Toronto FC boss Winter decides to change culture with locker room no-go

[tfcmanu]

Manager Aron Winter will stick to his plan of improving the culture of the club by denying media access to the locker room.
The Dutchman feels that the this area of the stadium is a ‘safe place’ for his players and subsequently has told media that they are not allowed to enter the Toronto dressing room at BMO Field.
In a letter to the media, Winter said that the locker room is now off limits for those not directly involved with the club.
Here is an excerpt from that note: ‘One of the changes that falls under the new era is the location of our post-game media availability with our players. Outside of North America the press does not have access to the locker room.
‘I believe that is a sacred place and a safe place for the players and that is why I have chosen not to open the locker room. I understand there may be an adjustment period with some journalists but it is an important change in keeping with my program of changing the culture of Toronto FC both on and off the field.’

http://www.tribalfootball.com/articl...-no-go-1549971

[bdiddy]

Excellent - this is a great idea and should be a safe place.

I hate seeing media bombard players right after games anyways with questions about mistakes/etc... typically this is where players who haven't had a chance to think/cool down say something bad that makes themselves/club/etc look bad.

[Auzzy]

I've always found interviews in the locker room to be incredibly annoying, for many reasons. Great that they will find another location where the players can be interviewed, within 15 minutes. However, no idea if the league will allow this long-term.

[brad]

I predict the league steps in and overturns this. It's league policy to allow access, and a cornerstone of US sports reporting. I can't see them letting it slide.

[Roogsy]

I predict the league steps in and overturns this. It's league policy to allow access, and a cornerstone of US sports reporting. I can't see them letting it slide.

Exactly.

[Ossington Mental Youth]

hope the league doesnt step in, i think its a great idea

[menefreghista]

I'm just wondering what happened to lead to this.

[Carts]

I predict the league steps in and overturns this. It's league policy to allow access, and a cornerstone of US sports reporting. I can't see them letting it slide.

This is interesting - and will be very interesting to see what the league does here...

On paper, the MLS has every right to step in and start fining TFC every time they don't open the room (its right in the rules)...

On the other side, if the players are available 10-mins after the game, just in the gym and not the room, and nobody complains and there is no lack of coverage - I could see them kind of stepping back and "seeing how it plays out"...

If the MLS is to act - I think it would be immediate, if they let it go on with no action they might be swayed...

Now the trump card. If today, another team tries the same thing by sending out a letter - there's the floodgates & a shitstorm for the league...

As a member of the media, I am very interested in how this plays out...

Carts...

[Fort York Redcoat]

Meh. League mandate. Don't see why. I can wait a bit.

[drewski]

the letter as tweeted by Jason DeVos



He also said that media will still be given player access, just in the gym instead of locker room, and that he expects the players to honour their responsibilities to the media.

Personally, I'm all for it. Media still get same access, just in a different location. Locker room is the players inner sanctum. They should have a palce where they can be free to talk whenever they want.

[billyfly]

I'm just wondering what happened to lead to this.

Roogsy in the locker room chatting with DeRo (?)

[Whoop]

LMAO... I love how all this was twisted.

The media still has access after the game, just not in the locker room.

LMAO.

So why is deVos crying?

[Gazza]

The league will kibosh this. We're not the NY Red Bulls.

[Roogsy]

Actually DeVos isn't really upset about it. He just let us know about it.

Molinaro wasn't too happy though. He seems to think Winter is trying to get away with breaking a rule.

[Whoop]

Sorry.

I knew someone in the media was upset.

[JonO]

I think it will depend on how it's implemented. If all player are available to the media 10 minutes after the game, does it really matter that it's in the locker room or another designated room? While it may technically violate the rule, it may not violate the spirit of the rule (access to players), so the league may be inclined to see how it plays out.

[menefreghista]

LMAO... I love how all this was twisted.

The media still has access after the game, just not in the locker room.

LMAO.

So why is deVos crying?

Jeff Blair has been talking about this on the Fan for the past 40 minutes. And I think he made a good point. With the new system TFC will be able to shelter players more easily. Whereas with locker room access the players have nowhere to hide, eventually they will have to appear in the locker room.

[babone]

Excellent job by Winter, The locker room should only be available to players and team staff. Media rights in the country are a joke, these privacy laws are bull shit!

Everything is like reality tv now.

[Detroit_TFC]

Yeah, IMO the league won't let a club set its own policy on something like this. I agree with Winter though.

Probably he'll have to rescind this but will make it know that he doesn't like it and journos who persist in lockerroom interviews will be on his shit list.

[jabbronies]

Jeff Blair has been talking about this on the Fan for the past 40 minutes. And I think he made a good point. With the new system TFC will be able to shelter players more easily. Whereas with locker room access the players have nowhere to hide, eventually they will have to appear in the locker room.

Unless after the game - all players are on the bike - and media has access to that room.

[Whoop]

Unless after the game - all players are on the bike - and media has access to that room.

I think the letter makes it clear that the players wouldn't be skirting their media responsibilities.

[Whoop]

Why does Winter say "safer and more media friendly" in the letter?

Again, as a journalist your biggest enemy is deadlines but as long as you get the content you need from the players and it's all in the same vicinity, what's the problem whether you're interviewing them in a locker room or a gym?

[drewski]

Actually DeVos isn't really upset about it. He just let us know about it.

Molinaro wasn't too happy though. He seems to think Winter is trying to get away with breaking a rule.

Yet another slap in the face from a misguided organization.

is what he said.

[Whoop]

Thanks, I thought de Vos was upset. LOL

Didn't de Vos play in Europe, where this is the norm?

[BFin]

is what he said.

LOL...nicely done

[johnmolinaro]

Respectfully, I disagree with what Winter has done, and myself and other reporters have filed a complaint with the league.

I get that it may not appear to be a big deal but for me there is a principal involved.

The other 17 teams in MLS abide by this rule. TFC does not. That's not right. Either the rule applies to everybody, or don't bother having it.

The other issue is this.

For now, all players have been made available in the gym after the game, and TFC has said that will continue to be the case.

But what if Nana has a bad game or has a blowup on the sidelines during the game with Winter. What's to stop him from not going to the gym and instead going to the locker-room and quickly getting changed so he can avoid talking to the media?

If we had locker-room access, we could wait for a guy by his locker and he couldn't avoid talking to reporters - because at the end of the day, he still has to get dressed before heading home.

This is how I was able to talk to Dero after the cheque-signing. I waited by his locker for a good 20 minutes after most of the players left. Had I not had locker-room access, he would have been able to avoid talking to the media and wouldn't have had to explain his actions.

This gym/locker-room issue also comes on the heels of Winter's decision to close Thursday's practices to the media, which makes my job harder and in the end means less media coverage of the team.

As i said, I know it may not seem like a big deal. And I know many of you will be rolling your eyes at this - "ah, pity the poor soccer reporter who gets to go to games for free and gets paid to write about poor sports."

I get that. You shouldn't feel sympathy for me or any other reporter. Save your sympathy for people who are genuinely sympathetic.

But as I told Jeff Blair on the Fan 590 today, this is a big deal because it sets a dangerous precedent.

John Molinaro, CBC Sports

[mastermixer]

Why does Winter say "safer and more media friendly" in the letter?

Again, as a journalist your biggest enemy is deadlines but as long as you get the content you need from the players and it's all in the same vicinity, what's the problem whether you're interviewing them in a locker room or a gym?

Not that it's a big deal, but it makes for horrible TFC TV videos. Can barely hear them when they are riding the stationary bikes.

[TFCRegina]

Respectfully, I disagree with what Winter has done, and myself and other reporters have filed a complaint with the league.

I get that it may not appear to be a big deal but for me there is a principal involved.

The other 17 teams in MLS abide by this rule. TFC does not. That's not right. Either the rule applies to everybody, or don't bother having it.

The other issue is this.

For now, all players have been made available in the gym after the game, and TFC has said that will continue to be the case.

But what if Nana has a bad game or has a blowup on the sidelines during the game with Winter. What's to stop him from not going to the gym and instead going to the locker-room and quickly getting changed so he can avoid talking to the media?

If we had locker-room access, we could wait for a guy by his locker and he couldn't avoid talking to reporters - because at the end of the day, he still has to get dressed before heading home.

This is how I was able to talk to Dero after the cheque-signing. I waited by his locker for a good 20 minutes after most of the players left. Had I not had locker-room access, he would have been able to avoid talking to the media and wouldn't have had to explain his actions.

This gym/locker-room issue also comes on the heels of Winter's decision to close Thursday's practices to the media, which makes my job harder and in the end means less media. coverage of the team

As i said, I know it may not seem like a big deal. And I know many of you will be rolling your eyes at this - "ah, pity the poor soccer reporter who gets to go to games for free and gets paid to write about poor sports."

I get that. You shouldn't feel sympathy for me or any other reporter. Save your sympathy for people who are genuinely sympathetic.

But as I told Jeff Blair on the Fan 590 today, this is a big deal because it sets a dangerous precedent.

John

Unfortunately John, many of the fans are on the side of the club. Yes, the league has rules. But at the end of the day,the dressing room should be off limits for questions.

TFC should make it an obligation that all players make themselves available for media duty in the gym, whether they want to or not.

The gym is a perfectly acceptable place for interviews. In the past, I've generally found the locker room interviews posted on TFC TV annoying and hard to understand. The ones in the gym tend to be better.

[parma]

That is an assumption John that players will circumvent the process and skip out, if players are still available there should not be a problem, maybe allowing someone to gather their thoughts allows for a more thoughtful response...I don 't think somethings a foot...European soccer writers still get the goods....

[Roogsy]

That is an assumption John that players will circumvent the process and skip out, if players are still available there should not be a problem, maybe allowing someone to gather their thoughts allows for a more thoughtful response...I don 't think somethings a foot...European soccer writers still get the goods....

European soccer writers get the goods through their inside sources. What they get in the post-game interviews are prepared clichés. "We left it all on the pitch" type of stuff.