MLS Expansion: Is America’s Finest City at the front of the queue?
By s.a. rose
An investor group from San Diego has announced it will be readying a bid for a MLS expansion franchise. With the NFL’s Chargers moving out of the market, will San Diego be the top choice among MLS Expansion contenders?
Lost in the tepid response to the relocation of the Los Angeles Chargers, is the fact that San Diego is now the biggest market by population in the U.S. with only one professional team in North America’s five biggest professional leagues. With a population of 3.1 million, San Diego is about 300,000 people larger than Minneapolis, which with the MLS entry in 2017 of Minnesota United FC, now has representation in all five leagues. With the loss of the Chargers for the time-being, the time is right to add to a great sports town and the announcement in the last 24 hours that an investor group is ready to bid on MLS expansion is good news for the sports fans of San Diego.
Music to the ears of San Diego residents is that the stadium will not only be funded without requiring any taxpayer financing, it will also be available for the San Diego State football program to host their games. Recent reports suggest that San Diego is a Top-10 market for soccer and if all the pieces fit together, San Diego should move near the top of the queue for any consideration of MLS expansion.
Competition for a MLS expansion team is fierce. Once David Beckham and Miami sort out a stadium location, the league will be at 24 teams with a desire to grow to 28 in the early 2020s. Expansion candidate cities have set up clubs in the now second-tier USL to show that their cities have strong soccer followings, with the teams considered in the best position to move to MLS being Sacramento Republic, San Antonio and Saint Louis FC (although public funding is part of their expansion plan and it might not be available).
A brand-new club without established attendance figures might have a harder time convincing an expansion committee of the fan base’s capabilities but in the past, San Diego has supported soccer as a top 3 TV market during World Cups, and not just when it is Mexico.
San Diego would also tap into a unique international rivalry with the Tijuana Xolos which MLS Commissioner Don Garber is on the record as regarding as a plus to any San Diego MLS expansion bid. There would be excellent opportunities to have rivalry games with the two L.A. MLS teams as well and with very little competition on the pro sport landscape (ie. only baseball’s San Diego Padres), a team in San Diego has many compelling reasons to be on MLS’ radar as the finest choice among expansion options.