St. Louis great fit for Major League Soccer

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https://www.stltoday.com/opinion/mailbag/st-louis-great-fit-for-major-league-soccer/article_d949bbd8-8f92-5d3c-898a-bfeecc25cc2c.html

St. Louis great fit for Major League Soccer

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https://www.post-gazette.com/sports/soccer/2019/03/25/riverhounds-sc-usl-championship-jake-edwards-highmark-stadium-pittsburgh/stories/201903200126

League president feels Riverhounds are poised for growth — perhaps into a new stadium

Jake Edwards isn’t worried about the Steelers, Penguins, Pirates or Pitt.

Those teams and programs certainly have more established followings than do Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC, the city’s USL Championship pro team. The league’s president, however, doesn’t see them as competition.

“You’ve only got one professional soccer team there,” he said last week.

“Soccer’s very tribal. It’s very different. It’s not about which level or what I’m competing with in the market. Pittsburgh has one professional soccer team. Soccer fans will have other teams around the world, perhaps, that they have an affinity to, that they might watch on the television. But we want them to also come and get behind their local team and see these great players that are out there. So this is their team to support.”

It’s through that lens that Edwards views the job of boosting the Riverhounds’ visibility in the city’s sports landscape. It’s about reaching soccer fans.

They’ve demonstrated their existence here repeatedly over the course of the past decade, during which the world’s game has grown in popularity domestically.

Big crowds have turned out for exhibitions involving the U.S. women’s national team and European clubs at Heinz Field. And just last October, the Riverhounds drew a Highmark Stadium record 5,189 fans for their playoff loss against Bethlehem Steel FC.

Consistency has been the issue. The Riverhounds were 24th among 33 teams in attendance with an average gate of 2,401 in 2018, one of their best seasons in recent memory.

Perhaps not coincidentally, consistency on the field has been a challenge, too. Before last season, the Riverhounds had reached the playoffs just twice in the previous six seasons, and they didn’t make much noise once they got there.

The 2018 season was different. The team finished third in the Eastern Conference, its best finish since 2010, and Edwards feels that success is definitely not a coincidence. He pointed to owner Tuffy Shallenberger’s investments in Highmark Stadium and youth academies as well as the recruitment of championship-winning coach Bob Lilley as moves that are starting to bear fruit.

Keep it up, and he feels the support will follow .

“There’s always been a belief in that club that winning is a major identity of the community,” Edwards said.

So, too, is star power, something the USL Championship has started to gather in more abundance in recent years. International star Didier Drogba finished his career with the Phoenix Rising last year after signing with the club and gaining an ownership stake in 2017, and Premier League standout Joe Cole followed a similar path with the Tampa Bay Rowdies.

Edwards suggested that the Riverhounds could be in the mix to get such face-of-the-franchise types in the coming years.

One thing that’s probably not on the table is promotion to Major League Soccer, the top professional division in the U.S. Other USL clubs including Orlando and Cincinnati have made the leap in recent years, but Edwards said a step up for the Riverhounds hasn’t been a focus for the league or the organization.

Instead, he’s looking toward another ambitious goal.

“Looking out toward five years, I think both the USL and the club would like to see a significant demand in support for that team that we are looking for a much bigger stadium somewhere in and around the city,” Edwards said. “And I think that will pay huge dividends for the city and the club. So I think [the goals are] success on the field, success in the stands and it’s working toward a bigger stadium down the road.”

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https://www.edp24.co.uk/sport/norwich-city/norwich-city-loan-watch-fylde-wembley-wrexham-tampa-1-5956500

Norwich City loan watch: Wembley chance for Odusina and senior debut for Spyrou

Over in the USA, City left-back Caleb Richards started his third consecutive full match as Tampa Bay Rowdies continued their unbeaten start to the United Soccer League season, drawing 1-1 at St Louis in the Championship Eastern Conference.

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https://www.kxan.com/news/local/austin/construction-firm-selected-for-new-mls-stadium-in-austin/1875428368

Construction firm selected for new MLS stadium in Austin

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https://www.sounderatheart.com/2019/3/25/18280805/italian-womens-league-smashes-another-attendance-record-juventus-mls-soccer-news

Major Link Soccer: Italian women's league smashes another attendance record

Another straight week of record crowds. Also, DeAndre Yedlin on Miguel Almiron at Newcastle, and FC Tucson goes pro.

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https://communityimpact.com/austin/development-construction/2019/03/25/austin-fc-selects-construction-manager-for-major-league-soccer-stadium/

Austin FC selects construction manager for Major League Soccer stadium

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