Daniel Posted January 17, 2008 Share Posted January 17, 2008 Gerry Dobson had an interview with Saputo last week on Soccercentral which seemed to clearly point to 2009 as a string possibility. What's strange (and getting a lot of talk on the Montreal boards) is that none of the local media have picked up the stories. For comparison's sake, when Dobson mentioned on his blog a possible association between the three Canadian pro clubs, everyone picked it up. What's going on??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bytown Posted January 17, 2008 Share Posted January 17, 2008 2009 is a long shot.There is about 8 citys in the running for 2009 that does not include montreal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finchster Posted January 17, 2008 Share Posted January 17, 2008 TFC has a Canada exclusive contract with MLS up to 2010, so we won't see Montréal in MLS in 2009, they are a 2010 lock and should be in MLS then Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mpenza Posted January 17, 2008 Share Posted January 17, 2008 Really, guys... the real question is: WHY ISN'T ANYBODY IN THE MONTREAL MEDIA TALKING ABOUT THIS? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Winnipeg Fury Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 quote:Originally posted by bytown 2009 is a long shot.There is about 8 citys in the running for 2009 that does not include montreal. True, but how many have soccer specific stadiums and rich owners to boot. None that I see. I realize everyone has Montreal as a longshot, but they should be a strong contender. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mpenza Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 When is anybody outside a few Montreal fans going to realize that the Impact is in and that it is just a matter of time before it is announced? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kurosawa1555362267 Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 quote:Originally posted by finchster TFC has a Canada exclusive contract with MLS up to 2010, so we won't see Montréal in MLS in 2009, they are a 2010 lock and should be in MLS then Dobson said they were negotiating about getting rid of the clause. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calgary Boomer Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 Philadelphia's getting the next Eastern based expansion team. End of story. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bytown Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 Winnipeg Fury All of ther 9 citys have very very rich owners. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SthMelbRed Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 quote:Originally posted by bytown Winnipeg Fury All of ther 9 citys have very very rich owners. Not true. None of the cities have already built soccer-specific stadiums, as of yet, although some are deep into the planning stages. Most have the rich owners lined up, although one of the supposed favourite, St. Louis, does not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Free kick Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 quote:Originally posted by SthMelbRed Not true. None of the cities have already built soccer-specific stadiums, as of yet, although some are deep into the planning stages. Most have the rich owners lined up, although one of the supposed favourite, St. Louis, does not. Agreed. On merit, I dont think Montreal has any rivals at the moment. I suspect that the desire or reluctance to add another club outside of the United States ( and at what time to do so) is what the MLS decison on Montreal hinges on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SthMelbRed Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 A lot of people are suggesting that MLS will stop expansion at 18 teams. I have no doubt that their will be 20 teams within five or six years. I am also pretty certain that Montreal and Vancouver will be included in those additional six new entrants. With a 20 team league, you'd have two divisions, Western and Eastern. Each team would play home and away within their division, plus once against each team in the other division for a tidy 28-game season. The only downside would be that fans would only get to see teams from the opposite division live every second year. Maybe a 30-game season would work, with the additional two games being 'rivalry' matches, so, for example, Vancouver could play TFC and Montreal in those two games, giving each cities fans the chance to see the other Canadian teams live each season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Winnipeg Fury Posted January 19, 2008 Share Posted January 19, 2008 quote:Originally posted by bytown Winnipeg Fury All of ther 9 citys have very very rich owners. Yes, but how many have soccer specific stadiums built ? And last I recall, either St Louis or Philly was still trying to put their ownership group together. From Gerry Dobson's blog: Notes: Commissioner Don Garber seems a little cool on expansion to Montreal right now. Seems they really want into Philadelphia if they can get all the pieces in place. ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calgary Boomer Posted January 19, 2008 Share Posted January 19, 2008 quote:Originally posted by SthMelbRed A lot of people are suggesting that MLS will stop expansion at 18 teams. I have no doubt that their will be 20 teams within five or six years. I am also pretty certain that Montreal and Vancouver will be included in those additional six new entrants. With a 20 team league, you'd have two divisions, Western and Eastern. Each team would play home and away within their division, plus once against each team in the other division for a tidy 28-game season. The only downside would be that fans would only get to see teams from the opposite division live every second year. Maybe a 30-game season would work, with the additional two games being 'rivalry' matches, so, for example, Vancouver could play TFC and Montreal in those two games, giving each cities fans the chance to see the other Canadian teams live each season. They'll be playing more than 28 games per season. My guess is, once they reach 20 teams, they'll scrap East-West and have a single table, where every team plays each other once home and once away as per the FIFA model. That would make a 38 game schedule, which is close to what they play now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Posted January 19, 2008 Share Posted January 19, 2008 I wouldn't put too much store in Dobson's interpretation of Garber's attitude towards Montreal. Garber was preoccupied with the draft and besides, playing it cool keeps everyone guessing and one more reason for MLS to be mentioned in the media which is good for the MLS. Look at us, his comment has given rise to more posts :-) Smart guy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cashcleaner Posted January 20, 2008 Share Posted January 20, 2008 I'm doubting Montreal in the league for 2009, but 2010 or 2011 sounds a bit more likely. Again, the exclusivity clause is a moot point now that the domestic player restrictions are lifted. I think Philadephia is too good of a market for MLS to pass up at the moment, so maybe that's why the Impact has been pushed back a bit. But I totally agree with Mpenza. Why isn't the Montreal sports media jumping on the prospect of a MLS franchise in the city. For that matter, why isn't the national press talking about it either? Actually, I think I know the answer. It's not hockey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mpenza Posted January 20, 2008 Share Posted January 20, 2008 If you're Garber, knowing full well the Philly stadium funding is entangled in bureaucracy over whether or not the state should shell out the money, are you going to come out and publicly claim that you're really close to award the 2009 spot to Montreal (or that you have in fact already awarded it)? No, you're not, because then the politicians over there are going to ask questions, like, for instance: Why should we guarantee public funds for a stadium costing in excess of a hundred million dollars while Montreal can so easily get in with a privately-funded 15-milliond dollar stadium? Seeing Saputo openly say things to Soccercentral, only to keep his mouth shut tight and categorically denying anything that looks even remotely close to the shadow of an interview request since then kinda makes me believe he got a call from Garber after the Soccercentral "incident"... And maybe the media here are now under close watch from Saputo after being asked not to report on the MLS story. After all, there has been only one mention of the MLS in 2009 thing in one article coming from CP, in which they vaguely mention that "some people" in Quebec believe the Impact could make the move in 2009... Clearly the author wanted to mention something about it, but was carefully choosing his words not to piss anyone off. So anyhoo. Garber waits. He waits for the Philly situation to progress, and whether it is in a positive way or not doesn't really matter, because he has Montreal ready to go. If Philly gets the funding for the stadium, Garber can then argue about the timeframe being too tight to add Philly in 2009 since they had to wait for the stadium funding and all and announce Montreal. If Philly doesn't get the money, well then, all the better, no excuses, Montreal is the best candidate... I know it sounds like a wish, but when you really think about it, it's pretty darn realistic. Oh and I know you guys are going to play the Saint Louis card, so here's how I see it.... Saint Louis, in my mind, is not a serious candidate. Sure they might have a stadium in the works, but that's all they have. MLS might be better off with Pennsylvania refusing to fund the stadium in Philly, that way they can move the ownership group over to Saint Louis and have them join in 2010... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grizzly Posted January 20, 2008 Share Posted January 20, 2008 quote:Originally posted by Mpenza I know it sounds like a wish, but when you really think about it, it's pretty darn realistic. Yeah it sounds like a wish. It is actually my wish as well but since you are criticizing everyone outside of Montreal for not believing the "good news" do you actually have any proof or insider information that Montreal is in or is this complete speculation based on your interpretation of Montreal's merits? We have been through this many times before but I can think of many negative factors in Montreal's bid and many reasons why other cities may be ahead of Montreal in the competition for a MLS team. I will believe we are in once I start hearing some solid info coming out of Saputo and especially Garber. It has been only a few months since we actually even had official confirmation that Saputo was persuing a MLS team so I think it is a bit early to be assuming that we are in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mpenza Posted January 20, 2008 Share Posted January 20, 2008 [quoteIt has been only a few months since we actually even had official confirmation that Saputo was persuing a MLS team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fort York Redcoat1555362293 Posted January 20, 2008 Share Posted January 20, 2008 With the news that Seattle is basically promoting the Sounders this adds a benefit to the Montreal bid knowing they are one of the strongest sides in the USL with no regional competition. I just hope it's you chosen before they try and retread the Florida failure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kurosawa1555362267 Posted January 20, 2008 Share Posted January 20, 2008 quote:Originally posted by Mpenza So when Saputo goes on Soccercentral saying it is only a matter of when and not if Montreal is going to join MLS, and mentions 2009 as a possibility, adding on top of that that he is in talks with Toronto about the exclusivity deal, that's not enough for you? Or maybe a week feels like 6 months in your world? [] I do not have confirmation that Montreal is in, no. I just open my eyes and look at what's going on on a daily basis, putting pieces found in the media or that insiders throw my way together like I've done for a couple of years now. Nine months ago, I would've told you it was going to be 2012, IF it was going to happen. But it is obvious that Saputo started making MLS a priority sometime during last season. Sure, when you follow the story from afar, looking from time to time at what's in the media and on bigsoccer to see if anything moved, you can't see the progress. Of course I have some insiders info as well, nothing juicy, but all the info surely points towards the same thing and comes from various sources... I do not have confirmation that Montreal is in. But then again, there might only be 2-3 people who have it, if it is indeed the case. But hey... who am I to say all these things, right? And we know how things work with Saputo and the Impact. They are not the most transparent bunch of people. They like their little secrets. They always do businness behind closed doors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calgary Boomer Posted January 21, 2008 Share Posted January 21, 2008 Philly and St Louis are still frontrunners. Garber's most recent comments were that he's had similar discussions with Kerfoot and Saputo and that the "Canadian Expansion" was on the radar, but not for this round. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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