spiral Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 This is huge man. Translation to follow: http://www.sport.es/default.asp?idpublicacio_PK=44&idioma=CAS&idtipusrecurs_PK=7&idnoticia_PK=588818 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spiral Posted February 20, 2009 Author Share Posted February 20, 2009 translation from sport.es: "We wanto to get into the American market, but only if that doesn't involve any financial risk", said Joan Olive, FC Barcelona's general director. "The risk is much higher today than when we announced this [the Miami franchise]". "This team cannot be a part of an investment if we are not 100% sure that the estructure is solid enough. We cannot risk our image and prestige", Olive added. "We still have time to suspend this", he concluded. When reporters asked Olive about Mauricio Claure, Olive said that "Mauricio is also analizing if this is financially convenient". "He is a businessman and he will not want to get involved with something if he doesn't know the repercussions". Chau, Jose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spiral Posted February 20, 2009 Author Share Posted February 20, 2009 http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/soccer/story/913490.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loud Mouth Soup Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 But, but, but...THEY SHOOK HANDS! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L.T. Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 hope you didn't get whiplash on that turnaround! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spiral Posted February 20, 2009 Author Share Posted February 20, 2009 It's the Snowball effect. This announcement will KILL ticket sales... which will kill the bid... with this announcement I can't see fans buying season tickets... not exactly a vote of confidence Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spiral Posted February 20, 2009 Author Share Posted February 20, 2009 the snowball has started rolling down the hill: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/soccer/02/20/barca.mls/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spiral Posted February 20, 2009 Author Share Posted February 20, 2009 The New York Times weighs in with details. Funny how Garber is vacationing in Spain. Coincidence? http://goal.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/02/20/barcelona-rethinks-bid-for-mls-expansion-club/?ref=sports Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jeffery S. Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 Well if you saw my post yesterday on the other Miami Barça thread... http://www.canadian-soccer.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=18594&whichpage=2 ...you will have seen the reference to the first official press story from out of Spain that was critical of the move. Since the Barça president is under fire for other issues I suppose they decided to take everything not proven, reliable and directly benefitting the club off the table. I think that what finally got them on the Barça side was Nike laying down the law: how could Barça push their club image through an Adidas shirt, and end up competing with their only shirt sponsor internationally, Nike, in one of the key growth markets? Even using Barça colours would have been a problem and would have represented bad faith on Barça's part. On the other hand I would not be surprised if Claure had doubts about the fee given the economy. Probably he can still collaborate with Barça without having to put down the huge initial investment in MLS, though of course if he wanted he could he could also look for another working partner and continue alone with the bid. But I doubt he will. Has Beckham's loan to Milan affected perception of the marketability of MLS internationally? Edit: if you look at the other articles linked to on the Sport article you can see some parallel problems. Barça recently had to take out a 29 million euro loan to ensure operations as they are waiting to be paid for a TV contract from the Catalan national TV corporation. This has been held back due to problems between the owner of the tv rights, a private company (which also happened to be a co-producer of Vicky Cristina Barcelona), and TV3, which is not happy about how they are being distributed (they have lost exclusivity and are no longer the only station showing certain games). When TV3 pays them they'll cancel the loan. Another article is related to Barça asking Nike to take over operations of its major shop at Camp Nou again. So cash flow and merchandising questions. Not the best time to be throwing out money somewhere else. I am a Barcelona club member, was happy about the MLS bid, but recognize its problems and as a Whitecaps fan as well am pretty happy about the turn of events. Better for me to have Barça at Camp Nou and the Caps at BC Place, both playing at the highest level possible respectively. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luis_Rancagua Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 This is a huge victory for the Vancouver Whitecaps and the Ottawa bid...and I'm also NOT</u> excluding Montreal. Now this explains why that rumor was circulating about Montreal's bid being resurrected suddenly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spiral Posted February 20, 2009 Author Share Posted February 20, 2009 Montreal had advance notice that Miami was in trouble and now Montreal is talking it up. Makes sense at this point. When a city files a bid, do they sign a contract with the league indicating what the financial committment is going to be and that they will agree to it and on what terms? A bit like making a bid at an auction. If you make a bid, you're legally held liable to that bid and can't withdraw... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheKottonmouthed1555362307 Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 Yea this really helps secure the Caps bid Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luis_Rancagua Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 quote:Originally posted by spiral Montreal had advance notice that Miami was in trouble and now Montreal is talking it up. Makes sense at this point. When a city files a bid, do they sign a contract with the league indicating what the financial committment is going to be and that they will agree to it and on what terms? A bit like making a bid at an auction. If you make a bid, you're legally held liable to that bid and can't withdraw... Based on this latest development, I'm now more than ever convinced that the Montreal rumor is starting to make sense...and certainly something is going down (as we speak) between Garber and Saputo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coppercanuck Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 I wonder if the MLS is thinking the $40 million price tag on their franchises is worth it. Did they price themselves out of the market? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spiral Posted February 20, 2009 Author Share Posted February 20, 2009 what I'm trying to establish with Montreal / Saputo / Gilette is: can a bid be resubmitted, even if modified, after either: 1. it was rejected by the League 2. was volutarily withdrawn by the club / owner / city I guess in the case of 2 it would really depend on the circumstances why Montreal withdrew. But if was an outright rejection by the MLS, is there grounds for renegotiation this late in the game. I mean, first they said the deadline was mid October. Now it's almost March. What the hell is going on? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ag futbol Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 Well this house of cards has just crashed. To me (despite a lot of opinions out there) Don Garber has had more than a few sketchy episodes in his business dealings. That's not to say he hasn't made the league look good at some points as well (he did turn it around from a near abrupt folding to where we are today) but his shine is being lost. Is selling a franchise (in a league where each franchise is 51% owned by the collective) to the person who bids the most money the best idea? What if you are just eating their losses after they join? If I was one of the money makers in this league i'd have something to say about that. In my opinion, expansion to Canada is looking better than ever (and that might even include montreal). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spiral Posted February 21, 2009 Author Share Posted February 21, 2009 more fallout: http://goal.com/en/news/12/spain/2009/02/20/1119423/barcelonas-american-presence-in-jeopardy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmcmurph Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 Vancouver and Portland? Get the Cascadia Cup back on and have a solid northwest region. Vancouver and Montreal? Add the 2 teams with the best base and get a Canada wide TV deal (GolTV as a fallback if they can't get CBC or CTV). I can see MLS wanting to add one east and one west but if 2 in the same region can join Seattle for a 3 way derby and all 3 have great fan base .... I can see MLS not wanting to add 2 Canadian cities at once but if they are ready and the rest are not ....... We shall see. Soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duane Rollins1555362254 Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 quote:Originally posted by coppercanuck I wonder if the MLS is thinking the $40 million price tag on their franchises is worth it. Did they price themselves out of the market? Ottawa, Vancouver, Portland and St. Louis are all willing to pay it. Miami still might be too (this story doesn't say they are pulling out, it just says they are thinking about it). So, no, MLS has not priced itself out of the market. It will get two cities to pay it $40 million each. There is literally no way Montreal is coming into the league at a lower price than what the league is asking for. Why would MLS take less from Montreal when it can get the full amount from at least four other cities? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brownbear Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 quote:Originally posted by MediaGuy Ottawa, Vancouver, Portland and St. Louis are all willing to pay it. Miami still might be too (this story doesn't say they are pulling out, it just says they are thinking about it). So, no, MLS has not priced itself out of the market. It will get two cities to pay it $40 million each. There is literally no way Montreal is coming into the league at a lower price than what the league is asking for. Why would MLS take less from Montreal when it can get the full amount from at least four other cities? See ag_futbol's response above for a cogent answer to your question. Take a little bit less money now from a club that is more likely to fill the league's coffers in the future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 quote:Originally posted by MediaGuy Ottawa, Vancouver, Portland and St. Louis are all willing to pay it. Miami still might be too (this story doesn't say they are pulling out, it just says they are thinking about it). So, no, MLS has not priced itself out of the market. It will get two cities to pay it $40 million each. There is literally no way Montreal is coming into the league at a lower price than what the league is asking for. Why would MLS take less from Montreal when it can get the full amount from at least four other cities? You seem awfully convinced of that but I am not so sure. Perhaps, had the markets not crashed as they did, although there have been questions about St. Louis for some time, and none of the aformentioned teams, aside from Kerfoot, are willing to pony up private investment for a stadium. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canuck Oranje Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 IMO, Claure is reevaluating the price tag along with Barca. They may go ahead or they may not. This is not about Claure ability to pay but MLS being a good investment at $40 million in the current economic climate. Claure may be passionate about soccer but he also a very smart businessman. Many of the other bids do not have confirmed stadiums so MLS could still end up holding an empty bag. In addition, I wouldn't be surprised to see some other bids withdraw as well for various reasons. Another point, if an investor is prepared to make $40 million investment, there is no doubt that there would be a requirement to do due diligence on the part of the investor too. Claure is certain to be doing his due diligence on the MLS in the current economic climate. Could it be he doesn't like what he is seeing? Remember, this is a two-way evaluation. Claure is seeing smart soccer business people staying outside of the MLS like the Saputos, Traffic group (owners of Miami FC), and the Austin group (USL). I am certain that he has had numerous conversations with Traffic. His business instincts may be overcoming his MLS infatuation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philippe Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 quote:Originally posted by MediaGuy Ottawa, Vancouver, Portland and St. Louis are all willing to pay it. Miami still might be too (this story doesn't say they are pulling out, it just says they are thinking about it). So, no, MLS has not priced itself out of the market. It will get two cities to pay it $40 million each. There is literally no way Montreal is coming into the league at a lower price than what the league is asking for. Why would MLS take less from Montreal when it can get the full amount from at least four other cities? Rumors say that there's an offer saying that Garber might accept the 40 M CAN from Saputo and that for the following years Saputo would pay a larger percentage of sales profits to MLS in order to compensate. Just a rumor, perhaps not true. My point is there's ways to negociate. In the long run, with the fanbase MTL has, it would obviously be a smarter move by Garber. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luis_Rancagua Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 Miami Bid Far From Dead by Kartik Krishnaiyer on February 21, 2009 Yesterday MLS Rumors and Goal.com broke the story about the apprehension Barcelona has about the downturn in the US economy and their current venture in Miami for an MLS expansion team. Message Boards have filled up with posters, many of which know little about the situation that have said “good” and “Miami never deserved another team” among other things. Here is what I can report after speaking with a number of sources. * MLS and SUM had for sometime before the Oct 15th announcement of Barcelona’s bid been soliciting a big name or financially stable investment group. That’s why among other names, David Beckham was floated as a possible investor in June of 2008. MLS wants back in the Miami market. One of my sources tells me that had the league realized the demographic changes that were coming to the area in the form of more Central and South Americans it is possible the league never would have pulled the plug on the Fusion in 2001. Miami will be the largest metropolitan area in the United States without an MLS team once Philadelphia begins play in 2010. Additionally, the Miami/Ft Lauderdale media market had one of the highest viewership numbers for US-Mexico last week even though the Mexican population in south Florida is minimal compared to other Latino groups. In other words it’s a natural football market once again. (this also contradicts the theory among some very lazy, hostile and ignorant mainstream sports writers that everyone watching that particular game was of Mexican descent) * Commissioner Don Garber is either on his way to, or already in Barcelona and will be meeting with team officials around today’s derby match with Espanyol. It is entirely possible Barcelona like Montreal wanted a better deal on expansion or that the club is simply looking at all aspects of its financial operation. Barcelona has yet to officially pull out of the Miami project contrary to the conjecture or wishful thinking on some message boards. Marcelo Claure also from what I understand remains committed although I have no knowledge of his recent conversations with the Catalan club since the clubs financial meeting this week where this issue was brought forward. This is an ongoing story and I’ll possibly have more to report later. http://www.majorleaguesoccertalk.com/miami-bid-far-from-dead/2132 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spiral Posted February 21, 2009 Author Share Posted February 21, 2009 You can say "Far from dead" as much as you want. Fact of the matter is it was reported to the media and now the fans are getting cold feet. "Far from dead" can mean anything. It can also mean close to dead. If the bid wasn't in trouble, why were those negative comments made to the press? I'm not discounting your info, it's much appreciated, but the behavior here doesn't make any sense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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