Register a SA Forums Account here!
JOINING THE SA FORUMS WILL REMOVE THIS BIG AD, THE ANNOYING UNDERLINED ADS, AND STUPID INTERSTITIAL ADS!!!

You can: log in, read the tech support FAQ, or request your lost password. This dumb message (and those ads) will appear on every screen until you register! Get rid of this crap by registering your own SA Forums Account and joining roughly 150,000 Goons, for the one-time price of $9.95! We charge money because it costs us money per month for bills, and since we don't believe in showing ads to our users, we try to make the money back through forum registrations.
 
  • Locked thread
Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

MLS not doing it for you anymore? Tired of Single Entity, Salary Caps, Designated Players, and the Re-Entry Draft? Well step on down to the lower leagues where you can get that grass roots soccer feeling at low, low prices. Enjoy watching soccer in a converted baseball park or high school football stadium? Then we have what you want! Do you want to support teams that may not exist next year? Then you have found the right place! :v:



The classic star-spangled ball that started it all.

Tier 2: North American Soccer League:

http://www.nasl.com/

NASL was formed by TOA (Team Owners Association) which revolted against the USL and its fly-by-night ways. NASL has been at war with USL (and by proxy, MLS and USSF) ever since. :eng101:

What does it take to satisfy USSF's D2 requirements? No one knows; it keeps changing. Basically, whatever the D2 requirements that NASL is currently meeting or attempting to meet, plus some new D2 requirements to be dreamed up by USSF at a later date.

But wait! NASL wants to be D1 now. So, good luck with that.

Lots of new teams coming on board as well, both this year and in next few years; Chicago Sting might be back in a few years. A new team announced for San Francisco (SF Deltas), and rumors about Los Angeles, Orange County, and Las Vegas.

NASL season is split into Spring and Fall seasons, but the seasons are very unbalanced; Spring season is very short, Fall season is longer. NASL lost two teams and gained three; however, Puerto Rico FC does not start play until the Fall season this year. No, this doesn't make a lot of sense. Welcome to the NASL.

Also: NASL has Freddy Adu! This proves what an up-and-coming, full-of-potential league that the NASL truly is! :v:

Adu hasn't had much chance yet to do anything with the Rowdies due to injury last year, but here's some highlights:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C145gjFhcxQ

It isn't yet too late to jump on the 2016 Freddy Adu/Tampa Bay Rowdies/NASL bandwagon! :bandwagon:



Under Armour is making the new official NASL soccer balls this year. I had no idea that Under Armour made balls. Shows you how old and out of touch I am. :corsair:

NASL Teams:

Atlanta Silverbacks - He's dead, Jim. Shut down by the league; it is an ex-parrot; gone and joined the bleedin' Choir Invisible.
Carolina RailHawks FC - No longer for sale on eBay.
FC Edmonton - Eddies in the space-time continuum.
Fort Lauderdale Strikers - Does Ray Hudson annoy you? Blame the Strikers.
Indy Eleven - Lost Pete Wilt to the Chicago Sting.
Jacksonville Armada FC - Sophomore year.
Miami FC - Beating Beckham to the punch. Freshman year.
Minnesota United FC - Leaving for MLS once they get their stadium deal done.
New York Cosmos - Six Seven-time NASL Champions!
Ottawa Fury FC - Go Furries!
Puerto Rico FC - Carmelo Anthony's newest hobby. Freshman year.
Rayo OKC - NASL's answer to Chivas USA. Freshman year.
San Antonio Scorpions FC - Stolen by USL; another ex-parrot.
Tampa Bay Rowdies - You'd swear they be devils with magical toes.



NASL Soccer Bowl 2.0: The Revenge of the TOA.

Tier 3: United Soccer League:

http://www.uslsoccer.com/

Just as NASL wants to be D1, USL now wants to be D2. To spite NASL.

Most USL teams have affiliations with MLS teams; some are in fact just MLS reserve teams. Try to guess which! No, I'm too lazy to look up which USL teams are currently affiliated with which MLS teams. Do it yourself. :colbert:

Also I am too tired at this point to think up something witty to say about each USL team; there are just too many of the bleeders. Feel free to make up your own witty/snarky/informative comments about them instead.

Eastern Conference:

Bethlehem Steel FC - Named after a famous ASL club of the 1920s.
Charleston Battery - They fight with DC United over a coffee pot.
Charlotte Independence
FC Cincinnati
FC Montreal
Harrisburg City Islanders - Homer Simpson once went to a Harrisburg Coat outlet to buy an irregular coat.
Louisville City FC
New York Red Bulls II
Orlando City B
Pittsburgh Riverhounds
Richmond Kickers - Won the US Open Cup in 1995.
Rochester Rhinos - Owners kicked out of the league; now being run by USL directly. Last non-MLS team to win the US Open Cup, in 1999.
Toronto FC II
Wilmington Hammerheads FC

Western Conference:

Arizona United SC
Austin Aztex - taking the year off due to stadium problems.
Colorado Spring Switchbacks FC
LA Galaxy II
OKC Energy FC - In a turf war with Rayo OKC of NASL.
Orange County Blues FC
Portland Timbers 2
Real Monarchs SLC - I think that The Monarch from The Venture Brothers would support this team. Go butterflies!
Rio Grande Valley FC
Sacramento Republic FC - Wants in to MLS real bad.
St. Louis FC
San Antonio - Name TBA. USL killed the NASL San Antonio Scorpions and this is the changeling/doppelganger that has taken its place. Wants in to MLS real bad. REAL bad.
Seattle Sounders FC 2
Swope Park Rangers KC
Tusla Roughnecks FC - NASL name; USL team.
Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2



US Open Cup: Dewar Trophy. Classy old fashioned silverware, but you can't drink out of it.

Other leagues:

Quoting from last year's thread because I'm too lazy to look it up (I doubt anything important has changed in a year's time):

quote:

Canada's third tier has settled into two leagues: League1 Ontario and the Premičre Ligue de soccer du Québec. Both leagues play exclusively in their provinces, and the winners play in the Inter-Provincial Cup Championship.

Tiers 4 and 5 are a bit complicated. The United States Soccer Federation and the Canadian Soccer Association do not give specific levels of play for semi-pro and amateur clubs, which leads to some confusion. The generally accepted tier system is:

Tier 4: National Premier Soccer League (USA)/Pacific Coast Soccer League (Canada)/USL Premier Development League (USA & Canada)

Tier 5: everyone else

Opening day coming soon to a converted baseball park or high school football stadium near you:

quote:

Opening days of the 2016 season in the USA

Major League Soccer
March 6, 2016

North American Soccer League
April 2, 2016

United Soccer League
March 25, 2016

National Premier Soccer League
TBA

If it's in the United States or Canada and it's not MLS, post it here!

Adbot
ADBOT LOVES YOU

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

CaptainYesterday posted:

Note: '"best" is subjective.

That's the joke. :thejoke:

[Fake edit: I seem to be stuck in a terminal self-referential Quoting the Simpsons loop.]

quote:

S.A.’s USL team signs first player

http://www.expressnews.com/sports/scorpions/article/S-A-s-USL-team-signs-first-player-6800897.php

Carlos Alvarez, the former No. 2 overall pick in the 2013 Major League Soccer SuperDraft, is the first player signed by San Antonio's United Soccer League franchise.

quote:

New signing Junior Burgos isn't guaranteed Atlanta United roster spot in 2017

http://www.dirtysouthsoccer.com/2016/2/3/10902906/junior-burgos-atlanta-united-option-loan-rowdies

Atlanta signed 27-year-old midfielder Junior Burgos and sent him on loan to NASL club Tampa Bay Rowdies for the 2016 season. The contract is a one-year deal, with Atlanta holding a club option to bring back Burgos for their inaugural MLS campaign in 2017.

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

Meh.

quote:

http://www.ksat.com/web/ksat/sports/san-antonio-fc-reveals-logo-brand-identity

SAN ANTONIO - Spurs Sports & Entertainment announced Thursday the brand identity for its USL San Antonio franchise.

San Antonio FC will debut in front of its home supporters at Toyota Field on April 9 against Sporting Kansas City affiliate Swope Park Rangers at 7:30 p.m. The team name and crest were unveiled at an event at Rock & Brews inside the AT&T Center on Thursday night.

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

CaptainYesterday posted:

Did they really need to put a spur in there?

If they are going to go with the Spurs branding, and also do the FC thing, why not go full Europoser and name the team San Antonio Hotspur FC. It would be unique and interesting at least. San Antonio FC is just so meh.

It was pretty inevitable that they were going to go with some kind of Spurs branding, though.

quote:

http://thecup.us/2016/02/05/format-schedule-for-2016-us-open-cup-unveiled-with-record-number-of-teams/

Format, schedule for 2016 US Open Cup unveiled with record number of teams

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

Azerban posted:

i would like to post about the impending Canadian Premier League

http://www.wakingthered.com/2016/2/3/10906114/canadian-premier-league-closing-in-on-becoming-a-reality

replacing the CSL that was so thoroughly infiltrated by matchfixers that one game had both teams trying to score on themselves, this league will have teams owned by real people and not serbian war criminals

> implying that Serbian war criminals are not real people

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqsPlZ5p_G0

Azerban posted:

it will probably a) sit just above L1O and PLSQ and b) be very bad

Reading your link, it appears that this CPL is the Canadian soccer league run by CFL owners which the NASL was talking about partnering with a while back, only now there is no mention of any NASL involvement. The only owners mentioned are the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. I dunno...

quote:

What we do know now is that the league will be known as the Canadian Premier League, will have ownership groups with ties to the CFL and the NHL, and will be home to 6-8 teams (some question marks still surround the NASL teams joining this league).

I guess it depends on how many really solid ownership groups they really have. If it's just the Hamilton Tiger Cats they really should just join NASL and leave the Canadian league project for later. IMO.

Do over Ham fucked around with this message at 04:33 on Jun 29, 2016

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

vyelkin posted:

Pretty ambitious of them to get a friendly with the Premier League champions, but I think Leicester could be aiming higher.

quote:

The first match is against a Nottingham Forest XI on Wednesday, March 9. The Rowdies will then take on a Notts County XI on Friday, March 11 and close the tour Wednesday, March 16 against an XI from Premier League-leading Leicester City. In all three of their matches, the Rowdies will play a mixed team of first-team players and reserve team players from each respective club.

Reserve team and maybe a few bench warmers from the first team.

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

awyeahz posted:

Have some bad graphs:





Sweet. Would really like to see the Rowdies and Cosmos get their stadiums expanded/built to pump those average attendance numbers up even more.

Speaking of the Rowdies, yesterday, Sunday Feb. 14th, Valentines Day, was the Rowdies 41st anniversary. Day before that, Saturday Feb. 13th, they lost to DC United 0-1 in their first pre-season friendly at Al Lang.

Rowdies 2016 preseason jersey:



NASL 2016 soccer ball from Under Armour:

Do over Ham fucked around with this message at 10:02 on Feb 15, 2016

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

Not sure where to post this but might as well put this here as it sort of qualifies as USA/Canada lower leagues, albeit futsal not the regular 11 a side game.

I've been seeing this talk about a new futsal league backed by among others Mark Cuban, showing up in my Facebook feed and elsewhere, so I did a little Googling; something to keep an eye on in future I guess:

quote:

Source: Mark Cuban isn't the only big-name investor in futsal; other NBA owners, prestigious soccer clubs have joined in

http://sportsday.dallasnews.com/soc...er-clubs-joined

quote:

Mark Cuban joins ownership group in new Pro Futsal League

http://www.mavs.com/mark-cuban-joins-ownership-group-in-new-pro-futsal-league/

quote:

What’s Futsal? Mark Cuban Bets Big on a New Sports League

http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/2016/02/03/What-s-Futsal-Mark-Cuban-Bets-Big-New-Sports-League

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

CaptainYesterday posted:

I'm going out on a limb here in guessing that this futsal league will have club names that make even the guy who named the Ohio Xoggz blush.

top kek

That's five minutes of my life I'm not getting back, spent reading an 11 year old Big Soccer thread about the Columbus Xoggz/Ohio Xoggz; and I still don't know what a Xoggz is! :stare:

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009


So two Uniteds in MLS okay; three Uniteds no can do.

:ughh:

Welp, not that I thought much of Arthur Blank and his MLS Atlanta minions before this, but boy are they clueless. They passed up many much better name ideas to latch on to yet another "United", and now they are taking the name "United" away from a team that had that name before they did!

Oh well. It does give Minnesota a chance to pick something better, IMO. Never thought much of their name change before, I thought Minnesota United FC it was just "meh", but their new Loon badge was cool; why not make the Loons nickname official, keep the badge, and go with Minnesota Loons FC?

I mean why not. Unique, original, a little goofy, and a big middle finger to Garber/Blank. Come on you Loons! :v:

Edit to add: Or Minnesota Loons AFC. Minnesota Kicks appears to be off the table for now; someone must own the trademark and isn't selling it, otherwise the NASL would have acquired it by now.

Do over Ham fucked around with this message at 11:24 on Feb 19, 2016

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

Seeing lots of pics of Didier Drogba at Al Lang Stadium showing up in my Facebook feed. "Spring" training, American soccer style, is upon us. :unsmith:

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

Things that make me go "hmmmm....."

(Swiped this off of a closed Facebook group, but in this instance I don't think they would mind me sharing this....I hope...)

quote:

Can't really reveal much (mostly because I don't know), but a source has told me a VIP (not someone playing in this tourney obviously) will be at the Rowdies game this weekend and a large showing by Ralph's Mob could help lead to some big things for the Rowdies future.

In other words if you're going to the game this weekend, stand with the Mob and let's make an impression!!!!

If you aren't going to this game, why the heck not? It may only be preseason, but we're gonna rock out anyway.

So there you are. If you are in the Tampa Bay area, this weekend would be a good time to go to the Rowdies preseason game at Al Lang in St. Pete. It may be important for the Rowdies future. No idea what this means, or if the VIP in question would even be a name that we would recognize or not.

I speculate that it might be a potential investor that Bill Edwards is trying to attract to the Rowdies ownership group; but who knows. If it is, then the involvement of all of these MLS teams in this Clearwater/St. Pete preseason tournament has probably helped Bill Edwards raise the profile of the Rowdies and make important connections with other owners and potential investors.

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

Just got this from The Informant, the Ralph's Mob email newsletter:

quote:

Spring 2016 Pre-Season - Volume 2, Issue 0.2A

TAMPA BAY ROWDIES vs PHILADELPHIA UNION

MYSTERY GUEST!

According to sources close to the team, someone special is coming to watch the Rowdies take on the Union this Saturday. Who it is, we have no idea. No really, we seriously don't know. No one will tell us. But they're definitely a VIP that we want to impress, so it's imperative that you come down and hang with the Mob for the second game of the night.

There will be singing.

It will be bad.

There will be dancing.

It will be worse than the singing.

Fortunately, there will be beer.

And that will make you forget how bad the singing and dancing is.

But there will be some fun.

So come down and spend some time with the Mob and Mr or Mrs Fancy Pants!*

*Fancy pants not required to participate.

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

If Chicago Sting and NY Cosmos can get their urban SSS built, and the Rowdies can expand Al Lang, that's quite a few urban SSS for NASL. Will be interesting to see what happens. Having watched the Revs get nowhere in the urban SSS department for over a decade now I'm not hopeful; but then again I'm not exactly convinced that the Krafts are all that serious about building an urban SSS any time soon so who knows.

As to the mysterious VIP at the Rowdies preseason match at Al Lang this past Saturday night, there's no word as to who it was. However my informant on Facebook says that the owners suite was full of people and all of the Rowdies management team was up in the suite during the game. Something was definitely going on, but he did not recognize any of the guests.

Since he didn't recognize anyone, that rules out people like Garber or Beckham. Probably potential investors, of some kind, but who knows. Just one of those things which we'll be in the dark about unless and until something is officially announced.

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009



Above photo of the Rowdies owners suite at Al Lang during last Saturday's game. That's Rowdies owner Bill Edwards with the hat and the glasses staring straight ahead; presumably one or more of the other people are the mystery VIP(s) in question. Not that I expect anyone to recognize any of them but whatever. Just interesting photo and sets off lots of pointless speculation in my mind. Anway....

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

Do over Ham posted:

Atlanta Silverbacks - He's dead, Jim. Shut down by the league; it is an ex-parrot; gone and joined the bleedin' Choir Invisible.

quote:

http://patch.com/georgia/brookhaven/atlanta-silverbacks-resume-operations-0

Atlanta Silverbacks Resume Operations

The team is holding a men's tryout this Saturday at its DeKalb stadium.

ATLANTA, GA -- The Atlanta Silverbacks announced on Thursday the team is resuming operations and holding men’s tryouts this Saturday at its stadium in DeKalb County.

The new ownership group includes chairman Boris Jerkunica; John Latham; John Hardin; United Futbol Academy (UFA); and A+ Sports Management Group (A+).

Both the Silverbacks’ men and women teams will return this summer in the National Premier Soccer League and the Women’s Premier Soccer League, respectively.

quote:

http://www.dirtysouthsoccer.com/2016/2/23/11100802/atlanta-silverbacks-new-owners-NPSL

The Silverbacks have found new owners

After just one month after suspending operations, the Silverbacks are on their way back. On Tuesday, Doug Roberson of the AJC, broke the news that the Atlanta Silverbacks have found new owners and will join the Georgia Revolution in the NPSL this May.

The Silverback's new ownership conglomerate includes current Silverbacks Park owner Boris Jerkunica as well as John Latham and John Hardin who are part owners of United Football Academy and Phoday Dolleh who has connections to Atlanta soccer, and the Silverbacks, he was also Kwadwo Poku's mentor.

The Silverbacks have secured a coaching staff but were not prepared to announce them, according to Jerkunica.

Most importantly, Jerkunica is convinced that Atlanta United in the MLS can coexist with Atlanta Silverbacks in the NPSL.

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

quote:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/fo...renovation.html

Detroit City FC capture the imagination - and provide symbol of hope - with Keyworth Stadium renovation

In a city ravaged by decline and decay, a fourth-tier soccer club have provided hope of regeneration by raising $740,000 to redevelop an 80-year-old venue

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

be nice wicka posted:

the pittsburgh riverhounds have a stadium right across the river from downtown, beautiful skyline view, shockingly close to public transit (not a thing that normally happens here), and somehow decent parking as well. plus they are a third division soccer club in a city that couldn't give two shits about the sport. how MLS clubs struggle so mightily to find urban stadium locations, i will never understand.

City politics and real estate prices/availability are rather different in Pittsburgh, I would assume, than in places like Boston, New York City, Washington DC, Chicago, etc.

Pittsburgh is a smaller, post-industrial city; finding unused, cheap land near public transportation should not be a problem in Pittsburgh. Trust me, it is a huge problem in Boston, and not just for the Revs.

I imagine Detroit would be a similar situation as Pittsburgh if not more so; there's too much empty urban real estate now. They're only lacking a billionaire owner, not cheap urban real estate. In fact their new stadium in the story I linked to has twice the capacity of the Riverhounds stadium, and they didn't have to build it, just spruce it up a bit.

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

be nice wicka posted:

oh there's plenty of land available (kind of), it's all being turned into comically overpriced condos. property values are skyrocketing and developers are flush with cash. it's those people who find it easy to acquire land, not half-broke third division soccer clubs. and it wasn't even unused land, they tore down a concert venue to make room. i wasn't here when they went through the whole planning process, but given what i have seen of local politics since then, it is absolutely shocking that someone said "sure have this prime loving real estate."

i will grant you that it's unquestionably more difficult in boston and new york, but we're most certainly not like detroit. detroit's urban area is filled with vast swathes of empty lots. pittsburgh ain't like that at all.

True; I didn't mean to imply Pittsburgh was like Detroit in the sense of being an empty wasteland; Pittsburgh has recovered from losing its heavy industry rather better than Detroit or most of the other rust belt cities, and none of the rust belt cities are as bad as Detroit. But your urban areas are nowhere near as crowded, overpriced (yet - though it sounds like it is moving that way), or (I'm guessing) as subject to stifling local politics as is the case with Boston, NYC, Chicago, etc.

quote:

http://saintpetersblog.com/253472

Tampa Bay Rowdies sign midfielder Eric Avila

quote:

http://www.empireofsoccer.com/nasl-notes-former-usmnt-robbie-findley-joins-rayo-okc-more-45101/

NASL Notes: Former USMNT Robbie Findley Joins Rayo OKC, more

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

be nice wicka posted:

regardless, they include one free beer at every match with season tickets, which is a pretty slick deal

Well, the Revs gave away free nachos on Hispanic Heritage Night, so, uh, there's that..... :stare:

Oh noes I feel a goon joke about MLS/Stoke City about to burst out, but this is NASL related:

quote:

http://www.rowdiessoccer.com/news/2016/03/02/england-update-stoke-city-replaces-leicester-city

England Update: Stoke City Replaces Leicester City

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (March 2, 2016) — With the Tampa Bay Rowdies set to depart for England this weekend, a few more details regarding our preseason tour have been finalized.

Due to fixture congestion and other obligations, the Rowdies’ scheduled match against a Leicester City XI has been replaced with a match against a Stoke City XI at St. George’s Park, Tampa Bay’s base for the second phase of the trip and the home of England’s National Team.

Stoke City currently sits in 8th place in the Barclays Premier League.

The matches against a Nottingham Forest XI and a Notts County XI will be played as originally announced on March 9 and 11, respectively.

The match against Nottingham Forest will be played at Forest’s training ground and is open to the public. The match against Notts County will be played behind closed doors at Meadow Lane with no public access. The Stoke City match is also closed to the public.

None of the matches will be broadcast online, so follow the Rowdies on social media and visit rowdiessoccer.com often for updates from England.

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

CaptainYesterday posted:

Spoke with the GM of the Austin Aztex. Some stuff is hush-hush (including who on the city council is against us), but I can confirm that a usable stadium WILL be built in east Austin by June 2017, with the possibility of it being sooner.

Some stadium news in Tampa/St. Pete also:

quote:

http://www.fox13news.com/news/local-news/102853227-story

Al Land stadium expansion to appear on Nov. ballot

quote:

http://theunsubs.com/wp/2016/03/08/rowdies-seeking-to-extend-al-lang-lease-in-lead-up-proposed-stadium-expansion/

Rowdies Seeking to Extend Al Lang Lease in Lead Up to Proposed Stadium Expansion

Edit to add: in summary, city owned waterfront property can only be leased 5 years; to make it worth their while to invest in a stadium the Rowdies would need a long term lease. Thus, the need for voter approval in November.

Also we now know where Rowdies 2 are playing:

quote:

http://www.npsl.com/fieldlocations

Tampa Bay Rowdies 2 Waters Soccer Complex 8108 Benjamin Rd, Tampa, FL 33634

quote:

https://www.facebook.com/TheHoopedSleeve/photos/a.432443290263546.1073741828.430087723832436/537757343065473/?type=3&theater

The Hooped Sleeve
Page Liked · 1 hr · Edited ·

According to the #NPSL's website, Rowdies 2 will play their home matches at the Waters Soccer Complex in Tampa (intersection of Waters Ave. & Benjamin Road)! Check it out: http://www.npsl.com/fieldlocations

Does the location seem familiar? It's the original site where the Tampa Bay Rowdies planned to build their Soccer-Specific Stadium back in 2009/10! Yes, the "Tomato Patch"!

The site has since been turned into a soccer complex and is now home to Tampa Bay United Soccer Club, which is owned by Rowdies' minority owner, David Laxer.

The Rowdies have yet to confirm this news. #StayTuned

**(Thanks to Adam Martin [@MadAdam4] for posting this information on Twitter)**

Do over Ham fucked around with this message at 09:45 on Mar 9, 2016

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

Do over Ham posted:

Some stadium news in Tampa/St. Pete also:

Edit to add: in summary, city owned waterfront property can only be leased 5 years; to make it worth their while to invest in a stadium the Rowdies would need a long term lease. Thus, the need for voter approval in November.

So then this happened....

quote:

Attracting MLS to St. Pete? Orlando has the rights to soccer on the bay

http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/baybuzz/attracting-mls-to-st-pete-orlando-has-the-rights-to-soccer-on-the-bay/2268685

And Orlando City has full territorial and TV rights for the Tampa Bay market, said Leonardo Santiago, the team's vice president of communications on Wednesday.

Orlando City is also planning to extend its TV coverage to Tampa Bay in both English and Spanish, Santiago said. And it also has the exclusive right to scout and develop players througout central and north Florida known as "territorial rights," he said.

Any move by the Rowdies to move up to MLS would have to go through Orlando it appears.

"We have the MLS rights throughout central and north Florida, so any discussion of another franchise would have to include us and MLS," wrote Santiago in an email.

Funny, that didn't stop MLS from awarding second franchises in NYC and LA. Tampa/St. Pete isn't even the same TV market as Orlando (and it is a bigger TV market than Orlando). Sure they are close, but they aren't the same market and the instant MLS comes to an agreement to bring a team to the Tampa Bay area is the instant Orlando loses its "territorial rights". Orlando only has one vote in the league; it does not have a veto. Santiago is trying to poison the well for the Rowdies.

Then this happened...

quote:

http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/baybuzz/edwards-wants-an-mls-team-council-chairwoman-says/2268819

Edwards wants an MLS team for St. Pete, council chairwoman says

Then this happened...

quote:

http://www.tampabay.com/news/growth/edwards-wants-to-expand-al-lang-for-mls-team/2268865

Edwards says Al Lang expansion isn't about moving Rowdies to MLS

And this...

quote:

http://saintpetersblog.com/bill-edwards-hushes-speculation-hes-vying-major-league-soccer-st-pete/

Bill Edwards hushes speculation that he’s vying for Major League Soccer in St. Pete

Softly, softly, catchee monkey...

Meanwhile Mob not happy....

quote:

http://theunsubs.com/wp/2016/03/10/an-open-letter/

As it is well known now, the Tampa Bay Rowdies and St Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman are pushing to include a referendum to extend the lease at Al Lang Stadium. This should be the first step in Bill Edwards’s desired expansion for the stadium as it would pave the way for securing financing for the project.

What is also now known is that the local media cannot be left alone to spread the word on this campaign. First there was Fox 13’s feature that twisted things to make it sound like the vote would be on $70 million in renovations and tied it to the failed Tampa Bay Rays stadium proposal at the Al Lang site years ago. Then on Thursday the Tampa Bay Times followed that report up with an article implying that any hopes of growth by the Rowdies are futile due to Orlando City owning the territorial rights to MLS in the Tampa Bay market.

Drama... :allears:

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

Crazy Ted posted:

To drive this point home, it is roughly 90 miles between Orlando and Tampa-St. Petersburg. Not even the arcane Major League Baseball territorial rules are this crazy.

On the plus side, it's MLS, so the rules are pretty meaningless and arbitrary and will be changed on a whim in a secret meeting held at an undisclosed location three months ago and decided by coin toss.

So I'm not worried about Orlando keeping the Rowdies out of MLS; I'm more worried about Edwards putting together the Al Lang SSS and ownership group deals in time to make something happen.

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

So now we know who the VIP was; it was a player not an investor.

quote:

Former West Ham and Chelsea Midfielder Joe Cole Has Been Hanging Out with the Rowdies

http://theunsubs.com/wp/2016/03/15/rowdies-linked-to-former-chelsea-midfielder-joe-cole/

The Tampa Bay Rowdies could be close to inking a well-known name in the world of English soccer — former West Ham United and Chelsea midfielder Joe Cole.

The 34-year-old former English international was in attendance for today’s 1-1 draw between the Rowdies and a Stoke Citty XI at St. George’s Park.

Today was not the first time the 34-year-old took in a Rowdies match this year, though. He was a special VIP guest of the Rowdies for the Suncoast Invitational match up with the Montreal Impact back on February 20.

In the days leading up to that match, the Rowdies front office put the message out to Ralph’s Mob that the supporters group should be ready to put on a good show to impress a VIP that could open doors for the club in the future. We now know Cole was that VIP. He was photographed in the Rowdies owner’s box sitting to next to owner Bill Edwards and COO Lee Cohen.

Cole would undoubtedly be the most-high profile player to sign with the modern era Rowdies. Freddy Adu might have more name recognition in the U.S., but his playing resume pales in comparison to Cole’s. The midfielder appeared in 126 matches for his first club West Ham United from 1998-2003 before moving on to a highly successful run at Chelsea from 2003-2010. During that stint, Cole made close to 200 appearances and Chelsea claimed both the Premier League title and FA Cup three times.

With over 50 caps for the English national team to his name, Cole would also be the most experienced international play for the modern Rowidies. Cole last appeared for England during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

Cole is currently under contract with Coventry City FC in the English third division, but his contract only runs until the end of the season in May. If he were to join, it would likely be as a pickup in June between the NASL Spring and Fall Seasons.

After the signing of Scottish center back Neil Collins from Sheffield United last week, the Rowdies have one international roster slot remaining.

The Rowdies declined to comment on this story.

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

Crazy Ted posted:

Serious question: the Rowdies already have about 20 midfielders, so where the hell would they put Joe Cole?

No idea. Sounds like he wouldn't be joining the team until June even if they do sign him so maybe he's insurance. I dunno.

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

Crazy Ted posted:

Serious question: the Rowdies already have about 20 midfielders, so where the hell would they put Joe Cole?

Or maybe with their NPSL team Rowdies 2 they are stocking up for a run at the NPSL championship. :shrug:

quote:

http://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2016/03/16/report-coventry-citys-joe-cole-linked-with-nasl-club-tampa-bay-r/

Report: Coventry City's Joe Cole linked with NASL club Tampa Bay Rowdies

quote:

http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/sport/football/transfer-news/rumour-mill-tampa-bay-rowdies-11046501

Rumour mill: Tampa Bay Rowdies eye Coventry City midfielder Joe Cole

quote:

http://www.deadlinenews.co.uk/2016/03/15/former-scotland-21-defender-neill-collins-joins-tampa-bay-rowdies/

Former Scotland Under-21 defender Neill Collins joins Tampa Bay Rowdies

quote:

http://saintpetersblog.com/rowdies-conclude-english-swing-draw-stoke-city/

Rowdies conclude English swing with draw against Stoke City

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

A high profile signing but as he is 34 and playing in what was the old English third division it looks like another "retirement league" signing, with options for more if he works out:

quote:

http://www.espnfc.us/story/2834955/tampa-bay-rowdies-offer-joe-cole-deal-source

Joe Cole offered one-year deal by Tampa Bay Rowdies - source

It got the Rowdies mentioned on "front page" of ESPNFC so there's that:

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

New website for the November election in St. Pete: http://www.supportallang.org/

Those of you living in the area who want to see the Rowdies stick around should do your part. If this passes the Rowdies can get an extended lease which will allow them in invest in a bigger stadium.

quote:

Hey! We've got a website now: http://www.supportallang.org/

Sign-up for our mailing list and receive the latest updates on all upcoming events related to the public referendum this November and the future of Al Lang Stadium (No spam, we promise). Your participation is vital and together we can secure the future of Professional Soccer in Downtown St. Petersburg.

‪#‎JoinTheMovement‬ ‪#‎SupportAlLang‬

Meanwhile...

quote:

http://www.si.com/planet-futbol/2016/03/23/freddy-adu-tampa-bay-rowdies-free-kick-video

Freddy Adu scored a sweet goal for the Tampa Bay Rowdies, and it’s still depressing

Do over Ham fucked around with this message at 14:00 on Mar 24, 2016

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

King of False Promises posted:

https://twitter.com/tampabayrowdies/status/713521039356112900

Ewwwww. Rowdies just announced a band called the Loudies who I guess are a bunch of middle schoolers.

The Loudies were the marching band for the original Tampa Bay Rowdies back in the 1970s. :toot:

No sign of the Wowdies. :heysexy:

Pete Pelican ladies and gentlemen...



Who are you and what have you done with Hoops McGee? :mad::

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

quote:

http://www.dirtysouthsoccer.com/2016/3/29/11294542/atlanta-ruckus-soccer-history-mls-united-bid-1995

Raising a Ruckus: The Death of Atlanta's inaugural MLS bid (Part 1)

The full story of the Atlanta Ruckus and its place in Atlanta soccer history.

quote:

http://www.mercurynews.com/sports/ci_29698955/silicon-valley-investors-announce-new-san-francisco-soccer

Silicon Valley investors announce new San Francisco soccer team

SAN FRANCISCO -- The Earthquakes might have competition next season: A group of Silicon Valley investors are part of a new San Francisco professional team planning to join the North American Soccer League in 2017.

The San Francisco Deltas announced Tuesday they will play home games at 10,000-seat Kezar Stadium with the intentions of competing in the second division of American soccer, just a step below the Quakes' Major League Soccer.

quote:

http://hoodline.com/2016/03/sf-deltas-announce-more-details-for-pro-soccer-at-kezar-stadium

SF Deltas Announce More Details For Pro Soccer At Kezar Stadium

As we reported earlier this month, the SF Deltas' plans to move into Kezar were unanimously approved by SF Rec and Park, despite the opposition of the Haight Ashbury Neighborhood Council. According to the Guardian, the city received 1,400 letters of support for the proposal and 23 letters of opposition, so overall, it seems that local residents are in favor of the Deltas' plans (which include footing the bill for $460,000 in renovations to the stadium).

Today's press release contained some new information, including the fact that technology will be part of the experience, "including the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) Ticketing and Virtual Reality." The Guardian notes that so-called "smart ticketing" could allow fans to move seats from game to game, based on their needs and moods. Visitors will be able to vote on what food trucks they'd like to see at each match, and, on the player side, virtual reality may be incorporated for sharpening goalkeepers’ reflexes.

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

trem_two posted:

NASL signed a deal with BeIN, they'll televise 34 games this year.

quote:

http://saintpetersblog.com/tampa-bay-rowdies-sign-another-tv-contract-broadcast-games/

Tampa Bay Rowdies sign another TV contract to broadcast games

Days after announcing one new television package, the Tampa Bay Rowdies have announced another.

The North American Soccer League has announced a deal with beIN Sports, a global network, that will broadcast a minimum of 34 matches throughout the season. Included will be 11 matches during the spring, 18 in the fall and five weekday games.

MLS related but also pertains to NASL and the Rowdies, Cosmos, Strikers as well:

quote:

http://www.metroactive.com/features/columns/Nike-Soccer-San-Jose-Earthquakes-San-Jose-Clash-Brand-Marketing.html

How Nike's Dreadful Marketing Delayed Soccer Mania in San Jose

Members of the rebranded San Jose Clash weren't fond of the name or hideous jerseys.

Saturday night, the San Jose Earthquakes game against D.C. United will officially commemorate the 20th anniversary of Major League Soccer's inaugural match, which erupted April 6, 1996 in San Jose. In that first game 20 years ago, San Jose defeated D.C. in front of 31,683 fans at Spartan Stadium. At the time, it was the largest attendance for any sporting event in San Jose history.

With that match, the San Jose soccer bloodline began its MLS era as the San Jose Clash, thanks to the marketing bozos at Nike, who also inflicted upon the team hideously embarrassing jerseys and a nonsensical logo, which had nothing to do with San Jose and made no sense to any soccer-minded person anywhere in the world. A shoe company tried to market the team to '90s emo mall rats rather than soccer fans, so the entire brand was widely ridiculed by everyone, especially folks who grew up with the original San Jose Earthquakes in the '70s. But for whatever reason, we still went to the games.

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

be nice wicka posted:

most of the original MLS team identities were developed by nike and that's why most of them have been changed. the fire were supposed to be the "chicago rhythm" with a purple/black cobra logo; thankfully the ownership just ignored nike on that one.

Yes. To add insult to injury they were also acting as though the NASL never happened or if it did happen it was a bad thing, which is not at all how us old timer NASL fans remember it. I mean it was fairly obvious that MLS put a team in places like San Jose and Tampa Bay because those areas had successful NASL teams, and not because they had interested local owners who knew what they were doing (the Mutiny had no owners at all). The Nike top-down one-size-fits-all arbitrary bad marketing/bad branding was the final insult. It was pretty obvious in Tampa Bay: Rowdies > Pirates > Buccaneers > Mutiny. Green and yellow hoops > black and blue stripes. Classic Rowdies font > Mutiny 80s computer font. And then, for no apparent reason at all, a bat. :shrug:

American soccer has a bad case of recurring, inevitable, historical amnesia. MLS tried to erase or ignore everything that came before it, specifically the NASL. The NASL in its day also wrote its own histories as though soccer in the USA began after the 1966 World Cup final was televised in the USA and investors created the two leagues that would later merge to form the NASL. ASL? Never heard of it. The ASL circa 1930s-1980s in turn had completely forgotten about the original ASL of the 1920s, whose official records were lost and whose history had to be painstakingly reconstructed from old newspaper articles by late 20th century American soccer historians because the people who run the game in this country are partisans of their particular organizations only, and have no interest in preserving the history of, or promoting the best interests of, the game as a whole. This madness continues on to this day in the whole MLS/NASL/USL tussle.

quote:

http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/news-columns-blogs/city-beat/article69214982.html

Major League Soccer commissioner plans Sacramento visit in April

quote:

http://www.gloucestershireecho.co.uk/Cheltenham-Town-NEWS-Robins-striker-Eliot/story-29025680-detail/story.html

Cheltenham Town NEWS: Former Robins striker Eliot Richards set for move to Tampa Bay Rowdies

Rowdies? Sign a striker? That's crazy talk. :v:

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

Do over Ham posted:

Rowdies? Sign a striker? That's crazy talk. :v:
More:

quote:

http://saintpetersblog.com/rowdies-add-forward-eliot-richards-england-spring/

Rowdies add forward Eliot Richards from England for spring

Tampa Bay Rowdies head coach Stuart Campbell has reached into his past for the team’s latest signing, forward Eliot Richards.

The Rowdies have signed Richards for the 2016 spring season with an option for the fall.

Richards, who most recently played for Bath City on loan from Cheltenham Town in England, has had various stints with clubs throughout the England Football League. Most notably, Richards spent five seasons with the Bristol Rovers, the team most closely associated with Campbell.

Richards and Campbell overlapped at Rovers, with Richards making 112 appearances for the club. Campbell made 288 appearances for Rovers, serving as captain and caretaker manager before departing to join the Rowdies.

“Eliot is someone that we believe has a role to play with both our first team and Rowdies 2 in the NPSL,” Campbell said. “As we begin the process of building Rowdies 2, we looked at a few young players while we were in England and it just so happens that Eliot became available sooner than we expected. I know him well and he falls into both the NASL and NPSL categories for us.”

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

10,156 at Miami FC's home opener, so good for them. That's about 10 times what I was expecting, given Miami's past performance in pro soccer attendance. If they can keep this up it will be impressive, but sadly probably doomed if, as seems likely now, Beckham gets his stadium built.

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

Do over Ham posted:

10,156 at Miami FC's home opener, so good for them. That's about 10 times what I was expecting, given Miami's past performance in pro soccer attendance. If they can keep this up it will be impressive, but sadly probably doomed if, as seems likely now, Beckham gets his stadium built.

On the negative side a number of Mob people report on Facebook that the Miami FC front office organization and game day operations are a spectacular mess. Bad experience with parking, bad experience with getting visiting supporters group (Ralph's Mob) into the stadium, no security for visiting supporters group, complete lack of any kind of front office support or coordination with visiting supporters groups, etc. They don't just sound disorganized they sound like they aren't even aware of the potential problems they are facing yet.

quote:

http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/mls/article70993627.html

Miami FC ties Tampa Bay 1-1 in front of big crowd at home opener

A spirited crowd of 10,156 showed up for Miami FC home debut

quote:

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2016/apr/10/miami-fc-nasl-alessandro-nesta

While Miami waits for MLS to arrive, city's newest team make its move

Crowd of 10,156 shows up for first ever home match of NASL team managed by Alessandro Nesta and co-owned by Paolo Maldini, who are looking for a slice of the burgeoning soccer market

quote:

http://www.gamingintelligence.com/legal/37185-sportradar-signs-football-monitoring-deal-with-united-soccer-league

Sportradar signs football monitoring deal with United Soccer League

The agreement will see Sportradar look to proactively safeguard the USL’s nearly 450 matches scheduled for the 2016 season, with the company’s Fraud Detection System monitoring all regular season and postseason USL matches for any potential manipulations.

quote:

http://screamer.deadspin.com/minor-league-soccer-team-has-minor-league-media-operati-1769965114

Minor League Soccer Team Has Minor League Media Operation

The Charleston Battery are a soccer team that play in the United Soccer League—the third tier of American soccer, below MLS and the NASL—and average about 4,000 fans a game. You would think they’d be happy with any media coverage they could get, especially from South Carolina’s most-read newspaper. You would think wrong.

The Charleston Post and Courier reported yesterday that the Battery had revoked their press credential. The reason? A P&C business reporter had the temerity to email an inquiry about a lawsuit filed against team owner Eric Bowman.

quote:

http://www.plantcityobserver.com/article/cheyne-roberts-gets-rowdy

Cheyne Roberts gets "Rowdy"

The Plant City High alum has accepted a position as the Tampa Bay Rowdies second team coach.

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

quote:

http://crowsneststpete.com/2016/04/11/rowdies-fan-base-lacks-student-support/

Rowdies fan base lacks student support

Not many schools can call a professional soccer team its neighbor, but USF St. Petersburg can.

The Tampa Bay Rowdies kicked off their 2016 season on April 2 with nearly 6,000 fans packed into Al Lang Stadium just north of campus.

Even though the sport’s popularity is growing in the area, however, there seems to be a missing link between the team and the potential fan base at the university.

quote:

http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2016/04/11/can-fc-cincinnati-repeat-its-league-leading-crowd.html

Can FC Cincinnati repeat its league-leading crowd? USL president says yes

FC Cincinnati’s first-ever home game probably couldn’t have gone much better if it was written as a movie script.

Cincinnati’s new professional soccer team drew a United Soccer League season-high 14,658 fans to Nippert Stadium on the University of Cincinnati campus, the team won its home opener 2-1 and Sean Okoli’s first-ever FC Cincinnati goal in a home game ended up on ESPN’s SportsCenter as one of the top 10 plays of the day.

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

quote:

http://www.cincinnati.com/story/sports/2016/04/16/putting-fc-cincys-usl-record-crowd-context/83148360/

FC Cincinnati’s crowd of 20,497 people in the club’s 3-2 loss to 10-man Louisville City FC on Saturday night broke the United Soccer League record for a regular season match.

quote:

http://www.kcra.com/news/local-news/news-sacramento/new-downtown-sacramento-soccer-stadium-renderings-released/39012028

New downtown Sacramento soccer stadium renderings released

MLS commissioner to visit Sacramento on Thursday

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

quote:

http://www.bigapplesoccer.com/teams/nycfc2.php?article_id=44350

NYC FC names Rough Riders its PDL affiliate

quote:

http://www.mlive.com/sports/detroit/2016/04/mls_to_detroit_is_not_a_thrill.html

MLS to Detroit is not a thrilling possibilty to some Detroit City FC supporters

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

quote:

http://midfieldpress.com/2016/04/29/rowdies-assistant-gm-perry-van-der-beck-out-in-tampa-bay/

Rowdies Assistant GM Perry Van Der Beck Out in Tampa Bay

According to several sources within the organization, Rowdies legend Perry Van Der Beck has resigned from his front office duties with the team. His position was a dual role as both Assistant General Manager as well as VP of Community Relations. This comes shortly after news of a front office shakeup involving the ticketing department, and the departure of several key sales people in the offseason.

Adbot
ADBOT LOVES YOU

Do over Ham
Mar 20, 2009

King of False Promises posted:

Not sure what to make of this.

It can't be good. Perry has been involved with pro soccer in the Tampa Bay area since forever.

  • Locked thread