NASL N.Y. Cosmos COO Erik Stover last weekend during a Q&A viewing party with fans "painted a bright picture" for a possible antitrust lawsuit by the league against the U.S. Soccer Federation, which through attorney Jeffrey Kessler was warned of "potential litigation" over the alleged issue, according to Dave Martinez of EMPIRE OF SOCCER. The issue Stover "is referring to is the evolving Division I standards which are being proposed within USSF requiring a Division I league to have at least 16 teams (up from 12), 75 percent of the teams in the league must have a population of at least two million (up from one million) and all stadiums must have a seating capacity of 15,000." Stover said, "The Premier League would not be first division under U.S. Soccer’s rules because Bournemouth stadium is under 15,000. ... (Requirements) changed and it’s changed every year for the past three years." The issue "doesn’t stop with first division standards." Stover explained that reports over the matter "do not even 'scratch the surface' of what the league hopes to challenge." The deeper issue "is the embedded alliance between MLS and the USSF -- a nonprofit organization whose stated goal is 'to promote and govern the state of soccer in the United States.'" Stover: "How can we ever be first division if you keep changing the rules and your committee is made up of nine people from the MLS, someone from the USL, three from the Women’s league and (NASL Commissioner) Bill Peterson?" Stover cited "several vital tie-ins between MLS and U.S. Soccer that challenge the mission of the national organization." He "highlighted the collusion with a damning accusation, pointing a finger at MLS and U.S. Soccer for 'planting' an article in the New York Times to hurt the NASL." The story in question "focuses on the FIFAGate scandal hitting the shores of the U.S. in the form of a fan protest against the Traffic Sports’ owned Carolina RailHawks -- a key player in the FIFA scandal." Stover said, "They put that article in the paper. That is what we are going to be dealing with and I know we will be ready for the fight" Stover called the issue a "fundamental problem in the way soccer is run in this country" (EMPIREOFSOCCER.com, 9/29).
