USAToday 5.11.07 - League minimum salary discussed and compared to other sports
ESPN 5.4.07 - Top league salaries discussed. "Beckham will receive more than double what any other player in MLS is getting this year and more than 50 times the average salary"
Players Union 7.12.08 - SuperLiga 08, players in the final will pool their winnings.
MLS 6.19.09 - SuperLiga 09, Don Garber: "Working closely with the MLS Players Union, we have addressed some of the issues we had with last year's tournament and have doubled the prize money available to MLS players for winning the competition."
1.27.94 - Loads of stuff in here about Seattle and MLS. Example: "MLS officials are less concerned about Seattle's ability to come up with sales of 10,000 season tickets, as required in the May application in the form of $75 adult and $35 youth deposits, refundable if the city is not awarded a team."
1.29.94 - "The nine cities that are hosting World Cup games this summer are expected to get first chance at joining the league, which plans to own and run each of the teams. But Steinbruecher said Seattle is a market the MLS is greatly interested in."
2.4.94 - Seattle soccer summit mentioned and need for a "soccer-only stadium"
2.24.94 - MLS season ticket drive and Sounders division 2 season ticket drive kept separate
5.3.94 - 1,300 season ticket deposits by June 3rd deadline for MLS team
6.15.94 - Seattle bid passed over in first MLS announcement
7.17.94 - Husky Stadium listed as possible stadium for MLS bid
11.16.94 - MLS delayed until 1996, APSL Sounders hurt chances for MLS team, grass field needed too
5.11.96 - "Seattle, considered one of soccer's strongholds, was targeted for one of the 10 original MLS teams. But the region was not awarded a team because it lacked an adequate outdoor stadium."
11.19.09 - economic impact of Sounders FC on Seattle
12.12.09alt - Don Garber: "Our country celebrated what soccer could be here in Seattle, and now we in the league can take that and show the world that this sport really can matter."
11.30.09 - Leiweke recognized for successful expansion launch in a recession.
11.1.09 - LATimes - "In fact, were it not for the expansion Seattle Sounders and the MLS-record average of 30,897 fans they attracted to Qwest Field, average attendance leaguewide would have plummeted by 9% rather than by only 2.6%."
10.28.09 - SI - "Without the expansion Seattle Sounders, who set an MLS record with an average attendance of 30,897 fans a game, the league's average attendance would have been down 9 percent."
10.27.09 - Sports Business Journal - "...down 2.6% from 16,460 fans per game a year ago, despite the expansion Sounders FC finishing out their inaugural season with the highest average attendance in league's history."
11.4.09 - Headline: "Success story: Sounders FC has been winner on and off the field in first season"
[2] - January 2010 Washington State Senate resolution honoring Sounders FC
5.20.10 - Sounders named Pro Sports Team of the Year
Qwest Field and Soccer Specific Stadiums
Forbes 9.9.08 - "Seven of the league’s 14 teams play in soccer-specific stadiums"
Portland Online - PowerPoint discussing SSS around the league. Note: Qwest is not listed (perhaps because the Sounders FC had not started yet, but they are listed in the shirt sponsor section).
USAToday - Don Garber: "Our long-term goal is to own all of our stadiums and facilities." Lots more in this article about Dick's Sporting Goods park as well as SSS and league growth goals.
Seattle PI - "It has long been thought the MLS would only enter a market if plans existed for a separate soccer-specific stadium with a grass field, but Qwest Field was built specifically to fit MLS standards and is fit for a club, even with FieldTurf."
NY Times - Don Garber: "Having control of Qwest Field really gives us the ability to achieve most of what we hope to with soccer-specific stadiums."
ESPN - "Out West, while Seattle will share Qwest Field with the Seahawks, five teams play in a soccer-specific stadium and land has been purchased on which both Houston and San Jose will have new stadiums built. It seems that MLS has not been hit by the ongoing property crisis, with the drive toward teams owning their own homes continuing at a pace."
Goal.com 12.8.08 - FieldTurf, football lines, and Qwest field discussed
Goal.com 12.19.08 - Chris Henderson: "Gray Wright, head of our business operations for the Seattle Seahawks, guarantees us we aren’t going to see one game with football lines. That’s his quest this year. I believe him. We want to make sure when it’s soccer its soccer and you aren’t seeing any lines. It affects people in the stadium and watching from home."
Goal.com 3.13.09 - Don Garber: "I don’t think we ever imagined that this level of success was possible in Seattle in a large football stadium. It proves that when you are a young league, a growing business, you’ve got to continually evolve your thinking."
2009.9.4 - Adrian Hanauer: "This is one of those goals we set for ourselves and allows us to reach our five-year goal to play in the World Club Championships."
USAToday 5.11.07 - League minimum salary discussed and compared to other sports
ESPN 5.4.07 - Top league salaries discussed. "Beckham will receive more than double what any other player in MLS is getting this year and more than 50 times the average salary"
Players Union 7.12.08 - SuperLiga 08, players in the final will pool their winnings.
MLS 6.19.09 - SuperLiga 09, Don Garber: "Working closely with the MLS Players Union, we have addressed some of the issues we had with last year's tournament and have doubled the prize money available to MLS players for winning the competition."
1.27.94 - Loads of stuff in here about Seattle and MLS. Example: "MLS officials are less concerned about Seattle's ability to come up with sales of 10,000 season tickets, as required in the May application in the form of $75 adult and $35 youth deposits, refundable if the city is not awarded a team."
1.29.94 - "The nine cities that are hosting World Cup games this summer are expected to get first chance at joining the league, which plans to own and run each of the teams. But Steinbruecher said Seattle is a market the MLS is greatly interested in."
2.4.94 - Seattle soccer summit mentioned and need for a "soccer-only stadium"
2.24.94 - MLS season ticket drive and Sounders division 2 season ticket drive kept separate
5.3.94 - 1,300 season ticket deposits by June 3rd deadline for MLS team
6.15.94 - Seattle bid passed over in first MLS announcement
7.17.94 - Husky Stadium listed as possible stadium for MLS bid
11.16.94 - MLS delayed until 1996, APSL Sounders hurt chances for MLS team, grass field needed too
5.11.96 - "Seattle, considered one of soccer's strongholds, was targeted for one of the 10 original MLS teams. But the region was not awarded a team because it lacked an adequate outdoor stadium."
11.19.09 - economic impact of Sounders FC on Seattle
12.12.09alt - Don Garber: "Our country celebrated what soccer could be here in Seattle, and now we in the league can take that and show the world that this sport really can matter."
11.30.09 - Leiweke recognized for successful expansion launch in a recession.
11.1.09 - LATimes - "In fact, were it not for the expansion Seattle Sounders and the MLS-record average of 30,897 fans they attracted to Qwest Field, average attendance leaguewide would have plummeted by 9% rather than by only 2.6%."
10.28.09 - SI - "Without the expansion Seattle Sounders, who set an MLS record with an average attendance of 30,897 fans a game, the league's average attendance would have been down 9 percent."
10.27.09 - Sports Business Journal - "...down 2.6% from 16,460 fans per game a year ago, despite the expansion Sounders FC finishing out their inaugural season with the highest average attendance in league's history."
11.4.09 - Headline: "Success story: Sounders FC has been winner on and off the field in first season"
[2] - January 2010 Washington State Senate resolution honoring Sounders FC
5.20.10 - Sounders named Pro Sports Team of the Year
Qwest Field and Soccer Specific Stadiums
Forbes 9.9.08 - "Seven of the league’s 14 teams play in soccer-specific stadiums"
Portland Online - PowerPoint discussing SSS around the league. Note: Qwest is not listed (perhaps because the Sounders FC had not started yet, but they are listed in the shirt sponsor section).
USAToday - Don Garber: "Our long-term goal is to own all of our stadiums and facilities." Lots more in this article about Dick's Sporting Goods park as well as SSS and league growth goals.
Seattle PI - "It has long been thought the MLS would only enter a market if plans existed for a separate soccer-specific stadium with a grass field, but Qwest Field was built specifically to fit MLS standards and is fit for a club, even with FieldTurf."
NY Times - Don Garber: "Having control of Qwest Field really gives us the ability to achieve most of what we hope to with soccer-specific stadiums."
ESPN - "Out West, while Seattle will share Qwest Field with the Seahawks, five teams play in a soccer-specific stadium and land has been purchased on which both Houston and San Jose will have new stadiums built. It seems that MLS has not been hit by the ongoing property crisis, with the drive toward teams owning their own homes continuing at a pace."
Goal.com 12.8.08 - FieldTurf, football lines, and Qwest field discussed
Goal.com 12.19.08 - Chris Henderson: "Gray Wright, head of our business operations for the Seattle Seahawks, guarantees us we aren’t going to see one game with football lines. That’s his quest this year. I believe him. We want to make sure when it’s soccer its soccer and you aren’t seeing any lines. It affects people in the stadium and watching from home."
Goal.com 3.13.09 - Don Garber: "I don’t think we ever imagined that this level of success was possible in Seattle in a large football stadium. It proves that when you are a young league, a growing business, you’ve got to continually evolve your thinking."
2009.9.4 - Adrian Hanauer: "This is one of those goals we set for ourselves and allows us to reach our five-year goal to play in the World Club Championships."