How crazygonuts-desperate are rich people to invest some cash in MLS? Some of them, Vegas people with Vegas money for God's sake, want to buy part of the Columbus Crew. Yet surprisingly I can't think of a punchline for this, most likely because I am hushed by their completely dominate play as of late. I hate when bad teams play well...there is just no fun in it.
13 comments:
MLS will not be in Columbus in ten years time. In fact, I'd be surprised if the Crew exist five years from now. It's just too small of a market to 1) help the league's footprint and 2) be profitable. Enjoy the Crew while you still can Ohio.
The above would be someone named "anonymous" who hasn't got the first clue what he's talking about.
The leagues "footprint"? This means what, exactly? Just a fancy word you heard someplace that you think makes you sound like you know something.
Be profitable? The Crew was the first team in MLS to ever make a dime. And Forbes magazine's guesswork aside (the big "Glidden" logo on their shirts kind of negates the "they don't have a sponsor" theory doesn't it?)
The size of the market - and Columbus is the largest city in Ohio - has nothing to do with anything. MLS is about selling tickets, and Columbus sells a heck of a lot more than at least half the teams in the league.
People who know nothing should just shut up.
Futsal Fred, you're right - but, do you not see anything fishy with the folks wishing to bring to Las Vegas to MLS seeking an interest in the Crew? This goes beyond the typical and tired (and incorrect) "Columbus is a cow-town" critique, no? Maybe (and sadly) this does actually call for speculation that the Columbus Crew may not be around in ten years - around Ohio that is.
Futsal Fred, how exactly is giving yourself an inane moniker in anyway less anonymous than posting as anonymous? That, however, is beside the point.
Footprint: it's a term that most people following MLS expansion know well. While I am not sure if I'd call it "fancy," perhaps you might, it is a word that means, in general terms, the league's presence in the United States and Canada. More specifically, it refers to television ratings, media coverage, Q score, and marketing revenue.
Profitability: I'd like to make three points. First, MLS is no longer interested in markets that barely make money. The league wants teams that make real money. Second, if the Crew truly were making money, there's no way that HSG would sell now. Not with expansion teams coming into the league. Third, because of its market size, the Crew adds little to TV revenue. In fact, with the decline of the local TV network (CSN), the club might be hard pressed to find a station willing to show the games for free, let alone pay for rights.
Market size: while Columbus perhaps can boast being the largest city in Ohio, it is certainly not the largest metropolitan area. Cleveland and Cincinnati are both larger, as evidenced by their teams in the big three professional sports leagues (NFL, MLB, NBA). In fact, the US Census Bureau ranks Columbus 32nd among US metropolitan areas, ten places or so behind the two big cities in Ohio.
Finally, perhaps it would be better to stop and think about the implications of a particular post instead of immediately being offended by it. While I certainly understand that as a Crew fan (certainly you're from the Columbus area) you don't want your team to move, I think your anger should be direct toward HSG, not someone who is merely reading between the lines of a financial deal.
In the words of the Wu-Tang Clan: Cash rules everything around me, C.R.E.A.M. get the money, dolla dolla billz y'all. In MLS, it's no different.
"While I certainly understand that as a Crew fan (certainly you're from the Columbus area) you don't want your team to move, I think your anger should be direct toward HSG, not someone who is merely reading between the lines of a financial deal."
And note that the article even says that THEY WILL NOT MOVE THE TEAM. I don't know why people on boards and in comments keep saying that they might.
SF, come on...
Just put it this way, have you ever told a girl, "I'm so glad I met you last night. I'll call you soon. Can't wait to hook up again," and never talked to her again?
Though so.
Yeah, they told the Sonics they weren't gonna move them when that fat bastard was trying to buy them too. Where are they now?
They could move the team, sure. They did that with the Sonics, sure. And on the surface I do wonder, as Bill Archer does, why a West Coaster would want to invest in Columbus. But I'm making an effort to not be jaded and to not call Paul Calguiri --a man I do not know-- a liar. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt as I would hope someone who doesn't know me would give me the benefit of the doubt.
You can call me naive, idealistic etc. but I think there is something to be said for treating a man with some initial respect; I personally think it's the classy move.
With the Sonics comment I was just pointing out that the intention must be to move. And I have no problem with it, being I am of the 90% of the league that hates Columbus. I just would have much rather seen them move to Portland or Montreal.
So, when's Futsal Fred's memorial service after that dissection?
This team is not going anywhere. They have exactly the kind of stability MLS wants. A wealthy Investor/operator, their own SSS (that they just added a stage to, to increase revenue), a new shirt sponsor, an established fan base, and a "Footprint"(read: recognizable brand) in the Columbus area.
Salt Lake & KC were in danger of moving because they were having trouble getting stadiums built.
San Jose WAS moved because they could not find an Investor/Operator group.
I agree that MLS wants to ADD markets where they can make "real money", but why on earth would they get rid of a team that already makes SOME money. They have nothing to lose keeping this team. Keeping them does not hinder their ability to move into new markets, nor does it devalue other markets.
It amazes me how many people, who claim to have followed this league from the early days, dont understand the direction this league wants to go, or the path they want to follow. It's really not a great mystery, just listen, they tell us all the time. And guess what, THEY ALWAYS HAVE!
The Nordecke is cool. They aren't going anywhere...
San Jose WAS moved because they could not find an Investor/Operator group.
I don't actually think this is true. But my memory is a bit fuzzy these days since I'm impatiently waiting for the financial world to fall apart any minute now...
I believe AEG moved San Jose because they believed they would have less trouble building a soccer specific stadium in that market. The details are fuzzy in my mind but MLS kept the name & titles and offered the territory + name + titles to Lew Wolff and John Fisher who purchased them with a 3 year contract to bring the team back to the region.
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