Quote:
Originally Posted by Resolute 14
We might get a Major League Baseball team one day too, but I'm not betting on that either.
First and foremost, how much larger do you think MLS can go? There are 19 active teams and three more on the way (give or take Miami's stadium situation). That's already pretty close to being as large as any other top flight soccer league. Being that we do things a little differently in North America, they could probably go up to 30-32, I suppose.
Second, we have almost no positive history in soccer. I don't think MLS is going to expand to a market that can't even sustain PDL. The new team is a start. It would be better if we had an NASL team that could at least match up with Edmonton.
Third, market. Calgary simply does not sell to places like Kansas City and Houston and San Jose. Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver are all viewed as world class cities and/or have world class histories with soccer. Calgary would not be a draw for fans, nor would it be a draw for TV.
Like it or not, putting MLS in Calgary now is little different than putting the NHL in Vegas. Sure, it might happen, but people are going to WTF about it, and people are going to expect it to fail. And there is little to suggest at this point that those people would be wrong to do so.
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Here, let me show you something:
Vancouver (pop. 2.3 million) - MLS, USL Pro, PDL
Montreal (pop. 4.2 million) - MLS, USL Pro, PDL
Toronto (pop. 5.5 million) - MLS, USL Pro, PDL
Edmonton (pop. 1.1 million) - NASL
Ottawa (pop. 1.1 million) - NASL
Winnipeg (pop. 730,000) - PDL
Victoria (pop. 345,000) - PDL
Kitchener - Waterloo (pop. 510,000) - PDL
Thunder Bay (pop. 122,000) - PDL
London (pop. 475,000) - PDL
Calgary - zilch.
Calgary is going to eclipse the 2 million population mark within 20 years at current growth rates. In addition to soccer being among the most popular and played sports in Calgary, it is far beyond critical mass to host a professional soccer team. The only thing missing is - you guessed it - a proper field with capacity seating to sustain the team. This is why Calgary Storm couldn't sustain in the PDL before.
The Conference Board of Canada also did a study recently that concluded that "Calgary, Edmonton and Ottawa would be sound options for MLS over the long term".
I wouldn't worry about the "history" of soccer in Calgary being a problem. There is more than enough critical mass in terms of community support, and we simply just do not have the field to cater to a dedicated and growing fan base for a pro sports team.