November 30, 2009
It's my first day back from vacation and I get to talk about fresh news on the topic that will likely carry us through most of the off season: USL vs TOA/NASL.
Rob Clark and the Rhinos made the jump to side with the NASL in the power struggle to control 2nd Division pro soccer in the US, Canada, and beyond.
After hearing Andrew Bell of the Charleston Battery talk about why they decided to drop the USL 2nd Division on the show on Saturday , my main concern is how fiscally conservative will the NASL be?
With Rob Clark publicly stating that the club has lost over $2.5 million in the two years that Clark has owned the Rhinos, I am a bit concerned over how much longer Clark will stick around if the team continues to lose money.
I know that with the luxury suites finally getting worked on this off season, there is hope that they will provide a huge amount of revenue to change the financials for the club. Plus, the team appears to be cutting costs even more this off season.
But, will that be enough to cover the start up costs of a new league? Obviously, the more teams that the NASL gets, the smaller the share of operating costs will be for each club.
I hope that the NASL is a huge upgrade from the USL and this is the next step in the growth of the Rhinos. I just have this bad feeling that the grass isn't always greener.
News & Notes:
- MLS is having their own fun with all the issues with the collective bargaining agreement.
- The Kartik Report sums up both the MLS CBA issues & USL vs TOA stuff into one tidy package.
- Landon Donovan to Mexico's Club America was my favorite rumor of the last week and a half.
- Charlie Davies gave his first interview since the accident.
- How ironic would it be that Toronto FC finally gets grass at BMO Field and then the Argos move in a tear it up?
- The rumor mill is still kicking around that Montreal will be the 19th MLS club and that Beckham will own the 20th. I guess that kills the idea of Beckham partnering up with Joey Saputo!
- I can't wait for Friday's World Cup Draw to get here.
The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author, and not necessarily those of the Rochester Rhinos or SoccerSam.com. Feel free to send any comments or complaints to news@soccersam.com. James promises to read (but not to respond) to all of them.
