FRISCO, Texas -- The future should be decided for Major League Soccer in Toronto, San Jose and Kansas City within the next 30 days, Commissioner Don Garber said at the MLS Cup 2005 Media Luncheon Friday at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas.
The league's Board of Governors will meet Saturday to discuss a host of issues. If all goes according to plan, Toronto will be confirmed as the league's 13th team by the end of the meeting, and all teams could find themselves with more flexibility to sign marquee players and financial incentives to take part in youth development.
"The roots of the league, Major League Soccer, and professional soccer have clearly been deeply established here in our country," Garber said. "We're rapidly becoming and reaching that goal -- our dream -- that our early investor-operators had 10 years ago: to create a true soccer nation."
Representatives of the proposed Toronto club are in the Dallas area this weekend for MLS Cup 2005, as are potential investors in five other cities: Philadelphia, Cleveland, Milwaukee, Atlanta and Tulsa, Okla. Garber noted that if a second 2007 expansion city is not decided on, the league could employ an unbalanced schedule with just 13 teams.
The time to make a decision on whether the San Jose Earthquakes and Kansas City Wizards will remain in the current homes is also fast approaching, Garber said. If the decision is made to move the teams -- contraction is not an option, he noted -- those changes would be made prior to the 2006 season. The clubs would have to be rebranded and start selling tickets, meaning MLS must come to a decision soon.
"It's very much a goal of ours to keep those teams in their current markets," he said. "We need local ownership, we need a stadium plan, and we need a committed fan base."
While some have speculated that a salary cap exception would be involved, Garber wouldn't discuss the details of the league's plan to provide teams with the flexibility to sign big-name players. Still, he described it -- in conjunction with the plan to provide incentives for teams to open youth academies -- as a sea change for the 10-year-old league.
"It's going to be an important new change to how we think about things and how we go forward into the future," Garber said.
In the vein of youth academies, the Commissioner said club's would be encouraged to set up systems like those of D.C. United and the MetroStars, with one incentive being that they would be able to retain the rights to those youth players.
"The byproduct of that will be those players don't go into the SuperDraft," Garber said. "That's an important change to the way we view player development today. It's to try to get into that club system that exists in other parts of the world."
The league is also in discussions with ABC/ESPN and Univision to come to terms on long-term English and Spanish language television rights. Garber expects an announcement on those deals to come within the next month, as well.
Jason Halpin is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
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