FC Edmonton owner Fath not worried about CSA ban By Steven Sandor Posted on December 7, 2010 Comments Off on FC Edmonton owner Fath not worried about CSA ban 0 822 Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Tom Fath and Harry Sinkgraven FC Edmonton owner Tom Fath said he is confident that the Canadian Soccer Association’s temporary moratorium on domestic franchises entering U.S.-based leagues won’t affect NASL’s bold expansion plans. “I am expecting we will see five to eight new teams in the coming years,” Fath said Monday, as FC Edmonton named Harry Sinkgraven its new head coach. With Ottawa well into its application process for an NASL franchise, and Hamilton regularly being mentioned as a candidate, Canada remains in play for the Division-Two league, even though the CSA placed a 10-month ban on new domestic franchises entering the league. Fath’s confidence that NASL will be free to expand to Canada after the 10-month period echoes the sentiment of league CEO Aaron Davidson, who told The 11 on Nov. 24 that he didn’t see any slowing of the league’s plans to have Division Two franchises throughout this country. Fath said he is also confident that Gordon Hartman, who is bringing an NASL franchise to San Antonio, will be successful when that team launches in 2012. Hartman got a public endorsement for his bid to bring pro soccer to San Antonio from Red McCombs, former owner of the NBA’s San Antonio Spurs. In an open letter to fans, McCombs compared Hartman’s quest to bring pro soccer to San Antonio to what it was like to put the Spurs on the Texas sporting map in the 1970s. Fath said he’d met the principals in the San Antonio deal and was impressed with their vision for the team and NASL.
