MLS commissioner Don Garber has stated in the past that for a municipality to be taken serious for an expansion team, it must have two things; a stadium and a strong ownership group. So, with the announcement of the building of the dome, we have one of the two.
Another thing going for B'ham is that MLS has not had a team south of DC since the contraction of the two Florida teams in 2002. I'm sure that MLS would love to have a larger presence in the South and with the success of the Columbus and Salt Lake franchises, it has been demonstrated that a small market can support an MLS club.
So, one of my first question is who is the ownership group to whom Mr. Langford refers? Look, if you are reading this you probably realize that professional soccer is here to stay in the USA, but MLS has a slow growth business plan and that requires very deep pockets to cover any losses that may occur over the lean times in the economy (like the one we are in now). That's one of the reasons they dropped the Florida teams. The ownership of those two squads either weren't dedicated to the product (Tampa) or didn't have enough cash to do so (Miami). If this ownership group is not fully committed to the long term outlook and have the dollars to do so, then MLS will not take a Birmingham bid seriously.
Mock-up of the domed stadium that Birmingham may have built soonSo, right now there are just too many questions that will need to be answered before I get excited about a B'ham team in MLS. BTW, I'll leave the whole discussion about whether soccer should be played in a domed stadium for later. :)
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"Another thing going for B'ham is that MLS has not had a team south of DC since the contraction of the two Florida teams in 2002"
ReplyDeleteDon't forget about Houston!
-John
I don't think anything west of the Mississippi is considered as the "south" according to MLS. Perhaps a better term would be the southeast. In the past the rumors of southern expansion have always included cities like Miami, Atlanta, Nashville, Raleigh/Durham.
ReplyDeleteI live in Birmingham and would LOVE the MLS to come here. Langford may not have been the ideal voice for it, but its out there now. I say we call them the BIRMINGHAM BLUES.
ReplyDeleteBirmingham Blues... hmm. That has a nice ring to it. I assume you mean Blues like the Everton FC and not Blues like the St. Louis Blues (music).
ReplyDeleteLive in Birmingham...can soccer be played at an elite level in an indoor facility? Birmingham would draw from Atlanta and Nashville. Always has for major soccer events. And Huntsville, truly an international type city, is huge with soccer.
ReplyDeleteBIRMINGHAM HIGHLANDERS