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Charlotte Very Much in Play for 30th MLS Team


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Charlotte Very Much in Play as MLS Mulls Expansion Growth to 30

 

A few interesting quotes:

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With a stadium already in place, he theoretically could have a team on the field by 2021, Glick confirmed. Either way, Tepper’s apparent determination adds an intriguing wrinkle to the expansion race. If Sacramento or St. Louis falter or delay, Charlotte is there. Meanwhile, other 30th-team hopefuls like Las Vegas or Phoenix now have catching-up to do.

To me, it seems like Charlotte is in a solid third place for expansion, with St. Louis and Sacramento ahead (with seemingly guaranteed spots), but the 30th spot is open for business.

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Charlotte’s MLS bid is a modern (post-Atlanta) one, in that it forgoes the new “soccer-specific” stadium that’s been the centerpiece of so many others. Tepper will argue that an upgraded Bank of America Stadium is more than suitable for a growing league and that Charlotte’s other attributes are too attractive to ignore.

Again, successful international matches held at Bank of America Stadium prove this point. Also, while BoA may not be perfect right now, when the time comes to replace the stadium, both the Panthers & the Charlotte MLS team could negotiate to get something like Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium - a football & soccer stadium. (Also, Tepper has expressed his desire for a domed stadium for the Panthers.)

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The country’s 23rd-largest media market fills the 630-mile wide hole between Washington and Atlanta, and Charlotte anchors a metro area of more than 2.5 million people. Glick said there are 26 Fortune 1000 companies within the potential club’s catchment area, with more on the way, and that the organization’s research indicates full season ticket commitments will be “in the high 20,000s, maybe in the 30,000s.” Sponsorship revenue will be “in the top quartile [of MLS] based on our initial conversations, at least,” he added.

This is a big one: corporate sponsors are already there. Additionally, the new club wouldn't interfere with Atlanta, DC, or even Nashville, given how far apart the clubs are.

 

I'd love it if this happens, I can only hope that it comes to fruition. David Tepper seems to be fully embracing Charlotte and he doesn't have any stadium issues that plague so many other expansion bids (and actually killed the previous Charlotte one). Honestly, while it may not be Atlanta-level successful, Charlotte has a history of hosting successful soccer matches (just the other day Gold Cup matches were that drew 55,000, I believe). The bid isn't perfect, but I think Charlotte has a pretty high chance of landing the 30th MLS team if everything goes smoothly. What do you guys think?

the user formerly known as cdclt

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What's the deal with the ex-Railhawks group in Raleigh? For some reason I thought they were leading the MLS race in North Carolina.

 

Though, to be fair, I was surprised when Nashville beat out Sacramento.

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I’d pump the brakes a bit on Sacramento for now. I’m seeing some rather strange things come out of that bid recently. 

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On 11/19/2012 at 7:23 PM, oldschoolvikings said:
She’s still half convinced “Chris Creamer” is a porn site.)
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9 hours ago, TheHealthiestScratch said:

How was this conclusion met?

 

edit: not conclusion, more wondering about what the argument is exactly to back that.

Fair, I should have made my thinking clear. People who work in big corporate, banking industries (like those in Charlotte) tend to have some crossover with soccer fans or at least sponsors of soccer teams.

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1 hour ago, the admiral said:

[extremely Adult Swim] Too many teams, too many teams, too many teams, toooooo man-yy tee-eeams

 

I just want a real relocation threat from a man who doesn’t look like he can keg stand while getting a coke injection up his rectum. Exposing the expansion racket would be fantastic, with a far more credible-looking owner.

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1 hour ago, gosioux76 said:

Tell us more.

EDIT: Please. :)

 

Well, this happened very late last night and the club has yet to respond. 

 

 

 

That's a move that was absolutely STUNNING to me, as Joe basically IS Sac Republic, and I just talked to Joe yesterday afternoon and saw no indication of anything strange happening. Joe leaving is either a sign that the new ownership group is all being bought out by Burkle (which I sort of get, as that tends to happen when clubs move up, but it's not a exactly a good sign for all of us), or there's something totally screwy going on that is being kept under wraps. I've kinda seen that happen before with this club, and this has the same type of tense feeling as every other bad announcement has.  

 

 

Pretty sure this is going to be one of the best, or worst, weeks in the club's history. Problem is, I have no idea which one it's going to be. 

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On 11/19/2012 at 7:23 PM, oldschoolvikings said:
She’s still half convinced “Chris Creamer” is a porn site.)
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Whenever Bill Simmons talks about MLS on his show it's either 1) how much fun LAFC shows are and 2) MLS is attractive to billionaires because it's their last reasonable opportunity to own a sports franchise and the associated bragging rights that go with it.

 

I do wonder how many MLS owners are collecting trinkets rather than interested in building a league and individual winning franchises. Clearly, several MLS 1.0 franchises are sleepwalking through season after season.

1 hour ago, ShutUpLutz! said:

and the drunken doodoobags jumping off the tops of SUV's/vans/RV's onto tables because, oh yeah, they are drunken drug abusing doodoobags

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1 hour ago, FALCON6 said:

Fair, I should have made my thinking clear. People who work in big corporate, banking industries (like those in Charlotte) tend to have some crossover with soccer fans or at least sponsors of soccer teams.

That seems like a real business standpoint which probably helps them, but I’m not sure I’d relate to being a soccer city. That is my own opinion though and maybe I’m not completely understanding. Not to compare (because I have no clue about the state of Charlotte soccer) but Phoenix Rising is absolutely rampant right now here in the desert. I frequently see merchandise everywhere and it seems they make sure to partner with a lot of businesses in the area. Their little streak of games they have strung together also isn’t hurting them. People in Arizona seem to gravitate towards teams that show winning. Wouldn’t call them fair weather because all support is in Arizona, but you see a lot more fans come out of nowhere around here when teams start to win. (Ex: the coyotes push for the playoffs last year, believe it or not)

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4 hours ago, DG_Now said:

Whenever Bill Simmons talks about MLS on his show it's either 1) how much fun LAFC shows are and 2) MLS is attractive to billionaires because it's their last reasonable opportunity to own a sports franchise and the associated bragging rights that go with it.

 

I do wonder how many MLS owners are collecting trinkets rather than interested in building a league and individual winning franchises. Clearly, several MLS 1.0 franchises are sleepwalking through season after season.

I think the idea of investing in SUM and profiting of it is more of the endgame rather than the MLS franchise and academy itself. 

 

2026 is the year the MLS itself is to turn a profit, according to some. I'm curious on how the distribution may work.

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1 hour ago, TheHealthiestScratch said:

That seems like a real business standpoint which probably helps them, but I’m not sure I’d relate to being a soccer city. That is my own opinion though and maybe I’m not completely understanding. Not to compare (because I have no clue about the state of Charlotte soccer) but Phoenix Rising is absolutely rampant right now here in the desert. I frequently see merchandise everywhere and it seems they make sure to partner with a lot of businesses in the area. Their little streak of games they have strung together also isn’t hurting them. People in Arizona seem to gravitate towards teams that show winning. Wouldn’t call them fair weather because all support is in Arizona, but you see a lot more fans come out of nowhere around here when teams start to win. (Ex: the coyotes push for the playoffs last year, believe it or not)

 

How much of a role did Didier Drogba play in the commercial success of Phoenix Rising?

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What blows my mind in all of this, is that in 23 years, the only market that has ever lost an MLS team for good is Tampa.

 

KC, Dallas, New York, San Jose, Miami, and LA have all gotten teams back. 

On September 20, 2012 at 0:50 AM, 'CS85 said:

It's like watching the hellish undead creakily shuffling their way out of the flames of a liposuction clinic dumpster fire.

On February 19, 2012 at 9:30 AM, 'pianoknight said:

Story B: Red Wings go undefeated and score 100 goals in every game. They also beat a team comprised of Godzilla, the ghost of Abraham Lincoln, 2 Power Rangers and Betty White. Oh, and they played in the middle of Iraq on a military base. In the sand. With no ice. Santa gave them special sand-skates that allowed them to play in shorts and t-shirts in 115 degree weather. Jesus, Zeus and Buddha watched from the sidelines and ate cotton candy.

POTD 5/24/12POTD 2/26/17

 

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13 minutes ago, nash61 said:

What blows my mind in all of this, is that in 23 years, the only market that has ever lost an MLS team for good is Tampa.

 

KC, Dallas, New York, San Jose, Miami, and LA have all gotten teams back. 

 

When did KC, Dallas or New York ever lose an MLS team?

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