Don Garber: MLS Is ‘Riding The Crest Of Soccer’s Growth We Helped Create’
Sunday, November 10, 2019 at 07:46PM By Barry Janoff
November 9, 2019: As part of the lead to the 2019 Audi MLS Cup between Toronto FC and host Seattle Sounders, league commissioner Don Garber held a media conference and spoke about the state of the league, expansion, the 2019 season and looking ahead to 2020, during which MLS will celebrate its 25th season.
“This is my 21st MLS Cup I’m excited about the league looking ahead to the 25th season (next year),” Gaber told the media on Friday (Nov. 8).
“This has been the best playoffs we’ve had in the history of our league. Our stadiums were packed and set a new MLS playoff attendance record, averaging over 31,000 fans per game, a remarkable stat for our young league.”
(Editor's note: Seattle defeated Toronto, 3-1, with 69,274 in attendance in CenturyLink Field, a record for the franchise.)
Overall, playoff viewership was up more than 30% on ESPN and Fox, said Garber.
During the regular season, Garber said the league “had a record five clubs average more than 25,000 fans per game.”
Atlanta United, which won the MLS Cup in 2018, led with an average attendance of 52,510.
The Top Five also included the Seattle Sounders (40,247), FC Cincinnati (27,336), Portland Timbers (25,218) and Toronto FC (25,048).
Nine other clubs averaged more than 18,000 per game.
Merchandise was also on the rise, with sales of adidas gear up 30%, said Garber.
Talking about MLS growth Garber said, “In the next few years we will have a minimum of seven new stadiums being built for our league at an average cost of nearly $300 million.”
Regarding expansion, Five clubs will begin play over the next three years: Miami and Nashville in 2020, Austin in 2021, Sacrament and St. Louis in 2022,” said Garber.
“That will put us at 29 teams. There will be a 30th. At this time the MLS Expansion Committee is reviewing candidates. It is very likely that we will announce team 30 in the next number of months.
“There are three markets we are looking at: Charlotte, Las Vegas and Phoenix.”
When asked about three cities, Garber said, “It’s fair to say that Charlotte has done a lot of work to move their bid to the front of the line. David Tepper, (principal) owner of the (NFL’s Carolina) Panthers, is a very passionate guy about sports, very passionate about Charlotte and is reminding us that (MLS) didn’t really see what Atlanta would become. And I’ll be the first to admit that.”
Tepper is seeking to bring a MLS club to Charlotte and to share Bank of America Stadium with the Panthers, according to industry analysts. That would give a Charlotte expansion franchise an immediate venue of NFL standards.
Also in Charlotte’s favor, according to Garber: “There are a lot of things happening in Charlotte that are very similar to Atlanta in terms of diversity of their fan base and the corporate energy that’s going on.”
Looking ahead, Garber addressed 2020, stating, “Next year we look forward to celebrating our 25th season — a tremendous milestone. In the months ahead we will release a schedule of events and initiatives that will celebrate our rich history.”
Regarding the continued growth of MLS, Garber said, “Our league is capitalizing on the momentum that exists behind the sport of soccer in North America. When you have owners (who) are focused with an enormous commitment and a vision to have their teams deeply embedded in the community and put a great product on the field, and build great facilities and training grounds
“We are basically riding this crest that I think we have helped create in many ways but are also capitalizing on.”
Garber said when you add to that both in the U.S. and Canada and in many of the cities where MLS is having success, “There is a new America and a new Canada happening that’s young, diverse, globally connected. It’s very digital. Those are the qualities that are driving our fan base and driving the value that we have to broadcasters and sponsors. All of that is creating that dynamic that is driving our success.
“We are still young. Our best days are still ahead. The sport is growing both in the U.S. and Canada in ways that we are going to have to adapt to as we become more important.”
“With all the success we have, we have issues that we have to deal with in all aspects of our business . . . There are lot’s of things you go through when you are a growing league. You have to fight the fight.You have to have patience, fortitude, have some courage and you have to be smart and nimble. I think we’ve done that in almost every market.”
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