Major League Soccer Update.

[USRufnex]

Why should another thread be started on this subject, and why should it be posted in the Development section?  Especially since my opinions have been known for awhile, most recently here:

 http://www.tulsanow.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=9173

Well... in Michael Bates' recent UTW editorial validly criticizing the $60mil in state subsidies for OKC's NBA team from the expansion of the Oklahoma Quality Jobs Program, he asked:

"Why would the NBA abandon the nation's 14th largest media market for the 45th largest market?"

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3361374

QUOTE from Kathy Taylor--- "It (the NBA) really puts Oklahoma on a national map, and that's what's important, and it continues to grow the economy of Oklahoma City, which helps Tulsa," Taylor said of the Sonics' impending move. "We are the two most significant contributors to the state economy. Anything that we can do to help Oklahoma City's economy expand is good for Tulsa."

Of course, I'd love to see OKC Mayor Mick Cornett someday say, "It (MLS in Tulsa) really puts Oklahoma on an international map, and that's what's important, and it continues to grow the economy of Tulsa, which helps OKC.  We are the two most significant contributors to the state economy. Anything that we can do to help Tulsa's economy expand is good for Oklahoma City"  

Wishful thinking?!?



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1M7as42uBw

North American Soccer League's Tulsa Roughnecks, 1978-1985
Major League Soccer's on-again-off-again flirtation with Tulsa, 1994-2006
http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?articleID=448342

After all, the Los Angeles Rams moved to St. Louis in 1994.   The NFL ignored LA in 1995 and expanded into Jacksonville, FL, where it has been ever since.  LA still doesn't have an NFL team.  Major League Soccer would have awarded Tulsa a team over Seattle if Tulsa had the proper ownership group and stadium deal back in 2003 and again in 2005.  After Tulsa proved itself by hosting a 2003 MLS exhibition with over 14,000 in attendance and 3,500 season tickets spoken for by the end of the game, the size of market questions were answered.  Seattle will lose their NBA team but will gain an MLS team next season... I can give you the prime reason why Seattle is getting MLS:  the financial clout of  Paul Allen.  And part of the sales pitch for Seattle's Quest Field built in 2002  was that the stadium would be built with future MLS expansion in mind...  

Buffalo, NY has an NFL team and is the nation's 46th largest market.  Rochester is 78 miles away and is the nation's 50th largest market (MSA rankings).  Neither of these upstate New York cities have experienced any substantial population growth in decades.  Oklahoma City is the nation's 45th largest market while Tulsa ranks 53rd... although those numbers are creeping upwards for both cities...

Buffalo, NY (2007 est pop:  1,128,183)  http://recenter.tamu.edu/data/popm00/pcbsa15380.html

Oklahoma City (2007 est pop:  1,192,989)
http://recenter.tamu.edu/data/popm00/pcbsa36420.html

Rochester, NY (2007 est pop:  1,030,495)
http://recenter.tamu.edu/data/popm00/pcbsa40380.html

Tulsa, OK (2007 est pop:  905,755)
http://recenter.tamu.edu/data/popm00/pcbsa46140.html

Strangely enough, Rochester is the only city the size of Tulsa to be regularly mentioned as an option for Major League Soccer expansion.  Rochester received $23mil from the State of New York to build 12,600 seat PaeTec Park.  As part of their bid for MLS, Phase II will include  20 Luxury Boxes, a permanent pressbox, team store, locker rooms, etc, etc. and Phase III would propose expansion to 20,000 seats.  

FYI, Philadelphia has been added as an expansion city for MLS after Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell promised $47 million in state funding. The $115 million soccer stadium will be built on land donated by the city of Chester, Penn. And will be part of a $500 million complex including shops, condominiums and restaurants. The team owners are putting up $80 million with $30 million coming from Delaware County and $10 million from the Delaware Rive Port Authority.

The bad news:   The new owner of the Rochester Rhinos recently stated that MLS now wants to go after bigger media markets (like St Louis, Miami, Atlanta, Vancouver, Montreal).  Now that David Beckham's in the league, the stakes are much higher:  any ownership group for a potential team should have assets that total upwards of a billion dollars; yes, that's billion with a "b"... it's hard to imagine MLS ever adding Tulsa as long as they already have teams in KC, Dallas and St Louis... KC now has stable local ownership in OnGoal LLC and will be building a stadium on the site of the old Bannister Mall in KC, MO... MLS seems to be dragging its feet on adding a St Louis expansion team that would play in a TIF district financed stadium in Collinsville, IL-- which means MLS's current owners either hate lawyers (Jeff Cooper), or that the ownership group in StL is a few hundred million dollars short in assets...

The good news:  Skelly Field at Chapman Stadium comes about as close to fitting into MLS's business model as a new stadium would... new seating capacity at 26,000, with 20 Luxury Boxes, a new field (either grass or FIFA approved turf)... as far as new facilities are concerned, as recently as last October a mysterious "multi-use sports facility" including a 22,000 seat stadium on the west bank of the river surfaced that, according to the TW (10/4/2007 article
"Missouri developer offers river proposal")... "...is not intended to be the home of a minor league baseball team"... then there's the billion dollar development in Jenks... and then there's the possibility of re-fitting Driller Park for soccer (USL1?) as one option after the Drillers move to ??...

Tulsa has recently shown up on USL's wish list of expansion markets...

http://www.uslsoccer.com/insider/229134.html

A short list of markets from which we believe a USL-1 franchise could be successful with the proper ownership and venue include, but are not limited to (in no specific order): Omaha (NE), Tulsa (OK), San Antonio (TX), Tampa (FL), Phoenix (AZ), Boise (ID), Oklahoma City (OK), Albuquerque (NM), Memphis (TN), and Birmingham (AL) We are currently in advanced discussions with interested parties in several of these markets.

I'm afraid the time is past where Tulsa can sit and wait... Tulsa needs to come up with an updated compelling argument if it still wants Major League Soccer.  There's no real rush for it now, since I seriously doubt Tulsa's gonna show up on any MLS expansion lists in the next few years, due to the "Beckham effect."  A five year old exhibition game and feasibility study info simply will not be enough, unless the prospective Tulsa ownership group has sooooooo much money that they could give MLS an offer they can't refuse.  

Of course, trying to find out if Tulsa even has (or had) a serious, prospective local ownership group, is about as easy as trying to spot the Invisible Man flying Wonder Woman's invisible plane...  []

[T-TownMike]

The River on the west bank would have been ideal. It seems all discussion has ceased at the moment. I sure wish they would have made that happen. It's disappointing.

BTW, I love seeing all those old Roughneck photos-we used to go to the games when I was a kid. I recognize Billy Caskey and Victor Moreland.