Quakes, EPL's Spurs to partner up
Storied British club Tottenham, San Jose hope to create lasting bond
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There are exceptions of course, but this stereotype was very much on the minds of the San Jose Earthquakes and English Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur on Thursday when they announced their partnership at the Fairmont Hotel in San Jose. Yet according to both clubs, the intention is to establish a deep, long-lasting connection.
"In various markets around the world, I think some clubs from Europe have gone in, played a game, left, picked up a big fee, and done a little bit of brand awareness," said Spurs executive director Paul Barber. "That's not our approach. ... We'd rather go to fewer places and strike larger, deeper partnerships that have got some longevity to them."
Barber cited his team's agreement with reigning South African champions SuperSport United as an example of how he hopes the collaboration with the Earthquakes will work. The SuperSport relationship began 18 months ago, and not only gives Spurs a chance to showcase their brand in Africa, but it also involves SuperSport's youth coaches and players going to England for training and then taking that knowledge back to their home country.
"The payoff for us is that we get the first opportunity to look at some of the young talent that is emerging from Africa, and South Africa is seen as the gateway to the rest of Africa," said Barber. "So they're bringing in young boys from all over the continent and we get an opportunity to see them first hand.
"And it's the same here in the States. This isn't about taking the best talent in the States and exporting it to Europe. It's about helping teams in the U.S. develop talent faster and get it to a higher standard as quickly as possible."
San Jose general manager John Doyle indicated that he is in the process of getting the Quakes' own youth academy off the ground. An announcement about a training facility is set to be made "in three or four months," at which point, the process of putting the teams together can begin.
"Once we do that, what a great opportunity for our coaches to go over [to Tottenham]," said Doyle.
The seeds of the teams' relationship were planted back in the late 1980s when Spurs sporting director Damien Comolli lived in San Francisco as a teenager, and became a fan of the Oakland A's baseball team. The release of the book "Moneyball" -- which in part chronicled how A's general manager Billy Beane used statistical analysis to evaluate players -- helped spark a friendship between the two sports executives.
The duo later dragged A's owner Lew Wolff to the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, and when Wolff later brought the Quakes back to San Jose, it seemed only natural that the respective organizations would eventually join forces.
But Doyle said he had gotten calls from over 100 clubs in the last year to do some kind of collaboration. And that the ultimate selection of Tottenham went beyond the friendship between Beane and Comolli. The team's finances, facilities, and history all played a part as well.
"If [Tottenham] wasn't the right club, then it would've never happened," said Doyle.
Jeff Carlisle is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
