Garber Wants EPL Clubs To Buy Into MLS

[Redcoe15]

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/soccer/03/03/garber-invest.ap/index.html#ixzz0h9aM3sc8

Having failed to convince Barcelona and Real Madrid to invest in Major League Soccer teams or start new franchises, MLS commissioner Don Garber is turning his focus to English Premier League clubs.

Barcelona had been looking to buy partial ownership of a MLS expansion team but negotiations collapsed. However, Garber hasn't given up on forging partnerships that could not only bring in investment but also new methods and links with bigger competitions.

"We think it would be smart for us to have an international team sitting around our board table and helping to influence the way we think and perhaps connect us even more closer with the international community,'' Garber said in an interview with The Associated Press at SoccerEx.

My thoughts? Garber is a fucking idiot! Does he even realize bringing in riche European clubs as ownerswill give people the impression MLS is just a minor league outfit? what's wrong with forging your own identity?

[Super]

What is the deal with wanting new franchises anyway? I believe we'll be at 19 when Vancouver and Portland joins the MLS next year. After that it's Montreal - and then we're DONE. So this whole thing with bringing in Miami Barcelona or St. Louis Arsenal - fuck that shit. We're Mickey Mouse enough already with salary cap and single entity ownership, etc.. Maybe it's time we grow up!

[Beach_Red]

What is the deal with wanting new franchises anyway? I believe we'll be at 19 when Vancouver and Portland joins the MLS next year. After that it's Montreal - and then we're DONE. So this whole thing with bringing in Miami Barcelona or St. Louis Arsenal - fuck that shit. We're Mickey Mouse enough already with salary cap and single entity ownership, etc.. Maybe it's time we grow up!

Well, look, he said, "... it would be smart for us to have an international team sitting around our board table and helping to influence the way we think and perhaps connect us even more closer with the international community,'' then doesn't that sound like the league would move closer to the kinds of things you want? Certainly the big European teams' influence would be away from salary caps and single-entity ownership?

Wouldn't more connection with the international community make the league more the way you want it?

[Dirk Diggler]

Doesn't Chivas Guadalajara own Chivas USA? So MLS already has a presence from the global football community yet that has done nothing in steering the league away from salary caps and single entity ownership structure.

[TFC07]

People gotta remember, having a world class club like Man Utd owning/supporting a team in MLS will make some money for the league since it has "star power" and will attract more people of watching MLS. I personally think its lame, but then again, if this helps MLS then so be it.

[Super]

Well, look, he said, "... it would be smart for us to have an international team sitting around our board table and helping to influence the way we think and perhaps connect us even more closer with the international community,'' then doesn't that sound like the league would move closer to the kinds of things you want? Certainly the big European teams' influence would be away from salary caps and single-entity ownership?

Wouldn't more connection with the international community make the league more the way you want it?

Perhaps - but so far they've shown absolutely zero desire to move in any other direction than their current one - as is shown right now with the CBA as well. And seriously, do we need Arsenal at the table to tell us to stop it with the silly salary caps, and to allow clubs the ability to own their own players? This should be obvious stuff to anyone with a history in international football (not that Garber has one).

I honestly think he's just out for more cash, period. Cash, so he can build more franchises. One on each corner.

[Super]

Doesn't Chivas Guadalajara own Chivas USA? So MLS already has a presence from the global football community yet that has done nothing in steering the league away from salary caps and single entity ownership structure.

Exactly! And Chivas is one of the least popular clubs in the league as well.

[ag futbol]

My thoughts? Garber is a fucking idiot! Does he even realize bringing in riche European clubs as ownerswill give people the impression MLS is just a minor league outfit? what's wrong with forging your own identity?[/COLOR]

While maybe in not quite that extreme of a fashion, I agree. I hate the fact we have Chivas USA (for now at least), never liked the idea of Barca Miami, and this is garbage too.

[ag futbol]

We do not need Manchester United or any other club on the board of directors to provide us with anything. If MLS wants business acumen to help run their league, they can find it without an investment in a franchise. This is nothing but a lame attempt and getting more ownership into the league.

If I were Garber, I'd quit spending all my time issuing quotables about how everyone in the world would look good in MLS and spend more time fixing the league's problems. Start putting your damn foot down and get those stadiums built in Houston, DC, and SJ. Because for anyone who has been watching closely it's a huge embarrassment. Barring that, start taking a page out of the NFL's playbook and (gasp) use some of those expansion fees to fund the stadium's in critical markets.

Enough expansion already, clean up the damn product and fix/kill/relocate the weak links. If this league doesn't pay attention to the quality of the product it puts on the field in eventuality, it will have bigger problems than it does currently.

[Beach_Red]

Perhaps - but so far they've shown absolutely zero desire to move in any other direction than their current one - as is shown right now with the CBA as well. And seriously, do we need Arsenal at the table to tell us to stop it with the silly salary caps, and to allow clubs the ability to own their own players? This should be obvious stuff to anyone with a history in international football (not that Garber has one).

I honestly think he's just out for more cash, period. Cash, so he can build more franchises. One on each corner.

I was mosly just kidding.

But in all seriousness, the move is likely to be the other way -- every sports team owner in the world would love a salary cap so they wouldn't have to pile up such huge debts in order to remain competitive.

[Super]

I was mosly just kidding.

But in all seriousness, the move is likely to be the other way -- every sports team owner in the world would love a salary cap so they wouldn't have to pile up such huge debts in order to remain competitive.

I seriously doubt it. A salary cap certainly doesn't make it easier to be competitive - and you risk losing the interest of the public. The bottom-feeders want it, sure. But then you've got the MLS where the league has to be modelled after the poor teams (preventing richer clubs from investing in a better product for their fans - who paid for the product to begin with). We've had our debates on here, but I can almost certainly say that no other country in the world would consider an MLS-style salary cap. And thank God for that!

The truth is that as long as the MLS has a salary cap we will never (EVER) get any respect around the world. Not from fans of the game. Not from players. Never, ever, ever! Not unless the salary cap is $100 million per team (which is why the NBA, NHL and NFL do get respect - because they outspend everyone, and as a result have the best product). We spend far less than your average Danish club AND we have all sorts of restrictions put on clubs and players. I can't tell you how many people I've told about the MLS and how it's run and they just look at me like I'm crazy for following the league. I'm tired of that. I want to get out of the "franchise" feel of this league and feel a closer connection to my club. And that starts with my money going into my club, and players being owned by the club. Toronto FC is our club ... but we don't even own a single player. It's fucked up! Unfortunately I don't have much hope that things will change. Won't happen as long as Mr. Garber Mouse runs the league. He's too busy wanting to bring in foreign investors to build more McDon ... I mean, franchises, here, there and everywhere. Then fuck the product and the building of an exciting product.

[rocker]

A salary cap certainly doesn't make it easier to be competitive - .

why not? a salary cap makes it easier for everyone in the league to be competitive. It makes it harder for some teams to outspend others as a means to success.

[canucker]

The EPL clubs have enough to worry about right now with their own finances, I can't imagine those owners are looking for new investments. Does Garber even know anything about soccer and any other leagues other than his own? (Even that's debatable)

[Super]

why not? a salary cap makes it easier for everyone in the league to be competitive. It makes it harder for some teams to outspend others as a means to success.

So you're saying it's easier for individual clubs, like let's say Real Madrid, to compete with a salary cap, too? My whole point is that bigger market clubs should have an edge in the competition. Your ideal is that Scunthorpe United wins the league as many times as Liverpool.

The EPL clubs have enough to worry about right now with their own finances, I can't imagine those owners are looking for new investments. Does Garber even know anything about soccer and any other leagues other than his own? (Even that's debatable)

At least he hasn't changed the rules of the game itself. Otherwise we'd have kick-ins instead of throw-ins. He'd probably love to do it - just to be different than the rest of the world.

[billyfly]

How many of the RPB would abandon TFC if say Liverpool or Manchester United bought into us?

[Oldtimer]

At least he hasn't changed the rules of the game itself. Otherwise we'd have kick-ins instead of throw-ins. He'd probably love to do it - just to be different than the rest of the world.

Ahem. You realize, of course, that it was Don Garber who aligned MLS's playing rules with those of the rest of the world? That Doug Logan, the league's first commissioner had copied the NASL's Americanized rules, and had things like NHL style shootouts, the clock counting down instead of up, and numerous other travesties. It was Don Garber who ended those things to make MLS like the rest of the world in how it plays the game.

Of course, you may have been unaware that MLS existed until MLSE created TFC, and so don't know the league's history.

[troy1982]

Exactly! And Chivas is one of the least popular clubs in the league as well.

Chivas USA is in the top half in the league in attendance and above teams such as DC United and Chicago.

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/stats/a...r=2009&cc=5901

[Beach_Red]

I seriously doubt it. A salary cap certainly doesn't make it easier to be competitive - and you risk losing the interest of the public. The bottom-feeders want it, sure. But then you've got the MLS where the league has to be modelled after the poor teams (preventing richer clubs from investing in a better product for their fans - who paid for the product to begin with). We've had our debates on here, but I can almost certainly say that no other country in the world would consider an MLS-style salary cap. And thank God for that!

If that was the case it would be great. But it isn't. All the top teams are heavily in debt. The fans claim to hate it when their governments run up huge debts but they don't care if their team does it? Either it's good economics or it's not. And you know it's not.

Fans, if they are honest, respect players and teams who play by the rules. If a salary cap was part of the rules fans wuold quickly gain as much respect for a management team that could win within the cap as they would for a government that can operate within its budget. Sure, it's a different skill than identifying last years' best players and simply going into debt offering more money than anyone else can afford - but it may be a better skill for management to have.

I really don't understand how you can support such free-spending debt - these teams are acting like left-wing governments, letting the net generation worry about it as long as they get what they want now .

[Super]

Ahem. You realize, of course, that it was Don Garber who aligned MLS's playing rules with those of the rest of the world? That Doug Logan, the league's first commissioner had copied the NASL's Americanized rules, and had things like NHL style shootouts, the clock counting down instead of up, and numerous other travesties. It was Don Garber who ended those things to make MLS like the rest of the world in how it plays the game.

Of course, you may have been unaware that MLS existed until MLSE created TFC, and so don't know the league's history.

Truth be told I never followed the league before TFC came into the picture - the product was quite frankly just too poor to win over my attention. I knew that the league existed, but no more than I know there is a league in Cyprus. I, like most other people who now follow TFC, had my eye set on leagues overseas. If Don Garber did that then indeed he deserves props. It's his current management style that deeply puzzles me.

Chivas USA is in the top half in the league in attendance and above teams such as DC United and Chicago.

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/stats/a...r=2009&cc=5901

That surprises me greatly. I seem to recall reading somewhere that they only had a few thousand season tickets sold.

[Belfast_Boy]

How many of the RPB would abandon TFC if say Liverpool or Manchester United bought into us?

they can hardly afford themselves right now.

but honestly that would be a hard one to swallow.

[troy1982]

Truth be told I never followed the league before TFC came into the picture - the product was quite frankly just too poor to win over my attention. I knew that the league existed, but no more than I know there is a league in Cyprus. I, like most other people who now follow TFC, had my eye set on leagues overseas. If Don Garber did that then indeed he deserves props. It's his current management style that deeply puzzles me.



That surprises me greatly. I seem to recall reading somewhere that they only had a few thousand season tickets sold.

They do sell among the fewest season ticket each year but target audience which is mainly Mexican american don't have a tradition of buying season tickets to sporting events and hence get a relatively big walk up crowd each game.

[Super]

They do sell among the fewest season ticket each year but target audience which is mainly Mexican american don't have a tradition of buying season tickets to sporting events and hence get a relatively big walk up crowd each game.

That's an interesting observation!

[troy1982]

Perhaps - but so far they've shown absolutely zero desire to move in any other direction than their current one - as is shown right now with the CBA as well. And seriously, do we need Arsenal at the table to tell us to stop it with the silly salary caps, and to allow clubs the ability to own their own players? This should be obvious stuff to anyone with a history in international football (not that Garber has one).

I honestly think he's just out for more cash, period. Cash, so he can build more franchises. One on each corner.

Don Garber is looking for investors who may other wise invest in the EPL, weather they are from England, Russia, the Middle Ease, etc.

MLS is safer and probably a more profitable investment due to salary caps and single entity.
The value of an MLS club will also most likely go up greatly in the coming decade (Just ask MLSE) while Value will probably come down or stay stagnant in the EPL, while being in deficits every year and burrowing and paying interest to keep the clubs "competitive".

If I was an investor and I had the choice of an EPL or MLS club I would buy into MLS for sure. I wonder how the american's who invested in Liverpool and Man U feel about those clubs massive and growing debt/deficits loads.

[TFCRegina]

Don Garber is looking for investors who may other wise invest in the EPL, weather they are from England, Russia, the Middle Ease, etc.

MLS is safer and probably a more profitable investment due to salary caps and single entity.
The value of an MLS club will also most likely go up greatly in the coming decade (Just ask MLSE) while Value will probably come down or stay stagnant in the EPL, while being in deficits every year and burrowing and paying interest to keep the clubs "competitive".

If I was an investor and I had the choice of an EPL or MLS club I would buy into MLS for sure. I wonder how the american's who invested in Liverpool and Man U feel about those clubs massive and growing debt/deficits loads.

They probably don't care, because the cash flow is growing faster than the debt/interest payments. If the cash flow is improving faster than the debt, then they're getting richer. Team value is going up.

They're operating their clubs like a government, increase your debt load, as long as GDP increases faster than debt, you're probably ok.

[kodiakTFC]

That surprises me greatly. I seem to recall reading somewhere that they only had a few thousand season tickets sold.

Your actually right, they have quite a low season ticket holder number but one of the leagues highest walkups. Very odd.

[TFCRegina]

Your actually right, they have quite a low season ticket holder number but one of the leagues highest walkups. Very odd.

Lower income supporters (like a good sized chunk of the demographic they service) in general can't afford season tickets. They can afford to go to a game a couple times a year, but not to all 15 home games.