Major League Soccer Should Move Past Miami Expansion
Major League Soccer has a plan. By the year 2020, the league plans to have expanded to 24 teams. With 20 clubs – including the expansion Orlando City and NYCFC – for the 2015 season, Major League Soccer still has some growing to do.
With Atlanta MLS and Los Angeles FC expected to join the league by 2017, that leaves two spot for other expansion clubs to join. While representatives from Las Vegas, Minneapolis and Sacramento have already met with Major League Soccer,
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However, Commissioner Don Garber has not yet shut the door on other cities joining the fray. Garber himself recently spoke highly of both St. Louis and San Antonio due to their great soccer communities.
"“St. Louis has got a lot of activity going on with a stadium that they’re trying to get done for the [NFL] Rams. There’s a big soccer community out there and we’d love to see a soccer stadium downtown.” Garber also stated “San Antonio has been very active. There’s a lot of stuff going on. There’s a lot of interest in expansion.”"
The question remains however. With all these cities willing to help bring a Major League Soccer franchise into its home, why is Major League Soccer so determined to put a club in Miami. A city which twice turned down offers from club official to build stadiums on water front property in downtown Miami.
It has already been proven by the Miami Fusion that any club not within the downtown area will suffer and ultimately fail. Using the NHL’s Florida Panthers as an example shows what a lack of a downtown stadium can do. The Panthers sit last in the NHL, averaging just over 10,000 fans per game.
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In comparison, the NHL’s other Florida based team – the Tampa Bay Lightning – sit tenth in attendance, averaging 18,643 per game. Now a hockey team is not a soccer team. That I do get. However, this combination of factors shows the danger to Miami should the team not get a downtown based stadium.
With multiple bids coming from all over the country, why is the league and David Beckham painting themselves into a corner? Settling for a stadium outside of downtown will get you a franchise, but how long will that team last before it cannot self-sustain.
With Sacramento receiving investments from both the Sacramento Kings and San Francisco 49ers, the city quickly moves to the top of the list for expansion. At the same time, Garber has appeared very bullish at times about the chances of a Minneapolis expansion side.
"“We love the two ownership groups. We’ve been spending time with both of them. We have work to do with both groups. But I’m very bullish on the market.”"
These two cities alone bring more to the table than an expansion team in Miami would. With these next few years critical to Major League Soccer’s future, choosing the right expansion sides is more important than ever before.
Both Minneapolis and Sacramento have proven fan bases from their USL-Pro and NASL sides. Miami does not. The choice seems easy to me. Leave Miami out of the picture, they city clearly does not want to help the league grow.
Whoever the league picks in the next few years, they must be careful. Picking Miami could be a repeat of the past. Currently, the only thing this Miami franchise resembles is the reincarnation of the Miami Fusion.