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August 30, 2006

Straight from the Wolff's mouth: "(Soccer) is a serious business for us"

A large contingent of SSV members was on hand for the San Jose Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce Morning Buzz. Lew Wolff (top left, in burgundy shirt) answered questions from Chamber president and moderator Pat Dando as well as some from the audience.

With the electricity in the air at this morning's San Jose Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce Morning Buzz, you could tell that people had high hopes for some sort of major announcement. A number of local soccer VIPs were on hand, including David Alioto and Ann Rodriguez of Earthquakes Soccer LLC, former Quakes GM Johnny Moore and NASL player Easy Perez, ex-Mexico international and former Clash forward Paco Uribe, and former CyberRays GM Marlene Bjornsrud. With MLS president Mark Abbott making a surprise appearance, everyone was curious as to just what would be announced.

The answer, which Oakland A's managing partner Lew Wolff provided early on, was that there was no major announcement to be made. Wolff, instead, gave an update on his group's work towards bringing soccer back to the Bay Area.

"It's a serious business for us... The interest is there and the idea is to pull it off, and we're going to work hard to do that," he said.

Abbott, who was promoted to president of MLS earlier this year, was in attendance because he had been in an all-day meeting with Wolff, A's president Michael Crowley, and the Earthquakes Soccer staff on Tuesday. While Wolff did not set out a date for the Quakes' return, he confirmed that the term of their option was three years.

"We took an option—as we were told, it's the first and last one that Major League Soccer is going to grant. We're ready to go except we need a venue," he said. "(Specifically,) we need a path to a venue, meaning about an 18,000 to 20,000-seat facility. We have an architect on board, we have all the tools but the venue, and we're talking to areas. San Jose has been very helpful, its people, we're talking in Santa Clara, we're talking in Fremont, we're talking in San Francisco."

Wolff noted the 50 or so representatives of SSV and other soccer lovers in attendance and added, "What we're hearing from the soccer community is, 'Just get it going--we'll drive over there if we have to, wherever it is.' My preference, of course, is to be in this area."

Wolff is aware of the challenges that stadium efforts have faced before and plans on avoiding those pitfalls. "What do we need? We need a site and we need a creative government. We're not looking for a bond issue, we have another way of doing it which I won't go into great detail here because you'll fall asleep on me, but we're not trying to tap the general fund. We're looking for a cooperative situation. I'll have to tell you that we don't want to sit through a vote. My theory in California is if you have a cure for cancer, somebody's gonna vote against it."

He summed up his perspective on the sport at the conclusion of his presentation. "Soccer is real. It's taken a long time but we hope we're hitting it right."

While it may have been true that he had no major announcement to make, Wolff did confirm in no uncertain terms that the A's would not be moving to San Jose, which is sure to be news to some.

"(San Jose) is not an option, and if some of you followed me around for the last three years, you'd find out that I gave it a shot or two or three or four or five," he said. "I can't tilt at this windmill any longer. This is the same thing we've said before. It's not a matter of money, because the Giants, we've talked to them, they're very decent people, they want to maintain their (territorial rights). They also claim, and I think it's true, that their banking relationships are based on that."

He confirmed that Fremont was where the A's are looking at present and added that even his personal relationship with Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig—the two attended college together and were fraternity brothers—would not be enough to give the A's the right to relocate to Santa Clara County, which the league has granted to the Giants. "I've exhausted even my fraternity handshake in trying to break the boundary thing that the Giants control."

While Wolff has previously stated in interviews that the A's would not challenge the Giants' territorial rights, hearing him say it repeatedly in person provided the sense that he was simply stating the facts: there is no plan, hidden or otherwise, to bring the A's to San Jose.

The good news for local baseball fans, as he pointed out, is that Fremont is so close to San Jose. "As (A's GM) Billy Beane likes to say, Fremont is just a golf slice away from San Jose—one of his slices, anyway," Wolff joked.

We have audio from today's event available here. If you'd like to hear an edited version of Wolff's comments (MP3 file; total duration: 17:11), click here. If you want an unedited version (MP3 file; total duration 53:05), that's available here.

Posted by Jay at August 30, 2006 03:38 PM

Comments

Posted by: vinaye at September 7, 2006 05:38 PM

Posted by: Erik Sterud at October 23, 2006 10:57 AM

Posted by: Jay Hipps, SSV at October 23, 2006 11:38 AM