Activities Site

As the English football year has come to an end it is now time to reflect on the condition of the English game and where it can be developed. Many people have had their say on the way the game is run and the way the ‘business of football’ is taking over from the where it must be; on the pitch.

Over the last decade there has been a massive entry of investment into football clubs in England. Lots of this investment has been from overseas with good and bad effects. The popular ‘top 4’ as they were called (Tottenham have now broken into that position) are all now under foreign tenure which leads us to believe that the English game is getting further away from it’s roots and changing towards a more American scheme of Franchises. What is meant by this, is that in the American sports scheme the various sports teams across baseball, basketball, American football and ice hockey have a continuous circulation of players, managers and owners. If you look at the side for one season it is totally different for the next as there are huge amounts of money mixed up when trading players to these Franchises. Though this is not the scary element, a lot of American Franchises have moved location in order to get more supporters and revenue, our own illustration is Wimbledon FC who went from FA Cup winners and regular Division 1 participants to moving their squad to Milton Keynes. Will this become more widespread?

A lot of Franchises For Sale opportunities are available in America, whoever comes in makes major ammendments and can even move the club to another area of the country if the terms are appropriate. I am not saying that this will happen in England but with the continuous big money being spent at the top tier of football, some or most of the smaller clubs in the lower leagues may have to look at the option of moving. Most of these squads are run as a small businesses and cannot fight with the money that is now invested, many are run like a Home Based Franchise, with the smallest outgoings and running everything in-house.

We found this last year when an owner has not fulfilled their obligations and promises the fans will revolt and try to move the owner on. An example is Newcastle United where the followers were very unhappy with the performances on the pitch and consequently turned on the ownership. The owner did put the club up for sale but could not locate a buyer as the asking price was significantly exaggerated, they have made it back into the premiership and now the clubs fortunes may alter. We are now looking at every squad in English football has a price, the same as all the Franchises For Sale choices in America. If the correct person with enough money presented the money for any club then it would be taken.

It now does not matter if the owner is foreign its just as long as they have the money. Is this correct? The days have disappeared where you have a so called ‘Home Based Franchise’, where the club is run as a family and everything is dealt with internally. The Franchises of America are run in an open marketplace for everyone to see and that is the way we have gone. Is this good for the game in England or have we lost our family orientated game and moved to a more commercial, business game?

The franchises of the MLS have had quite a few opponents to their way of running things from many people around the football and business environment. We have a look at the MLS and the franchises as a business structure and talk about different Franchises that established the structure of the league over recent times. In spite of what your view is of the current league structure it has been quite productive over the past several seasons and is still continuing to grow each campaign with many Low Cost Franchise being allocated the option to join the league. The league was established in 1993 as the main component for the subsequent years football world cup finals, this was a promise that was made to the governing body FIFA if the United States was presented the football world cup finals. It was thought that the sport of football would increase gradually as it has a great deal of competition from more recognised sports in the USA market like basketball and baseball, but this league would provide it with a firm foundation of where to open. All the teams begun as Franchise For Sale that was offered to several cities in the United States, extensive investment was given by people and sponsors across the world to buy and get the Franchises started and to expand a Home Based Franchise for every key city or town.

The very first match begun in 1996 when the league included just ten small Home Based Franchise that were bought by businesses and sponsors as Franchises For Sale opportunities. The turnout for the matches were greater than expected and the overall outlook was looking decent. But, at the very start, the league never in reality became successful, the franchise and players abilities were rather poor, this together with the squads not having enough depth to be competitive with each other steadily destroyed crowd statistics. A Home Based Franchise had found it hard with the huge distances travelled and costs that the league had at the opening, so the Franchises declined over this initial start up time.

Following the 2002 football world cup finals where the United States squad go to the quarter-final stages, there was a a boost in the lure of the football league and football across the whole of America. There was a new principal in power of building the league into a business sports leader in the United States sports field for the Franchises and under this new management the MLS begun to bring in better quality of players from across the countries.

The players abilities on the grass still remain less compared to that found at a European football league but the amount of top players that are working and playing in the league, whether it be for the massive money deals or the lifestyle changes, is increasing. Franchises For Sale in Toronto, Canada is now accessible and set up and this improved the leagues appeal to Canada, where football is more known.

We now look at the Columbus Crew franchise and how the team has developed into one of the most known Franchises in the MLS, with huge investment.

The Columbus Crew were given their name in a ‘name the team’ competition. In fact, from the team website “Columbus, OH local Luis Orozco was the only applicant in a month long competition to suggest that the team be named The Columbus Crew”. This name, and the team symbol, invokes images of hard-working Middle America - steel plants, auto manufacturing and the like. In fact, the teams semi-official nickname is ‘The Hardest Working Club in America’. The Columbus Crew ground was the first of the recent of wave of club-owned soccer-specific grounds which are gradually beginning to alter the financial picture of the sport in the United States. Virtually all teams in the past have played in massive NFL stadiums that dwarfed even reasonable crowds.

There are many views on Major League Soccer from many coaches and players around the globe. We are going to take a glimpse at the Major League Soccer as a business and concentrate on individual Franchises that established the group. No matter what your atttitude is of the Major League Soccer it has been a winner in the US and is continuing to increase each campaign with various Franchises joining the league. The Major League of Soccer was established in 1993 in groundwork for the following years world cup, this was a pledge through to FIFA if they were rewarded the world cup. It was forecast that the sport would grow gradually as it has massive rivalry from more traditional sports in the US, but this league would give it a stiff base of where to begin. Every club began as a Franchise For Sale opportunity across every city in the US, extensive quantities of money was invested by sponsors and businesses to get the Franchises working and to develop a Home Based Franchise for each main city.

The first game was started in 1996 and the league comprised a mere 10 Home Based Franchise that were purchased by rich sponsors and businesses as a Franchise For Sale option. The turnout for the games were fairly respectable and the general outlook looked respectable. Yet, at the start, the sport never actually took off and the class on the pitch was quite weak, this joined with the clubs not being competitive steadily put pay to crowd numbers. A Home Based Franchise would toil with the travel and expenses that the league beared at the start, so the Franchises declined in the long run.

Following the 2002 world cup where the USA go to the quarter-final phase there was a a boost in the status of the game. There was now a new chief in charge of expanding the league into a sporting product for the Franchises and under his management the league began to see superstars becoming involved in the MLS.

The quality on the field still remains below the yardstick found at a top European league but the sum of superstars that are involved in the MLS, whether it be for the cash or life, is increasing. A Franchise For Sale in Toronto become obtainable and this enlarged the leagues interest to Canada, where soccer is more known.

We now take a brief glimpse at the New York Red Bulls club and how it has grown over the years to turn out to be one of the most known Franchises in the US.

The club is a founding member of MLS, but has gone through a number of name alterations. The club was at first known as the New York/New Jersey MetroStars through 1997. From the 1998 season until right before the 2006 season, the club was identified as simply the MetroStars. On March 9, 2006, it was sold to Red Bull GmbH, and the name of the company was altered to Red Bull New York while the playing team was to be called the New York Red Bulls. The sale of the clubwas controversial among its fans, similar to the circumstances in Austria, where Red Bull acquired SV Austria Salzburg and renamed it FC Red Bull Salzburg. The club plays its home games at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

The baseball season has started and the passion among the fans is rising each year. Each Franchise has their own ambitions of making the world series and lifting the trophy. We look at the Milwaukee Brewers Franchise and how they have grown from a Franchise For Sale to a key team of the National League Central Division. During the existing global difficulties there has been a lot of business methods in which the clubs have had to alter, in their measures of operating a Franchise. Each Franchise is run in a reasonably different way, but the core philosophy of every Franchise is chiefly the same, this is the opinion of operating their club as a Home Based Franchise. Many of the clubs fans have grown up around their club and it is a very big piece of their lives and as a result it is really imperative that it is managed as a Home Based Franchise. Several of the current team chairmen also grew up around the locality and this is a main rationale of why baseball is so key to the supporters of their squad. When the different Franchise For Sale chances were out there, a vast amount of fans had their vote and say about who should buy and manage the Franchise. Their baseball club is taken as a local product that fan influence far overshadows business and corporate ways. Several of the prospective team chairmen have had the obstruction of not growing up around the Franchise area and as a result have been puched out by the fans views towards them. In the clubs history their has been a large variety of alteration finances and staff but the constant support from the fans franchise has never left as this Milwaukee Brewers article will illustrate.

The team started its existence in 1969 as the Seattle Pilots, formed as part of that year’s MLB expansion together with Kansas City , Montréal, and San Diego . The team was renamed as Brewers to honour Milwaukee ’s beer-brewing traditions. The team became the Brewers and originated as the Seattle Pilots, a team that joined the AL in 1969. In 1970 the Brewers ended in 4th place in the AL West with a 65-97 record. The Brewers Franchise reached its summit in the early 1980s, in 1981 the team won the second half of the year and played the New York Yankees in a playoffs mini-series that they finally lost. Milwaukee made its very forst trip to the World Series in 1982, but went down to the St. Louis Cardinals.

The year of 1988 proved to be a strong year as they went just 2 games short with a solid record of 87-75. Following this year, the team slipped, posting average records from 1989 through 1991, resulting unfavourably for manager Tom Trebelhorn who had to leave the team. The Brewers were seen struggling to achieve significant records in the mid 1990s. The team was reorganised in the year 1994 as they captured last place with a score of 53-62. The team was transferred from the American League to the National League in 1998 through baseball’s expansion and change. Their new home, Miller Park was inaugurated in 2001. The Brewers were energised and stimulated at the opening of their new home but due to injuries they ended their season in 4th place with a record of 68-94.

Manager Davey Lopes was fired in 2002 as the Brewers get off to a terrible 3-12 start. They continued their struggle to achieve glory but they ended the season with a clubs worst 56-106 score.

There are a lot of opinions on the MLS from numerous managers and players around the world. We are going to take a peek at the MLS as an organisation and focus on different Franchises that create the league. No matter what your atttitude is of the MLS it has been a success in America and is continuing to grow every year with different Franchises joining the league. The MLS was established in 1993 in preparation for the subsequent years world cup, this was a promise made to FIFA if they were awarded the world cup. It was forecast that the game would increase slowly as it has huge competition from more established sports in America, but this league would give it a solid foundation of where to open. Every team begun as a Franchise For Sale option across each city in America, considerable amounts of money was invested by sponsors and businessmen to get the Franchises underway and to build a Home Based Franchise for each key city.

The 1st game was kicked off in 1996 and the league consisted of just 10 Home Based Franchise that were purchased by wealthy sponsors or businessmen as a Franchise For Sale opportunity. The crowd for the games were quite good and the overall picture looked good. However, at the beginning, the sport never really took off and the quality on the pitch was quite weak, this coupled with the teams not being competitive steadily put pay to attendance levels. A Home Based Franchise would struggle with the travel and outlay that the league endured at the beginning, so the Franchises declined in the long run.

After the 2002 world cup where the USA go to the quarter-final stage there was a an increase in the popularity of the game. There was now a new commissioner in charge of developing the MLS into a sporting brand for the Franchises and under his control the MLS begun to see stars becoming attracted to the MLS.

The quality on the pitch still remains below the standard found at a top European league but the quantity of stars that are attracted to the MLS, whether it be for the money or lifestyle is improving. A Franchise For Sale in Toronto became obtainable and this increased the leagues appeal to Canada, where football is more recognised.

We now take a short peek at the Chicago Fire franchise and how it has developed over the years to become one of the most recognised Franchises in America.

The team was founded on October 8, 1997. They are the most successful team in the modern U.S. Open Cup, winning championships in 1998, 2000, 2003, and 2006. Chicago’s chief competitor is FC Dallas. Since 2001, the two Franchises vie annually for the Brimstone Cup (established by the fans of both clubs), which goes to the victor in the season series between them. While FC Dallas remains the most historically heated opponent, recent years have promoted malice between the Fire and the New England Revolution with the clubs ending each other’s season every year since 2001. The Fire originally played at Soldier Field, but now have their own ground, Toyota Park at 71st and Harlem Avenue. Toyota Park is owned by the Village of Bridgeview and managed by the owners of the Fire, Andell Holdings, who bought the club in 2007.