Will the WWC mean a stadium from FC Edmonton?

[Free kick]

Never say never. It all depends which cities get their ducks in order.

Furthermore it comes down to whose willing to pay the expansion fee. When Garber went to Ottawa he said that " if they were willing to build an SSS, he couldn't conceivably see why they wouldn't be granted a team". St Louis was also up for the first round of expansion but didn't get a team. Montreal was the front runner but balked at 40 Mill US and came up with something like 25 mil instead. They were out of the picture immediately until they came up with the money.

Bottom line its anyone whose willing to pay and build an SSS, who will be at the front of the line.

[Macksam]

Furthermore it comes down to whose willing to pay the expansion fee. When Garber went to Ottawa he said that " if they were willing to build an SSS, he couldn't conceivably see why they wouldn't be granted a team". St Louis was also up for the first round of expansion but didn't get a team. Montreal was the front runner but balked at 40 Mill US and came up with something like 25 mil instead. They were out of the picture immediately until they came up with the money.

Bottom line its anyone whose willing to pay and build an SSS, who will be at the front of the line.

Yeah, I don't think Garber would reject the idea of an Edmonton team in the grand scheme of things. I think the MLS' Canadian front office (assuming there is one lol) would convince him that it's a good idea considering more of the Canadian marketshare would get covered.

P.S Is there a Canadian MLS FO?

[alberta white]

^ Not sure about a MLS FO north of the 49th.

But I do concur with your mussing over Garbers potential view of an Edmonton MLS team.

Seattle, Vancouver, Portland, Edmonton. Handy little quartet to have, when it comes to selling the game in the northwest. Hey, Its almost a preseason Cup competition in itself.

(sorry to discount Calgary on this- anyone down there got any comments?)

[Drew Shaw]

Interesting article from Steve Sandor on this very topic.

http://the11.ca/2011/05/20/new-fc-edmonton-gm-already-talking-about-new-stadium/

Thank you for posting that. I'll mail the author a book on English grammar, but it's always good to get information. Cheers.

[Drew Shaw]

I agree with you and I don't. I like the idea of the NASL as being a good league to stay in as it grows into a stable Division II.

I've read your comments before about these areas being poor, but I'm more interested in what's realistic than in civic or nationalist boosterism. These cities aren't in Afghanistan or Haiti, they're in the US, so they're not as poor as you claim they are. Atlanta is a city of 2 million+ with corporations headquartered in it that are massive, and dwarf anything in Edmonton. Detroit and Miami each have 4 times the population of Edmonton, despite the US's recent economic reality check. There are 6 million people on Long Island, New York who are more or less unserved by MLS despite New Jersey Fizzy Pop. The numbers are what they are. Edm, Cgy, and Ott are not in the running with those three areas still outside of MLS, though it sounds like either NY or Miami will get the 20th team.

"Edmonton and area has more money then God."

As fictional beings, gods don't have any wealth, but I assume this is meant to be a boast about Edmonton being wealthy. Currently Edmonton has the head offices of fewer corporations than Winnipeg (thank you, recent articles about the Winnipeg Coyotes/Thrashers); so while Edmonton does well off the petroleum industry, it isn't anything special to those of us outside of it (including Don Garber and the owners of US MLS teams, who have never heard of Edmonton), even if those who live there think it is. Atlanta has several corporations headquarted in it which dwarf anything in Edmonton, as does Detroit. There are also more people in all of those cities than in Edmoton with a disposable income of, say, $30K, or whatever threshold we think is required to buy a season ticket for MLS soccer.

Most importantlythough, with 3 Canadian MLS teams in place in the provinces of Ontario, Quebec, and British Columbia, MLS has done all the expansion to Canada that it needs to do to cover the major markets in our country. It's not difficult to figure out that the states of Florida, Georgia, Minnesota, and Michigan - all without an MLS team - are all ahead of Alberta on MLS's expansion radar in terms of population and potential increase in fan, media, and corporate revenue and coverage. What Bettman cannot and will not succeed in doing with hockey at the NHL level (league expansion to new markets in the US) is actually attainable for MLS, as they are showing with their successes in Portland, Vancouver, Philadelphia, Seattle, and Toronto over the past five years. People in the US who love soccer are everywhere. People in the US who love hockey are not everywhere.

Whether a city has more or fewer potential paying MLS fans or not completely dictated by population, of course. Portland is small but clearly has more soccer fans per capita than many other places; and to me Salt Lake and Columbus are two baffling choices for MLS that may not pan out.

Now, if a "J-League style" second division of 20 teams could ever happen here (wouldn't that be excellent?), then I would say that at least one Alberta city and Ottawa would be right back in the running. But unless that happens, Edmonton needs to focus on building something like Rochester had a few years back, and Montreal currently has. Cheers.

[Drew Shaw]

Never say never. It all depends which cities get their ducks in order.

Never say never is lawyer-speak. I'm talking about reality here.

There will never be a fourth Canadian MLS team in an MLS which has 30 or fewer teams, for all the reasons I have already listed.

If MLS expands into two divisions of 20, with pro/rel, then the situation will be so different than today that obviously a few more cities will be in the running. But unless that happens, Canada, with 10% of the population, already has 15% of the MLS franchises. We're not getting any more. I never thought we'd get 3, so I'm delighted. Cheers.

[EDM Rover]

Never say never is lawyer-speak. I'm talking about reality here.

There will never be a fourth Canadian MLS team in an MLS which has 30 or fewer teams, for all the reasons I have already listed.

If MLS expands into two divisions of 20, with pro/rel, then the situation will be so different than today that obviously a few more cities will be in the running. But unless that happens, Canada, with 10% of the population, already has 15% of the MLS franchises. We're not getting any more. I never thought we'd get 3, so I'm delighted. Cheers.

I agree with you 100% seathan. As much as I'd like the Eddies in a top-tier league - there are a lot of cities that would be ahead of us in that queue and I'm not devastated by that information. FC Edmonton needs to put down some roots here and develop organically. To me, that means:

-continued success in a stable league;

-continued player development (I'm really proud of the number of young Canadian, and esp. Albertan, players on our roster. I think they've proven a lot of doubters wrong already. It would be great if we can retain the core of the team for multiple seasons, but I have a special place in my heart for players who gave their all for the Eddies before taking the next step in their careers);

-developing some unique rivalries along the way (hopefully with the addition of some new Canadian foes - I'm thinking CGY for sure);

-some good runs in the Voyageur Cup (I'm still convinced we could've done at least a little damage to TFC's pride if things had broken better for us);

-a modest SSS, conducive to the fan experience and creating real atmosphere;

I don't want to dampen the spirits of other Eddies supporters, but there are only a few markets in North America, let alone Canada, where you can just plug in a MLS franchise and create an instant fanbase (no offense to the small and committed groups of VWC and Toronto Lynx fans out there). We might have something else on our hands, but it could still be pretty special.

BTW, is MLS for sure the long-term goal of the Faths?

[foreverthursday]

BTW, is MLS for sure the long-term goal of the Faths?

Long term success of pro soccer in Edmonton is their goal. They are in this for the long haul, and I think they might want to see the NASL be strong and the teams in the league stable first. I can't speak for them, but they have put their necks out for this club and this league. I think Division II soccer in North America is a noble goal, and very important. I hope the MLS will embrace it, and maybe add some permanent reserve squads to the league. And I hope the USSF puts hard standards on Division III so it gets it's act together, and stop pulling desperate crap.

[Trident]

Long term success of pro soccer in Edmonton is their goal. They are in this for the long haul, and I think they might want to see the NASL be strong and the teams in the league stable first. I can't speak for them, but they have put their necks out for this club and this league. I think Division II soccer in North America is a noble goal, and very important. I hope the MLS will embrace it, and maybe add some permanent reserve squads to the league. And I hope the USSF puts hard standards on Division III so it gets it's act together, and stop pulling desperate crap.

no

[foreverthursday]

no

You stupid f*cktard. Once again you troll my posts without giving a reason or your thoughts. Maybe explain it or shut the hell up.

[Drew Shaw]

Good post, Rover. A stable Div II would be an amazing accomplishment in North America, precisely because it's so hard to do. But it's also more attainable now than it has ever been.

Calgary and Ottawa need owners like Edmonton has, and all three need stadia. Eastern Canada could easily field a team of mostly local players in Hamilton (taking players from all of southern Ontario), just like Edmonton is doing with Alberta players (and currently one of the best teams in the NASL). We have the local players who can compete, as Edmonton has shown. Next year there will be a bunch of Impact rejects, which a team in Ottawa would be perfectly placed to sign, and augment with other top local amateurs from Ottawa through to Montreal corridor (which has a population of 3-4 million people!).

But there's also the exciting prospect of a Canadian division within the NASL, followed by an all-Canadian Div II. Why not? It's not unreasonable to expect that, with all the interest generated by the 3 Cdn MLS teams, a new CSL couldn't succeed where the 1987-92 one failed. Victoria supports PDL with 1-2000 fans; would that double if we had a team in a cross-Canada league? I think it would. Edm, Cgy, and Ott all have a million people. Wpg, Ham, and Que each have 750K people. Halifax, like Victoria, only has 300K+ people, but is a good market for semi-pro teams because the people there know pro sports are out of reach. That's 8 cities that could support pro soccer, if it's done right, well run, and prudently financed. You could add London as a ninth. Montreal and Vancouver both proved that you can build from the ground up, while Toronto showed how the right stadium is vital. I think what's different now for Edm, Cgy, and Ott is that the national awareness of soccer is now MUCH higher thanks to the Cdn MLS teams. This is VERY noticable on Vancouver Island, and I'm sure the same is true across southern Ontario, and will be next year in Quebec as a province. Cheers.

[Trident]

You stupid f*cktard. Once again you troll my posts without giving a reason or your thoughts. Maybe explain it or shut the hell up.

Take it more personally? Try not to attack people, man. Just disagreeing isn't trolling, especially since trolling doesnt usually involve stating something I actually think.

I've already said often why I don't think it's a good idea to mix actual standalone D2 teams, with unnatural farm team setups.

A league isnt attractive for investors trying to make a team, while some could potentially be a reserve squad in potentially empty stadiums.

But, don't let the many posts I've directed towards your thoughts on the subjects get in the way of crying over pixels, again.

[redhat]

MOD ALERT: Please refrain from attacking each other on a personal level. Mods will not tolerate that kind of crap, nor would we tolerate abusive trolling, etc. etc. Fair warning!

Thank you.

[strobe_z]

Thanks redhat... and now back to the topic at hand...

It's been pointed out to me that (somewhat obviously) Edmonton being part of the WWC bid is most likely hinging on Commonwealth. But these things need to have a legacy. Edmonton has a history of supporting the Nat's (especially the women), so what's our legacy going to be? A pat on the back and a "thanks for letting us use the BIG stadium... see 'ya next time."? We need more than that. Dammit, I want a stadium... a real one.

[alberta white]

Thanks redhat... and now back to the topic at hand...

It's been pointed out to me that (somewhat obviously) Edmonton being part of the WWC bid is most likely hinging on Commonwealth. But these things need to have a legacy. Edmonton has a history of supporting the Nat's (especially the women), so what's our legacy going to be? A pat on the back and a "thanks for letting us use the BIG stadium... see 'ya next time."? We need more than that. Dammit, I want a stadium... a real one.

How about FC Edmonton Ladies (Founded 2012)?

....Pull yer boots on sister...yer gunna be a STAR!

[Joe MacCarthy]

FIFA head of women’s competition gives Edmonton stamp of approval for WWC

Steven Sandor 09/26/2011

A FIFA delegation that inspected Edmonton’s Commonwealth Stadium said Monday that it is delighted with the progress the city has made as it prepares to be one of the host cities of the 2015 Women’s World Cup.

“It’s absolutely acceptable to us,” said Tatjana Haenni, FIFA’s head of women’s competitions, in a press conference held Monday in the Alberta capital.

And the former Swiss national teamer said that there is no issue with Commonwealth having an artificial surface.

“The discussion between artificial turf and natural turf is completely open,” she said.

“Really, there’s no big, open questions (about Edmonton). It’s about fine tuning.”

Edmonton Mayor Stephen Mandel and officials from the Province of Alberta met with FIFA and Canadian Soccer Association delegates. The soccer pitch was shown off at Commonwealth Stadium — and practice facilities at Jasper Place Bowl and Foote Field, where FC Edmonton of the NASL calls home, were also seen.

And, Edmonton Mayor Stephen Mandel said a new 10,000-15,000-seat soccer-specific stadium could be one of the legacy projects left by the WWC.

“FC Edmonton is a fine team,” said Mandel. “And I don’t think there’s any question that they need a 10,12 or 15,000 seat stadium to play in.”

That stadium could also be used for other events — and Mandel said the city is trying to be cooperative with the club’s ownership.

But what of Commonwealth Stadium? Canadian Soccer Association General Secretary Peter Montopoli said he was pleased with the “significant additions” made to Commonwealth Stadium so far — and the ones planned.

“Ones planned” were the two key words. That suggests that more work will need to be done to Commonwealth Stadium to have it ready for the women’s U-20 World Cup in 2014 and the WWC in 2015.

The final list of list cities will be announced in the first half of 2012. In the second half of 2012, the CSA will announce which cities get which games — who gets the Canada games, who gets the semifinals and finals.

Mandel said he hoped Edmonton will get consideration for the big games.

“I think all the cities want to host the final game,” said Mandel. He said Edmonton will be fine with whatever the CSA decides, “as long as it’s a fair and transparent process.”

[Soccerpro]

It's too bad that it's such a difficult economic climate for getting stadiums built right now. If FC Edmonton could partner with U of A, local youth clubs, the province etc to get a stadium it would go a long way to ensuring FC Edmonton is still here in 5 years.

[alberta white]

It's too bad that it's such a difficult economic climate for getting stadiums built right now. If FC Edmonton could partner with U of A, local youth clubs, the province etc to get a stadium it would go a long way to ensuring FC Edmonton is still here in 5 years.

As mentioned on an the impact thread, The Ownership of the Eddies is a benevolent dictatorship, rather than a financial consortium, which would require a more imediate returns on the dollar . The Brothers Fath apparently have more sofas than Ikea, with plenty of loonies hidden within.