« Wolff to Chronicle: "It had nothing to do with guaranteeing revenue" | Main | Wolff speaks on FMC site »
May 03, 2007
49ers express interest in sharing stadium
It is said that when one door closes, another one opens. Our personal experience has shown something to that effect but we still have to admire Lew Wolff — it seems like for him, one door closes and five or six open.
It's been two weeks since the end of the SJSU talks and so far, Wolff has confirmed that he's looking at other sites in San Jose, so he has options there. We noted on April 21 that the Sacramento Bee reported that Placer County was interested in a stadium/soccer complex, so he has an option there (well down the list, we hope — after all, we aren't called "Soccer Sacramento").
Today, Mercury News reporter Mike Swift checks in with the news that the 49ers are willing to share their proposed new stadium in Santa Clara with the Earthquakes. The story notes that Wolff may be open to the idea if his efforts in San Jose fail to bear fruit.
Wolff said if the latest round of talks with San Jose fail, "I will have some interest" in talks with the 49ers. "Those guys are very creative," he said.
Surprisingly, the story notes that the two organizations previously discussed a shared stadium last year, "when the NFL team was still considering construction of a new stadium at Candlestick Point in San Francisco, and the 49ers' and Wolff's stadium design teams had a follow-up meeting."
Our readers will undoubtedly already realize that a shared NFL stadium is not the optimum solution for an MLS team — there's a reason, as the article notes, that MLS expects that "up to 10 of its 13 teams will be playing in soccer-only stadiums" by the end of next year. Still, it's always good to have options.
Posted by Jay at May 3, 2007 11:00 AM
Comments
Morgan Hill should be an option looked at by Wolff and co. There is already a youth facility there, and it's close enough to San Jose to still be called the San Jose Earthquakes. Developing U.S. youth players is KEY to the future of soccer in America, so having a soccer specific facility with enough room to assist affiliated youth programs should be top of the list if the MLS plans to thrive.
Posted by: Joe Opitz at May 5, 2007 09:53 AM
San Jose is a collective center point for Silicon Valley commuters. It is in the center for residents. It just makes sense to stay in San Jose. There is also already an active fan base and great and fun downtown area for businesses.
Posted by: Erik Sterud at May 9, 2007 08:29 PM
Joe, I agree that youth development is going to be very important to the long-term health of the sport in the U.S., and now that MLS is requiring teams to have youth academies, it's a sure bet that the Earthquakes will be doing something along those lines. The academy and training facilities don't have to be in the same place as the stadium, though. (The 49ers are a good example of that--training facilities in Santa Clara, stadium in SF--for now, anyway.)
Posted by: Jay Hipps, SSV at May 10, 2007 02:55 PM