While the Freedom & DC United worked together (and even shared staff at one point), their ownership has always been separate (btw they no longer share staff).

As of now, Chicago is the only team that even shares a stadium with an MLS team, but that’s as close as the relationship has been… the happenchance that Red Stars & Fire play in the same place.

Jeff Cooper owns Saint Louis Athletica, and obviously was pushing for an MLS team there, but that is the only chance I see anywhere in the future of a combined ownership (as of now).

JD

Carson is a nice stadium in terms of its size and aesthetics, but its shitty stadium in terms of its accessibility and was never appropriate for the Sol.

As a long-range plan, housing the Sol at Carson – and charging as much as $100 for a good seat for a Sunday afternoon match – wasn’t the behavior of an outfit interested in growing the audience for the sport. Carson had to have been hugely expensive as a venue as well. (Why not work with one of the area campuses – UCLA? – which is already a pilgrimage site for fans of women’s soccer? And accessible by mass transit?)

And when they slapped the word “AMWAY” on the shirt, that was it for me. Their marketing was half-hearted at best – no real consideration for the team’s “brand” – which goes right to the crappy name. “Sol” = mediocre beer. “LA Sol” = linguistic awkwardness (sol is masculine, “el sol” – I see “la sol” and imagine “la soledad” – not a good linguistic association for a team sport!). I never once saw the Sol marketing folks at an LA Municipal women’s game.

The Sol enjoyed the support they did because we have no other option – we went to games in spite of AEG’s efforts, not because of them.

I happened to sit next to a high level sport marketing executive at the hair dressers the other week. She ranted about AEG’s business strategy: turn a quick profit. They have no business playing a role in a developing league. They are ruthless number crunchers. I’m tired of people saying that is OK: it isn’t, if you throw ethics and commitment to the sport out the window.

And, I still say a corporation run by an aggressive and politically active homophobe has no “business” getting involved in women’s sports, never mind a league using Marta as its poster child. Good riddance.

Query: The LA Sol had, via AEG, an institutional link to a men’s team. Historically, that’s usually worked against women’s clubs and not for them. Are other WPS owned or co-owned by companies that own the men’s clubs in their towns, sharing staff and facilities?

JD