A call to action regarding the CSA’s selection process for the 2019 Concacaf League

[Ams1984]

I just sent this to the CSA:

 

“Dear CSA,

First, I am a lifelong supporter of Canadian soccer. I am deeply grateful to the CSA for your role in the growth of the Voyageurs Cup, and the creation of the CPL. But the reason I am writing to you now is that I am perplexed by your amateurish and senseless decision to award the first ever Canadian spot in the Concacaf League to one of FC Edmonton, Forge FC, ot Valour FC when there are seven Premier League clubs. None of them deserves this silly and frankly outrageous level of arbitrary and capricious favouritism. 

If you were pressed into making a quick decision, as I suspect was the case, then why didn’t you simply draw one of the seven CPL clubs at random?

Everyone would’ve accepted that process as transparent and fair, but instead you have alienated and outraged the fans of the four other CPL clubs, myself included. Yes, the three privileged clubs from whom you will select the 2019 Canadian representative in the Concacaf League were the first to sign onto the new CPL project, but the four other clubs are founding members also. Your decision to grant those three clubs special seeding in the Voyageurs Cup seems unfair on its face, but isn’t it reward enough for their being ‘first’ among the first seven clubs?

I urge you to reverse this nonsensical and irrational decision immediately. I urge you to conduct a transparent draw from among all seven CPL clubs. Fairness, rule of law, and transparency are hallmarks of our Canadian way, and this action that you have taken lacks in all three.”

I urge all Voyageurs to express their displeasure to the CSA directly, as soon as possible. 

[Guest]

LOL at that first paragraph!

A little bit of sugar and then WHAM! ?

[dyslexic nam]

If will be sending a similar type of email tomorrow.  Any email address in particular that it should go to, or just a general CSA email?

[Gopherbashi]

10 minutes ago, dyslexic nam said:

If will be sending a similar type of email tomorrow.  Any email address in particular that it should go to, or just a general CSA email?

I was going to suggest Nick Bontis since he came and talked to us at Jamie's last summer (and he's the VP).

Maybe we should all complain to John Pugh about not being allowed into the tournament.  

Board of Directors listing is located here: https://www.canadasoccer.com/board-of-directors-s15104

Edited February 14, 2019 by Gopherbashi

[Ams1984]

1 hour ago, dsqpr said:

LOL at that first paragraph!

A little bit of sugar and then WHAM! ?

That’s how I roll

[Ams1984]

37 minutes ago, dyslexic nam said:

If will be sending a similar type of email tomorrow.  Any email address in particular that it should go to, or just a general CSA email?

I’m useless with technology so I just sent it to the general box, but the most senior email you can get would be best imo. 

[The Ref]

2 hours ago, dyslexic nam said:

If will be sending a similar type of email tomorrow.  Any email address in particular that it should go to, or just a general CSA email?

I would also like CSA's email address.

[SpursFlu]

I personally do not like the decision at all but.. im gonna keep the good vibes rolling. These clubs are big boys and are obviously fully engaged in all of these decisions. I dont think in fighting and negativity is what we need now. Its kinda a miracle they were able to shoe horn a CPL team in to this conpetition with the hope of playing Champions league as early as 2020. Lets keep our eye on the ball and not give the haters reason to pounce

Edited February 14, 2019 by SpursFlu

[Admin]

Really think people should try to find out more before going full psycho on this.

Do we even know the other clubs wanted to be in it?

 

[Ams1984]

38 minutes ago, SpursFlu said:

I personally do not like the decision at all but.. im gonna keep the good vibes rolling. These clubs are big boys and are obviously fully engaged in all of these decisions. I dont think in fighting and negativity is what we need now. Its kinda a miracle they were able to shoe horn a CPL team in to this conpetition with the hope of playing Champions league as early as 2020. Lets keep our eye on the ball and not give the haters reason to pounce

Of course I’m still thrilled about the CPL, and I’ll support whoever ends up going to represent the league in the CL, but I do think that the CSA needs to hear that people are pissed about the way they’ve decided to handle this. It should be a fair process, this isn’t. 

[Admin]

Just now, Ams1984 said:

Of course I’m still thrilled about the CPL, and I’ll support whoever ends up going to represent the league in the CL, but I do think that the CSA needs to hear that people are pissed about the way they’ve decided to handle this. It should be a fair process, this isn’t. 

This isn't a bunch of kids fighting in the school yard and the CSA isn't some bully smacking everyone around. 

For all we know they might have had to force those three in and no CanPL team wanted this during a launch year logistically. 

Maybe the CSA is the only reason any CPL team is in and left to their own devices they would have simply focused on getting off the ground in year one. 

I don't know.  I really don't.  But unless someone else has something conclusive to complain about I can't see all the hysteria. 

The only whisper I have heard is that some of the teams, in a year one cash crunch and start up costs ect... did not want to be involved. 

Sure, it is only a whisper, but a completely understandable one. 

 

 

[Robert]

3 hours ago, dyslexic nam said:

If will be sending a similar type of email tomorrow.  Any email address in particular that it should go to, or just a general CSA email?

Steve Reed's email address is: 

 sreed@manningelliott.com  sreed@manningelliott.com

 

Edited February 14, 2019 by Robert

[BenFisk'sBiggestFan]

1 hour ago, admin said:

Really think people should try to find out more before going full psycho on this.

Do we even know the other clubs wanted to be in it?

 

Rob Friend Retweeted Ben Fisk’s negative twitter post. Not sure why he would do that if he wants to be excluded.

And if the other clubs didn’t want to join, we still need to make a big fuss, because the made it sound like favouritism. They would need to be more transparent in that case, and deserve a negative reaction for giving us no explanation.

[kacbru]

4 hours ago, admin said:

Really think people should try to find out more before going full psycho on this.

Do we even know the other clubs wanted to be in it?

 

With the CSA it seems more frequently than not, people try desperately to understand the rationale for decisions but just run into the wall of silence.  There may be a good reason why were are not playing more friendlies, but if there is, the CSA certainly isn't letting anyone know. 

Maybe no team wanted to go so they were forced to draw straws  and Valour, Forge and FCE were the losers so they forced to compete to go, but best to keep that secret under lock and key.  Maybe the other four teams didn't want a more favourable draw for the Voyageurs Cup and they begged for the Fury and the "founders" teams to have an easier path.

Genuine question - how should we try to find out more?

[dyslexic nam]

For the record (and my post in the other related thread noted this) I recognize that the CSA might be making this decision due to external circumstances like a CONCACAF registration deadline.  But in the absence of any explanation for a seemingly arbitrary (and baffling) decision I think people have the right to voice their displeasure - or request an explanation.  I don't think it is losing your shit to do that in a formal way.  And taken in the context of the recent V cup seeding hierarchy that seems to arbitrarily disadvantage some clubs, I don't think an email is out of place.  

[Gopherbashi]

6 hours ago, admin said:

Really think people should try to find out more before going full psycho on this.

Do we even know the other clubs wanted to be in it?

 

 

[Gopherbashi]

Also, let's be honest, sending an email saying "what the hell are you thinking?" includes a question and counts as "trying to find out more".

Edited February 14, 2019 by Gopherbashi

[Unnamed Trialist]

The sooner the Voyageurs can return to our former spirit, with a board able to act freely and independently to defend core principles, the better. Right now we have been left inoperative as a presence to pressure for what's right. 

I will be asking the CPL to protest the decision, as it is unfair and biased, as was the previous announcement of the Voyageurs Cup draw. I will also ask Pacific FC to protest the decision. In my opinion, they should simply do this: 

-a draw to decide seedings or possibility to jump a round of the Cup for CPL teams. I can even accept that previous participants such as the MLS sides, Ottawa and Edmonton could benefit, but no others. 

-a fair and equal system to decide how to represent Canada in Concacaf with our 2nd slot. 

[dyslexic nam]

"Sir/Madam

My name is XXX XXXXXXX  and I have been an avid Canadian soccer supporter for well over two decades.  I have cheered for the senior men’s team, the women’s team, and various youth levels of soccer.  I have also played 20+ years of senior men’s soccer and have coached youth soccer.  In short, I am fully invested in the success of soccer in this country.  It is with this in mind that I feel the need to relay how baffled I am by two recent decisions made by the CSA.   

First, I was puzzled by the announced format of the Canadian Championship (the “Voyageurs Cup”) last month.  It not only gives strong preference to the MLS sides (e.g. I have never heard of a national cup competition giving a team a preferential by into the semi-final round), but it also gives advantage to the Ottawa Fury – a team that has drawn the ire of many Canadian fans recently due to their stance on CPL.  Lastly, the draw places some CPL teams in the competition at a later stage than other CPL teams.  Given the many alternative formats that would have avoided this preferential treatment (in a competition that specifically should avoid preference), I find this unacceptable. 

Second, and most recently, I do not understand the logic of the announcement to limit potential qualification for the 2019 CONCACAF League to three CPL teams.  Showing this kind of exclusive preference for 3 of the original 7 CPL clubs seems, on its face, to be grossly unfair.  It shows a great deal of disrespect to the excluded clubs, and their fans. 

While I have a great deal of respect for the Valour, Forge, and FC Edmonton clubs, and the role they have played in helping to found our emerging professional league, this role should not be viewed as justification for giving them preferential treatment in qualifying for major sporting events.  Yet somehow, the chronology of teams joining the league – before the first season and before a ball has been kicked – is somehow being used to justify the clearly unequal treatment of clubs in the context of two major competitions. 

I recognize that there may be considerations of which I am not aware.  In terms of the decision re CONCACAF League for example, it is possible that some teams could have opted out of participation at this early stage – though commentary on social media by key stakeholders seems to suggest otherwise.  Alternatively, this could have been a byproduct of a CONCACAF-imposed registration deadline that the excluded clubs simply could not meet.  But if reasons such as this exist for the two seemingly arbitrary decisions, the CSA owes it to fans and stakeholders to explain their rationale.  In the absence of any explanations regarding the need to make these decisions, supporters are left to assume that these decisions were the byproduct of biased thinking or poor planning.  

Soccer is gaining in popularity every day in this country.  As such, CSA decisions are no longer made in vacuum. They will be, and should be, subjected to scrutiny.  And in the instances I mentioned above, the puzzling decisions do not stand up to scrutiny on the basis of information presented so far, and as such should either be explained or rescinded. 

Sincerely..."

[Ams1984]

8 hours ago, admin said:

This isn't a bunch of kids fighting in the school yard and the CSA isn't some bully smacking everyone around. 

For all we know they might have had to force those three in and no CanPL team wanted this during a launch year logistically. 

Maybe the CSA is the only reason any CPL team is in and left to their own devices they would have simply focused on getting off the ground in year one. 

I don't know.  I really don't.  But unless someone else has something conclusive to complain about I can't see all the hysteria. 

The only whisper I have heard is that some of the teams, in a year one cash crunch and start up costs ect... did not want to be involved. 

Sure, it is only a whisper, but a completely understandable one. 

 

 

It’s not hysteria to formulate an objection to a factual matter. The fact is that there is a process now for selecting the CPL’s 2019 representative in the CL. The fact is that that process is, on its face, absurd. If the CSA has good reason, it’s up to them to convey that reason. I’m not going to imagine up reasons why this is ok and then pretend it is. You’ll never have 100% of the information about anything in life, and if you wait for the decision maker, whose decision you’re criticizing, to charitably offer it up, good luck with that. 

[Ams1984]

19 minutes ago, dyslexic nam said:

"Sir/Madam

My name is XXX XXXXXXX  and I have been an avid Canadian soccer supporter for well over two decades.  I have cheered for the senior men’s team, the women’s team, and various youth levels of soccer.  I have also played 20+ years of senior men’s soccer and have coached youth soccer.  In short, I am fully invested in the success of soccer in this country.  It is with this in mind that I feel the need to relay how baffled I am by two recent decisions made by the CSA.   

First, I was puzzled by the announced format of the Canadian Championship (the “Voyageurs Cup”) last month.  It not only gives strong preference to the MLS sides (e.g. I have never heard of a national cup competition giving a team a preferential by into the semi-final round), but it also gives advantage to the Ottawa Fury – a team that has drawn the ire of many Canadian fans recently due to their stance on CPL.  Lastly, the draw places some CPL teams in the competition at a later stage than other CPL teams.  Given the many alternative formats that would have avoided this preferential treatment (in a competition that specifically should avoid preference), I find this unacceptable. 

Second, and most recently, I do not understand the logic of the announcement to limit potential qualification for the 2019 CONCACAF League to three CPL teams.  Showing this kind of exclusive preference for 3 of the original 7 CPL clubs seems, on its face, to be grossly unfair.  It shows a great deal of disrespect to the excluded clubs, and their fans. 

While I have a great deal of respect for the Valour, Forge, and FC Edmonton clubs, and the role they have played in helping to found our emerging professional league, this role should not be viewed as justification for giving them preferential treatment in qualifying for major sporting events.  Yet somehow, the chronology of teams joining the league – before the first season and before a ball has been kicked – is somehow being used to justify the clearly unequal treatment of clubs in the context of two major competitions. 

I recognize that there may be considerations of which I am not aware.  In terms of the decision re CONCACAF League for example, it is possible that some teams could have opted out of participation at this early stage – though commentary on social media by key stakeholders seems to suggest otherwise.  Alternatively, this could have been a byproduct of a CONCACAF-imposed registration deadline that the excluded clubs simply could not meet.  But if reasons such as this exist for the two seemingly arbitrary decisions, the CSA owes it to fans and stakeholders to explain their rationale.  In the absence of any explanations regarding the need to make these decisions, supporters are left to assume that these decisions were the byproduct of biased thinking or poor planning.  

Soccer is gaining in popularity every day in this country.  As such, CSA decisions are no longer made in vacuum. They will be, and should be, subjected to scrutiny.  And in the instances I mentioned above, the puzzling decisions do not stand up to scrutiny on the basis of information presented so far, and as such should either be explained or rescinded. 

Sincerely..."

I tried ‘liking’ your post, but it said that I couldn’t like any more things today. Anyways, well written! More diplomatic than mine for sure

[Admin]

3 hours ago, Gopherbashi said:

 

At least we are now getting something akin to an opinion who is likely to have talked to someone. 

[Admin]

1 hour ago, Ams1984 said:

It’s not hysteria to formulate an objection to a factual matter. The fact is that there is a process now for selecting the CPL’s 2019 representative in the CL. The fact is that that process is, on its face, absurd. If the CSA has good reason, it’s up to them to convey that reason. I’m not going to imagine up reasons why this is ok and then pretend it is. You’ll never have 100% of the information about anything in life, and if you wait for the decision maker, whose decision you’re criticizing, to charitably offer it up, good luck with that. 

Sorry, some of the reactions have been purely hyperbolic and hysterical. 

I am not saying don't do anything, or don't say anything.  I am saying don't react without at least some information. 

[Admin]

2 hours ago, Unnamed Trialist said:

The sooner the Voyageurs can return to our former spirit, with a board able to act freely and independently to defend core principles, the better. Right now we have been left inoperative as a presence to pressure for what's right. 

I will be asking the CPL to protest the decision, as it is unfair and biased, as was the previous announcement of the Voyageurs Cup draw. I will also ask Pacific FC to protest the decision. In my opinion, they should simply do this: 

-a draw to decide seedings or possibility to jump a round of the Cup for CPL teams. I can even accept that previous participants such as the MLS sides, Ottawa and Edmonton could benefit, but no others. 

-a fair and equal system to decide how to represent Canada in Concacaf with our 2nd slot. 

I'm not telling people what they should/shouldn't do. 

All I was suggesting is at least attempt to find out why something happened the way it did. 

[gator]

I will repeat what I said in the other thread, the CSA should come forward and explain their reasoning, it’s as simple as that, at that point a more informed reaction can be presented by all concerned parties!