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October 06, 2005
Maple Leaf Sports announces plans to invest in MLS
The Toronto Globe and Mail and Toronto Sun report today that Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE), owners of the Toronto Maple Leafs of the NHL and the Toronto Raptors of the NBA, have agreed to contribute to the construction of a soccer stadium in Toronto and are pursuing an expansion team in MLS.
The stories come on the heels of a meeting yesterday between officials from the Canadian Soccer Association, MLSE, and the city of Toronto which focused on the construction of a 20,000-seat stadium in time for the 2007 FIFA World Youth Championship, which Canada is hosting.
"We are very close to finalizing a deal with Major League Soccer and it is really contingent on a soccer stadium being built. The league is not interested in awarding a franchise without that stadium in place," MLSE president Richard Peddie told The Globe and Mail.
The Sun notes that both Peddie and the City of Toronto support Exhibition Place, an area situated along the shores of Lake Ontario immediately west of downtown Toronto, for the stadium site. Downsview Park, which only recently emerged as a potential location for the stadium, is now apparently out of the running.
Posted by Jay at October 6, 2005 03:10 PM
Comments
Cool. That's good news for the soccer fans in Toronto.
I want to hear something like for San Jose!
Know what I'm saying? I want to know who's going to buy the club, so I can buy some stock in their company, or buy their polo shirts or whatever!! Let's hear it!!
GO QUAKES!!
- Mark
Posted by: markmcf at October 7, 2005 12:51 PM
Mark, we're all hoping to hear that the Quakes' future is secure. A stadium is the way to do that.
The Mercury News ran a story earlier this year that detailed why it's so important for the team's finances. Moreover, a study commissioned by the San Jose Sports Authority and available on the main SSV web site (scroll down the page to the link for the Preliminary Market Analysis and Facility Review) showed that no professional sports team, be it from the NFL, NBA, NHL, or MLB, would be able to turn a profit without controlling stadium revenues like parking and concessions.
The question, then, is how to make a stadium happen. It's going to take some cooperation from a government entity in terms of land, financing, and infrastructure. In the great scheme of things, it's a relatively minor investment that will pay for itself in the long haul. They just need to be convinced that a stadium for the Quakes—and, ideally, additional fields for public use—will contribute to the quality of life in the area.
Posted by: Jay Hipps, SSV at October 8, 2005 09:36 AM
A stadium like this would look real nice in Santa Clara. ;)
Posted by: KJS at October 10, 2005 01:09 PM