VIDEO: MLS Commissioner Don Garber's State Of The League 2008 All Star Game Address and Q&A

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EXPANSION: History Repeats Itself? New York City Supporter's Group Grows In Stature.

Not long ago there were a few guys with a dream of having an MLS club in their city banded together, organized, courted the media, the league and would be investors while their numbers continued to grow and their media footprint increased. This culminated in the awarding of the 16th MLS club to Philadelphia and much rejoicing among the aforementioned group of guys, known simply as the Sons of Ben who now number in the thousands.


Today we see signs that the same is taking place within the 5 boroughs of New York City as a group of guys known simply as the Borough Boys seem to be meeting all the right faces, from MLS Commish Don Garber to recent rumors of a high level meeting having taken place with would-be New York City FC investor-operator Fred Wilpon and a New York City councilman.

Suffice to say the Borough Boys are following a similar course and pressing the flesh of all the right people in power. Hopefully more media will now take notice, we've been suportive of their cause and wish them the best and hope they give us progress reports as their campaign continues. These are exciting times in New York City.

Before there are cries of, "New York doesn't need ANOTHER team." "They should just support the Red Bulls" start up again, we would like to reply with our points of view on this issue which you can skip if you saw them here the first time, if not then read on:

To understand why a "2nd" team in the New York Metro area makes sense you must understand the five points below:

1. New York City is Different. New York City is an urban, densely populated, mostly car less city. In other words many New Yorkers who live in NYC proper DO NOT OWN A CAR OR DRIVE. This is key to understanding why asking them to make their way to New Jersey is a non-starter. Most New Yorkers thinking of New Jersey as "far". Naming the team that Red Bull bought, New York does not make it so, for that very reason. They might as well be playing in Harrisburg, PA, or on the Moon for that matter. They'd be just as irrelevant as they are now to most of the CITY of New York. This is why RBNY is mostly ignored by the sporting press and off the radar for most fans of the sport in New York City.

2. The Original Plan. Two teams in the New York area was in the original plan for MLS, just as Philadelphia and St Louis was. This explains why the Commissioner, Don Garber has said the same with regards to New York "2" as he has with Philadelphia and St Louis: "It's not a matter of if, but a matter of when." Some see NY2 as Don Garber's pet project, but in reality the plans for a team and derby rival to MetroStars/RedBulls was laid out before a ball was ever kicked.

3. Identity. Because of point #1, the bulk of the people a team in New York City proper would draw from would never have identified with Red Bull New York. The reason as was mentioned above, is cultural. New York is a cosmopolitan, urban, get on the subway/take a train, city. Put a team on the 7 line and you will need to build a 30,000 seat stadium for it. Put it in New Jersey and well.....you see the result. New Yorkers will never identify with something which reeks of New Jersey from the location down to the way the team has historically been promoted as suburban family fun.

4. Economics/Population Density. New York City has been called by Don Garber, MLS's largest untapped market. Why? See point #3 above. With such a large market to draw from MLS would be foolish to pass it up in favor of some other expansion candidates. We have seen very little in the way of New York area soccer fans interested in MLS BECAUSE MLS is not in New York City yet, not the reverse. The same could have been said about Toronto prior to MLS coming. You saw an excellent and vocally pro-USA crowd at the USA vs Argentina match at Giants Stadium but those same people who made up the nearly 80,000 who attended that match either do not know about Red Bull New York or care about Red Bull New York for the simple face that its not in New York. Does this sound small or provincial to you? Perhaps it does, until you realize just how densely packed the city is. At nearly 19 million people New York City to put this in perspective, if New York City were a country in Europe and if it qualified in Euro2008 would be the 7th most populous country in the tournament with a population greater than that of Holland. That's a lot of people. A lot of people with a lot of dollars who currently don't care about MLS. For this reason, contrary to the conventional wisdom of many who can not see past the end of their nose, the 2nd team in the New York Metro area would not "split Red Bull NY's" fanbase. It would likely actually add to their attendance during derby matches with the New York City based team. Likewise, in a derby people would be forced to chose a side and we suspect many New Jersey fans of the sport would throw in their lot with Red Bull.

5. The Borough Boys. Just as Philadelphia and the constant talk about it being in MLS for over a decade eventually spawned a grassroots group of rowdies to drum up support in every corner of the city, then nation, then globe, the constant talk of NY2 has spawned a similar band of brothers known as the Borough Boys. They are in the mold of Philadelphia's Sons Of Ben in that they are fan advocates for MLS in their city and will in the days ahead be increasing their visibility to put the focus on the fact that New York City needs MLS and MLS needs New York City to be truly the league many imagine it to become in the next decade. MLS has the road map, New York City has the interest and money to support the team, the Borough Boys are a catalyst.

We'd hope that the next time the tired arguments against the inevitable are brought up you'd refer to the text above.

REPORT: MLS Commissioner Don Garber Issues Statement on Columbus

Today MLS Commissioner Don Garber issued the following regarding the racist Columbus Crew supporter which has been run on Agence France Presse wire:

06/04/2008 7:17PM
MLS commissioner statement
Major League Soccer Communications


NEW YORK -- Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber issued the following statement today regarding an incident involving a spectator in Columbus at the Crew versus New England Revolution match on May 24.

"MLS and the Columbus Crew have extensively reviewed an incident that took place during the Crew versus Revolution game on May 24 where there is audio of a spectator at Crew Stadium using vulgar language and an unacceptable and offensive racial epithet.

"The review included video posted on the internet, and interviews with security personnel, fans and team officials.

"MLS and the Columbus Crew are working diligently with all relevant authorities, including Club Supporters Groups, to identify the spectator involved. In the event the perpetrator is identified, he will be banned for life from Crew stadium and all other MLS stadiums and events.

"MLS takes enormous pride in our commitment to racial and ethnic diversity and inclusiveness - in our stadiums, on our fields, and in our administrative, coaching and ownership ranks. We categorically will not tolerate this language in any context or setting and are working with all of our clubs and stadiums to ensure that this isolated incident is not repeated."

Some quick thoughts from us on this. The fact that this person still remains unidentified suggests that people, perhaps those around him in the supporters section are protecting his identity. Columbus's soccer community is not that large and according to several people familiar with it, "everybody knows everyone".

So what should be the penalty in a case where other people in a section protect a virulent racist?

We believe the proper solution would be a combination of a 4-5 game ban of supporters from that section as well as a 3 pt deduction from the Crew's standings as suggested by MLS commentator Greg Lalas in this article.

Why? Because it will send a clear message that racism will not be tolerated and that protecting such people will hurt your team.

Additionally, according to the poll we conducted, many of you agree. As is shown, 52% of those who voted believe something other than just banning the person involved is justified here.

To underdstand more about where we're coming from we urge you to read the excellent article entitled The Wembley Experience: A Lesson About Hooliganism, by Kartik Krishnayer of The American Soccer Show on the Champions Radio Soccer Network and MLS Talk fame.

We at MLSR are currently in touch both with a person with the league and someone with Columbus Crew, both of which ask that our conversations with them not be reprinted here. From these conversations, we believe that the other boot has not yet fallen on the pitch in Columbus so this statement from the commissioner should not necessarily be taken as the end of the matter.

The investigation is ongoing and there should be more to follow as well as additional measures at MLS stadia around the league. We wish we could go into further detail but at the request of the parties we've discussed this with and due to the sensitive nature of the investigation and measures, we at MLSR honor their requests so as not to jeapordize their efforts.

REPORT: MLS Making Strides in Content Distribution

It may be the Memorial Day holiday, and all the banks may be closed, but here at MLSR we're still bringing content to the masses. And that's what MLS is striving for, too.

Adweek recently highlighted American sports leagues (NFL, NBA, NHL and soon MLB) founding their own subscription-cable tv channels for better content control and original programming. The suits in charge agree that "they're creating deeper connections to their viewers, sponsors and advertisers" and "generating additional revenue to complement the rights fees received from the broadcast and cable networks."

Though Garber humbly admits MLS isn't yet "big enough" to warrant its own channel, he emphasizes their focus on expanding the website (www.mlsnet.com) and mobile platforms to include "the creation of longer-form content."

Apparently, the League has already assembled the MLS Media Committee with the help of film producer and Seattle Sounders FC majority owner Joe Roth and fellow film producer and CEO of Andell Holdings (Fire's ownership group) Andrew Hauptman. The Don lists the Committee's primary role as overseeing production of "original content for the various platforms, including online and mobile."

And as we all know, soccer is "the sport of the internet" due to years of neglect from the mainstream media. It probably won't be long until MLS or certain teams create their own online video networks, like those found on some Premier League clubs' websites. In that vain, MLS has already introduced QuickKicks, Dreaming of Beijing, ExtraTime, and various mini team features.

What other steps do you think MLS can take to make "deeper connections to their viewers, sponsors and advertisers"? Is MLS making a good enough effort to embrace new media and expand its information footprint? Feel free to comment on any web media outlets we missed (team video blogs, etc) or anything you think MLS is doing completely wrong in these areas.

-K. Avila for MLS Rumors

Editors Note: On thing they could do is bring back these MLS Pictures people who produced the following 2005 Conference Championship video and 2005 MLS Cup Video.

REPORT: Garber Uses Blog To Diffuse John Carver's Comments/Says Steve Nash is Interested In MLS Club.

On his The Commissioner Speaks Blog, MLS Commissioner Don Garber said the following in his most recent post today:

"Many of you have read articles this week noting Toronto Head Coach John Carver's opinions on how MLS referees have managed their relationship with him this year and the treatment he has received from officials. One of those articles came from respected soccer writer Grahame Jones of the Los Angeles Times. The article in Wednesday's Times stated that the main story regarding Toronto FC was not the club's recent success, but "whether Major League Soccer's suits, in their infinite wisdom, will allow Carver to coach the way he knows how to coach or whether they will again try to stifle the emotion and intensity he brings to the sport."

The last thing we are trying to do is stifle emotion and intensity. We encourage and welcome passion from our technical staff and players, but passion is not the same as disrespect for officials or the game. I feel strongly that our coaches, like our players, are representing the sport at the highest level and must act on and off the field in a ways that the entire sport can respect and emulate. Our coaches, in particular, provide leadership and must set an appropriate tone in their dealings with each other and with officials.

By the way, as a follow up to John Carver's concerns with the referees, you can see from Wednesday's article in the Globe and Mail by Larry Millson that Joe Machnik and Alfonso Mondelo called Coach Carver to discuss his concerns. John Carver has done a great job in Toronto and we encourage him to bring passion and intensity to every match, albeit in a professional manner."

And on the prospect of NBA star Steve Nash joining the MLS ownership fold...

"Also joining me on the trip to Montreal was Phoenix Suns star Steve Nash, former Yahoo! President and Chief Operating Officer Jeff Mallett and MLS President Mark Abbott. Steve, who comes from a soccer family (his brother plays for the Whitecaps), and Jeff, who was part of Canada's National and Olympic soccer team programs as a teenager, are investors in Women's Professional Soccer and could be part of an ownership group for future MLS expansion into Canada. Steve is a world-class basketball player who truly loves soccer. I've been told that he plays on a number of amateur clubs during the offseason and has plans to co-host a charity soccer event with Claudio Reyna later this summer."

AUDIO: MLS Commish Don Garber in Montreal on Expansion

MLS Commissioner Don Garber was present at the opening of Stade Saputo Montreal and met with officials to explain what kind of upgrades they will need to make in order for the stadium to be at MLS standards. Garber also addressed media questions regarding expansion, specifically in Montreal:


Some things we now know from this interview:

- Seattle sold 16,000 season tickets

- Philadelphia has already sold between 5,000-6,000 thousand season tickets deposits and they do not begin play until 2010.

- Montreal has very good chance for expansion but doesn't know how soon (no concrete expansion plan made yet)

- 6 teams are fighting for next 2 spots (most likely these are St Louis, New York City, Miami, Vancouver, Montreal and Portland)

- expansions fee for next two (17 and 18) teams will be $40 million; could be more for teams 19 + 20

-Stade Saputo will need to be expanded to 20,000 seats

REPORT: Don Garber on Vancouver Plan

The Commissioner Speaks, again. This time on Vancouver. Here is an excerpt:

"We believe Vancouver is a potential market for a future Major League Soccer expansion team. There is no doubt the market for professional soccer exists in Vancouver, as we saw last November when nearly 50,000 fans attended the exhibition match between the Los Angeles Galaxy and the Whitecaps.

"We understand the newly renovated BC Place Stadium will be a world-class facility. We look forward to learning more about the proposed renovations so that we may determine whether BC Place can serve as an interim venue for an MLS team pending the construction of a soccer-specific stadium.

Go here to read more.

REPORT: MLS Commish Takes On Wilbon About Streamer Comments on PTI

If you have not already, we urge you to check out MLS Commissioner Don Garber's blog which is published every Friday. In last weeks post, Garber took exception to comments made by ESPN's Michael Wilbon about streamers tossed by supporters sections on to the pitch during corners in Toronto and other MLS cities. Wilbon said that it made MLS look "Bush League" either ignorant of the fact that in many well respected leagues in South America streamer throwing is common or simply asking MLS to conform to way other American sports fans behave at games ignoring that soccer is different. Here is an excerpt:

"Like many of you, I watched the recent episode of ESPN’s Pardon the Interruption when co-host Michael Wilbon vilified the practice of MLS fans throwing streamers at opposing players when they’re getting ready to take a corner kick. PTI showed video of Red Bulls midfielder Claudio Reyna with dozens of streamers around him. Wilbon, who has been a supporter of MLS and the sport of soccer in the past, was literally outraged at this practice and referred to it as ‘minor league.’ Clearly, I disagree. This is a unique phenomenon that happens all over the soccer world. We're playing soccer, not baseball, football or basketball. Our fans are a part of the game experience (click to watch video). That's one of our points of difference and part of what will drive our future success. There are plenty of sports leagues in the U.S. and we are not trying to offer the same in-stadium experience. We need to embrace the passion and electricity that makes soccer the world's most popular sport. By the way, I was recently watching a River Plate – Boca Juniors game on Fox Soccer Channel and there were streamers flying everywhere."

There's more great stuff after the jump.

AUDIO: MLS Commissioner Don Garber on Supporters Groups

Supporters. This week is no exception as "The Don" was interviewed following San Jose's first home game at It seems not a week goes by without Don Garber mentioning the Sons of Ben or Toronto FCBuckshaw Stadium by World Soccer Wrap. Garber comments on how the organized supporters have set this league apart from the NASL and other sport leagues in America.

AUDIO: MLS Commish Don Garber Talks About Supporters, MLS Schedule, and More

MLS Commissioner Don Garber sat down with Jeffery Marcus of the New York Times's Goal Blog and talked about a number of issues ranging from the MLS Schedule, Beckham hype, to the new emphasis on and power of Supporters Groups.




















Here is an excerpt:

More here.

CHARITY: MLS Commish visits UN for World Malaria Day, Nothing But Nets

On 23 April 2008, the United Nations Foundation hosted civic, religious, business, and sports leaders to promote Malaria prevention throughout Africa as part of the week leading up to World Malaria Day on 25 April. MLS Commissioner Don Garber was in attendance to represent the League's ongoing partnership with Nothing But Nets, a grassroots campaign that works to save lives through distribution of $10 bed nets.

Each MLS club will promote the NBN campaign in-stadium along with one of the League's sponsors, Makita, throughout the 2008 season. The League's national spokesperson, Diego Gutierrez of the Chicago Fire, will star in a public service announcement. Also including team e-mails, MLS hopes to reach 0ver 500,000 fans with its message.

Until the 25th, NBN is hosting an online game, "Deliver the Net." Users can play the game and afterwards they may submit their e-mail address and send a net (free of charge) on their behalf.

Deliver the Net.

(It's fun, I promise.)

-K. Avila for MLS Rumors

REPORT: GarberBlog Is Go! MLS Commissioner's First Blog Entry

Here's MLS Commissioner Don Garber's first blog entry.

REPORT: MLS Commissioner Don Garber to Debut Blog Tomorrow

We welcome "The Don" to the blogosphere.
From MLSNet:

THE COMMISSIONER SPEAKS
Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber will debut his new blog, "The Commissioner Speaks," on Friday, April 18 at 3 p.m. ET. This new bi-weekly blog will appear every other Friday and will feature Commissioner Garber addressing topics on Major League Soccer and many other items, including emails from MLS supporters. Make sure you check out the debut of this new blog tomorrow.

EDIT: Here it is. What no RSS? Shocker.

REPORT: Soehn vs Garber - DC United Manager Lashes Out At MLS Commish as United Are Knocked Out Champions Cup

As we mentioned, emotions ran high at last night's CONCACAF Champions Cup clash in Washington, DC (ARCHIVED VIDEO).

According to this story in the Washington Post, DC United's coach and manager Tom Soehn had strong words for MLS Commissioner Don Garber with regards to comments made by the commish regarding United's play on the first leg, away to Pachuca in Mexico

Excerpts here:

" The result left United lamenting several missed opportunities and prompted Coach Tom Soehn and his players to howl about the officiating. And before storming from the interview room, Soehn criticized MLS Commissioner Don Garber for comments he made recently about the team."

"Soehn also took issue with Garber, who told Soccer America magazine: "For this league to win over the core audience, we've got to be able to be among the best clubs in North America. D.C. United talks about their goal is to win a spot in the World Club Championship. They want to be the best team in the region. They really struggled the other night" at Pachuca.

Said Soehn: "I want to thank our commissioner for motivating us for some slighted comments he had against us in the papers. I appreciate his TV analysis."

Ouch.

Our Opinion: It should be noted that Garber has his own league policies to blame for the league's two clubs falling short last night. A schedule that runs counter to most of the region, a measly 2.2 million dollar salary cap and limited senior rosters handicap MLS teams in this and other international competitions and no bye week given to either team in the run up to these key games (which Glenn Davis has commented on extensively). Until these issues are dealt with in a real and meaningful manner, he should refrain from commenting on any teams performances in them.

Until MLS can pay what a mid table Mexican or even Japanese J-League side can for their players with a cap of $5-8 million, they will be screwed outside of league play. What do you think?

Highlights: