The FCBEscola Austin will join the FC Barcelona family of schools located around globe in locations like Tokyo, Dubai, Sao Paolo and Moscow.
In Ambition Rankings, Grant Wahl says Mapfre feels like a high school stadium; 2017 season ticket forecast is down
Mapfre Stadium is historic in its own way, the first soccer-specific stadium in MLS. But in 2017 it feels like a high school facility, which is why Columbus needs to do something about building a new home for the team.
While Crew SC season ticket membership has experienced significant growth across the last four seasons, we are forecasting an overall year-over-year reduction in FSE’s for the 2017 season.
Precourt is still on the expansion committee
As the head of the league’s expansion committee, Kraft has seen the effects of the maturation firsthand in these bids. That committee also includes Chicago Fire owner Andrew Hauptman, Columbus Crew SC owner Anthony Precourt, Orlando City SC founder Phil Rawlins and Philadelphia Union owner Jay Sugarman.
Garber speaks with Wahl at SXSW (Austin) – Precourt was there too
“Really good conversation with MLS commissioner Don Garber at #SXSW. Thanks to everyone who came! (📷@SeanDennisonMLS)“
Link to Wahl Acknowledging Conversation w Garber
According to Wahl, Anthony Precourt was also at SXSW: “Now that I think about it, last time I saw Anthony Precourt was at SXSW this year … in Austin.” Link to Wahls Tweet about Precourt
The MLS in Austin blog also mentions Precourt at the Garber event at SXSW
At SXSW, Garber says “Austin should be a good MLS market”
“It (Austin) is a special place, and in many ways, it mirrors the dynamic of MLS,” Garber said following a discussion moderated by Sports Illustrated soccer reporter Grant Wahl. “There’s a young, innovative, diverse population living in a city. Austin should be a good MLS market.”
Don Garber weighs in on Austin’s stadium issue
With a sizable and diverse population, Austin would fit in among MLS expansion candidates and, as a market, could have more to offer than some of its competitors. However, one of the reasons it is not among the 12 cities currently being considered for an expansion franchise is its stadium situation, which has affected professional soccer.
Barrett hired to consult on proposed MLS expansion market
Barrett Sports Group, LLC has been hired by Major League Soccer to provide strategic consulting services in connection with a proposed expansion team/market.
Link to Original Source – the date is in the website metadata (a copy of the HTML source has been archived).
Loughnane states his goal is to sell out all 17 home games
The Crew has a goal to sell out all 17 regular-season home games. It’s one the club won’t achieve in 2017, as 15,023 was the announced attendance for a chilly home opener against Chicago and 11,067 attended last Saturday’s game against Portland. (The official capacity of Mapfre Stadium is 19,968.) Still, Loughnane said, the club hopes to set attendance and home sellout records for a fourth straight season. Last year, the team’s average attendance was 17,125 and it sold out six games.