Reliable sources tell us Marcelo Claure (Brightstar) one time MLS Barcelona Miami bid head and Aaron Davidson, President of Miami FC met Thursday at 9 AM at Traffic Sports USA headquarters in Miami.It is known Claure has already met with FC Tampa Bay Rowdies.
Claure, frustrated after his Major League Soccer adventure and fed up with Don Garber, has been itching for involvement of some sort in Florida Soccer for sometime now and has seen the excellent signings and progress Tampa has made so far this year. Tampa seems like a better investment for now, pending whatever Miami FC could muster up in the next months before the start of the USSF Div2 Season. (A NASL and USL combined league)
Signs indicate Claure has agreed to collaborate with both Tampa and Miami teams though details of the deal if any are not set in stone.
It's a positive sign for Soccer in Florida since we know Marcelo Claure has the resources and know how to make a great contribution to Soccer in this state. But questions still remain... Is any hopes of MLS now dead in the state of Florida? Claure was thought Miami's best hope for MLS but sources tell us he, like many other investors cringe at the thought of MLS's current Soccer monopoly (Single entity system).
More details as this story develops.
23 comments:
If Marcelo's intentions are sincere(we have been mislead in the past from people) than this is good news. With added support being given to South Florida soccer it should make this area draw interest from the MLS. If not it still can help build a more appealing product.
I do hope Miami does get MLS.
It's hard to tell whether this is good news or bad news. The bad news is Miami FC doesn't have its act together and that's why Claure keeps passing them up.
it all the same. Claure or no Claure Miami will get MLS in the next 2-3 years.
Claure should start a team in Orlando.
...though I still have my doubts about him being any more than an annoying wildcard that teases Florida soccer fans.
Claure is not be the only investor that want to bring MLS to Miami.
It would be nice if people here started supporting what Tampa and Miami are doing instead of saying "bring MLS to Miami" or "bring MLS to Tampa."
You had MLS once and failed in both places. Miami had a second chance and nobody outside of reader of this website gave a damn.
You have teams now. Support them. NASL isn't MLS, but MLS isn't exactly the Premier League or La Liga either. Then again, the way NASL is going with signings and youth structures it very well could outdo MLS eventually. Not just Ralston, but look at the guys Miami and Baltimore saved from a life of college soccer and low level MLS by loaning them to Europe. That is good for American soccer! Get behind it, people!
As for Claure I would not know who he is, if I tripped over him. Never has someone become so prominent without ever being visible.
This stinks. Miami wants MLS that is in Miami not in freaking Broward County which is far away from the ethnic communities. Miami is a natural soccer town, while the Fusion playing in lily white Fort Lauderdale never made any sense.
If Miami is the soccer town why is it they have NOT outdrawn Ft. Lauderdale in the last 35 years. Not once. Not in the good times, not in the bad times. Not in F.I.U.,not in the Orange Bowl,not at Tamiami.
The reason Miami hasn't outdrawn Ft. Lauderdale is because Miami doesn't know they have a team... The didn't know about the Fusion or Miami FC... I found out about the Fusion after they already folded and about Miami FC only last year... BUT, if u go by the TV ratings of soccer games, Miami is ranked #1 in the U.S.A. whenever important soccer games are on and Broward is #2... Yet MIAMI still doesn't have a Major League team... ALL MIAMI NEEDS IS TO KNOW WE HAVE A TEAM TO SUPPORT, but the office of Miami FC is to stupid to figure that out! They think it will spread by word of mouth, but by the time that happens the team will be gone just like before... So we cant let that happen, something needs to change!
How do you know Miami is #1 and Broward is #2 in the TV ratings? The markets are the same- it is the Miami-Fort Lauderdale TV market. For all we know everyone watching could be from Homestead.
Even when Miami and Fort Lauderdale both had teams in the same league, the APSL, the Miami team folded after one season while the Lauderdale team last several.
Miami FC's failure is due to paying TOO MUCH ATTENTION to Miami and not cultivating the long standing soccer loving audience in Broward. Oh and too the idiot who said everyone is white in Broward, you are an ignorant idiot who never goes north of Hialeah. Broward has a HUGE Carribean population and that is why the Cricket ground was built in Lauderhill and not in Miami, New York or Los Angeles.
Finishing up my point, from 2006 to 2008 Miami FC did not advertise ONCE in Broward and never cultiavted the youth soccer community outside of the dysfunctional pyramid of Dade County youth soccer. You ever wonder why even the good players from Miami-Dade end up on youth teams in south Broward? Dade County is so disorganized.
Yet, when Miami FC split the games last year TWICE AS MANY PEOPLE SHOWED UP AT LOCKHART THAN FIU.
As for MLS being "major league" don't be fooled by the propoganda. MLS has the worst record against its countries second division of any "major league" on the planet. I saw that statistic somewhere. USL teams beat MLS teams more often in real matches than any other second division beats a first division. USL is almost as good, but Miami FC has failed because they have stuck too long to Dade County.
MLS will return to Miami is just a matter of time. They are other invertors interested.
Yet, when Miami FC split the games last year TWICE AS MANY PEOPLE SHOWED UP AT LOCKHART THAN FIU.
YES BECAUSE THEY GOT FREE TICKETS..... FIU IS A BETTER STADIUM AND LOCATION.
Actually more free tix were given for games at FIU.
Dade County has a 35 year history of NOT SUPPORTING AMERICAN SOCCER. Even the US friendlies in Miami did not draw well unless Peru or Colombia was playing.
Why is it the Miami teams always went out of business in the previous leagues while the Fort Lauderdale teams always survived longer? Why is it that Miami FC spent LOTS of mony advertising in Dade County on Carocal in the Herald, etc for three years and saw attendance go down every year?
They did not even advertise in Broward until last year!
Unless an owner wants to lose millions of dollars and see a team go out of business and criticized by soccer snobs, their is no reason to EVER place a team in Miami. 35 years of history tells us this.
SO GO TO FT Lauderdale no one will find out anyway, because NO ONE KNOWS WHO IS MIAMI FC.
BECAUSE OF LOUSY OWNERS.
At least the team will survive in Lauderdale. In Miami they would fold in no time.
It's tough to call Traffic lousy owners when they have spent money up the wazoo on promotions. The mistake Traffic made is targeting the Hispanic audience in Dade County. They don't care about soccer in this country. They go on about Boca or River but they don't care for Miami FC.
A new era should begin by embracing the former Striker fans at Lockhart.
You right I also hope it will survive in Lauderdale or the 1500-2000 fans will be without soccer. Oh last game at Lockhart attendence was 45 mostly Miami FC Ultras.
Miami is absolutely the worst soccer market in the country. Full of people who watch their native countries and are nothing but condescending about the domestic product. Fort Lauderdale is so, so, but they do have a proven track record of supporting American soccer. Not that FTL is all that either. It's merely average, while Miami is the single worst market for AMERICAN professional soccer in the country.
I wonder who the clowns who say Miami is such a good market are. Maybe they are the 200 people who signed up for Barca-Miami from Miami-Dade County and the 50 people who used to go Tropical Park whenever my RailHawks would come to town.
You guys suck. Traffic has put so much effort into launching a proper league and all you do is piss all over them.
You don't deserve a team or the ownership you have.
Broward = dumb white yanks. They will support Miami FC because they have no clue what good futbol , I mean soccer looks likes.
Here in Miami Dade we live, breathe and die with the sport. We don't see Miami FC supported because they have done nothing to earn our support. We are futbol.
Traffic sucks!! They just don't care.
Fans want MLS.
Post a Comment