Orlando City - Top 5 Players

Before we get knee deep into preseason story lines and depth chart controversies, I want to look back and give my Orlando City top 5 all time players.

The OCSC bandwagon will be full of soccer 'fans' who in the past have only tuned into the sport of soccer during the World Cup or to the random EPL game of the week on a saturday morning when nothing else was on television.  Orlando City is full of season ticket supporters who would not be able to distinguish or know Rob Valentino from Sean Kelley if they were to run into them at the local CVS.  And frankly good for them.  Were it not for these new supporters, Orlando City would be destined to be another failed franchise.  I don't begrudge our new supporters.  I simply freely acknowledge that they missed out of four amazing seasons of soccer.

There are many of us however that have supported OCSC from day one. Well before there were billboards of Kaka on I-4 and advertisements of grown ass men in unicorn costumes marketing the team, some of us were at the Citrus Bowl watching the likes of Matt Luzunaris and Mechack Jerome play on a random Thursday night against teams like the Los Angeles Blues and Dayton Dutch.  

I want to give recognition in my own small, feeble way to the five players who were my all-time favorite Orlando City players in our time in the USL.  

(Honorable Mention: Dennis Chin, Jordany Alvarez, Sean Kelley, Lewis Neal, Erik Ustruck, James O'Conner, Adama Mbengue, Luke Boden)

#5 Kevin Molino - Kevin Molino is the only player on my top five list that will be joining the team in Major League Soccer in 2015.  With 87 caps under his belt for the Lions, Molino has been staple for Orlando City Soccer from day one.  Since 2011, I have long praised the talent of the speedy midfielder.  For the longest time however despite the Trinidadian internationals wealth of skill, I felt that the Nike 'Lazy but Talented' phrase was particularly fitting for him.  There were long periods of time in many matches where Kevin Molino would disappear as though he were Harry Houdini circa 1903.  Molino became one of my all time favorite players just this past season when Orlando City signed him to a long term deal which guaranteed him an MLS contract in 2015 and beyond.  That assurance which gave Molino the guarantee he was finally going to be playing in the top flight of American soccer was the fuel for this skilled and able footballer to finally start taking his game to that proverbial next level. Kevin Molino was by far the best player in USL in 2014.  Great things lie ahead for this young man.  I'm excited to see what he will do.

#4 Dom Dwyer - With only 17 appearances for OCSC under his name, Dom Dwyer is the player with by far the least number of caps to his name to have made my top five list.  In those 17 appearances however Dwyer became arguably the most famous player to wear the purple during our time in the USL.  His impact was immediate and astonishing.  Scoring 22 goals in the 17 matches for the purple, including a memorable four goal performance in the 2013 USL finals to give Orlando City its second championship, Dom Dwyer became an instant legend for the Lions.  Dom may not initially have wanted to come here on loan from Sporting KC but I think he will be the first one to now admit that may have been one of the biggest blessings of his professional career.  Dom Fucking Dwyer.  He literally scored whenever he wanted.

#3 Jamie Watson - Thru the end of 2013, Jamie Watson was as much a symbol of Orlando City Soccer as you could find in this town.  Watson was the poster boy for OCSC as his face littered the city with marketing campaigns for those first few USL campaigns.  With 60 caps for Orlando City, Watson became a fan favorite because of his work ethic on the pitch and his appreciation for the fans.  While players like Molino would many times just give the supporters little more than a golf clap as he exited the pitch, Jamie Watson would go out of his way to show he appreciated the supporters.  Watson's epic goal celebrations when he would run into the stands after scoring won't be forgotten anytime soon.  His heart and hustle on the pitch was only surpassed by the charitable work he did throughout our community.  Jamie Watson's speech in front of the Orange County Board of Commissioners was among the most moving in trying to convince local decision makers to approve funding for our stadium to be opened in 2016.  His time in Orlando was surprisingly and abruptly cut short when depending who you ask, Watson requested to be traded away or was simply sent away by front office decision makers due to there being no room for Watson in our 2014 roster.  I don't know what happened for sure nor frankly does it matter much at this point.  What I do know is that any OCSC supporter that backed this club throughout the USL years has the upmost respect for Jamie Watson.  

Four of the all time greats

#2 Miguel Gallardo - You will be hard pressed to find a player more loved than Miguel Gallardo for Orlando City Soccer from 2011-2014.  With 81 caps and an OCSC original here from the original days of the Austin Aztex, Gallardo was a stalwart presence at goal for Orlando City.  Gallardo loved this club.  Miguel had a cool presence about him that made him a great leader on the pitch and a phenomenal community representative for OCSC during our introductory years as a franchise.  Miguel Gallardo was not perfect.  He was very much flawed and at times committed errors that would leave your head scratching.  With that said however, I would not have traded Miguel for any other keeper in the USL.  He was an outstanding keeper.  I selfishly wish he would have joined us in 2015.  I wish him the best in Jacksonville.

#1 Rob Valentino - Rob Valentino exemplifies everything I love in a footballer.  Valentino plays with heart, passion and never took shit from anyone.  Rob was our captain.  The importance to how big Valentino was to our franchise cannot be overstated.  Anyone that followed Orlando City Soccer throughout the USL years no matter how new you were to the sport can tell you we played an attacking brand of soccer where we applied relentless pressure up the wings and moved the ball around in a beautiful symphony of fluidity.  That style of play makes a team susceptible to quick counter attacks and little room for error in defense.  Valentino was the crux of that backline.  He would never allow himself to get pushed around and played with a laser like focus as though he were conducting heart surgery.  He was quick to chew out one of his fellow defenders if they were out of position and held himself to such a high standard.  In his 77 caps for Orlando City, Rob Valentino exemplified all the positive qualities I like to see in professional footballers.

Sorry for not posting recently....

Fact is work and life have gotten in the way.

At any rate there are plenty of bloggers and fly by night pundits that have done a decent job following OCSC in the off season.  Orlando City has done an excellent job bringing in top notch talent for an expansion side.  We are shaping up to have an attacking squad which will be pleasing to the eye based on the talent we have acquired.

I look forward to sharing my thoughts and opinions on Orlando City and all random things sports once again.

You can't stop John Rooney.  You can only hope to contain him

The Tally Hall Acquisition

In life, all we can ask for is a fair shot.  Sometimes we get that chance to fully prove ourselves and many times we do not.  There are moments however when we get that fair shot despite the fact our own prejudices and experience will not allow us to see it.   

I have a feeling based on the news today that Orlando City traded for Houston Dynamo goalkeeper Tally Hall a few months back while the USL season was still going on, former OCSC players will wonder if they really did get a fair shot to make the 2015 MLS roster because of the fact the club was still acquiring players during the USL season that they kept secret. 

Tally Hall

   

 The news today of the Tally Hall acquisition tells me two things which are very much interrelated with one another.  The first is that Orlando City front office was set on the fact that neither Miguel Gallardo nor Carl Woszczynski were of MLS ilk well before the seasons end.  You do not make a secret acquisition for Tally Hall in the middle of the season that is just today being made public without that having been a matter of fact.  The second is that the framework for the 2015 Orlando City MLS roster has been a work in progress for a long time now with deals and player acquisitions being made sometimes even unbeknownst to Orlando City fans. 

OCSC has a long history of secrecy.  The severity of player injuries is many times kept hush by the front office as we have seen on numerous occasions throughout the USL years.  We were given little to no update on the health status of Yordany Alvarez just this past season until late in the season as a prime example.  The status of players on the roster has also many times been kept confidential from the public as though it were a state secret.  The situation that stands out the most in my opinion was when John Rooney mysteriously disappeared from the 2012 Orlando City roster with no word from the front office despite his high profile acquisition going into that season’s campaign.  I have always found this cloud of player personnel mystery always surrounding Orlando City perplexing as I never fully understood what the thought process was behind the veil of mystery OCSC constantly kept up.  I did not understand the end game.   Were we really that worried about keeping the Rochester Rhinos and Wilmington Hammerheads on their toes about what was really going on with our squad?  

When it comes to the decision for Orlando City to trade for Tally Hall and the decision to keep that news secret however, I see the bigger picture.  I understand what the club did.  Miguel Gallardo was signed to play for Orlando City in 2014.  The club made no guarantees to him or to any other player not already signed by the Lions as to what their future would be with the club.  Based on what happened to Jamie Watson before the start of the season, any OCSC player would be insane to think the Phil Rawlins would bring any player to MLS based on some false sense of ‘loyalty’ or nostalgia for the USL years.  If Orlando City would have announced the trade for Hall back when it occurred, how would that have affected the play of Miguel and the continuity of the team?   The club needed to keep certain decisions like this under wraps for the greater good.  The front office made the conscious decision to try and affect the squad as little as possible with respects to 2015 personnel decisions.   That was only fair to those players on the roster and to us as fans.  Announcing the Tally Hall trade with Houston would have served no purpose other than causing unnecessary drama and player speculation.

Brad Rusin Reaction to today aquisition

Twitter comments made today by Brad Rusin echo I’m sure what some former OCSC players think today as he expressed his frustration of OCSC acquiring players in secrecy before the regular season was over.  I don’t blame Brad for thinking the way he does nor would I blame Miguel Gallardo if today’s news felt like a punch in the gut.  I get it. 

Those guys had their chances however.  They had their fair shot.  I thought Rusin was a heck of a defender and that Miguel Gallardo was good enough to at least be an MLS backup despite his scarce untimely lapses in judgement.  For the greater good of the club fortunately though I am not Paul McDonough and I am not Adrian Heath.  I am Carlos Alvarado and my opinion means nothing.  Both of these guys know much more about football than I ever will and they are the decision makers for the Lions.  As a supporter of Orlando City Soccer, I appreciate the strategic bigger picture the front office is committed to executing for our teams long term success.   Far too often in professional sports we see front offices without a clear vision and strategy.  Luckily we don’t have that problem in Orlando. 

Rob Valentino moving from Orlando

It was only a matter of time but former Orlando City team captain Rob Valentino is moving from the Orlando area.  While Valentino is still a free agent not having signed with any club yet for the upcoming season, Rob is moving back to Arizona with his wife and daughter to have their second child.  Congrats to the Valentino family on their growing family. I wish them well.  He is a legend and he will have a legion of fans supporting him regardless of where he goes (Except for Tampa of course).  

Protecting the Shield...

Jurgen Klinsmann critical comments about Major League Soccer and Don Garbers subsequent response has caused a firestorm of opinions from pundits and observers of american soccer throughout the country. I understand all parties involved for the positions they have taken. I get why Klinsmann believes Michael Bradley was likely better off playing Champions League soccer in Roma. I get why Garber needs to adamantly defend the league he oversees. Locally, I get why Orlando City President Phil Rawlins is quick to back the MLS commissioner.

Rawlins agrees with Garber

As pointed out however astutely by ESPN pundit and former New England Revolution striker Taylor Twellman however "Jurgen Klinsmann is not the first national team coach to criticize MLS. Bob Bradley did it, Bruce Arena did it when I was playing. Everyone criticizes the domestic league."

So how do you make Major League Soccer more competitive?  That is a critical question for us who are fans of both the U.S. National Team and MLS.  Here are some ideas that I have brainstormed these past few days:

Improve Quality of Players: This is obvious and it will come in time.  We are slowly but surely headed in the right direction.  MLS is built on a healthy financial model that was setup to avoid the pitfalls and economic mistakes made by the old NASL.  The league has succeeded and become a real international force sending 31 players to this last World Cup.  The league ranked 8th in the world ahead of the Netherlands, Portugal and Brazil's domestic league in the number of players sent to the World Cup.  This is remarkable for MLS as the league is only 20 years old.  This new collective bargaining agreement to be negotiated starting at the end of this MLS season will be critical for the long term success of league.  While the owners must continue to be cautious of reckless spending that is destroying the sport in some countries, the new television deal needs to be a catalyst of sorts to improve player salaries, improve domestic player development and improve the quality of play in Major League Soccer.  Finding that balance will be the challenge. 

Promotion/Relegation:  Few things are as exciting as the promotion battle at the top of the Football League Championship and the battle to avoid relegation we see in England thru the EPL.  The teams at the bottom of the English Premier League many times are playing with much more heart and passion than those teams at the top battling for the title.  The run Sunderland went on last season to avoid relegation to the FLC was nothing short of remarkable.  Unlike Sunderland who were literally fighting for their lives, teams like the Chicago Fire, Montreal Impact and San Jose Earthquakes have nothing to play for.  By the same token teams like the Seattle Sounders, L.A. Galaxy and DC United while at the top of the table are not playing their top football right now as they have an eye looking ahead for the playoffs.  Like NFL teams that rest players in week 17 who are qualified for the playoffs, DC United is on cruise control right now knowing they have the Eastern Conference all but locked up.  The liberal MLS system which currently allows 10 of the 19 teams into the postseason renders the regular season to have much less meaning than in Europe.  The teams at the top can just coast and jockey for playoff positions while the teams at the bottom could very well just ship it in knowing there is no consequence to their bad play once they are mathematically out of the playoffs.  

I am a realist however.  Screaming the benefits of a promotion/relegation system is about as useful as complaining about I-4 traffic during rush hour.  I understand that promotion/relegation is nothing short of a pipe dream here in the U.S. with Major League Soccer.  Flavio did not invest millions of dollars into MLS to possibly be relegated a few years down the road.  While Phil may deep down inside be in favor of a promotion/relegation model, why would he allow the club he literally spearheaded in creation and formation to be demoted out of MLS after all the time and money he too has invested?  The same goes for any and all other MLS owners.  They have zero incentive to ever allow a system to be created where they could possibly lose millions of dollars in a system where their team could fall from a top division MLS category.  MLS owners created this league.  As much as I bitch about the Robert Kraft's of Major League Soccer, it is because of their money that this league exist in the first place.  As a direct consequence, they create the rules.

Alternative Incentives:  Since promotion/relegation is nothing but a pipe dream here in the U.S, other alternatives built in to incentivise players and clubs must be put in place.  This might come in a financial bonus.  Every place a team finishes higher in the table come seasons end, the players get paid an additional direct bonus by MLS.  If you win the supporters shield, you get the top financial prize while finishing at the bottom will yield the players a bonus of zero dollars and zero cents.  

Montreal Impact with no incentive left in 2014

Another possible incentive could be forcing bottom tier teams to come in much earlier in the U.S. Open Cup process.  Teams that finish 15 and lower for example enter the USOC when USL and NASL clubs start play.

Clubs could also lose player allocation priority.  The lower you finish, the more you fall in DP priority rankings or 'discovery claim' order.    Another possibility could be that the team that comes in last place could also lose a set number of home games the following season.  Montreal for example if they came in last place in points as they are in now would play 15 home games next season as opposed to 17.  Those home games would go to the clubs who finish at the top of the regular season.  

Some of these suggestions i'm sure are more realistic than others.  Fact is getting club owners to agree on a system where they might lose home games might be a bit hard.  With that said, if we are firmly established to play in a system where relegation is not an option, the league need to create real incentives for teams who are at the bottom of the table.

Season Ticket Sales Update Part III

Thru the 'Iron Lion Firm' facebook page, Orlando City President Phil Rawlins addressed various season ticket FAQ's directly.  Mr. Rawlins confirmed information we previously reported on here while clarifying some details.  Below are the six points he addressed:

• Orlando City will cap attendance at 19,500 at the Citrus Bowl and will mirror the new stadium capacity. 

• There will be exceptions to the 19,500 attendance cap for special occasions such as the opening game, playoffs etc.

• Tickets for the vast majority of games will be in very short supply as OCSC expects to sell out most games. 

• OCSC will cap season ticket sales at 14,000 and fully expect to sell out season tickets by the start of the season. 

• The club is currently tracking positively against season ticket sales for clubs like Portland in their inaugural season.  Portland has sold out over 50 straight home games thru today.

• OCSC does not owe the Citrus Bowl or MLS any kind of guarantee if the club do open up the 2nd and 3rd tier for the opening game or play-offs. 

Mr. Rawlins advises our supporters that have been with the club from day 1 that if they want to guarantee having a season ticket and a selected seat in 2016, that they need to have a season ticket in 2015. 

We appreciate our Presidents direct response.  I have been following sports my entire life and I don't think you will find a more hands on team executive for a professional franchise than Mr. Rawlins.  The fact a supporter clubs facebook page is even on Phil's radar I find to be remarkable considering how busy i'm sure he is these days.

So there you have it, outside of our most important games in 2015 Orlando City will cap ticket availability to mirror the new stadium in 2016.  If the demand is there however and it appears we will easily sell out the 19,500 artificial capacity at the Citrus Bowl, will Orlando City work with Florida Citrus Sports to open up additional sections to meet demand?  I would venture to say yes. Mind you this is my opinion and I have no inside source to confirm or even suggest that is the case, but we are too humble of a club to turn down additional sources of revenue stream if the demand is there for additional tickets.  The other way the front office could meet additional demand for games at the Citrus Bowl is by adding more 'special occasion' games like when the Galaxy or Sounders come to town on weekends and keep the aforementioned cap for weekday games.  The only way we will absolutely cap attendance at 19,500 for all games outside of playoffs and special games like the opening match is if there is lots of red tape and/or potential fines for not selling those allotments by either FCS or MLS.  There is no debate however in Mr. Rawlins statement that if you want to guarantee seats for 2016, season tickets in 2015 are a requisite.  Come 2016, OCSC will be one of the hottest tickets in Central Florida based on limited availability and high projected demand.  

Orlando City President Phil Rawlins

Season ticket sales update

Over the weekend thru the 'Iron Lion Firm' facebook page, the Orlando City front office informed us that season ticket sales will be capped at 19,500.  The reason this is so is because if the club opens up the second and third tier sections of the Citrus Bowl, it must guarantee a sell out or face fines from MLS and Florida Citrus Sports.  As OCSC communicates this limitation of tickets to its supporters, I am sure this will speed up sales as people realize there may not be that abundance of tickets despite the fact we play in a 60,000+ capacity stadium.

We were informed this thru the Orlando City front office catfish facebook account which is under the name 'Jennifer Ables'.  Jennifer Ables is a big Mississippi State Bulldogs fan, likes to post selfies of herself wearing low top dresses and is all knowing with respect to matters related to Orlando City.  This catfish account was created by some crafty and sly employee of the club to get more information about various supporters in the aftermath of the well documented incidents that occurred in the 2014 I-4 Darby between OCSC and the Tampa Bay Rowdies in St. Petersburg.  In the days after the arrest of four OCSC supporters (which all charges were dropped), three of which were ILF members, our front office felt compelled to create a phony facebook account and befriend various  supporters to try and get additional information to perhaps get a better idea of what occurred that unfortunate evening.  Catfish Ables was quick to defend the club if any negative comments were made about the club via facebook in the stressful days after the St. Pete incidents.  I found this action by the front office to be more comedic than upsetting.  It is funny how quick most guys are to accept a friend request from a total stranger as long as she is attractive.  Well played front office, well played.

To my dismay however, the front office used this account to correct the assumption from my previous post that there would be an abundance of ticket supply in 2015 to inform us of the ticket limitations for next season.  While I am happy to share this information, I am surprised this account is still active.  Thank you for the comedic fodder and information catfish Ables.  Cheers and go Bulldogs...

Catfish Ables cheering on the Mississippi State Bulldogs

Catfish Selfie

She is back

Season ticket sales for Orlando City now at 8,000 for 2015

An anonymous source today confirmed to me that Orlando City just passed 8,000 season tickets sold for the upcoming season.  October and November are projected to be slow months for sales.  The front office is projecting sales to pick up significantly come December, January and February.  The club is capping season sales at 14,000.  The club is internally projecting to be sold out of season tickets just before the start of the season.

I personally think that will be very difficult as fans know they can get individual tickets for any game they want this season as the Citrus Bowl will have plenty of capacity.  Meeting season ticket targets will be much easier in 2016 when supporters know there is a much more limited inventory of tickets.

Projected Citrus Bowl design

Projected OCSC stadium design

Inside the New Citrus Bowl Part II

On Wednesday of this week I took a tour of the new Citrus Bowl facility.  Below are some additional pictures, observations and details I had in an exchange I had with Florida Citrus Sports CEO Steve Hogan with respect to the future of soccer in Orlando outside of just Orlando City.

• The north end zone will also have two large screens on the northeast and northwest sides of the stadium.  While much smaller that the large LCD on the southend, these screens are also significant improvements over over what we had before.

• Similar to the pirate deck located in Raymond James Stadium, the new Citrus Bowl will have a party deck area overseeing the north end zone where Church Street is located.  It will have a clear line of vision overseeing Lake Lorna Doone.  The design for this deck is still TBD. 

• The upgraded Citrus Bowl will increase significantly the seating availability for handicapped patrons.  The Bowl used to have just under 100 seats available for handicap seating. That is increasing significantly to over 800.  

Facing the east side stands in midfield

Northeast endzone

• I had to opportunity to ask Steve Hogan why the selection of artificial turf over natural grass?  Mr Hogan responded with acknowledging that natural grass was the first choice, the maintenance of natural grass here in Orlando would be far too difficult because of the rain and climate in our region.  Hogan referenced the 2010 Capital One Bowl between LSU and Penn State as the catalyst for this decision.  

• I immediately followed up with asking Mr. Hogan if this would affect the ability for Orlando to get premier international soccer matches to the city.  His answered surprised me in a pleasant way.  Hogan said that Florida Citrus Sports is making it a top priority to bring international clubs and national teams to Orlando for friendlies and games of importance.  The FCS CEO acknowledged that many top international clubs and national teams will not play on artificial grass.  He immediately stated however that they will have plans in place to install natural grass on the Citrus Bowl pitch whenever necessary to attract these teams to play in Orlando.  While expensive to do, Mr. Hogan sated that this was a worthwhile investment needed to attract world class soccer to the stadium.  He acknowledged the success around the country in cities like Ann Arbor, St. Louis and Seattle hosting international club friendlies and is making it a priority to bring clubs like Manchester United to Orlando.  

• Florida Citrus Sports plans on hosting a kickoff classic similar to the one's hosted in Dallas and Houston starting in 2016.  Hogan stated they are deep in talks with two P5 conferences and seemed very confident that we will be hosting this event as scheduled in two years. 

Close up of seats

Northwest stadium LCD

New large pitch entrance way

Overall the upgraded Citrus Bowl will be a significant upgrade in stadium facilities from the legacy stadium.  That goes without saying and is obvious.  The money dedicated to upgrade the Citrus Bowl will be money the city of Orlando will quickly get back as most events FCS will be hosting, attract large number of tourist to our region.  

While I can't wait for our new home and stadium in 2016 for Orlando City, 2015 promises to be an exciting season on many levels for Orlando City, not the least of which is playing in this new state of the art Citrus Bowl.  My only concern is if club level seating is sold during Orlando City matches in the south end.  If that is the case, I hope those patrons understand the supporter culture and the fact that we will not sit down during the match.  Those new blue seats are nice, but they will get little to no use in the supporter sections.

Inside the New Citrus Bowl

Yesterday I was one of the first individuals to get an inside tour of the new Citrus Bowl.  The new upgraded Citrus Bowl is a total overhaul from the stadium we once knew.  Below are some quick highlights from my visit.

• The new main scoreboard will be massive.  It will cover almost two entire sections.  It will be a night and day difference to the old scoreboard which was very small and had technology from the 1980's. The big board will also have much more space for corporate sponsorship as you can see.  The new scoreboard will be located on the south end of the stadium as opposed to the northside prior to the renovation.  

• The south end of the stadium will have a private club section.  This club section will encompass the last 5-6 rows of the three center sections of the south end and will have a private lounge area.  Will Orlando City use this area for club seating is a question I have.  If so, that should be an interesting dynamic with private club seating patrons surrounded by the Iron Lion Firm and Ruckus.

New main board on the south end of the Citrus Bowl

The south end from the center of the stadium

New Seating

• There are 41,000 blue padded seats in the lower and middle sections of the Citrus Bowl.  The upper section will not have back padded seating and are being upgraded with only new bleachers.
• Concourses are five times wider than before.  There will be much more room to walk entering and leaving the stadium.  The walkways have also been completely eliminated.  There are now only stairs and escalators.

I will have a post tomorrow showing more pictures, share with you my exchange with Florida Citrus Sports CEO Steve Hogan giving me insight as to the future of soccer in Orlando outside of Orlando City and more insight into the new stadium.

View from NW side of stadium

Luxury boxes still under construction

West side stands

Off to Lisbon...

Rafael Ramos and Estrela have been called up to the Portuguese Under-20 National Team as per Paul Tenorio of the Orlando Sentinel.  MLS is a league made for parity.  Our relationship with S.L. Benfica might give us an important edge over our opponents in MLS.  Ramos and Estrela if they blossom could be DP caliber players at a fraction of the price.

Estrela (Left)

Rafael Ramos 

Kaka and the Future of OCSC

An article posted today by Orlando City owner Phil Rawlins published on 'I4 Business' reminded me of a piece I wrote a few months back for the Iron Lion Firm.

Nice coat ole chap

As we get closer to the 2015 MLS campaign, Kaka continues to garner headlines around the globe as he was recently called up to the Brazilian National Team.  Based on the reader comments on the Orlando City Facebook page, love him or hate him, it seems like all soccer fans have an opinion on Kaka.  While the OCSC facebook page comments are a cesspool of buffoonery at times, the observations are a good reflection of showing how polarizing Kaka is.  He is essentially Tim Tebow with a whole lot of talent.  Kaka wears his faith on his sleeve and is unashamed to be a deeply religious man who is very much involved in his global charitable organizations.  The former FIFA player of the year however is perceived by many to be washed up and past his prime.  I consider this to be a low brow talking point by those who conveniently fail to ignore his recent success as early as this past season with A.C. Milan.  Kaka garners headlines and attention.  Orlando City will be a soccer club known around the globe because of his signing.  Despite the fact he is projected to be MLS highest paid player in 2015, he is still a value and a brilliant signing by the Lions.

Below is my original blog post written on June 19th of this year.

Remember where you were today because this was the moment Orlando City Soccer Club became a global brand. Along with the headlines of today's World Cup matches and England's epic failure, the signing of Kaka by OCSC will be in every major newspaper and media outlet tonight and tomorrow.  From Porto Alegre to Belem, every Brazilian sports fan will now become intimately aware of who Orlando City is. 

Born Ricardo Izecson Dos Santos Leite, Kaka will be the second most important signing in the history of MLS behind David Beckham.  While MLS has been around since 1996, the signing of the Becks was the introduction of MLS to most of the world. Like the English superstar, Kaka is a global brand having signed endorsement deals with the likes of Armani and Adidas.  Kaka is a former FIFA player of the year (2007) with plenty of accolades who is known throughout the world for his charitable work and his outstanding play. 

Orlando City is already a known entity in Brazil.  With over 712,000 fans on Facebook, Orlando City Brazil is already ten times more popular than the clubs main page.  The teams’ affiliation with Flavio instantly gave the Lions name recognition in Brazil.  With one of the countries most popular players now joining Orlando City, the signing of Kaka will spurn interest in MLS and make the Lions a major brand in that country. The Beckham experiment showed Major League Soccer that it is capable of getting a worldwide audience.  Don Garber saw how big first-hand the additional revenue streams MLS was capable of with international superstars joining the league.  Along with David Villa, Kaka is spearheading Garber’s vision for MLS future. 

It is no coincidence that the day before the Orlando City friendly against Sao Paolo, there are news leaks flowing throughout social media and credible news sources that OCSC have signed Brazilian superstar Kaka.  As with all Phil Rawlins and Flavio have done, the Lions front office has been almost flawless in implementing their plan and vision.  Enjoy the journey City fans. Today is an excellent day for OCSC and the ILF.  Even better, the best is yet to come.

Is a 2015 MLS Work Stoppage a Possibility?

This last year has been nothing short of epic for Orlando City.  We have come from the uncertainty of our future as a soccer club and the unpredictability of wondering if we would ever get a Soccer Specific Stadium to having signed a global superstar in Kaka and being a few months away from kickoff in Major League Soccer.  Our fortunes have turned quicker than those of Kyrie Irving.  Orlando City has gone from minor league soccer purgatory to being months away from hosting David Villa and Frank Lampard.  We have gone from awkwardly flirting with school aged adolescent females to partying with Leonardo DiCaprio and Ryan Gosling in Las Vegas. While plans are full speed ahead for kickoff March 22^nd, 2015 in front of a packed Citrus Bowl, we still face the very real possibility of there being a work stoppage at the beginning of the 2015 MLS campaign that could indefinitely postpone the start of the season.  

Rick Scott pandering to the ILF

The current MLS Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) is set to expire on December 31^st of this year.  Due to the dramatic growth experienced these past few seasons, the players want a better deal.  Owners, MLS front office, neighborhoods where stadiums are located, elite top designated players and television network partners have all experienced the fruits of the leagues continued to grow.  The vast majority of players who are limited by the expiring CBA now want their cut.  As reported by Washington Post writer Steven Goff in his interview with union representative Bobby Boswell of D.C. United, the players are right now working on getting on the same page and developing a strategy for the upcoming negotiations.  

This past May, MLS negotiated a new domestic television contract worth just over $90,000,000 a season.  That is a threefold increase from the previous agreement that expired this season that garnered the league approximately $30,000,000 in revenues per season.  This does not include international television contracts, branding agreements, merchandise sales and stadium revenues which have all continued to grow.  

As part of this last CBA, the MLS minimum salary is still $35,125.  The league median is only $75,000 a season.  While players like Thierry Henry (earns $3.75 million a season) and Robbie Keane (earns $4 million a season) enjoy salaries comparable to what they would make with top European soccer clubs, 62 players made the league minimum this past season.  As of 2013, 15 of the leagues 19 clubs had combined team salaries of under $4,000,000 a season.  So while a handful of MLS players make seven figure salaries, the vast majority are still making humble wages by any account. Bobby Boswell and the union have to see this growth and the players want their cut of the continued success Major League Soccer is having.  While the single ownership model and current CBA have been catalyst in the leagues continued prosperity, the status quo is unacceptable.  The rising tide lifts all boats and it is only fair the players receive increases in wages.  I personally would love to see the MLS minimum increase significantly from $35,125 and force teams to spend a minimum on player salaries.  There is no reason why a club like Colorado is allowed to less than $3 million a season on player compensation while the league permits the Red Bull to spend over $10 million.  For a league that prides itself on fairness and equality, permitting some teams to be so frugal on player expenses is wrong and must change.  

It will be critical in my opinion for both sides to keep negotiations as private as possible and not allow news leaks that make the owners or players be perceived in a negative light.  If we as fans start seeing players flinging mud at the owners and the same vice versa, do not be surprised to see a prolonged player strike.  My desire is that Don Garber can negotiate with the players in good faith and come to the table with an offer that is not insulting.  Garber and the owners have the leverage as I am sure they know many of their players live paycheck to paycheck and can squeeze out getting their desired agreement in a similar fashion to which the NFL and NBA have recently done.  We nearly avoided disaster back in 2010 as we were days away from delaying the start of that MLS season.  We may not be so fortunate this time.  As a fan, I would love to see this new CBA as a catalyst for increased player acquisition transparency.  With respect to that final aspiration, I won’t hold my breath.   

The Curious Case of Miguel Ibarra

Miguel Ibarra is a talented 24 year old currently playing alongside OCSC legend Jamie Watson with  Minnesota United of the NASL.  The young winger has been playing professionally in minor leagues of American professional soccer since 2008 bouncing between the NPSL, USL Premier Development League and NASL.  His most recent stint with Minnesota United has been wildly successful as the young man from New York has not only caught the eye of MLS but also of National Team Coach Jurgan Klinsmann who recently called up Ibarra to the upcoming USMNT Camp. 

Because of Jason Kreis' bababooey moment at the Expansion Draft, Orlando City will have the top pick in USL/NASL Player Priority Ranking.  This means Orlando City will have first choice of any player currently in the American second or third division.  Naturally many have speculated Miguel Ibarra will be a top target for Orlando City.

Out of nowhere however the New York Red Bull (a team soon to be defunct), have placed a ‘discovery claim’ on Ibarra.  Discovery claims are an archaic system setup by MLS that is used to determine which teams get new players coming into the league.  It is a mysterious process full of vagueness that needs reform.  When the Red Bull tried to use the discovery claim to sign Ibarra this past offseason, negotiations fell thru as they did not want to pay Minnesota the transfer fee. If they were not able to workout a deal, how long does this mysterious discovery claim tie Ibarra to the NYRB?  Just to be clear, Ibarra is not a homegrown player despite the fact he is from New York City.  He has never had an affiliation with the Red Bulls in anyway shape or form.  Because of MLS chaotic system however, somehow this young man is tied down to a club that never drafted him, developed him or ever had any affiliation with him.  

MLS now has systems in place to designate where talent plays such as the MLS Super Draft, USL/NASL priority rankings, Designated Player rankings, and waiver/re-entry draft rankings. 

With such systems in place why would Don Garber permit the chaotic discovery process to remain in place?  In my opinion the answer is simple; The MLS is a cartel that likes to manipulate its talent the same way Vince McMahon manipulates the outcome of matches in professional wrestling.  Forgive my skepticism but if a market like Columbus had a Discovery Claim on Ibarra, something tells me Garber would be quick to shoot that claim down.  Ibarra has no connection to the Red Bull.  The young man has been playing professionally and even drafted by the Portland Timbers in the 2012 MLS Supplemental draft (negotiations with the Timbers fell thru).  This backroom nonsense used by MLS to coarse the process of Miguel Ibarra coming into the American top flight by avoiding the USL/NASL priority rankings and simply designating him to play for Red Bull (who will be in dire need of Ibarra being that Thierry Henry has no intention of coming back to New York) is a joke and just another example as to why many of us long time followers of MLS see the league as shady and run by the special interest of the large/profitable markets.

 

As Major League Soccer continues to grow in both popularity and credibility, I believe the league needs more transparency as to how players are designated to play in what market.  The single player ownership model has many positives.  As many of the top professional European clubs and leagues are in dire straits because of gross financial irresponsibility, corruption and a woefully one-sided business models that only favor the top teams, Major League Soccer has continued to grow in a steady and profitable way as can be seen by the steady improvement in player talent coming to MLS, new nine figure multi-million dollar television contracts and continued growth and popularity in the international market as can be seen by the worldwide buzz in the signing of our very own Kaka. These successes can be attributed to many factors one of which is the single-entity business model which MLS operates under.  I am a fan of single-entity.  What I do not like is the ambiguity as to how players are designated to play in different markets.  We as Americans do not like ambiguity.   We do not appreciate any perceived unfairness or corruption.  MLS needs to be more clear in its process, improve the status quo and be clear with its supporters exactly how the player designation process is done. 

About me...

Greetings and welcome to my sports blog.

My name is Carlos A. Alvarado and I fancy myself a writer.  I have been published in the Baltimore Sun, Orlando Sentinel and various other online mediums.  I am narcissistic enough to think my sports thoughts and opinions matter and should be shared with the world. Hence why I created the blog.

I am a big Orlando City Soccer supporter, UCF football die hard and degenerate sports gambler.   In this blog I will share my random thoughts on Orlando City, UCF Football, The Orlando Magic, sports gambling and just general musings.  Cheers and thanks for reading.