MLS, Players Union stage marathon negotiations

(by Ridge Mahoney si.com 1-27-10)

Representatives from Major League Soccer and the MLS Players Union met for eight hours Tuesday at league headquarters, and discussions over a new collective bargaining agreement are scheduled to resume Wednesday.

On hand for MLS were commissioner Don Garber, president Mark Abbott, executive vice president Todd Durbin, and others, including members of the league's legal firm, Proskauer & Rose. Jon Newman, general counsel to the MLSPU, was among those on the players' side of the table.

Progress, or lack of same, has been hard to track, yet eight hours is a long time for two opposing sides, regardless of the issues, to tolerate each other. Some incentive to cut a deal is certainly being provided by an expiration date of Jan. 31, this Sunday, for the current CBA, yet other forces are wielding influence as well.

FIFA reiterated two weeks ago it wouldn't intervene in negotiations after the international players' union, FIFPro, issued proclamations that league policies violate FIFA statues regarding the transfer of players and administration of player contracts.

This move, a dubious one at best, failed to strengthen the players' leverage, and their occasional public ripostes at what they perceive to be the league's onerous policies regarding freedom of movement hasn't seemed to sway league officials.

On the management side, while Garber and Abbott present a united front, there's some sentiment among certain ownership groups to get a deal done while retaining the league's structure and philosophies.

A low-paying league can't really throw down the greedy-players card to gain public sympathy, and they can point to the recent rapid rate of expansion, which opens opportunities for players to get jobs, even if most of them don't pay very much.

Time lost with players on strike and/or locked out can't be recaptured, and the league took severe enough hits last year in season-ticket sales and other revenue streams to fear any more disruptions. If the economy is recovering, it is doing so very slowly, which both management and labor are acutely aware of.

Rebuffed by FIFA, the players may have to give up on any form of free agency for the time being, even for players who re-enter the league after leaving it to play overseas. Its onerous policies of one-way options and impairment of player movement aren't likely to change.

Adding a second fully guaranteed year to contracts would give the players some added security -- most contracts are guaranteed only for the first year and semi-guaranteed for the second -- and so would a retirement plan.

A viable retirement plan along with incremental increases in the minimum salary and salary cap might be the best they can achieve this time around. Yet a week or two of impasse and pickets outside training grounds might be needed to achieve such modest gains, and neither side can really tolerate anything longer or more vitriolic than that.

2005 end of year Streamer Salute

At the end of the 2005 season the Loyalists organized a streamer salute to the team which took place at the end of the last game of the season. It became quite impressive once the Front Office got involved and included the whole north end of the stadium.

RSL inaugural game flag

The day after RSL's inagural game I was pleasantly surprised to find myself, or at least my flag, on the front page of the Salt Lake Tribune.

Good stuff.

Loyalists, 2005

A shot of the Loyalists' section E-32 at Rice Eccles Stadium back in 2005. My Big Bertha flag having a hard time finding space but still getting the job done.

Unusual MLS uniforms

LA Galaxy in yellow and blue? They wore it for only one game to compare it to the yellow and green the year before they switched to the current uniform.


This orange Metrostars jersey was a one-timer also, the jerseys were auctioned off after the game and the money went to Hurricane Katrina charities.


Finally a MLS team with a purple jersey? Unfortunatly no, this was just how the Rapids' blue and black jersey looked when the light hit it just right.

Helping out the mascot

So back in 2006 the team came up with a mascot by the name of Leonardo, but the poor guy didn't have much to use when it came to firing up the crowd so he asked if he could use one of my flags. I game him Big Bertha to use and I think it worked out for him, it also worked out for me as well, every game he would give me a voucher for a free drink and hot dog. Not a bad deal.

Is new K.C. plan more wizardry?

(Community America Ballpark)

(by Ridge Mahoney si.com 1-26-10)

More than once, Kansas City has been written off the MLS map. As of last Thursday, with men and machines moving dirt on a site destined to house a soccer stadium as part of a vast commercial development, it gets a real shot at success.

Or does it? Teams have fallen into this hole before. Colorado and FC Dallas, to name two examples, have justified a cautionary tone invoked by commissioner Don Garber while lauding such new projects: A stadium by itself doesn't guarantee a glittering record nor a flush bottom line.

Yet OnGoal LLC president Robb Heineman, whose stadium efforts began long before his consortium bought the team from Lamar Hunt and Hunt Sports Group, believes this move is essential.

"I spent some time with Mr. Hunt, talking about the future of soccer in this country and the opportunity," said Heineman. "Lamar was always a visionary, talking about the appropriate steps for the sport to evolve. The development of soccer-specific assets was always a key mantra for him. He built the first stadium in Columbus and was always convinced the same could be done for Kansas City."

Six years ago, Heineman researched a site across the state line in Johnson County, Kan., but despite some political backing, the project collapsed. After OnGoal bought the team in August 2006, a plan arose to revitalize an abandoned shopping center, Bannister Mall, in the southeast corner of Kansas City.

Cleanup of that site began early last year, but an impasse arose in the aftermath of the financial-market collapse. The city refused to pledge its commitment to back up the sale of STAR (sales tax-revenue) bonds, which were to fund about one-quarter of the entire development.

Blocked in Kansas City, Mo., OnGoal was lured back across the state line by officials of Wyandotte County and a large piece of land for which development was being sought by Nebraska Furniture Mart. The Wizards stadium, estimated cost of $202.7 million, will be located in Kansas City, Kan., on a site near the Kansas Speedway as part of a $414 million development that will include offices of Cerner Corp., whose co-founders Neal Patterson and Cliff Illig are the majority partners in OnGoal.

"It was always something he thought he could get done," said Heineman of the late Hunt's vision. "I didn't think it would take as long as this to get it done, however. I was probably pretty naïve. Never in my wildest dreams did I think it would take six years before we'd dig our first shovel. If I had known, I probably wouldn't have gotten involved in it. But we're here today and that's all that matters, and it's because I have committed partners who believe in it and are willing to put in the capital.

Kansas City has consistently lagged near the bottom of team attendance figures. During the past two seasons, it has failed several times to sell out Community America Ballpark (capacity for soccer 10,385), the minor-league baseball stadium it's using while Arrowhead Stadium is being renovated.

Blame has been levied on the market; the city's relatively small population of approximately 500,000 (about 2 million in the metropolitan area) is well-steeped in baseball, football and car racing, but not perceived as soccer-friendly. It doesn't have the cosmopolitan makeup of many MLS cities, in particular successful additions Toronto and Seattle, nor the track record of NASL tradition as does 2010 expansion city Philadelphia.

"We're not like those cities, and we do have a lot of tough competition with the Chiefs, Royals and University of Kansas, which is almost like another pro team," says Heineman. "But we think this team will become part of the sports community and one that fans in the area will be proud to support.

At least the stadium will be near a well-traveled, familiar area, not off in the barren boonies like a few MLS facilities. It will seat 18,500 fans, include a roof to hold in sound and shield fans from rain and snow, and feature a grass field.

There may be a flaw in Heineman's marketing: He believes college students -- the University of Kansas in Lawrence is about 25 miles east -- can help form a viable fan base. How many of them -- adorned with a "K" on one cheekbone, a "U" on the other and devoted to "Rock chalk, Jayhawk!" -- can be converted into Wizards fans remains to be seen.

Last Thursday, Heineman donned a hard hat, jumped into the cab of a towering John Deere, dug and dumped the first load of dirt. He dismounted, obviously exhilarated.

Yet later that day he was back on the office, with a trip to New York that evening on his agenda. "This is a great step, and it's been a long time coming," he said. "But yes, we know there's much more work to do."