MLS seeks team in Philadelphia, and new owner for DC United

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The Major League Soccer (MLS) announced that it was actively seeking an expansion team for Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, while also seeking ownership for one of its strongest franchises, Washington DC United.

At the annual National Soccer Coaches of America convention, MLS Commissioner Don Garber noted Philadelphia’s strong history of support for football. “We have always maintained that Philadelphia is one of our top expansion prospects,” Garber said. As with the league’s other teams Garber wants a plan in place for a football specific stadium of around 25,000 capacity. Currently, several teams play in stadiums much too large for their needs.

“We are continuing to work to find a stadium solution,” Garber said. “As we talk to potential investors, Philadelphia is where we steer them.” Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field, home of the NFL’s Philadelphia Eagles, played host to several big-name exhibition matches last summer, drawing between 40,000-68,000 spectators for matches involving Celtic, Manchester United and AC Milan. “Philadelphia is one of the largest markets, with tremendous ethnic diversity, with a history of supporting sports teams and a history of working with public and private partnerships in building facilities,” Garber said. “Philadelphia is one of the best markets without an MLS team, and we're determined to correct that.”

While Garber works on finding investors in Philadelphia, DC United is working on finding new ownership after a proposed deal with local investors fell apart earlier this year. Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG), which runs five other teams in the league, is currently seeking investors to take over the club’s franchise for a MLS record fee of US$ 26 million. “It was a mutual decision,” club president Kevin Payne told the Washington Post, about the deal’s collapse. “There were concerns on both sides that this probably was not ultimately going to be the right fit for anybody.”

Colorado-based billionaire Phillip Anschutz is the league’s top investor, with AEG operating clubs L.A. Galaxy, Colorado Rapids, Chicago Fire, New York-New Jersey Metrostars and Houston. The MLS league works on a single-entity structure in which investors are awarded the right to operate a club.