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Confirmed: The TOA League Split is Happening


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I hope the Whitecaps and Impact can count on the rest of their fellow owners. It seems Minnesota's owner is having financial problems and for a while it was anybody's guess as to whether Miami was going to start the 2009 season. The TOA must be counting on some of those expressions of interest to come to fruition.

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quote:Originally posted by Rudi

How will this league survive after the Whitecaps and Impact bolt for greener pastures?

They will play their development teams in the new league. The Whitecaps have been quite open that they were looking for a more appropriate place for their residency to play than the short season PDL and I am sure the Impact will move the Attak to the new league when their first team goes up to MLS, better level of competition than the CSL.
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Also gives anybody considering an investment in pro soccer some options. I do think that a club run league is more likely to succeed and progress at the full pro level than the unique single owner model of the USL. There are countless examples of this around the world.

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quote:Originally posted by Richard

They will play their development teams in the new league. The Whitecaps have been quite open that they were looking for a more appropriate place for their residency to play than the short season PDL and I am sure the Impact will move the Attak to the new league when their first team goes up to MLS, better level of competition than the CSL.

That brings up another point.

The Sounders were forced to sell their USL team after joining MLS due to some league rule that prohibited owners from having another professional team in North America.

Has this issue been resolved? I know the Whitecaps have spoken up and down about keeping a team in USL-1 (or the TOA league now, I guess) after they join MLS, but has anyone actually seen anything from MLS stating that they will be allowed to do this despite everyone else not being allowed to in the (very recent) past?

If allowed, (in addition to Montreal and Vancouver) I can see TFC placing a team in the TOA league to act as its reserve side, while they keep their U-16 and U-18 academy sides in the CSL.

While more USL-1/TOA level sides are a good thing in theory, I'm not sure if having all of them simply being underlings for the Big Three is actually that good an idea. I'd like to see some diversity in ownership at that level, as well.

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Saputo syas talks are still ongoing with USL:

http://impactmontreal.com/News/News.aspx?language=EN&ArticleID=1277&Focus=0

Following the release issued earlier today by the Team Owners Association (TOA), Montreal Impact President Joey Saputo made the following statement:

“I wish to reiterate that there are still ongoing talks between the Montreal Impact and the USL. We continue working on different options for the 2010 season, including the possibility that the Impact take part in the USL-1 or in a new league. We created the Team Owners Association in January 2008 in order to take our destiny in our own hands, as is the case in any other league worldwide. It is already November 10 and we needed to submit to the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) an application for the creation of a new league for this option to remain viable.”

Man, he just made himself and the Impact look very mickey mouse

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There will always need to be a solid second tier league in North America behind MLS. The USL is not providing one. I think this is going to cause a severe shake-up, because the remaining USL clubs include 2 expansion teams and 2 teams on the brink of bankrupcy. Imagine being Charleston...and seeing close rivals Atlanta and Carolina being in a differet league? I'm also surprised that Tampa Bay flip flopped back to USL..even though, Miami would have been a potential rivalry. The applications to USSF and CSA still have to be approved for the league though.

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^ I like this

"There is no FIFA regulation stipulating that member leagues be owned by their respective clubs, and in many cases around the world, leagues consist of individual clubs that play in league competitions managed by the respective Federation such as the English leagues (excluding the Premiership), Bundesliga (Germany), La Liga (Spain) and Mexican Primera Division."

why doesn't the CSA grow some balls once and for all and organize a professional league, just like everybody else around the world?

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quote:Originally posted by RudiHas this issue been resolved? I know the Whitecaps have spoken up and down about keeping a team in USL-1 (or the TOA league now, I guess)

Can't speak for Vancouver, but the Montreal owenrship groups would technically be different:

MLS: Saputo family

TOA: QC gov, Hydro and Saputo Inc.

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Given the number of cities on this continent with populations in the range of 1 million people, it amazes me that there isn't already a network of 4 regional leagues at the USL 1 level, in the West, Centre, North-East, and South East. Seems to me this continent could support 40 such clubs quite easily, even with a 30-team MLS above it. If that were the case, one or two troubled clubs wouldn't be an issue.

Within such a framework Canada could support the MLS in Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal; and the second tier in Calgary, Edmonton, and Ottawa. All we need for that second group is a few middle-range millionaires with a love of soccer, building relatively modest 10K seat stadia. Really, is this asking a lot in a G7 nation of 30 million?

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quote:Originally posted by Richard

They will play their development teams in the new league. The Whitecaps have been quite open that they were looking for a more appropriate place for their residency to play than the short season PDL and I am sure the Impact will move the Attak to the new league when their first team goes up to MLS, better level of competition than the CSL.

Actually the PDL still remains. The Caps want a team to close the gap they have in their system. Right now their PDL players have no where to go to further development. The PDL side is supposed to be U-19. They want a U-23 side to further their development for players who need more seasoning and haven't cracked the men's squad.

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