Garber Eyes MLS Expansion Into Toronto And Five Other Cities

Garber Sees MLS Eventually Expanding To 18 Teams

MLS Commissioner Don Garber during his state of the league address on Friday said that he “envisioned the 12-team league expanding to 18 teams, but that no further expansion would come before 2007,” according to Grahame Jones of the L.A. TIMES. Garber added that Toronto “is in the forefront, and Houston, Cleveland, Milwaukee and St. Louis are ‘at the top of our list.’” Garber: “Our ultimate goal is to be an 18-team league across the U.S. and Canada at some point in the future.” The Wizards and Earthquakes are both up for sale, and Garber said that the “goal is to try to keep both teams” in their current markets. Garber noted the number of MLS owners “is more than double the size it was two years ago” (L.A. TIMES, 7/30).

LOOKING AHEAD: Garber said one short-term goal is to “provide more resources and incentives to our teams to develop players.” He added MLS is considering ways of allowing teams “to retain the rights to those players they develop” instead of losing them in the draft. Garber said that MLS is also “looking into the length and timing” of its schedule, with options including a “split season and ‘reserving an entire month during the summer for international competition’” (L.A. TIMES, 7/30). Garber was interviewed at halftime of Saturday’s MLS All-Star Game on ABC, where he said, “We’ve got stadiums being built. We’ve got an expanding league. We’ve got young kids that are standing toe-to-toe with some great teams from Milan to Real Madrid to Chelsea and now Fulham. The future is just very bright for soccer in this country” (ABC, 7/30).

MARKETS: Garber said Cleveland’s bid for an expansion team “is real estate focused. We are talking with Scott Wolstein and there is talk of Drew Carey being involved.” Wolstein’s late father, Bert, also tried to bring an MLS team to the city (Cleveland PLAIN DEALER, 7/30)....Over 31,000 fans attended United’s exhibition against Premier League club Chelsea at FedEx Field on Friday, and Garber said DC “is our best market, by far. It’s the most authentic, the most passionate” (WASHINGTON POST, 7/30).