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June 30, 2007

Merc profiles local product, Chivas prospect Jesus Padilla

Perhaps the most interesting story surrounding tonight's match between CD Chivas de Guadalajara and Busan I'Park is the homecoming of Jesus Padilla, a Chivas prospect who grew up in San Jose before leaving at age 14 to join the Mexican team's academy. Now 20 and the holder of dual US/Mexico citizenship, the young forward is looking to tonight's match as an opportunity to break into the first team. It's a chance that doesn't arise often, but with six Chivas starters in Venezuela with Mexico's Copa America team, it's likely he'll see significant playing time tonight.

Mercury News reporter Mark Conley has the whole story here. Reading all the details—how Padilla played in San Jose's Virginia Park as a kid, where his father Andres has run a club since 1982—it's easy to wonder how the presence of the Earthquakes might have changed his situation, particularly since executive vice president David Alioto has spoken publicly about their desire to develop talent throughout the region if the team is re-established.

Could we someday see Jesus Padilla in an Earthquakes shirt? Who knows. But in the future, it would be a great service to the soccer community if talented young prospects have the option of getting their futbol education with their hometown team.

Posted by Jay at 07:06 AM | Comments (0)

June 29, 2007

SSV, Earthquakes donate 1,000 tickets to Chivas/Busan I'Park match

SSV just sent out the following press release:

Soccer Silicon Valley, Earthquakes Soccer LLC donate 1,000 tickets for Chivas/Busan I’Park match to area non-profits

June 29, San Jose—Soccer Silicon Valley (SSV), a grassroots organization consisting of soccer fans, soccer players, and business and political leaders, has joined with Earthquakes Soccer, LLC, and the elected officials of the City of San Jose in distributing 1,000 tickets to Saturday night’s match between CD Chivas Guadalajara and South Korea’s Busan I’Park to youth-oriented non-profits throughout the city.

“Thanks to the generosity of the San Jose Earthquakes and Major League Soccer, SSV has been able to bring together a tremendously wide spectrum of soccer-loving kids to see Saturday night's game,” says SSV president Don Gagliardi. “These are kids from every corner of the city, boys and girls, many if not most of whom probably would not otherwise have had a chance to see the game. What unites these kids is their love of soccer, and we at SSV are dedicated to making this the start of a unique opportunity to build bridges among San Jose’s diverse communities through soccer, under the umbrella of what we hope soon will be every local kid’s hometown team – the San Jose Earthquakes.”

Our thanks go to San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed and the members of the San Jose City Council, who assisted SSV in identifying worthy youth-oriented non-profits for the tickets by designating the following non-profits to receive the tickets:

Mayor’s Office
Mexican American Community Services Agency, Inc. (MACSA)

District 1 – Pete Constant
AYSO soccer
Cupertino American Little League
Lynbrook Athletic Boosters

District 2 – Forrest Williams
Christopher School
South San Jose Youth Soccer

District 3 – Sam Liccardo
Downtown area elementary schools
Gardner Community Center
Washington Youth Center

District 4 – Kansen Chu
Alviso Youth Center
Berryessa Youth Center

District 5 – Nora Campos
Alum Rock Youth Center
MACSA

District 6 – Pierluigi Oliverio
Next Door Solutions
YWCA

District 7 – Madison Nguyen
Alma Youth Center
California Community Partners for Youth

District 8 – Vice Mayor David Cortese
Boys & Girls Club
Evergreen Valley College Enlace Group
National Hispanic University Upward Bound summer bridge program

District 9 – Judy Chirco
Bay Area Women’s Sports Initiative (BAWSI) Girls

District 10 – Nancy Pyle
Almaden Valley Youth Soccer League
Hoffman Via Monte NAC (SNI)

Thanks to Earthquakes Soccer and San Jose's elected officials for their assistance in this endeavor!

Posted by Jay at 04:05 PM | Comments (1)

Chivas match earns pre-game press from Merc

Club Deportivo Guadalajara, the beloved Chivas, is playing Busan I'Park of South Korea tomorrow night at Spartan Stadium (tickets here) and we are pleasantly surprised to see the Mercury News has provided a preview feature on the match today. And a side bar! Not only that, but they interviewed SSV board member Freddy Adames for the story! (We're so proud that the growth of our little universe continues to be noticed...)

In all seriousness, it's nice to see that this game is getting the coverage it deserves. Well done, Mercury News!

Posted by Jay at 09:13 AM | Comments (0)

SJ stadium complex to host women's league headquarters, too?

The Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal reports today that, in addition to the Earthquakes and a team in the fledgling women's pro soccer league, the proposed stadium complex could also include the headquarters for the women's league as well.

Adds reporter Lindsay Riddell, "All three deals hinge on whether the city will grant rezoning of property that will allow Wolff's Earthquake Soccer LLC to finance construction of a new soccer stadium in San Jose."

You can find the story here, but unless you're a subscriber to the Business Journal, you'll only see an exerpt.

Posted by Jay at 06:44 AM | Comments (3)

June 27, 2007

Mayor Reed disagrees with Mercury News story

We've been spending way too much time complaining about the Mercury News lately. (It's not that we regret pointing out the biases and inaccuracies in their reporting—it's just that we thought that the Merc would improve at some point. At least the Merc's sports section seems to be paying attention—Ann Killion has turned in a stellar column today on the wet-behind-the-ears US team that will take on Argentina tonight in the Copa America.)

As it turns out, though, it's not just us that thinks the Mercury News is casting certain issues in the wrong light. San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed was asked about Barry Witt's most recent story on 1590 KLIV Monday morning and it turns out that Witt's conclusions, drawn from city e-mails that are over a month old, are not very accurate.

Witt's story begins by stating that city memos reveal that "Mayor Chuck Reed was on the verge last month of announcing his opposition to the proposal." Not so, says the mayor, who told KLIV's George Sampson that "I wasn't on the verge of telling Lew I didn't support it; I was on the verge of calling him and telling him that I thought the council's guidelines for industrial conversions were going to make it extremely difficult for him to qualify for any sort of industrial conversion."

Mayor Reed added quickly that he didn't feel that way now, however. "I do see it's possible that if everything can be done right for Lew Wolff to meet the standards the City has set... it's still possible for a transaction to happen. Whether or not it's do-able, the burden is going to be on Mr. Wolff to prove that he meets the requirements."

The difference between "I'm not going to back your proposal" and "I have concerns about your proposal" is significant, so why did the Merc's story ignore that? We have no idea, but we have other questions for the Mercury News and Mr. WItt:

As for the question of the number of people who are interested in soccer, which Witt also raises, yesterday's item should serve to answer that question. If not, we'll point out again that over 140 soccer supporters attended the San Jose City Council meeting held the afternoon of June 12 and that over 1,500 attended SSV's rally on August 20, 2004, as seen below. As we understand it, those numbers are unprecedented for San Jose.

Soccer is, in fact, the largest universe in sports. Sure, there were dreamy-eyed promoters in the 70's claiming that soccer would be the next big thing in American sports, but that was then and this now. Even in the U.S., the sport's growth is real and sustainable. No one who spoke at the June 12 City Council meeting opposed the stadium—absolutely no one. We predict that when all this is over and a new stadium in San Jose is hosting soccer teams from around the globe and a resurrected Earthquakes team, you'll have to turn over a lot of rocks to find anyone who will even admit that they opposed the stadium's construction—just like you can't find any foes of the San Jose arena today.

Posted by Jay at 05:20 PM | Comments (0)

June 26, 2007

US/Mexico Gold Cup final outdraws Stanley Cup in TV ratings

The word from SoccerAmerica today is that "the Univision broadcast of the USA-Mexico Gold Cup final was (the) third most-viewed Spanish-language sports telecast of all time with 5,340,000 viewers, according to the 'fast national' ratings of U.S. households from Nielsen."

The SoccerAmerica report goes on to add that the only two events to draw a greater audience took place in the last year: last summer's Mexico-Argentina match at the World Cup and February's Mexico-USA game in Arizona.

Of course, those numbers could never compare to the Big Four U.S. sports of baseball, football, basketball, and hockey, right? Well, that's the old perception. The new reality is reflected in an AP story which notes that, "The CONCACAF Gold Cup final attracted 41 percent more television households in the United States than the Stanley Cup finals clincher -- and that was just for the soccer game's Spanish-language telecast."

According to the AP, the USA's stirring victory over Los Tricolores received a 2.5 fast national rating on Univision, which translates to 2.83 million households. The story adds that "Anaheim's series-ending 6-2 victory over Ottawa in the Stanley Cup on June 6 received a 1.8 rating on NBC, which comes to 2,005,000 households."

So that's 2.83 million households tuned in for the Gold Cup final en español alone, and the game was also broadcast in English on Fox Soccer Channel, which is available in about 30 million homes but does not participate in the Nielsens.

We could speculate on how many viewers tuned in on FSC, but we think the more interesting statistic here is the fact that 30 million homes in the U.S. receive an English language station that shows no other sport but soccer. Considering the channel is offered a la carte on DirecTV, Dish Network, and most cable systems, we see this as a great barometer for how many Americans hold an active interest in watching domestic and international soccer matches.

That's quite a change from just a decade ago, when MLS had not yet introduced its "Direct Kick" package and American soccer fans were forced to get up early on Saturday mornings to congregate at a local pub with a satellite hookup if they wanted to see a European match.

Of course, it's not unusual for soccer's growth to happen below the radar of the mainstream media, but that growth cannot be denied. Just ask the NHL.

Posted by Jay at 12:04 PM | Comments (4)

June 25, 2007

Two years ago today...

The history of the Earthquakes is marked by several games that help define the team's legacy and what it means to be a fan. These are the sorts of games that take on legendary status in the minds of supporters, that get talked about at tailgates years into the future. 49ers fans talk about "The Catch," A's fans can talk about great performances by players like Dave Stewart, Eck, Rickey Henderson, and the Bash Brothers, and Quakes fans can recite the names of the goal scorers in 5-2 or the team's MLS Cup wins.

Or, we can talk about the match that was played two years ago today. Columnist Tino Palace got it right when he called it an "instant classic," and added this about San Jose's fans:

If someone can tell me when an MLS atmosphere for a regular season game looked better on television, I would love to hear it, because that was one of the most wonderful displays in the 10-year history of the league. There was some question about how Donovan's return would be received by the Quakes fans, and there was absolutely no doubt from the beginning.

From the booing every time Landon touched the ball, to the eye-catching amount of signs ripping their former golden boy to the folks organizing the piñata, I was frankly awed by the Spartan Stadium faithful. The atmosphere for that match was as fun as any regular-season game I have seen on TV in a long while, in any league. Congrats to everyone at the match. Whatever happens with the San Jose franchise down the road, for me that match was the legacy of the wonderful soccer fans in the area.

Better still than those words, we can watch eight minutes of video highlights from the day.

Posted by Jay at 12:48 PM | Comments (3)

June 23, 2007

Wolff interview available for download

On June 13, the day after the San Jose City Council's unanimous vote to enter into exclusive negotiations with Lew Wolff towards the construction of a new stadium for the Earthquakes, Wolff was interviewed by Mercury News reporter Barry Witt at the San Jose Rotary Club.

The program was aired on KLIV radio (1590 AM) on Wednesday night and, thanks to at KLIV, you can listen to it here (MP3, 22.4 Mb).

Thanks to George Sampson at KLIV for the audio!

Posted by Jay at 04:03 PM | Comments (3)

Queens columnist weighs in on potential Mets interest in MLS

One of last week's most interesting stories was the report that the New York Mets might be interested in starting a second MLS franchise in New York; specifically, in the borough of Queens, where the Mets play baseball.

Today, Dylan Butler, a sports editor from the Queens Times Ledger newspaper, weighs in on the idea. He makes a good case for a second New York team in general and specifically for a new stadium in Queens:

Queens makes perfect sense for a professional soccer team. After all, it is the most ethnically diverse borough in the country and soccer is the most popular sport in the world. As witnessed by last year's World Cup, the borough breathes soccer and needs a team to call its own. Heck, if half the people who play soccer in Flushing Meadows Corona Park and the Metropolitan Oval show up to this yet-to-be-named team's games, they'll sell out for sure.

And the Mets make perfect sense as an owner as well. Last year the team made it one game away from the World Series and the man responsible for changing the face of the franchise is Omar Minaya, a native of the Dominican Republic who grew up in the soccer-crazed neighborhoods of Corona and Elmhurst. Baseball might be his sport, but soccer is the pulse of western Queens. Minaya understands New York and, perhaps more importantly here, he knows the Latino community.

Besides, the Mets wouldn't be the only professional sports organization to make the leap into MLS. Already, owners of professional basketball, hockey and baseball teams have invested in Major League Soccer.

The owners of a baseball team, investing on soccer? Something about that strikes us as a good idea.

Posted by Jay at 10:23 AM | Comments (0)

June 22, 2007

Metro: "Do It for Krazy George"

Gary Singh of Metro Silicon Valley, the area's great alternative weekly, provides coverage of last week's city council meeting and more with his column this week, "Do It for Krazy George." Gary's been covering the turmoil surrounding the Quakes for longer than anyone, providing a voice of both passion and common sense, so we always enjoy hearing what he has to say.

For example:

Since this whole shebang involves Wolff purchasing some unused-for-40-years land and getting the council to rezone it from industrial to housing in order for him to sell it and use the profits to pay for the new Quakes stadium at the old FMC property, certain things have to be hashed out, since some folks opposed it, constantly belching things like, "We need more jobs, not housing," and acting like a mere 1,000 more condos is going to require 6 zillion more police and fireman and destroy traffic for miles and miles in every direction.

Gary also has a great tidbit about something that almost happened at SSV's first rally in support of the team, way back in August, 2004. Check out the whole story here.

Posted by Jay at 11:26 AM | Comments (0)

Soccer balls donated by SSV get TV time

Earlier this year, we reported on SSV's donation of soccer balls that were distributed by US soldiers to children in Iraq.

Last week, ABC-7 News covered the man who first set up the web site that allows overseas armed forces personnel to request items directly from the public, and you can see some of the soccer balls SSV donated in their video report.

For more information on donating goods to help the effort, check out the Beyond Orders web site.

Posted by Jay at 09:11 AM | Comments (0)

June 21, 2007

Here's the complete statement from MLS

Yesterday, the Mercury News published an item on the potential return of the Quakes and included an edited version of a statement from MLS president Mark Abbott. As we noted then, we were trying to get the full, unabridged statement from the league. We've got it, thanks to Will Kuhns of the MLS media relations department. Here it is in its entirety:

“We had a productive meeting today with Lew Wolff and his staff and are continuing our discussions regarding a potential MLS expansion team for the Bay Area. We have not yet finalized a timetable regarding when that team would begin play, but we do remain very positive about a future MLS team in the Bay Area. We look forward to working with Lew and his staff concerning the possible return of the San Jose Earthquakes.”

Posted by Jay at 03:52 AM | Comments (0)

June 20, 2007

Tighe Dombrowski scores in Sweden

Quakes fans may remember Tighe Dombrowski, a rookie in 2004 who earned a few minutes that year but never again appeared with the first team. Turns out he's playing for a Swedish second division team called IK Sirius now, and earlier this month he scored what may have been the goal of a lifetime. Side netting from 45 yards? Wow. We wonder if children all over Sweden are dreaming someday of being able to "bend it like Dombrowski." Here's a clip:

Posted by Jay at 11:56 PM | Comments (0)

Wolff says Quakes need answer in 30 days

Ever since Lew Wolff mentioned to the San Jose City Council that he would be meeting with MLS this week to discuss the possible return of the Earthquakes for the 2008 season, the big question on everyone's minds has been this: How soon will we know the results of the meeting? Today, we have the answer: in the next 30 days.

According to the Mercury News, which devoted a whopping four paragraphs of their sports briefs to a subject which is near and dear to hudreds of thousands in the Bay Area, "A's owner Lew Wolff said Tuesday that he'll need the green light from league officials within the next 30 days if he's going to succeed in his plans to bring Major League Soccer back to the Bay Area in 2008." The paper reports that Wolff met yesterday in New York with MLS commish Don Garber and president Mark Abbott.

The league released an official comment from Abbott which holds out hope that the team could return for 2008. According to the Merc, it said this:

"We had a productive meeting today ... and are continuing our discussions," Abbott said in a prepared statement. "We do remain very positive about a future MLS team in the Bay Area."

We're trying to obtain the complete statement from MLS and will post it here if we are successful. Meanwhile, the clock is ticking...

• • •

Speaking of Lew Wolff, we noticed our friends at the Sharkspage have uploaded the video of Lew Wolff's opening statement to the San Jose City Council to Youtube, as seen below. They also provided some great coverage of last Tuesday's City Council meeting, including a summary and photos of Quakes fans on the scene.

Posted by Jay at 12:28 PM | Comments (0)

June 19, 2007

Tuesday news roundup

The question on the mind of every San Jose Earthquakes fan is, "How are the meetings going between Lew Wolff and MLS?" We have no new information on that, unfortunately, but there are some other items in the local press that we'll point out.

First off, KCBS radio (740 AM) reporter Matt Bigler has filed a report on last Tuesday's San Jose City Council meeting. The story includes a link to an MP3 file of the radio station's item, which includes positive quotes from Mayor Chuck Reed.

Next up is a story by Eric Fisher in the East Bay Business Times entitled "Wolff takes hands-on approach to A's Fremont ballpark." While the story focuses on the deal for the baseball stadium, we think some of Wolff's comments are indicative of his broader stadium philosophy and speak to his approach in San Jose as well:

What I'm trying to do is earn the right to go there instead of demanding the right to go there. What we're bringing them, and the way we're bringing it to them, is a win for the city, a win for the county and a win for ourselves. So instead of going in and waving a big flag, we're trying to do this a bit like the tortoise and the hare...

I'm doing a lot of the outreach myself. We're not doing a campaign, hiring a bunch of political consultants and lobbyists, and so forth. My theory is that if they want us, if we can earn the right to be there, we should be able to do that without all this intricate strategizing. Not only do we have to be approved, but we need to be welcomed after we're there. But the reception has been great so far.

After the years of neglect that marked the Earthquakes' prior history in MLS, we think this hands-on approach that Wolff is taking indicates just how seriously he takes both the baseball and soccer efforts.

Posted by Jay at 07:54 AM | Comments (2)

June 16, 2007

N.Y. Mets interested in MLS?

If today's story in the New York Times is to be believed, the New York Mets are looking into becoming the second Major League Baseball outfit with ties to Major League Soccer.

The Times is reporting that the Mets "and several groups of investors have held discussions about obtaining the rights to operate a Major League Soccer team, which could not begin play until 2010 at the earliest, an industry executive said." The league has long seen New York as a two-team market, and the Mets' involvement would bring that plan to fruition.

The article, written by their soccer beat writer, Jack Bell, also includes the following tidbit:

Lew Wolff, the owner of the Oakland Athletics, and his partner, John Fisher, purchased an exclusive option to resurrect the Earthquakes, and they will pay about $20 million for the rights to operate the club for the 2008 season. Future investors are more likely to pay about $30 million to run a team, M.L.S. Commissioner Don Garber said, a figure that could increase.

As far as we at SSV know, Bell is a bit premature in reporting that the Earthquakes will definitely be back next season. It's interesting to see him talk about it as though it's a done deal, though.

Neither the Mets nor MLS had any comment on their potential interest in a New York expansion team.

Posted by Jay at 09:28 PM | Comments (4)

June 15, 2007

London's Independent: MLS reaps the rewards of a quiet footballing revolution

The English are known in footballing circles for being, well, a tad arrogant about the game. They invented it, of course, and didn't even bother to compete in the World Cup until 1950, missing a chance to pick up some silverware while they were generally acknowledged as the best team on the planet.

We've seen a similar attitude in British press appraisals of MLS in the wake of the Beckham signing, so we're pleased and surprised to pass along a story that appeared in London's The Independent newspaper this week that provides a level-headed assessment of the league's success.

Here are some exerpts:

Anyone can find ammunition to dismiss MLS as a tin-pot set-up with marginal appeal. And if you want to poke fun at the wacky venue names then Dick's Sporting Goods Park and Pizza Hut Park are begging to be ridiculed.

The flip side? The MLS is comfortable in its own skin, ambitious (a red rag to cynical bulls, especially British ones), determined to grow from its niche in the shadow of NFL, MLB and NBA, and, errrm, quite stable and successful, actually.

Indicators? After 11 completed seasons, average gates were 15,509 in 2006, which was higher than at any point in the history of its forerunner, the NASL, where the average was 3,163 in 1971. NASL gates peaked at 14,201 in 1980, and that despite the star-spangled, capacity-pulling antics of the Cosmos. Current MLS gates are only a few thousand behind England's Championship, which has just registered a 50-year high of 18,221 people per game.

Two of the MLS's biggest league crowds in recent years were for Chivas USA versus New England Revolution last year (92,650), and for Chivas versus Galaxy in 2005 (88,816). These figures were massively inflated because the games were part of double-headers where the other match each time featured a glamourous touring side, Guadalajara of Mexico. But that in itself underlines another dynamic in US sport that gives the MLS hope: America now has a Hispanic population of 42m and growing, and they love football.

This has helped to drive landmark television deals. Incredibly, the MLS had never been paid by a television broadcaster before this season to screen games. Rather, the MLS paid the channels to carry games.

Now, there are big-hitters on board, including ESPN, the Fox Soccer Channel, the influential Spanish-language Univision and the high definition network, HDNet. Together they have signed deals to 2014 worth £100m. Small fry in England, but rather good from zilch last year. And now the TV folk have a vested interest, promotion should create a virtuous circle.

Investors demonstrably see potential, among them billionaire Stan Kroenke, owner of the Colorado Rapids and suitor of Arsenal. In the past two years alone, he and his fellow owners have invested £500m in the MLS, much of it in facilities. Ten franchises already play in or are building dedicated "soccer-specific stadiums", seen as pivotal "roots" for growth.

There's more good stuff, so check out the full article. Well worth reading.

P.S. As if on cue, there's another story out today talking about England's attitude towards American soccer, this one a blog from London's Guardian.

Posted by Jay at 09:48 AM | Comments (0)

June 14, 2007

Wolff Q and A to be broadcast on KLIV

Regular readers of the blog will know that we've been pretty critical of the Mercury News' coverage of the potential return of Major League Soccer to San Jose. Their stories, particularly those by Barry Witt, have largely seemed to be attempts to drum up controversy rather than report the facts.

So, imagine this: Yesterday, Lew Wolff appeared before the San Jose Rotary Club to discuss his progress and plans for the re-launch of the Earthquakes. His questioner? None other than Barry Witt.

First-hand accounts indicate that Wolff more than held his own against the murky muckraker. Thanks to the magic of radio, you'll get a chance to hear it all yourself. Wolff's appearance will be broadcast on San Jose's KLIV, 1590 on your AM dial, next Wednesday evening at 7:00 PM with a repeat broadcast at 10:00 PM. (Out-of-area fans may have an opportunity to hear it, too. We'll provide more details when we can.)

Posted by Jay at 11:16 AM | Comments (9)

City Council video available online

Our thanks to blog reader Will, who has pointed out that the video from Tuesday's San Jose City Council meeting is available online. If you'd like to see it, point your browser here. The discussion of the soccer stadium begins at 2:13:30.

Posted by Jay at 05:59 AM | Comments (2)

June 12, 2007

Today is the day and the time is now

Lew Wolff and business partner Ed Storm talk soccer before the San Jose City Council.

5:38 PM — The vote is in and the San Jose City Council has directed city staff to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding and an Exclusive Right to Negotiate with Lew Wolff. The final vote was 10-0! We'll have a complete update tomorrow.

5:15 PM — Still going. In the public comment stage now. Should have a vote within 15 minutes.

4:50 PM — Councilmember Pete Constant has finished and now Councilmember Nora Campos is up. And wow, we've missed the first half of US/El Salvador and my laptop battery is almost gone. I may have to go into energy conservation mode here and save some power for reporting the results of the vote.

4:20 PM — Councilmember Sam Liccardo gets a hand for mentioning games he went to in the 70's, with Krazy George beating on a drum. He's now asking questions about the iStar conversion, but Krutko has answers that seem to be satisfying him.

4:15 PM — We just want to mention again that the meeting is being streamed online here.

4:08 PM — Councilwoman Nguyen asks who is responsible for construction cost overruns. The answer, provided by Wolff: "Very simply, we are."

4:00 PM — Lew Wolff to speak.

3:58 PM — Krutko: "This deal isn't about jobs or housing. It's about jobs and housing and the Earthquakes."

3:54 PM — Krutko's presentation continues. We won't be able to post all the details but we think we may be able to get a photo later of the the stadium drawings. Stay tuned...

3:48 PM — Paul Krutko of the San Jose Economic Development Department is making his presentation on the proposal.

3:46 PM — Item 3.5 just ended and 3.7 and 3.8 were finished while I was typing this. Now on 4.1, that passes, and 4.2 is up... NOW!

3:25 PM — Current count is 140 from the SSV/Earthquakes contingent. Still on item 3.5 and it may be another 10 minutes before we move on.

3:10 PM — We've made it as far as item 3.5. I'm starting to get concerned that we may miss part of the US/El Salvador match which is due to start at 4:00. (Conveniently, the Britannia Arms is just blocks from here...)

2:55 PM — Looking at the agenda online and we've just discovered a second memo attached to item 4.2. The first was issued by Mayor Chuck Reed and Councilmember Nancy Pyle; this one is from Vice Mayor David Cortese and councilmembers Nora Campos and Forrest Williams. They, too, are recommending that the council pass today's items and are, in turn, providing additional direction to city staff.

By our count, that's five "yeas" already. This thing may be over before it starts!

Well, not quite "now" — 2:35 PM and we're on item 3.3 of the City Council's agenda, waiting for item 4.2. As you can see, there's an amazing group of Earthquakes fans here, with people dressed in blue everywhere.

We'll provide updates as often as possible. We'll announce the count on the vote both here and on the home page.


Posted by Jay at 02:34 PM | Comments (7)

June 11, 2007

Reed, Pyle endorse Wolff's proposal

As the San Jose Mercury News noted yesterday, Mayor Chuck Reed and Councilwoman Nancy Pyle have issued a memo endorsing the city staff's report on Lew Wolff's stadium plan. We know SSV members like to see everything first hand, though, so we've tracked down a copy for you. Here it is, and here's our favorite part:

The San Jose Sharks have delivered on the promise of generating enormous economic impact year after year. The San Jose Earthquakes during their existence here had a loyal following of supporters and generated good economic activity. We want to support efforts that enhance the quality of life of our people. Encouraging sporting teams, events and facilities, is one of the strategic initiatives that staffhas been working towards since the Council adoption ofthe Economic Development Strategy in November 2003.

This development proposal offers opportunities that could generate positive economic impacts. Having additional sports and entertainment options will help make San Jose a better place to live. The developer of the proposal has had a stake in the renaissance of San Jose since the 1970's; and continues to invest in the transformation of our community, which we appreciate.

We appreciate it, too. See you all at the council meeting tomorrow! Let's get this done!

Posted by Jay at 03:31 PM | Comments (0)

June 10, 2007

Good news from the Merc

It's been an interesting morning. We've pinched ourselves to make sure we're not dreaming and checked the calendar to make sure that it's not April first, so we've written the headline above, surprising though it is. Yes, there's good news in the Merc on the stadium plan.

First off, check out Mark Purdy's enthusiastic endorsement of Lew Wolff's plan to build a stadium for the Earthquakes. (No, really! Yes, that Mark Purdy! Really — go read it if you don't believe us.) Or, check out this excerpt:

Let's assume you are a San Jose resident, as I am. Let's assume the city's next big project involves no increase in your taxes. Which idea would you prefer?

Would you like to see another glob of big-box retail stores and fast-food outlets bordered by an office park, where en route to your dreary cubicle, you could buy a garden weasel or soybean latte?

Or would you like to see the Bay Area's only modern dedicated soccer stadium, where you could take your kid or grandkid to watch a game on a warm summer day?

I mean, is this even a question?

Yes. It is. And it will come up again Tuesday at a city council meeting.

That's when A's owner Lew Wolff and his group will seek approval to start negotiating a deal that would return a Major League Soccer franchise to San Jose.

As longtime readers of this column know, I am not exactly Mr. Soccer. Yet even a cynic such as myself can appreciate the benefits of having a pro futbol squad within the city limits.

If such a team provides a little joy, good times and family memories, what's the harm? I don't seem to recall anyone complaining that the Earthquakes were a horrible pox on our city during their 11 seasons in town - before the team's heinous operators, the Anschutz Entertainment Group, shipped them to Houston in 2005.

Mr. Purdy, you had us at "heinous operators, the Anschutz Entertainment Group." Welcome aboard!

The Merc's second story on Tuesday's council meeting comes from Barry Witt, who once again tries his best to create controversy with regards to the stadium proposal. Even with the negative points he tries to make, however, there's plenty to like about his article.

Besides, Witt's negativity is easily dismissed. He suggests that the Earthquakes "regularly posted among the lowest attendance in its league," which is not at all indicative of the upward-trending attendance the Earthquakes enjoyed just before their heinous operators (thanks, Mark Purdy!) moved the team to Houston. The team set consecutive records for season ticket sales in 2004 and 2005, for example. Also, as we reported here at the end of the 2005 season, San Jose's attendance was fourth best in the 12-team league that year if you remove some of the high-profile doubleheader matches from the other team's totals. Finally, as we pointed out then, "all of these attendance statistics come in the shadow of the team's threatened relocation, which is something that has killed attendance for teams in other markets in both soccer and other sports."

So, what's the good news from Witt? He reports that Mayor Chuck Reed and Councilwoman Nancy Pyle issued a memo endorsing the plan which will be presented on Tuesday and that "Councilman Forrest Williams, who represents Edenvale, also is on board." Witt also provides a supportive quote from Councilman Pierluigi Oliverio and Councilman Sam Liccardo, the latter of whom told Witt, "I feel comfortable entering into an exclusive negotiating agreement now."

If true, that's five votes in support on Tuesday, one short of a majority. Let's get out there and push this thing over the top.

Posted by Jay at 10:36 AM | Comments (0)

June 08, 2007

Happy birthday, SSV!

It's hard to believe that three years can go by so quickly, but that's the story: Today, Soccer Silicon Valley celebrates its third birthday!

Technically, our first signs of life were seen the previous month. On May 3, 2004, several of SSV's founding members attended a meeting of the San Jose Stadium Task Force, a group that had been set up, ironically enough, to lure Lew Wolff's Oakland A's to San Jose. We followed that up with a May 11 meeting with Scott Blackmun and Alexi Lalas of AEG and on May 26, the Mercury News ran an editorial by Don Gagliardi recommending that the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds be used as a site for a soccer stadium rather than a concert hall, as was proposed at the time.

So why are we celebrating on June 8? That was the day that Soccer Silicon Valley got its name, with that moniker winning a 4-2 vote over "Soccer Bay Area." There were other names that we discussed as well: "Soccer by the Bay," and "Bay Area Kicks," among them.

Since then, we've been a busy bunch. We launched our web site that July and it continues to be incredibly popular, receiving 275,000 visits in the past year alone. We hosted a rally on Friday, August 20, 2004 that drew over 1,500 Earthquakes fans to Plaza de Cesar Chavez Park in downtown San Jose, which we understand is still the largest weekday rally in San Jose history. In response to an SSV season ticket pledge drive and heightened interest from local investors, AEG announced on November 9, 2004, that the Earthquakes would remain in San Jose for another year.

2005 was an historic year for the Quakes on the field, as they won the Supporters' Shield and became the first MLS team to go undefeated at home. SSV was busier than ever, working with a consultant who had been hired by the City of Milpitas to determine if a soccer stadium was feasible for property near the Great Mall and providing support to two investment groups who were pursuing ownership of the Earthquakes, Silicon Valley Sports and Entertainment and Ajax America.

It was a crushing blow to all of us when AEG moved the players we had come to know and love to Houston that December, but the emergence of Lew Wolff and the talented staff of Earthquakes Soccer, LLC, has given us renewed belief in our mission. SSV has provided Earthquakes Soccer with input on the strength of the Earthquakes brand, season ticket marketing ideas, a stadium wish-list, and much more. Our Visitor Projection Report, available here, identifies the wide-reaching financial benefits of a new soccer stadium in San Jose and has been distributed to key political, business, and community leaders throughout the area. Last month, SSV spearheaded an effort that led to the renaming of a local public soccer field to commemorate the life of Umberto Abronzino.

Now, as we are entering our fourth year, we see an opportunity to finish the main task we've always focused on, beginning with Tuesday's San Jose City Council meeting. Even after that is achieved, we anticipate a continued role for SSV in serving as advocates for the soccer community.

In any case, our thanks go out to our members and everyone who has supported us on our mission for these first three years. We couldn't have done it without you—and with you, we're hoping to do a whole lot more!

Posted by Jay at 03:30 PM | Comments (1)

June 07, 2007

Quakes to sponsor Chivas on June 30

It won't be officially announced until tomorrow, but we wanted to let our blog readers know that Earthquakes Soccer, LLC, are co-promoters of an exhibition match which will be played on Saturday, June 30 between CD Chivas of Guadalajara and Busan I'Park of South Korea. The teams face off at 7:00 p.m. at Spartan Stadium.

Tickets will go on sale Monday, with prices starting at $20. Tickets will be available online at Ticketmaster and in person at selected Ritmo Latino, FYE, and Save Market Supermarkets stores in the Bay Area, as well as at the Earthquakes Soccer offices in the Fairmont San Jose. More information is available at (408) 282-2808.

Posted by Jay at 09:37 AM | Comments (1)

June 06, 2007

Metro's Fly reports on Alioto's talk at SSV fundraiser

One of our favorite features in The Metro is The Fly (no, not this one), whose weekly column reports goings-on from all around San Jose.

It turns out The Fly was on the wall at SSV's USA/China post game party, and he paid special attention to the Q and A conducted with Earthquakes Soccer's David Alioto. The Fly's report is here, under the heading "C'mon, Shake It."

Posted by Jay at 08:11 PM | Comments (1)

London paper praises DIY attitude of MLS fans

London's Guardian newspaper merits mention for the second day running with Steven Wells' column titled "US soccer punks 1, McFans 0," in which Wells asserts that "Independent, witty, irreverent fan culture is triumphing over Major League Soccer's preprogrammed Disneyfied McFan experience."

We Earthquakes fans tend to focus on what was done incorrectly by the team's former management, but this brings to mind one of the big things that they did right. Unlike places like Kansas City or Denver, we never suffered through music being played during the match in efforts to pump up the crowd, even in the game's natural pauses at goal and corner kicks. Instead, fans were given an opportunity to express themselves in ways of their own choosing, which gave the game experience a loose, organic feel. Any music that was heard was thanks to the songs, chants, and drumming of the Casbah, and over time a surprisingly large percentage of the people in the stands throughout the stadium came to know those songs and join in.

Maybe it's because we had UK traditionalists like Peter Bridgwater and Johnny Moore in the GM's chair, but thinking back, we have to salute whomever it was who first decided to see what happened if they went without hype, the "noise for the sake of noise" attitude we've seen in other sports and other MLS cities.

If you want a truly unique atmosphere, sometimes the thing to do is to let the fans create it themselves. It seems to be a lesson that more and more MLS teams are learning.

Posted by Jay at 04:56 PM | Comments (4)

June 05, 2007

Shearer says Beckham is too good for the Galaxy

Former England captain Alan Shearer is in the news today for saying that David Beckham is too good to be joining the L.A. Galaxy.

"I don't know if David is regretting going to Los Angeles Galaxy," Shearer says in a PA Ticker story. "But he's better than that standard, without a shadow of a doubt. He showed that with his performance against Brazil."

At first, we got a bit offended at this, which we perceived as a slam against MLS. Then we read his quote again — no, Shearer just says Beckham is too good for the Galaxy. Now that makes sense. And Beckham's not the only one — Frank Yallop and Joe Cannon are too good for the Galaxy, too. (We'd say Landon Donovan is, too, but he seems to like it there.)

In other Galaxy news, London's Guardian newspaper has a piece titled "Reality bites for big-talking Galaxy," in which writer Ian Plenderleith explains that "While LA rushed around looking for new shirt sponsors and priming themselves for the role of superclub - not just in the US, but in the whole world, according to excitable general manager Alexi Lalas - they forgot to put together a footballers' collective capable of beating the likes of the Colorado Rapids."

Posted by Jay at 06:35 AM | Comments (2)

June 04, 2007

Sharkspage features US/China photo gallery

Our old friends at Sharkspage have cooked up a nice entry on the USA/China match as well as this great photo gallery from the game.

Thanks, guys! Nice work.

Posted by Jay at 10:53 AM | Comments (1)

June 03, 2007

Thanks for the great party!


David Alioto, executive vice president of Earthquakes Soccer, LLC, spoke with fans for 30 minutes about their plans to bring MLS back to San Jose.

About 150 SSV members and special guests packed the house last night for our post-game party at the Britannia Arms in downtown San Jose. The Brit served up tasty burgers 'n' fixins, the raffle and silent auction were big hits, and everyone seemed to have a great time.

The highlight, though, was David Alioto's 30-minute Q and A on the Earthquakes' plans to bring soccer back to San Jose. His behind-the-scenes view of what's happening showed the typical honesty, candor, and ambition that we at SSV have come to know from David, and we're glad that some of our members finally got a chance to experience it for themselves. Thanks, David!

As noted above, we had a lot of special guests on hand as well. Former Earthquakes player, GM, and National Soccer Hall of Fame member Johnny Moore was on hand, as was former NASL Quake Easy Perez. California Victory head coach Glenn Van Straatum and defender Ryan Suarez were there. The soccer press was represented by Lynn Berling Manuel, publisher of SoccerAmerica; Jonah Freedman of Sports Illustrated; and Gary Singh of the Metro. Former US and Clash star Eric Wynalda even turned up, but ducked out without coming out onto the patio for what we're sure would have been a warm ovation. (Wynalda? Shy? This doesn't seem right to us, either...)

Thanks to everyone who came out. SSV has run up a lot of expenses lately (printing up 50 bound copies of our 150-page Visitor Projection Report for distribution to local government and media officials cost a pretty penny) and the roughly $2,000 we raised will give us an opportunity to continue our work at full speed.

Special kudos to SSV board member Ned Zuparko, his wife Merryl, and their crack volunteers Allen Rudolph and Kim Kershner for manning the check-in tables with such panache.

Meanwhile, our focus returns to the June 12 San Jose City Council meeting. But who knows — maybe we'll have an opportunity for an impromptu party at the Brit after that. The USA/El Salvador match starts at 4:00 p.m. that afternoon. Hmmm...

Posted by Jay at 12:08 PM | Comments (1)

June 02, 2007

It's time for US/China!

June 2 seemed like a long way off when tickets went on sale back in February, but it's time for USA/China at Spartan Stadium already. With over 18,000 tickets gone, it looks like a good crowd will be on hand for Bob Bradley's first game without the "interim" label attached to his title of head coach, as longtime Quakes reporter Dylan Hernandez explores here.

While there has been some disappointment expressed over Bradley's Euro-based lineup, one man who is not complaining is Berkeley native Kamani Hill, who may earn his first cap today. Hill is also the focus of today's piece from Contra Costa Times columnist Cam Inman. (We're not complaining about Bradley's picks, either. It would have been nice to see some former Quakes suited up for the USA for old times' sake, but it's always interesting to see new talent in the pipeline.)

For the inside view on the National Team's activities in San Jose, we recommend the MNT Summer Blog, which has detailed info about their stay in San Jose. One note from the blog in particular caught our eye:

Friday, June 1 @ 1:08 p.m. About a dozen players and coaches managed to slip out before lunch to watch the first half of the England-Brazil game that was played at the new Wembley Stadium. Pretty sweet digs. Not a bad first half of football. Who was holding their breath when Beckham had that free kick from the top of the 'D'? Unfortunately we missed both goals - notice we didn't say who scored them - but that's what the TiVo is for. At least the clouds have broken, so should be a nice afternoon training session at Spartan Stadium. Thanks to Britannia Arms for making space for us.

(Bradley, Feilhaber, Howard, Kljestan, Marsch, Nguyen and Spector, for whoever was dying to know ...)

Yes, seven members of the team were at the Brit yesterday, so we're hoping they had a good enough time to come back tonight for our little post-game soiree. Drinks are on us, guys—and that goes for you too, coach! We've passed along invitations to Pam Perkins, the USMNT general manager, so our fingers are crossed.

U.S. Soccer also has photos from yesterday's practice here and game notes here.

See you all at the game!

Posted by Jay at 06:29 AM | Comments (0)