WVHooligan 09 November @ 10:22 AM EST
We all know the Collective Bargaining Agreement is coming close to it's end and the MLS Players
Union and league front offices are set to battle it all out. Well today we got some rough news from
the Sports Business Journal (subscription based link, sign up for a free trail if you haven't) that
the players union is already talking strike if things don't improve.
Click to continue reading...
Big Story
The dramatic failure of Toronto FC this year, after a struggling season was
concluded as the club blew its chance of making the playoffs by getting torn apart 5-0 by Red Bull
New York, has thrown the entire direction of the team up for debate as well as the future of
general manager Mo Johnston.
Click to continue reading...
WVHooligan 21 September @ 10:06 AM EST
A decision that could be said to be an interesting one. The Sports Business Journal is reporting
that the league owners have decided to move this year's MLS Cup in Seattle to prime-time TV on
November 22nd. The switch also sees the game go from network TV to cable TV for the first time.
The owners are hoping the later start time will enhance the stadium atmosphere which should
translate into a better TV viewing experience.
Click to continue reading...
Anfield Talk 03 September @ 11:03 AM EST
The financial concerns that have dogged English soccer club Liverpool could be a thing of the past
if the club's co-owner, Tom Hicks, completes the US$600 million sale of the Texas Rangers, and
focuses his interests on the Premier League.
Hicks, who dissolved Hicks Sports Marketing Group earlier this summer, was reportedly forced to
depend on US$15 million from Major League Baseball to help pay wages at the franchise in August.
Click to continue reading...
First came talk of labor unrest when Major League Soccer's collective bargaining agreement
expires next year. Then a corporate shake up at United Soccer Leagues. Now a report that a new
professional soccer league might be formed to compete with USL and MLS alike next season. These
developments, all within the last few months, threaten to shake U.
Click to continue reading...
The Don has been hanging around the likes of Forbes, Fox Business News, Sports Business Journal and
Wall Street Journal a lot lately. Dude is gonna get the league eyed up by more rich guys than a
thin, gin-soaked blonde with fake t*ts and a penchant for gold-digging at a Jimmy Buffett concert.
Click to continue reading...
MLS Rumors 03 August @ 12:52 PM EST
This will be a very interesting year with the new MLS Collective Bargaining Agreement negotiations
taking place. Things have been fairly quiet but details are now emerging regarding what the MLS
Players Union is looking to gain.
This excerpt comes courtesy of the Sports Business Journal:
As other big leagues seek concessions from players, the Major League Soccer Players Union has
proposed significant increases in its members' rights, including free agency and leaguewide
guaranteed contracts, sources said.
Click to continue reading...
Sports Business Journal reports that the CBA negotiations between the MLS Players Union and the
league have taken an interesting turn: in addition to guaranteed contracts (currently contracts
don't...
Click to continue reading...
From Sports Business Journal (which is increasingly required reading for MLS fans) and
WVHooligan.
Quote: Free agency, part of the proposal presented at a collective-bargaining session with the
league in New York last month, would fundamentally change the way the MLS is operated.
Click to continue reading...
By TRAVIS CLARK
With the MLS Collective Bargaining Agreement expiring Jan. 31, 2010, big changes could emerge in
MLS. There's a lot of possibilities as to what 2010 could hold for MLS, and recent reports indicate
the players union is after a drastic overhaul.
Reports are swirling about the proposal tabled by the MLS players union last month in their
meetings with league officials.
Click to continue reading...
By TRAVIS CLARK
With the MLS Collective Bargaining Agreement expiring Jan. 31, 2010, big changes could emerge in
MLS. There's a lot of possibilities as to what 2010 could hold for MLS, and recent reports indicate
the players union is after a drastic overhaul.
Reports are swirling about the proposal tabled by the MLS players union last month in their
meetings with league officials.
Click to continue reading...
WVHooligan 03 August @ 11:23 AM EST
We all know Major League Soccer has a battle going on right now between the owners/front office
of the league and the Playes Union over the Collective Bargining Agreement that ends this year.
We've heard that discussions are on-going at the moment and now some news is starting to trickle
out about what each side is wanting in this round of discussion.
Click to continue reading...
I hear, via MLS Rumors, that there are potentially five cities vying for two expansion franchises
in Major League Soccer.
According to articles from the Sports Business Journal and Dynamoplanet.com, the
candidate list to become the 19th or 20th team in MLS is down to five. They are Atlanta, Montreal,
The Carolinas, Florida (likely Miami), and St.
Click to continue reading...
WVHooligan 21 July @ 01:22 PM EST
Again, I apologize that is may be a day old but you know I love a good expansion
story/talk/news/update/etc. According to the Sports Business Journal (subscription site), MLS
commissioner Don Garber recently spoke out on a few expansion cites for upcoming league expansion.
A few were ones we already knew about and a couple others are repeat sites that have tried and fail
or just failed.
Click to continue reading...
The Sports Business Journal reported on Friday that MLS is looking at five potential markets for
the next round of expansion and very notably omitting perhaps the most important market of all.
The paper reported that New York City appears dead for the next round. However, a second NYC
area team should be a priority for MLS as well as a return to Florida.
Click to continue reading...
MLS Rumors 20 July @ 03:08 AM EST
According to articles from theĀ Sports Business Journal and Dynamoplanet.com, the candidate list to
become the 19th or 20th team in MLS is down to five. They are Atlanta, Montreal, The Carolinas,
Florida (likely Miami), and St. Louis.Ā
From SBJ:
Garber later added that CBA discussions had only recently begun with the MLS Players Union and
would last until the end of the year, when the current CBA expires.
Click to continue reading...
kenn.com 16 July @ 01:49 PM EST
I'd link to it, but it requires a subscription (or at least a free trial), and I'm not going to
put you through that. Suffice to say, it's a small part of one of many interviews Grant
Wahl has done recently about his new book, The Beckham Experiment (the latest
trial is tonight when LA plays at New York, 8pm ET, Fox Soccer Channel).
Click to continue reading...
EPL Talk 09 June @ 06:53 AM EST
Average TV ratings for the different leagues that Fox Soccer Channel broadcasts have been made
public this week, and the findings make very interesting reading.
For the 2008/2009 season, the Premier League is Fox Soccer Channel's top league averaging 90,000
viewers per game. Second highest were FA Cup games which averaged 75,000 viewers.
Click to continue reading...
MLS Rumors 08 June @ 10:13 AM EST
Here is an excerpt from The Sports Business Journal:
Viewership of the English Premier League blew away other leagues on Fox Soccer Channel over the
last eight months, making it the most-watched league on the network.Ā
MLS and Women's Professional SoccerĀ , which were measured from March through May, averaged 44000
and 42000 viewers, respectively
Click to continue reading...
MLS Rumors 22 May @ 12:47 PM EST
MLS Commissioner Don Garber and MLS Player's Union Director Set to Square Off.
In what looks to be a contentious series of negotiations over the Collective Bargaining AgreementĀ
and league financials, the two sides appear far apart at this point according to this excerpt from
an article by Columbus Dispatch's Bob Hunter:
Major League Soccer and its players union have begun talking about a labor deal to replace the one
that expires Jan.
Click to continue reading...
According to the invaluable Sports Business Journal, we may have.
Quote: A player-side source said earlier this month that the league had resisted providing the
union with full financial disclosure and that until such disclosure occurred, negotiations would be
at a stalemate.
But league officials said last week that there was no stalemate.
Click to continue reading...
Du Nord 01 May @ 10:07 AM EST
STARTERSHook up the Twitter: dunord
dN
Bill King of Street & Smith's Sports Business Journal with an in-depth look at the marketing of
Team Mexico here in the United States. It is big big big money! And MLS subdivision SUM is steering
the ship. There is no doubt who the most popular soccer team in the United States is.
Click to continue reading...
The Wizards may have finished at the bottom on MLS in attendance this past year, but they finished
atop all sports when it comes to venue capacity. The Sports Business Journal (subscription only to
read the article unfortunately) has complied the attendance for all the teams in the NFL, NBA, NHL,
MLB, and MLS and compared them to the size of the stadiums they play in.
Click to continue reading...
MLS Rumors 29 September @ 11:15 PM EST
First off, we're very sorry that we had to temporarily stop posting rumors. We'll spare you the
boring details as you no doubt have had enough of them.
Skip to "And we're back!" below if you don't care to know what we've been up to while NOT
posting rumors.
Suffice to say our friend in Salt Lake felt the need to get "all lawyered up", guess
that's just how he rolls, "Why I'll sue!
Click to continue reading...
The Netminder 29 September @ 08:41 AM EST
Plenty to read while you're waiting to see Manchester United play ... who's that again? And then
we've got CONCACAF.
Times ET; home teams first
Europe
Live:
- Zenit St. Petersburg-Real Madrid, 12:25 p.m., ESPN Deportes
- Aalborg-Manchester United, 2:30 p.
Click to continue reading...
In the foyer of the Bull Eye Pub, Red Bull's member's bar at Giants Stadium, there is a n
architect's model of Red Bull Arena. It's about the size of really thick, wide cake and to my
SSS-starved sweet tooth it looks equally delicious. It's snapped the photo above of it Saturday
night; please excuse the glare and spots (the iPhone's camera is it's weakness).
Click to continue reading...
MLS Rumors 08 August @ 06:28 AM EST
More details about what was discussed by the MLS Board of governors at the All Star Game, continue
to emerge. In a sign of the continued growth and viability of the league,
MLS bosses considered raising expansion fees to $50 Million. A 400 percent increase from when
Toronto FC joined the league for a mere $10 Million.
Click to continue reading...
WVHooligan 30 May @ 01:09 PM EST
The Sports Business Journal have released their annual awards. This year Major League Soccer was
well represented in a couple categories but ultimately took home one of the more important awards
as Professional Sports League of the Year. The league beat out the usual subjects, the NBA, NFL and
MLB. Interestingly enough Toronto FC was [.
Click to continue reading...
