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Thread: Goodbye Chivas

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    Default Goodbye Chivas

    NEW YORK (February 20, 2014) – Major League Soccer today announced it has purchased Chivas USA from Jorge Vergara and Angelica Fuentes. Effective immediately, MLS will assume responsibility for operating the club. MLS will appoint an experienced sports executive shortly to serve as the president of Chivas USA during this interim period. Head coach Wilmer Cabrera, who joined the club January 9, will continue in his position and report to the new president.
    In the coming months, the league will resell the club to a new ownership group that will be committed to building a new stadium and keeping the team in Los Angeles. The league has had initial discussions with a number of very qualified potential owners and intends to finalize an agreement with a new group sometime this year.
    The club will play as Chivas USA during the 2014 MLS season and will be rebranded with a new team name and logo in connection with the sale to a new owner.
    Under the terms of the purchase agreement, Mr. Vergara and Ms. Fuentes retain all branding and licensing rights to the Chivas name with MLS permitted to continue using the Chivas USA brand name on a transitional basis.
    “We thank Jorge Vergara and Angelica Fuentes for their significant commitment to Major League Soccer,” MLS Commissioner Don Garber said. “Jorge was an early believer in the league and he and Angelica have been great partners in MLS. We collectively agreed that it is best to sell the club to new owners who are committed to securing a new stadium and providing MLS with a strong rival for the LA Galaxy.”
    Vergara was part of the original ownership group that purchased an expansion team that began play in 2005, and he and Fuentes became sole owners of the club in 2012.
    “When Angelica and I gained full operational control of the team for the first time 15 months ago, we were hopeful we would be able to turn it around,” said Mr. Vergara. “However, there is only one Chivas de Guadalajara, and we have realized that it will require more time, further resources, and a level of commitment that would divert too much of our focus from our other business interests. We explored opportunities to sell to other groups, but we believe selling the franchise to MLS on an expedited basis is in the best interests of all parties, including the team’s players and its dedicated fans.
    "MLS has assured us they are committed to keeping the club in Los Angeles and finding the right owners to make the team successful in the future. We greatly appreciate the leadership and collaboration of Don Garber and his colleagues at MLS, which resulted in an efficient transaction that benefits all the parties involved.”
    In connection with the sale of the club to a new owner, MLS also will lead the discussions for a new stadium that would serve as the new home for the team. The club has played its home games at the StubHub Center in Carson, Calif., since debuting in 2005 and will continue to play there in 2014.
    Chivas USA open the 2014 MLS season on March 9 when they host the Chicago Fire.

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    Wow.. didn't think it'd happen like this.

    So what will the new team be? LA Barcelonas?

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    Great and necessary move by the league. Hopefully they will find a great, new owner to take on the club. Also, I hope they will abandon the Chivas concept and go in a different, more generic direction. Los Angeles FC - type of thing.

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    I hated the whole concept of "Chivas USA". Glad this is being done.

    Hopefully it doesn't take them too long to get a new stadium up and running so they can have fans on a "school night".

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    Wasn't there talk on twitter a few days ago that Chivas applied for right to "Los Angeles FC" and "Los Angeles SC", as well as 2 logos? The writing was on the wall...

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    I liked the Chivas concept until I found out they weren't talking about a brand of Canadian whiskey. Hello Los Angeles FC, I guess.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Ivy View Post
    Wasn't there talk on twitter a few days ago that Chivas applied for right to "Los Angeles FC" and "Los Angeles SC", as well as 2 logos? The writing was on the wall...
    Just reports of patents being filed, no word on who but chances are it's MLS and not a PDL start up.

    Personally I want to see Southern California Soccer Club or SC² for short.

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    If it weren't for revenue-sharing, Chivas would have disappeared 8 years ago.
    MLS is a tough, physical league, that emphasizes speed, and features plastic fields, grueling travel, extreme weather, and incompetent refs. - NK Toronto

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    Quote Originally Posted by tfcleeds View Post
    I liked the Chivas concept until I found out they weren't talking about a brand of Canadian whiskey. Hello Los Angeles FC, I guess.
    lol, soooo much cooler than an energy drink

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    Quote Originally Posted by MartinUtd View Post
    Wow.. didn't think it'd happen like this.

    So what will the new team be? LA Barcelonas?
    Olympic LA?
    O, Maple Leaf around the world, You speak as you rise high above,
    Of courage, peace and quiet strength, Of the Canada that I love.
    Remind us all, our union bound by ties we cannot sever,
    Bright flag revered on every ground, The Maple Leaf forever

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    I'm sure Garber didn't want to have to do this, but it really needed to be done (ideally should have happened before the tv deal got done).

    Now the guessing game starts as to who buys the franchise. If its Stan Kroenke, that will be a massive let down. If it is, hopefully he sells the Rapids to an ownership group willing to do more with the team.

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    Kroenke comes to mind here....he has been getting the land together for an NFL stadium. Sell the Rapids or sell some land.


    The mlssoccer.com comments are always good for a laugh. All these people from San Diego and San Antonio saying LA can't support 2 teams. They've got 14 million people in LA metro.
    Last edited by OgtheDim; 02-20-2014 at 05:18 PM.

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    Quote Originally Posted by OgtheDim View Post
    Kroenke comes to mind here....he has been getting the land together for an NFL stadium. Sell the Rapids or sell some land.


    The mlssoccer.com comments are always good for a laugh. All these people from San Diego and San Antonio saying LA can't support 2 teams. They've got 14 million people in LA metro.
    Kroenke could not purchase them as he is now the majority of the St. Louis Rams. He actually sold the Rapids and Avs to his son.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Ivy View Post
    Wasn't there talk on twitter a few days ago that Chivas applied for right to "Los Angeles FC" and "Los Angeles SC", as well as 2 logos? The writing was on the wall...
    My post from the other day in the MLS news thread:


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    Los Angeles FC? Great, another club name for announcers to annoyingly state it during broadcasts as....Los Angeles *activate booming Monster Truck Rally Voice* EFF SEA

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    Beckham obviously had no interest in this. Which is interesting.

    If they do stay in LA, they need to rebrand as the Aztecs. That name has a lot of history there.

    I don't really believe Garber, though, he is saying what he has to say but I suspect the team is moving out of LA.

    Anaheim is too close to Carson, and baseball and soccer don't coexist well, football is the more logical co-tenant. Maybe San Diego? Indoor soccer was big there (raise your hand if you remember Branko Segota!) and Qualcomm is a decent venue for soccer, big-time friendlies have been played there.
    Last edited by ensco; 02-20-2014 at 07:24 PM.
    “What the world needs is more geniuses with humility; there are so few of us left.”

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    Quote Originally Posted by ensco View Post

    Anaheim is too close to Carson, and baseball and soccer don't coexist well, football is the more logical co-tenant. Maybe San Diego? Indoor soccer was big there (raise your hand if you remember Branko Segota!) and Qualcomm is a decent venue for soccer, big-time friendlies have been played there.
    San Diego Sockers! Yes, a team there would be fitting enough. Close enough in proximity too.

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    I know it is quite different, but could NYCFC face some of the same obstacles that Chivas faced, by being directly tied to another club?

    Remember The Man, The Legend, The Goal 5-12-07 and All That #9 Left On The Pitch, Thanks For The Memories !!!

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    Quote Originally Posted by Red CB Toronto View Post
    I know it is quite different, but could NYCFC face some of the same obstacles that Chivas faced, by being directly tied to another club?
    If they play in Harrison and have cheapskate ownership, then the same thing will happen, sure.
    “What the world needs is more geniuses with humility; there are so few of us left.”

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    Quote Originally Posted by ensco View Post
    If they play in Harrison and have cheapskate ownership, then the same thing will happen, sure.
    No worries about either. I have a feelin NYCFC's DP spending is going to make ours look like peanuts.

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    Quote Originally Posted by ensco View Post
    Beckham obviously had no interest in this. Which is interesting.

    If they do stay in LA, they need to rebrand as the Aztecs. That name has a lot of history there.

    I don't really believe Garber, though, he is saying what he has to say but I suspect the team is moving out of LA.

    Anaheim is too close to Carson, and baseball and soccer don't coexist well, football is the more logical co-tenant. Maybe San Diego? Indoor soccer was big there (raise your hand if you remember Branko Segota!) and Qualcomm is a decent venue for soccer, big-time friendlies have been played there.
    I thought that myself but NASL owns the rights to the name. Doubt they do MLS a favour and sell it to them.

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    Quote Originally Posted by OgtheDim View Post
    Kroenke comes to mind here....he has been getting the land together for an NFL stadium. Sell the Rapids or sell some land.


    The mlssoccer.com comments are always good for a laugh. All these people from San Diego and San Antonio saying LA can't support 2 teams. They've got 14 million people in LA metro.
    Population alone should never be used as an indicator of a potential market or fanbase. If LA was such a slam-dunk market capable of supporting two clubs, then Chivas probably wouldn't be in its current position.

    Honestly, I think staying in LA is such a bad move for the club. I really don't understand Garber's decision here. I say MLS should just stamp a big sticker on the map shading all of the LA area as "Galaxy Territory" and be done with it. If the league wants to stay in California that's fine and all, but maybe consider San Diego or perhaps Sacramento where plans have been underway for a while to hook a franchise.



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    Quote Originally Posted by Red CB Toronto View Post
    Kroenke could not purchase them as he is now the majority of the St. Louis Rams. He actually sold the Rapids and Avs to his son.
    Could the LA Gunners be property of a son?
    FORMER FULL TIME KOOL-AID DRINKER

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    Quote Originally Posted by Areathrasher View Post
    I thought that myself but NASL owns the rights to the name. Doubt they do MLS a favour and sell it to them.
    The current NASL does not own the rights to any of the old NASL (went bankrupt in 1983) club names.
    MLS is a tough, physical league, that emphasizes speed, and features plastic fields, grueling travel, extreme weather, and incompetent refs. - NK Toronto

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    Quote Originally Posted by ensco View Post
    Maybe San Diego?
    That's Xolos territory now. Club Tijuana is in the midst of a massive expansion to Estadio Caliente (turf in Mexico??) because of the loyal San Diego crowd that keeps driving down.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Oldtimer View Post
    The current NASL does not own the rights to any of the old NASL (went bankrupt in 1983) club names.
    Search the US Govt trademark site and see who owns the rights

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    Quote Originally Posted by Oldtimer View Post
    The current NASL does not own the rights to any of the old NASL (went bankrupt in 1983) club names.
    Are the old NASL logos individual owned? On the subject of NASL trademarks , does anyone own the Blizzard right now, I am curious.

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    Alaska?
    Last edited by Brooker; 02-21-2014 at 10:47 AM.

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    I see no reason why they have to leave LA. In fact, the huge amount of sprawl and traffic issues in the area easily lend itself to placing a franchise in another corner of the city. East LA has been suggested before or something just off DT which is starting to be revitalized. Clearly they should not be playing out of the same venue.

    Quote Originally Posted by ensco View Post
    Beckham obviously had no interest in this. Which is interesting.
    FWIW, rumor was Beckham's deal specifically excluded NY and LA as potential markets.

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    Beckham didn't get the discount if he chose NY or LA. He could have but would have paid full whack for it.

 

 

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