Home NASL & USL FC Edmonton FC Edmonton: No contact at all with Canadian professional league backers

FC Edmonton: No contact at all with Canadian professional league backers

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Sources have indicated that the Canadian professional league is close to becoming reality, with key meetings expected in the coming weeks.

But, if the league does indeed come to be — and, to be fair, there is still a lot of skepticism out there — the assumption that the North American Soccer League’s Ottawa Fury and FC Edmonton would simply come along for the ride is well, off-base.

FCE’s lack of involvement in the Canadian professional league may come as a surprise to some; the club said today that “no one in the organization has been contacted in any capacity.”

It’s not that the Eddies are acting willfully blind; the franchise has not been invited to the party.

(UPDATE: The Ottawa Fury confirms that the club has not been invited to any meetings regarding the proposed new Canadian league).

When Canadian Soccer Association president Victor Montagliani spoke in June 2014 about the drive to launch a Division “1A” in Canada (CLICK HERE), he said the goal was for it to co-exist with Major League Soccer and the North American Soccer League.

And that looks to be the case going forward; that if a Canadian “1A” was to come to pass, then you could have a scenario where there are Canadian pro franchises in the new Canadian pro league, MLS, NASL and USL. That’s a very crowded space. It would open up lots of discussion on how to handle the awarding of Canada’s CONCACAF Champions League place.

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8 Comments

  1. Kahkakew Yawassanay

    November 30, 2015 at 1:13 pm

    Only one source has promoted this ridiculous idea, CSN! Watering down an already pitiful product would be what MLS desires as lower leagues scrap over marginal talent resulting in an ever increasing inferior product…if the CFL was serious they would have partnered with the NASL and NPSL and CSA to create an all Canuck division and pro/rel to challenge MLS illegal monopoly. American based club would have pro/rep with the NPSL and this new hybrid division could have pro/rep with the PCSL and div 3 leagues in Que and Ontario…..and all clubs concerned could be in their respective CCL qualification separately and gain one qualification spot from The MLS which the 3 MLS clubs north of the 49th would have the other spot for CCL….sounds too easy, 24 team NASL with 4 divisions of 6 clubs with one being an all Canuck div

    • Steven Sandor

      November 30, 2015 at 3:05 pm

      Now that an MLS team, through MLSE, has basically bailed out a CFL team (the Argos) through the BMO Field deal, I wonder just how interested some other CFL owners would be about starting a league that would rival the one in which Toronto FC plays.

  2. left back

    June 2, 2015 at 9:55 am

    here is the break down…..

    “When NASL was formed, Traffic was (and is now) the major capital contributor to the venture, and the group owns the majority of B stock (66%) in the league. The league has a class A and class B stock ownership structure. The class A stock (representing all team owners in the league) is diluted each time a new owner enters NASL, according to a 2010 flowchart which was supplied to Northern Pitch. The flow chart also showed Traffic contributing $4.5 million, which would eventually get paid back with payments of $450,000 for the first 10 teams that entered the league. If the 2010 document is accurate, Traffic also received 30% commissions on commercial rights of media, sponsorships and merchandising.
    “All NASL owners vote with class A rights. Class B stock does not vote but gives Traffic the control (veto rights) they needed for limited issues, based upon their risk, to control their return on equity and return of equity, if that ever happens.”

    Read more at http://worldsoccertalk.com/2015/05/28/nasls-deep-ties-with-traffic-sports-create-serious-questions-about-leagues-future/#c7zhL3gtUVTdQdwk.99

  3. italk2u

    June 2, 2015 at 8:23 am

    If fath loses another pile of cash this season, which he undoubtedly will, would the Eskimos be quick to buy him out?
    If not, given the acrimony created by fath between the soccer and football communities in Edmonton, would the eskimos consider moving in on Fath’s territory and forming a team of their own?
    Just asking.

  4. deeks2

    June 1, 2015 at 11:05 pm

    They could always sell their shares. I don’t know if the NASL will survive this Traffic scandal. But I also don’t see this A1 league ever launching without the Big Three or the D2 NASL clubs. The league will flop if it is a bunch of garbage CFL run teams.

    • formercampaignexpert

      June 2, 2015 at 8:15 am

      >I don’t know if the NASL will survive this Traffic scandal.

      I don’t know why they wouldn’t. Carolina is only team they pay for, local management has run it forever. Davidson was only one person in leadership of NASL from traffic, and from all accounts he has been out of ‘daily’ operations for 4+ years.

      Black eye on reputation maybe, but beyond that, I really don’t think it is all that troubling. I mean if Davidson and traffic were high profile in NASL maybe, but really they have all stepped back a long time ago.

      Biggest issue will be if it scares off expansion.

      • Steven Sandor

        June 2, 2015 at 8:52 am

        Traffic has shares in the league. It’s more than an ownership of Carolina. That’s what’s indicated in the indictment from the U.S. Department of Justice.

  5. campaignExpert

    June 1, 2015 at 9:59 pm

    With all the traffic news the thing I thought was most interesting was revelation the fath brothers own some amount of B shares in NASL. That explain why no one would talk to them about joining another league.

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