying for an expansion team at this time.

Spurs ownership counts for a lot, but no one should be surprised if soccer here stays minor league for years. Still, the effort to secure an MLS franchise has been serious and impressive.

It is an effort with two solid and promising anchors.

First, San Antonio FC, owned by the Spurs and a member of the minor league United Soccer League, had a stated attendance of 92,546 last season, or about 6,000 a game, ranking fourth in league attendance. Whether that attendance figure grows with time is an important barometer.

Sacramento, another USL market that is also home to an NBA team, averages about 11,000 fans a game.

Not surprisingly, it’s perceived as a frontrunner for expansion.

Second, the city of San Antonio’s and Bexar County’s decision in 2015 to purchase Toyota Field, which seats roughly 8,000, from developer and philanthropist Gordon Hartman for $18 million was a crucial step. The city and county then leased the stadium to Spurs Sports & Entertainment with the stated goal of landing MLS and a modest clawback provision if that does not happen.

The Spurs also pitched in an additional $3 million in the deal.

Municipal ownership opens the door to financing a stadium expansion. Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff has said a bond vote for stadium expansion will go to voters in December.

We await language and pricing before offering a recommendation on this vote, but, obviously, supporting a stadium bond would be required to land an MLS team. A no vote would clearly mean no MLS. Supporters of the bond, then, should be working on their plan to sell this to the public now.

Toyota Field is not downtown, a source of angst for some, but it is in an excellent location. It’s close to I-35 and surrounded by practice fields. It has easy access from San Antonio, Austin and everywhere in-between. It even has a connection with the Salado Creek Greenway.

Where the MLS bid goes, no one knows. Questions need to be answered about the bond, fan attendance and our potential as a TV market. But this is clearly the most serious and realistic effort to bring a second major league franchise to town.

For sports fans, at least, that’s worth cheering.

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http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/news/2017/03/03/mls-group-spends-little-so-far-in-push-for-stadium.html

MLS group spends little so far in push for stadium

Officials with SC STL, the hopeful Major League Soccer ownership group looking to build a $140 million stadium in downtown St. Louis, have put little money toward wooing city voters ahead of an April ballot measure.

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http://fox5sandiego.com/2017/03/03/landon-donovan-joins-investor-group-trying-to-bring-mls-team-to-san-diego/

Landon Donovan joins investor group trying to bring MLS team to San Diego

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http://www.espnfc.com/major-league-soccer/story/3074019/landon-donovan-joins-group-trying-to-lure-mls-to-san-diego

Landon Donovan joins group trying to lure MLS to San Diego

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http://www.vnews.com/MLS-celebrates-22-teams-in-22-years-this-season-8429348

MLS’ Expansion Shows No Signs of Stopping

By Anne M. Peterson

AP Sports Writer

Thursday, March 02, 2017

The theme for Major League Soccer this season is 22 in 22, as the league embarks on its 22nd year with 22 teams — including two new teams in the Atlanta United and Minnesota United.

The theme could just as easily be expansion, expansion, expansion.

Launched with 10 teams in 1996, MLS has plans to expand to 28 teams in the coming years. The replacement for the defunct Chivas USA, Los Angeles FC, joins the league next season. It is hoped that a long-anticipated Miami franchise, an effort led by David Beckham, will materialize as the league’s 24th team.

There were 12 bids submitted earlier this year for the final four teams. In a preseason interview with The Associated Press, Commissioner Don Garber said a decision about two of the teams could come by the end of this year and they could begin play in 2020, while the final two will be announced sometime thereafter.

“I think it’s fair to say that this year and the last number of years we’ve been very focused on strategically growing the league and celebrating new markets coming in and building a fan base, helping to create this soccer nation that we’ve been so focused on,” Garber said. “And this year is probably no different. We’ve got a team coming in that is setting records for attendance in Atlanta, and a team in Minnesota that’s similar to Portland in that it is coming into Major League Soccer after many decades of support for the professional game.

“I think you’ll continue to see more and more stories coming out of our league that are about growth, but I try to focus as much on celebrating all the great things that have gone on in so many markets for the last number of years.”

The 12 bids, along with Atlanta United’s season-ticket sales topping 30,000, are proof that soccer continues to gain a foothold in the American sports landscape.

“It just speaks to the overall development and growth of our sport in our country and Canada,” Garber said. “I continue to be impressed by how many of our clubs prove that it is irrelevant how big your market is or where it’s located. It really is about your plan, your focus, your commitment. ... If the ingredients are right I’m convinced we can be successful in any city, any state in the United States. And that’s not something we believed 10 years ago.”

Game of the Week: MLS officially opens its season tonight with a match between the host Portland Timbers and the expansion Minnesota United on national television. The Timbers were the MLS Cup champions in 2015 but failed to make the playoffs last season. The rabid Providence Park fan base — the Timbers have sold out every home match since joining the league in 2011 — should make for entertaining viewing of the Loons’ historic debut. The two teams played to a 2-all draw in the preseason.

Best of the Rest: The defending MLS Cup champion Seattle Sounders visit the Houston Dynamo on Saturday night, marking the return of Clint Dempsey from a heart ailment. NYCFC visits Orlando City on Sunday evening, marking the debut of the Lions’ new soccer-specific stadium, while Atlanta makes its MLS debut later that night against the New York Red Bulls.

New Digs: The 25,500-seat Orlando City Stadium, which also is home to the Orlando Pride of the National Women’s Soccer league, is sold out for the opener. Originally, it wasn’t expected to be ready until three weeks into the season.

The stadium includes 49 rainbow-color seats in section 12, a permanent tribute to the victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting last year.

Dempsey’s Back: While Dempsey is expected to be in the lineup for the Sounders on Saturday, he will be closely monitored. Seattle’s star forward said he first noticed symptoms last February during training camp, but felt good playing for the United States during the Copa America.

In September, the Sounders ruled him out for the rest of the season after he underwent an undisclosed procedure.

“It was a heart issue. It’s something that’s difficult to kind of explain,” Dempsey said last month. “But at the same time I’m not feeling those things anymore and I’m happy to be back playing.”

Going to the Tape: MLS has plans to implement video replay this season following the All-Star Game. The technology will be tested throughout the league during the first half of the season. Garber said pursuing replay made sense for MLS, given that all the other major sports in North America use some form of it.

“I don’t think it’s going to be without its challenges. It’s a new development, a new technology,” Garber said. “I want to remind all of our fans that it’s not going to be foolproof — officiating the games still relies on enormous judgment, even if it’s the judgment of a review official — but I’m convinced it will correct some of the real mistakes that are made.”

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http://awfulannouncing.com/fox/fox-sports-rob-stone-john-strong-expanding-evolving-mls.html

Fox Sports’ Rob Stone, John Strong discuss expanding, evolving MLS as new season begins

“When you create these destination moments, whether it’s a specific matchup or putting games on the Fox network, you can see the spike."

By Shlomo Sprung on 03/03/2017

For its 21st season, Major League Soccer has added its 21st and 22nd franchises in Minnesota and Atlanta. Both clubs’ first-ever games will be on Fox Sports 1, kicking off Fox’s third season in an eight-year contract in MLS.

Awful Announcing spoke with studio host Rob Stone and lead play-by-play announcer John Strong to discuss Fox’s schedule and changes in MLS for the coming season, most notably the new expansion franchises, big network television broadcasts and some upcoming changes that will affect the on-screen product later this summer.

For its 21st season, Major League Soccer has added its 21st and 22nd franchises in Minnesota and Atlanta. Both clubs’ first-ever games will be on Fox Sports 1, kicking off Fox’s third season in an eight-year contract in MLS.

Awful Announcing spoke with studio host Rob Stone and lead play-by-play announcer John Strong to discuss Fox’s schedule and changes in MLS for the coming season, most notably the new expansion franchises, big network television broadcasts and some upcoming changes that will affect the on-screen product later this summer.

Stone will join Strong, Alexi Lalas and new sideline reporter Katie Witham — who replaces Julie Stewart-Binks, now at ESPN — on Friday night in Portland, when the 2015 champion Timbers host Minnesota United at 9:30 p.m. ET on FS1. Stone will be doing pregame work from the crowd alongside the rabid Timbers fan base at Providence Park in Portland, “and fully embracing the energy and atmosphere that they bring.”

“Doing an expansion team’s first game is sort of a fun, unique thing,” Strong, who called Portland’s first-ever game as the team’s local broadcaster in 2011, told Awful Announcing.

“There’s nothing like that first game, making that first impression,” Stone told Awful Announcing.

For most weeks, Stone will be in Fox’s Los Angeles studio with a group including, but not limited to, Brad Friedel, Stuart Holden, Eric Wynalda and, potentially, Landon Donovan.

After the Portland-Minnesota game on Friday, Strong and Lalas will take a red-eye flight to Atlanta for its first-ever home match on Sunday night against the New York Red Bulls (7:30 p.m. ET, FS1) at Georgia Tech’s Bobby Dodd Stadium. The game may have sold out the 55,000 seat stadium, Strong said.

“There’s a lot of people that seem to feel that Atlanta can, maybe on and off the field, emulate a lot of what we saw with Seattle in 2009, which is really exciting,” Strong said.

Minnesota assumed a relatively low profile with its signings leading up to its inaugural season, but Atlanta has definitely not. Atlanta United, coached by former Barcelona and Argentina national team manager Tata Martino, has been at the forefront of the predominant trend in MLS over the offseason, which is signing young players from Central and South America — led by 23-year-old Paraguayan midfielder Miguel Almiron and 22-year-old Argentine forward Hector Villalba — who are on the upswing of their careers instead of high-profile European players like Frank Lampard who are on the decline.

“I think Atlanta has a wonderful chance to get into the postseason in their first year in MLS,” Stone said.

Strong and Stone both expect a much better on-field product across the league this season, as teams shift towards signing younger players — including a larger emphasis on home grown players developed in teams’ academy and developmental systems — who actually see MLS as an improved landing spot to help develop their careers.

“It’s going to continue to raise the quality level of play that we see in MLS, which is the most important thing,” Strong said.

What this current television contract with Fox and ESPN has done is created consistent weekly time slots for MLS. This will be the second season where MLS is prominently featured on network television, with several games going to Fox.

On May 27, Fox will have a doubleheader beginning with the final of England’s FA Cup, leading into Seattle hosting Portland, the league’s biggest rivalry featuring the last two MLS Cup champions. In addition to a New York Derby between the Red Bulls and NYCFC on June 24, Fox will have the first-ever sporting event at the new Mercedes-Benz Stadium between Atlanta and Orlando City on July 30. That all leads up to the MLS All-Star Game on Aug. 2 at Soldier Field in Chicago against, rumor has it, Real Madrid.

“When you create these destination moments, whether it’s a specific matchup or putting games on the Fox network, you can see the spike,” Strong said, in terms of viewership and fan interest. “If we put the right games in the right spots, people are there.”

That held true last September, when Fox put MLS games between Kansas City and Los Angeles and New York and Toronto alongside its regional NFL matchups during week two of the football season. The viewership and response were positive enough that the network appears enthusiastic about doing something similar this coming season.

“By all accounts, it was an absolute success for the league and for Fox and I would be stunned if it doesn’t come back,” Stone said.

A major change that MLS will implement after the All-Star Game is goal line technology and a system called Video Assisted Refereeing (VAR) to review goals and questionable calls involving disciplinary decisions like red and yellow cards. That will add a new dimension to broadcasts that Strong has already embraced.

“If we can, on a broadcast, within 10 seconds, show you definitely that the call was either right or wrong, why can’t we give that same opportunity to the referees?” Strong said.

Strong also said that over the course of the season, Fox’s MLS coverage will try to further integrate analytics and advanced statistics into the telecasts. That’s already begun with the Audi Player Index, which Fox is trying to make more accessible and more relevant, and will continue in midseason with the introduction of expected goals.

In partnership with a company called Opta, expected goals will be used to provide “context for what should have happened in that moment,” per Strong. Instead of just telling the audience that a certain player should have scored, expected goals will try to give context and determine why that player should have scored but did not.

As MLS expands, grows and evolves, Fox is trying to do the same with its coverage, with larger platforms and new technology. Now the trick is for Fox to get fans to tune in and notice that Major League Soccer may be a more developed and refined product than it’s ever been.

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http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/orlando-city-lions/os-sp-orlando-city-stadium-mike-bianchi-0305-story.html

Commentary: Orlando City and City of Orlando both win big with new stadium

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http://saintpetersblog.com/277182-2/

Rowdies pull exhibition victory out late against Tampa Spartans

Gary Shelton

Okay, give the Tampa Bay Rowdies more MLS competition.

These college kids are just too tough.

The Rowdies took a 1-0 victory in an exhibition game against the University of Tampa Spartans, scoring in the 89th minute to take the win. Trialist Martin Paterson scored the game’s only goal in the final minute.

“We played in some difficult conditions tonight,” Rowdies’ coach Stuart Campbell said. “It’s windy and the pitch is bobbly, but the guys just kept going. We had loads and loads of possession but didn’t quite capitalize on it until the end.”

There are now three weeks and just two matches left before Tampa Bay opens the 2017 United Soccer League regular season.

Paterson’s goal, which took a slight deflection before beating the Spartans goalkeeper, was assisted by Alex Morrell.

“UT sat very, very deep and let us have the ball,” Campbell said. “I spoke to the team at halftime to tell them we’re going to come up against this at times during the season when opponents just sit off and let us have the ball but make it hard for us to break them down, so we have to keep moving the ball quick and find a way through. I’m happy with the way the guys kept going. It would have been easy for the guys to let the game wither away and finish 0-0, but the guys had so much drive to not let that happen.”

Tampa Bay dominated possession and nearly the entire match was played in the Spartans’ end, but the Rowdies weren’t sharp enough in front of goal to put the match out of reach until very late.

Tampa Bay’s remaining preseason schedule includes matches against the Jacksonville Armada next Saturday night and then Miami FC on March 18. Both matches will be played away from home.

“It was a strange game, but I think we stayed on track for the regular season,” Campbell said. “They were very compact and solid and they protected their goalkeeper very well. I have to give a lot of credit to (UT Coach) Adrian Bush because that’s the best UT team we’ve come up against and we play them just about every year.”

The Rowdies’ lineup featured just eight signed players, joined by trialists Akira Fitzgerald and Kyle Porter, plus training player Zack Hamm. Fitzgerald played the full 90 minutes and kept a clean sheet.

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http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865674849/MLS-commissioner-happy-to-be-in-Salt-Lake-proud-of-teams-growth.html

MLS commissioner happy to be in Salt Lake, proud of team's growth

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http://www.torontosun.com/2017/03/04/mls-garber-brought-to-tears-at-bmo-field

By Kurt Larson, Toronto Sun

First posted: Saturday, March 04, 2017 11:03 PM EST | Updated: Saturday, March 04, 2017 11:06 PM EST

MLS' Garber brought to tears at BMO Field

SANDY, UTAH - 

Commissioner Don Garber remembers those who questioned Toronto FC’s expansion bid back in 2006.

He referenced it during a sit-down interview with a gaggle of reporters ahead of Toronto FC’s season-opener Saturday night at Rio Tinto Stadium.

“I remember at the opening press conference in 2006 being asked, ‘Why when Toronto’s minor league team only drew 1,000 fans would we be successful with TFC?’

“We just knew we had the formula. We had the right market. We had the right ownership and building that created a downtown movement and model for us.”

For years, Garber has referenced Toronto FC as being an expansion club that changed the direction of MLS.

He added Saturday that last year’s Eastern Conference final as one of the most memorable moments during 19 years as commissioner.

“When I was at the (Eastern Conference) final and saw 30,000-plus in the driving rain and saw an entire city focussed on their club and our league, it was a pivotal moment for all of us,” Garber said.

“When I was standing out there ... and the crowd sang the Canadian anthem, as an American it brought tears to my eyes. There’s such a passion for the Canadian anthem.

“It was one of my happiest moments as MLS commissioner — a great moment for our league.”

Not to mention television ratings.

An average of 1.4 million Canadians tuned into last year’s Eastern Conference final — a 7-5 aggregate win over the Montreal Impact.

“I had a meeting with the FOX production staff,” Garber added. “They thought one of the best games in MLS history was that Eastern Conference final in every way that you’d expect — goals, drama, the fanbase, the rain, the cold, the passion in the stands.

“And it was two Canadian teams that drove not just a big audience in Canada but a big audience in the U.S. Everything that we needed in terms of what we’re trying to sell existed in that game.”

Entering their 10th year, the Reds are a long way from where they started — with Garber standing alongside then-mayor David Miller and introducing the club.

An expanded stadium and expanded payroll has TFC among the league’s elite franchises.

“I hear from (MLSE chairman) Larry Tanenbaum several times a week,” Garber said. “He’s engaged. I’m proud of what’s going on in Canada. We still have work to do, but we’ve made more progress than people have given us credit for.”

GARBER TALKS EXPANSION

Every market is accounted for, according to MLS commissioner Don Garber.

Asked by the Toronto Sun ahead of Toronto FC’s season-opener Saturday afternoon if there are any preferable markets that haven’t submitted an expansion bid, Garber flatly said “no”.

“That, in itself, is a unique opportunity and challenge for us,” Garber said. “All of (MLS’ possible expansion markets) have been working with the league for years now.”

The league — currently at 22 teams — has plans to expand to 28 teams by next decade. Los Angles FC will enter MLS next season and possibly Miami.

Twelve additional cities have sense submitted expansion bids — including Raleigh, Charlotte, Detroit, St. Petersburg, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, St. Louis, Nashville, San Antonio, San Diego, Phoenix and Sacramento.

“It leads us to think MLS can be successful almost anywhere in America,” Garber continued. “It’s not a matter of whether this market is better than the other, but rather how do certain markets fit with what our strategic needs are.

“How will it fit with our geographic footprint? How will it provide us with a connection to certain demographics that we might not be capturing? What’s the uniqueness of the ownership group that could round out the diversity of thought around our board table?”

(Follow link for full article.)

http://www.complex.com/sports/2017/03/us-soccer-creates-rule-mandating-players-stand-national-anthem

U.S. Soccer Creates Rule Mandating Players Stand for National Anthem

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http://www.ussoccer.com/stories/2017/03/05/01/27/20170304-news-agm-us-soccer-adds-term-limits-elects-val-ackerman-adds-fan-vote-to-national-council

U.S. Soccer Introduces Term Limits, Elects Val Ackerman, Adds Fan Vote to National Council

Term Limits Introduced to U.S. Soccer President, Vice President and Board of Director Positions; Big East Conference Commissioner Valerie Ackerman Elected to U.S. Soccer Board of Directors; U.S. Soccer Fan Members Awarded National Council Vote

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http://blog.sfgate.com/soccer/2017/03/03/bay-area-soccer-roundup-6-norcal-teams-in-2017-us-open-cup/

Bay Area soccer roundup: 6 NorCal teams in 2017 US Open Cup

By SFGate on March 3, 2017 at 4:00 AM

6 NOR-CAL TEAMS IN 2017 U.S. OPEN CUP

This week, the 2017 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup tournament schedule and participating teams were revealed, and 6 Northern California sides were amongst those announced, including the Bay Area’s newest professional team, the San Francisco Deltas.

Now in its 104th year of competition, the Open Cup is the oldest ongoing national soccer competition in the United States, and gives amateur and semi-professional clubs an opportunity to compete against teams from the three professional leagues sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation: Major League Soccer (MLS), the North American Soccer League (NASL) and the United Soccer League (USL).

The San Jose Earthquakes (MLS), Sacramento Republic FC (USL), San Francisco Deltas (NASL), Burlingame Dragons FC (PDL), Sonoma County Sol (NPSL), and El Farolito (SFSFL) will all participate.

A total of 56 Open Division teams (including clubs from the PDL and NPSL, as well as those advancing from local qualifying) will enter in the First Round, while 24 clubs from the Division II North American Soccer League and United Soccer League will see their first action in the Second Round on May 17. The Third Round takes place May 31, with the winners from this stage joined by 19 Division I Major League Soccer clubs in the Fourth Round on June 14.

Sonoma Sol, Burlingame Dragons and El Farolito will all compete in the Open Division local qualifiers with a chance to advance to the First Round, while Sacramento and the Deltas will enter in the Second Round, and the Earthquakes in the Fourth Round.

As has been the case in previous years, teams will be paired geographically from the First Round through the Fourth Round. After the Fourth Round, a geographically-based random draw will take place to determine the Round of 16 matchups and set a fixed bracket to the Final, scheduled for Sept. 20.

Click here for more information about the 2017 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.

(Follow link for full article.)

http://www.smh.com.au/sport/soccer/victorian-clubs-plan-revolt-to-force-aleague-promotion-and-relegation-20170305-gur017.html

Victorian clubs plan revolt to force A-League promotion and relegation

March 5 2017

Michael Lynch

Victoria's second tier soccer clubs are aiming to spark a national revolt to force the embattled Football Federation Australia to establish a genuine national second division and promotion and relegation through every level of the game.

FFA chiefs admitted last week that expansion of the A-League was on the back-burner for at least two years, that the cash-strapped body was looking to outside consultants for advice and that it was appealing to private equity investors to fund future growth.

Ambitious National Premier League clubs in Victoria and in other states have complained throughout the A-League's 12-year history that it is largely based on franchise entities, not member clubs, and that it is a closed shop from which traditional clubs are excluded.

They are also angry at the lack of viable transfer fees for players NPL clubs have developed and who are signed by A-League clubs. There is frustration at the way so much of the game's spending is channelled up through the prism of the A-League rather than diffused through the grassroots and in player development.

Victoria's soccer dissidents plan a meeting in Melbourne on Monday night at which they expect at least 24 representatives from Victorian NPL and NPL 1 teams to meet to discuss forming a national association of NPL clubs.

"Once we have formulated our approach here, we will be talking to clubs who feel the same way in NSW, Queensland and South Australia to establish a national body of like-minded clubs," a spokesman for the group said.

"The A-League was a game-changer when it started, but it is stagnating now and is sucking up all the money in the game. The FFA has admitted that clubs here are not like clubs in the traditional heartlands of the game, they have acknowledged that as private businesses the FFA is focused on providing the A-League teams with the opportunities to maximise revenues and make money.

"We feel too much emphasis is on that and not enough on grassroots football, building the infrastructure of the game beyond the top level and developing young players and giving them the opportunity to play at the highest level with more clubs.

"You only have to see the results of Australia's junior teams in World Cups and Olympic qualifiers in the years since the A-League started. Yes, competition everywhere has got tougher, but we hardly even qualify for these tournaments now in the men's game as the players don't seem to be coming through the way they used to.

"You saw the outcry last week when Brisbane and Western Sydney Wanderers got hammered in the Asian Champions League – even the Fox commentators were admitting there were big problems with youth development here. The A-League model is based on the leisure market and entertainment industry, not on traditional football culture, and the results are becoming clear with the Socceroos and the quality of Australian players generally."

The state federations have tended to side with the establishment in the controversies of recent years but the Victorian clubs seem prepared to take on Football Federation Victoria if necessary.

Their ultimate aim is to try and force a restructure of the game once more, so that there is a genuine national second division in which ambitious clubs could compete and win promotion to the top tier – and face relegation if they failed when they pitched in against the big boys.

"It should be all about a fairer distribution of resources and opportunity on the field. Clubs should be able to compete and get to the top if they play better, are coached better and invest wisely.

"Where is the incentive for well run NPL teams, either here in Victoria or in Sydney or Brisbane or wherever, to invest heavily in their infrastructure, produce players or grow the game. At present we can receive $7000 if an A-League team signs one of our players – that's nothing compared to the investment that might have been put into a boy who has been with a club since he was maybe 10 or 11."

Critics will argue the idea of a national second division is pie in the sky and flawed because the clubs in it will simply not have the money to spend on enhanced player wages or flights and accommodation for a lengthy season if they have to travel to Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth on a regular basis.

The Victorians say a large chunk of those costs could be met by forcing their local state federations to withhold the licensing and other fees they pay to the governing body annually.

"The FFV currently pays $1.9 million to FFA. Why should it? We don't get much for it. That money could be spent underwriting teams playing in a national second tier. We believe the FFA is mainly interested in servicing the needs of the A-League teams and the national teams, but we think the game would be better developed long term by building a real football culture through a second division and promotion and relegation."

It's an incendiary move, but the Victorian clubs have form in taking on the establishment.

A few years ago the FFA sought to restructure the game in Victoria and the FFV put in proposals to set up a series of regional-based clubs to play at the top tier of the state pyramid, freezing out many of the established Melbourne teams.

A bitter battle and legal action followed until the clubs won that fight, and the NPL was established as it now is, with many traditional clubs competing at the top.

(Follow link for full article.)

http://www.stumptownfooty.com/2017/3/3/14811526/happy-little-trees

"Happy Little Trees"

posted by William Conwell on Mar 03, 2017

The Timbers Army have killed it once again with today's Bob Ross tifo.

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https://www.newswire.com/news/fieldturf-revolution-360-lands-in-miami-18923361

FieldTurf Revolution 360 Lands in Miami

Press Release - updated: Mar 2, 2017

Miami, FL, March 2, 2017 (Newswire.com) - Until recently, Florida International's hiring of Butch Davis was the biggest news on campus.

However, that all changed when officials announced they'd chosen FieldTurf to install a new turf system at the Golden Panthers' Ocean Bank Field this summer. The university's new playing surface will be home to FIU's football program and the NASL's Miami FC.

FIU and Miami FC opted for FieldTurf’s Revolution 360 system along with FieldTurf's patented VersaTile underlayment – the same combination as the New England Patriots and Revolution chose for Gillette Stadium.