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Garber speaks on expansion, schedule
By jtobin • Sep 25th, 2008 • Category: Features

The team owners of all MLS teams have been in Chicago the last few days figuring out a way to grow as a business. MLS commisioner Don Garber discussed a few issues in the press box of Toyota Park supplied the media with the information.

MLS 2.0 will be rolled out in 2010. With this comes the question of “What does that mean?” There will be no promotion or relegation unveiled at that time and the league would prefer another Midwest team such as St. Louis to provide more balance geographically. Interest in a Miami franchise has resurfaced and Garber reiterated the demand in the Pacific Northwest is strong as well.

MLS is analyzing the impact of their schedule. 13 weekends out of 30 are being affected by international play and the likelihood of starting the season in February or ending in early December are out of the question due to the different weather conditions across the US. According to Garber, the weekend crowds draw over 50% more in attendance than midweek games so from an economic standpoint, it is best to play these games on the weekend.

In regards to the CONCACAF Champions League, Garber said “Our credibility is being attacked but we want our clubs to focus on MLS…In reality, we are a business developing and to reconfigure our business model is not in our best interest.”

Currently, there are no short term solutions however, in 2009, there may be a possibility that teams will be more carefully selected to avoid fixture congestion so there may be more balance and variety in the Superliga, CONCACAF, and US Open Cup competitions. Garber also expressed that the Superliga is a priority for the league based off of attendance and television ratings.