On Tuesday, FCD and the Crew officially announced the inaugural Lamar Hunt Pioneer Cup, a tribute game honoring the man that was a pioneer in the sport of soccer for over 40 years. The game will be played at Pizza Hut Park on March 11, proceeded by an Alumni Tribute game involving former players and coaches that made up previous Lamar Hunt owned teams.
Mr. Hunt built Columbus Crew stadium to kickoff the building of soccer-specific stadium that we see today. After he and his family took over the operations of FC Dallas in 2003, he was the key player in the partnership with local entities here in Frisco that funded Pizza Hut Park - with his family putting in almost half the total cost of this awesome complex. In 2007, seven of the 13 MLS teams will be playing in their own stadiums, with more on the horizon.
However, these are the material contributions that soccer fans can physically see. Over the past month, many have read stories that demonstrated what a true gentleman, visionary, and philanthroper he was - and how he touched so many people. So many people have a Lamar story, that we truly felt like we were part of his life.
This game will serve as a fundraiser for Dallas SCORES, a local program that uses a combination of soccer, creative writing and service-learning for students in a safe, constructive learning environment after school five days a week. Kids that participate in the learning programs can then also play soccer in their own league - which will now be called the Pioneer Soccer League.
Contributions can be made online beginning next week, or through the FC Dallas office. Here's the full release.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Monday, January 29, 2007
Morrow - "A busy off-season"
FC Dallas Head Coach Steve Morrow
Hi everyone. As I mentioned last Friday, it’s been a couple of hectic weeks recently. We addressed the Edgar Davids situation over the weekend, but we wanted to fill you in on the other happenings of the past month.
The time leading into Christmas was concentrated on me having a lot of meetings with the players. I caught up with all the players, either in person if they were out of town having long conversations with every single player. We had a lot of futures to sort, contracts to sort out. I’ll touch on Bobby Rhine and Roberto Mina’s contracts in a bit.
Then I went to England, arriving there on Boxing Day (December 26). My first meeting was with a the SEM agency, which is a group of agents over there who are very big in England and have player like Thierry Henry, Rio Ferdinand, and a lot of big names over there. My main contact was Jerome Anderson, he’s someone who I worked with while at Arsenal and has a lot of big contacts. We had a meeting and the aim of the meeting was two-fold: to identify some players to see who might be available out there; and also, to look at ways that we could increase the name of FC Dallas and soccer in general over there, which led to the London Times story.
That meeting set off the talks with Edgar Davids as well. We made contact with his representatives while I was over there. That developed, and we talked about money, etc and got us to the point where we are today. While I was there, there were some other players that we talked about. I went to watch a few games, and can say that we identified some targets that were worthwhile looking at. It was a hectic few days in London and I was able to take in some days in Belfast with my family.
From there it was straight over to Florida for the Combine. Before I left for London, Marco and Oscar and I sat down and put all our notes together and made sure all our preparation for the combine was done, and that we had information on a lot of the players we knew where going to be there, especially all of the targets we wanted to see and learn more about. Marco prepared a great report while I was in England, put together a great folder - and that was a great start for us.
I met with Marco in Florida and went through the combine. I lot of the players we saw emphasized again what we were looking for and the targets we identified definitely came out strong. There were also some that we didn’t know much on that definitely caught our eye. It was again a busy time at combine, catching up with coaches and there was lots of gossip, and more talk with Edgar Davids.
We had a lot of conversations with coaches. At that stage, all talks and proposals are made, and if you're interested in this or that. I think it lays the foundation for later meetings that happen at the draft, in terms of possible trades and interest in different players which materialized later on.
One thing that we did learn was that there was a lot of interest in a good deal of our players – and most of those cases they were players that I wouldn’t even entertain releasing. I think compared to other teams, we realized that we have a strong squad of players with a lot of teams interested in them. A lot of coaches proposed trades to me that I didn’t even consider for a second. But there were one or two trades that I wanted to put in place that later materialized.
So after the combine it was back to Dallas for a few days and concentrating on getting prepared for the draft – getting our list together on who we expected to get in the first round, who other teams may be getting; and try to manipulate the situation to move up in the draft if we felt we needed.
Then it was off to Indianapolis. And that morning, at the airport on the way to Indianopolis, is when the Edgar talks really got more serious. His agent called me that morning and stressed his strong interest to come here. And just at that time, I started receiving a lot of calls from Europe as the news of Beckham signing with L.A. was out. We knew that this was a great time to put it out there that Edgar Davids was interested in coming FC Dallas.
That day was when we had the most serious talks to see what it would take to get Edgar here and the financial package involved, etc. And those talks progress a lot in the next two weeks.
That night, Michael and I were up to the wee hours of the morning talking to coaches about trades, and there were one or two that I wanted to happen and we pushed hard for. The next day, we had a crazy hour leading into the draft, talking to Fernando (Clavijo) and one other team trying to get the best deal for FC Dallas. We went through the draft and I think Michael gave a good account on what went on at draft in his blog.
Since then, we still had a couple of hectic weeks, talking with agents and getting the coaching staff finalized. That was a very important priority for me to get done – talk to the coaches and make sure everyone had their goals and contracts in place and everything of that nature sorted out. Between me and the coaching staff we’ve probably watched 30 DVDs of players and have taken numerous calls from agents. As I mentioned before, the aftermath of David Beckham sparked a lot of interest with players wanting to come into this league, and we’ve been diligently analyzing many players. In the meantime, we also continued our talks with Edgar Davids – which I think we covered in depth in the Davids blog.
We also contacted all the players that we drafted – having long conversations, telling them what to expect when they come here, how every situation is different, especially with Ibee (Abdus Ibrahim).
I want to also comment on a few players.
Roberto’s (Mina) and Bobby’s (Rhine) contracts were two priorities for me that I wanted to get done. Roberto’s has been complicated because as most know, his pass is owned by another club and we’ve always paid a loan fee for him. His agents aren’t always the easiest to deal with, but it was something I really wanted to get done. We’re at the point right now where we feel that a deal is going to get done with Roberto. I think Roberto can bring a lot to this team as we move forward, and I’m very excited to be able to work with him. I think that we can get more out of him and make an even better player, and have high hopes that he’s going to have a good year.
A contract has been agreed with Bobby Rhine. He’s a great professional and is someone who I wanted to have here on this team. I think at this point it’s just a matter of him signing the contract.
I also want to say something about Simo Valakari. Simo has been great for this team in the last couple years and we appreciate the effort that he’s put in. He’s been a model professional. I explained to him how I saw his role with the team as we move forward, and we mutually agreed that it was time to move forward and explore something else.
Chris Gbandi came to me a few weeks back and told me about this opportunity he had to go and train with a team in Norway (IK Start), it was an opportunity that he wanted to explore. I'll say that we very much want Chris to be part of our plan going forward. However, Chris obviously impressed while he was over there, and I think it’s been out there that the team is interested in purchasing Chris. We are talking through that situation with Chris, with the League, and with the team in Norway.
We were delighted for Kenny (Cooper), he deserves his opportunity to play for the U.S. National Team. I was impressed with his performance coming off the bench against Denmark – and the way he finished his goal. I’ve had conversations with him on the phone while he’s been at camp and have been delighted with his progress.
I also sat and had a couple of great meetings with Carlos (Ruiz). I think the way things happened for him with his national team were unfortunate. It seems like a miscommunication and unfortunately Carlos missed out on the opportunity. He’s focused on coming in and having a good preseason with FC Dallas.
We also put a lot of effort in finalizing our preseason plans, finalizing some trips – and we’re delighted we are going down to Brazil. We had representatives from Atletico Paranaense here last week, and had some good conversations to make sure the situation we were going to down there was the right situation. They made a great presentation for us and we are excited about going down there and playing them, and possibly another game. I wanted to do something different this preseason as well, rather than going back to Spain as we’d done the last three years.
Part of the plan in going down there is, through our partnership with them, looking at possibly one or two players that may be able to join our team through loan. We’ve identified a couple of young players, a defender and a midfielder, that may be able to join us, subject to me having a closer look at.
We’ve also been working on our youth development initiatives, which we see as very important. We have put a lot of time into this, and have had several meetings and planning sessions. We’re making good progress on this and hope to have something off the ground in the coming months.
This upcoming weekend we’ll be conducting our own player combine. Marco, Oscar and Jeff have been working hard on this project, putting together a group players that will have a chance to be looked at for either our youth development initiative or even possibly fight for a developmental spot. There were a lot of players that have applied and sent in resumes that we want to take a look at. It’s already been a great success, as we received nearly 500 applications in a short amount of time.
As you can see, it’s been a crazy off season, very hectic and very busy, and fun. At this moment in time we are putting plans in place, and really talking about the finer details of our training program through preseason. We’ve been talking to all the players, and begin bringing them in for entrance physicals starting on Thursday, Feb. 1; checking on the boys to see how they’ve done on their off-season training programs; making sure every one is getting in one time. Fitness testing will start on Feb. 5. We’re going to bring in the players in smaller groups and do detail fitness assessments with all the players. And then the real work will start of Feb. 12.
At this stage, we can’t wait to get going, get preseason training started, and get into the games.
Hi everyone. As I mentioned last Friday, it’s been a couple of hectic weeks recently. We addressed the Edgar Davids situation over the weekend, but we wanted to fill you in on the other happenings of the past month.
The time leading into Christmas was concentrated on me having a lot of meetings with the players. I caught up with all the players, either in person if they were out of town having long conversations with every single player. We had a lot of futures to sort, contracts to sort out. I’ll touch on Bobby Rhine and Roberto Mina’s contracts in a bit.
Then I went to England, arriving there on Boxing Day (December 26). My first meeting was with a the SEM agency, which is a group of agents over there who are very big in England and have player like Thierry Henry, Rio Ferdinand, and a lot of big names over there. My main contact was Jerome Anderson, he’s someone who I worked with while at Arsenal and has a lot of big contacts. We had a meeting and the aim of the meeting was two-fold: to identify some players to see who might be available out there; and also, to look at ways that we could increase the name of FC Dallas and soccer in general over there, which led to the London Times story.
That meeting set off the talks with Edgar Davids as well. We made contact with his representatives while I was over there. That developed, and we talked about money, etc and got us to the point where we are today. While I was there, there were some other players that we talked about. I went to watch a few games, and can say that we identified some targets that were worthwhile looking at. It was a hectic few days in London and I was able to take in some days in Belfast with my family.
From there it was straight over to Florida for the Combine. Before I left for London, Marco and Oscar and I sat down and put all our notes together and made sure all our preparation for the combine was done, and that we had information on a lot of the players we knew where going to be there, especially all of the targets we wanted to see and learn more about. Marco prepared a great report while I was in England, put together a great folder - and that was a great start for us.
I met with Marco in Florida and went through the combine. I lot of the players we saw emphasized again what we were looking for and the targets we identified definitely came out strong. There were also some that we didn’t know much on that definitely caught our eye. It was again a busy time at combine, catching up with coaches and there was lots of gossip, and more talk with Edgar Davids.
We had a lot of conversations with coaches. At that stage, all talks and proposals are made, and if you're interested in this or that. I think it lays the foundation for later meetings that happen at the draft, in terms of possible trades and interest in different players which materialized later on.
One thing that we did learn was that there was a lot of interest in a good deal of our players – and most of those cases they were players that I wouldn’t even entertain releasing. I think compared to other teams, we realized that we have a strong squad of players with a lot of teams interested in them. A lot of coaches proposed trades to me that I didn’t even consider for a second. But there were one or two trades that I wanted to put in place that later materialized.
So after the combine it was back to Dallas for a few days and concentrating on getting prepared for the draft – getting our list together on who we expected to get in the first round, who other teams may be getting; and try to manipulate the situation to move up in the draft if we felt we needed.
Then it was off to Indianapolis. And that morning, at the airport on the way to Indianopolis, is when the Edgar talks really got more serious. His agent called me that morning and stressed his strong interest to come here. And just at that time, I started receiving a lot of calls from Europe as the news of Beckham signing with L.A. was out. We knew that this was a great time to put it out there that Edgar Davids was interested in coming FC Dallas.
That day was when we had the most serious talks to see what it would take to get Edgar here and the financial package involved, etc. And those talks progress a lot in the next two weeks.
That night, Michael and I were up to the wee hours of the morning talking to coaches about trades, and there were one or two that I wanted to happen and we pushed hard for. The next day, we had a crazy hour leading into the draft, talking to Fernando (Clavijo) and one other team trying to get the best deal for FC Dallas. We went through the draft and I think Michael gave a good account on what went on at draft in his blog.
Since then, we still had a couple of hectic weeks, talking with agents and getting the coaching staff finalized. That was a very important priority for me to get done – talk to the coaches and make sure everyone had their goals and contracts in place and everything of that nature sorted out. Between me and the coaching staff we’ve probably watched 30 DVDs of players and have taken numerous calls from agents. As I mentioned before, the aftermath of David Beckham sparked a lot of interest with players wanting to come into this league, and we’ve been diligently analyzing many players. In the meantime, we also continued our talks with Edgar Davids – which I think we covered in depth in the Davids blog.
We also contacted all the players that we drafted – having long conversations, telling them what to expect when they come here, how every situation is different, especially with Ibee (Abdus Ibrahim).
I want to also comment on a few players.
Roberto’s (Mina) and Bobby’s (Rhine) contracts were two priorities for me that I wanted to get done. Roberto’s has been complicated because as most know, his pass is owned by another club and we’ve always paid a loan fee for him. His agents aren’t always the easiest to deal with, but it was something I really wanted to get done. We’re at the point right now where we feel that a deal is going to get done with Roberto. I think Roberto can bring a lot to this team as we move forward, and I’m very excited to be able to work with him. I think that we can get more out of him and make an even better player, and have high hopes that he’s going to have a good year.
A contract has been agreed with Bobby Rhine. He’s a great professional and is someone who I wanted to have here on this team. I think at this point it’s just a matter of him signing the contract.
I also want to say something about Simo Valakari. Simo has been great for this team in the last couple years and we appreciate the effort that he’s put in. He’s been a model professional. I explained to him how I saw his role with the team as we move forward, and we mutually agreed that it was time to move forward and explore something else.
Chris Gbandi came to me a few weeks back and told me about this opportunity he had to go and train with a team in Norway (IK Start), it was an opportunity that he wanted to explore. I'll say that we very much want Chris to be part of our plan going forward. However, Chris obviously impressed while he was over there, and I think it’s been out there that the team is interested in purchasing Chris. We are talking through that situation with Chris, with the League, and with the team in Norway.
We were delighted for Kenny (Cooper), he deserves his opportunity to play for the U.S. National Team. I was impressed with his performance coming off the bench against Denmark – and the way he finished his goal. I’ve had conversations with him on the phone while he’s been at camp and have been delighted with his progress.
I also sat and had a couple of great meetings with Carlos (Ruiz). I think the way things happened for him with his national team were unfortunate. It seems like a miscommunication and unfortunately Carlos missed out on the opportunity. He’s focused on coming in and having a good preseason with FC Dallas.
We also put a lot of effort in finalizing our preseason plans, finalizing some trips – and we’re delighted we are going down to Brazil. We had representatives from Atletico Paranaense here last week, and had some good conversations to make sure the situation we were going to down there was the right situation. They made a great presentation for us and we are excited about going down there and playing them, and possibly another game. I wanted to do something different this preseason as well, rather than going back to Spain as we’d done the last three years.
Part of the plan in going down there is, through our partnership with them, looking at possibly one or two players that may be able to join our team through loan. We’ve identified a couple of young players, a defender and a midfielder, that may be able to join us, subject to me having a closer look at.
We’ve also been working on our youth development initiatives, which we see as very important. We have put a lot of time into this, and have had several meetings and planning sessions. We’re making good progress on this and hope to have something off the ground in the coming months.
This upcoming weekend we’ll be conducting our own player combine. Marco, Oscar and Jeff have been working hard on this project, putting together a group players that will have a chance to be looked at for either our youth development initiative or even possibly fight for a developmental spot. There were a lot of players that have applied and sent in resumes that we want to take a look at. It’s already been a great success, as we received nearly 500 applications in a short amount of time.
As you can see, it’s been a crazy off season, very hectic and very busy, and fun. At this moment in time we are putting plans in place, and really talking about the finer details of our training program through preseason. We’ve been talking to all the players, and begin bringing them in for entrance physicals starting on Thursday, Feb. 1; checking on the boys to see how they’ve done on their off-season training programs; making sure every one is getting in one time. Fitness testing will start on Feb. 5. We’re going to bring in the players in smaller groups and do detail fitness assessments with all the players. And then the real work will start of Feb. 12.
At this stage, we can’t wait to get going, get preseason training started, and get into the games.
Friday, January 26, 2007
Morrow - "Davids not during this transfer window"
FC Dallas Head Coach Steve Morrow
Hey everyone. It’s been a couple of hectic weeks recently, with a trip to Europe, to Florida, to Indianapolis, and a few to Dallas. I’ll touch on all of those trips in my next post, but I imagine today most have seen the news that it appears that Edgar Davids may be heading to Ajax – so I wanted to address it here for all of you.
Our talks with Edgar Davids’ representative began last December during my trip to London. We’d spoken about both sides’ interest, if it was a good fit for both sides, about finances, and other things. On the morning of January 11, while I was at the airport on the way to Indianopolis for the draft, is when the Edgar talks really got serious. That day was when we began talks to see what it would take to get Edgar here, the financial package involved, etc, etc. And those talks progressed a lot in the next two weeks.
The aftermath of David Beckham's signing sparked a lot of interest with players wanting to come into this league. A lot of big names have been mentioned and we’ve spoken to a lot of agents about different players, and have been working out which ones we think could be a good fit for the team. All the mean time continuing our talks with Edgar Davids.
We always knew there was another deal on the table for Edgar and it was a matter of timing, trying to do this before the transfer window closed at the end of January. Edgar had stressed that this was something that intrigued him and was a great opportunity to come to the United States. Unfortunately it doesn’t look like it’s something we’ll be able to do during this transfer window.
We do feel we have a very strong squad, and for us to make the team better it needs to be a top quality player that will improve the quality that we already have, be the right mix, be the right target player, and fit into what we’re looking for moving forward. There are still some targets that I will be looking at in the coming weeks and even when we’re down in South America.
The soccer world kind of goes crazy during the transfer window in January, and we also know that outside the transfer window things will calm down. We’re also very aware that the prices are also more in favor outside the transfer window. Certain things can still happen, because our transfer window is open till March 1 and there are still deals that we make that happen - once things have calmed down a little bit.
As for the designated player, I wanted to address it since there is so much speculation out there, that we’re not just going to sign a big name just for the sake of it. We believe strongly that it has to make financial sense for the organization if we’re going to invest that money in a player that in the long term, FC Dallas are going to benefit from. And that means that it’s going to be a player who comes in and is a good influence on the young players, or, if it’s a younger player, that he’s a long term investment for the future. We consider all those and other things when a designated player is offered to us, and believe me, a lot of them have been offered to us in the last few weeks. It just has to be the right fit for us and we felt that Edgar Davids was that type of player. And some of the names that have been offered haven’t been the right fit – and some have, but have been out of our reach financially.
On Edgar, I think the initial offer that was mentioned was a reaction to the Beckham deal and that was something that FC Dallas would not have been able to accomplish. I think when everyone realized the David Beckham figures were not realistic, than those numbers came down dramatically. I think FC Dallas really stretched themselves to try to accommodate Edgar’s contract and really made a big commitment to try to make it happen. Both sides were pleased with the package that was put together, but I think again, that it came down to the timing - and we couldn’t get it done during this transfer window.
Hey everyone. It’s been a couple of hectic weeks recently, with a trip to Europe, to Florida, to Indianapolis, and a few to Dallas. I’ll touch on all of those trips in my next post, but I imagine today most have seen the news that it appears that Edgar Davids may be heading to Ajax – so I wanted to address it here for all of you.
Our talks with Edgar Davids’ representative began last December during my trip to London. We’d spoken about both sides’ interest, if it was a good fit for both sides, about finances, and other things. On the morning of January 11, while I was at the airport on the way to Indianopolis for the draft, is when the Edgar talks really got serious. That day was when we began talks to see what it would take to get Edgar here, the financial package involved, etc, etc. And those talks progressed a lot in the next two weeks.
The aftermath of David Beckham's signing sparked a lot of interest with players wanting to come into this league. A lot of big names have been mentioned and we’ve spoken to a lot of agents about different players, and have been working out which ones we think could be a good fit for the team. All the mean time continuing our talks with Edgar Davids.
We always knew there was another deal on the table for Edgar and it was a matter of timing, trying to do this before the transfer window closed at the end of January. Edgar had stressed that this was something that intrigued him and was a great opportunity to come to the United States. Unfortunately it doesn’t look like it’s something we’ll be able to do during this transfer window.
We do feel we have a very strong squad, and for us to make the team better it needs to be a top quality player that will improve the quality that we already have, be the right mix, be the right target player, and fit into what we’re looking for moving forward. There are still some targets that I will be looking at in the coming weeks and even when we’re down in South America.
The soccer world kind of goes crazy during the transfer window in January, and we also know that outside the transfer window things will calm down. We’re also very aware that the prices are also more in favor outside the transfer window. Certain things can still happen, because our transfer window is open till March 1 and there are still deals that we make that happen - once things have calmed down a little bit.
As for the designated player, I wanted to address it since there is so much speculation out there, that we’re not just going to sign a big name just for the sake of it. We believe strongly that it has to make financial sense for the organization if we’re going to invest that money in a player that in the long term, FC Dallas are going to benefit from. And that means that it’s going to be a player who comes in and is a good influence on the young players, or, if it’s a younger player, that he’s a long term investment for the future. We consider all those and other things when a designated player is offered to us, and believe me, a lot of them have been offered to us in the last few weeks. It just has to be the right fit for us and we felt that Edgar Davids was that type of player. And some of the names that have been offered haven’t been the right fit – and some have, but have been out of our reach financially.
On Edgar, I think the initial offer that was mentioned was a reaction to the Beckham deal and that was something that FC Dallas would not have been able to accomplish. I think when everyone realized the David Beckham figures were not realistic, than those numbers came down dramatically. I think FC Dallas really stretched themselves to try to accommodate Edgar’s contract and really made a big commitment to try to make it happen. Both sides were pleased with the package that was put together, but I think again, that it came down to the timing - and we couldn’t get it done during this transfer window.
Adrian Serioux update
FCD acquired midfielder / defender Adrian Serioux in exchange for Ronnie O'Brien and a draft pick from Toronto FC in November. Today, he spoke to MLSnet.com reporter Steve Hunt for his first interview since winning the MLS Cup with Houston:
Adrian, on his on-field approach: "Everyone is my friend off the field but on the field, it's a business and my job. I will shut down whoever I have to shut down for us to win."
Click here for the full story.
Adrian, on his on-field approach: "Everyone is my friend off the field but on the field, it's a business and my job. I will shut down whoever I have to shut down for us to win."
Click here for the full story.
Thursday, January 25, 2007
"Finding the Right International Partners"
FCD General Manager Michael Hitchcock:
I'm a firm believer in the philosophy that it's easier to build your business with good partners. That said, one of the strategic goals I set for FC Dallas when I started 14 months ago was to develop strategic international partnerships with a Mexican club, a South American club and a European club. Each partnership is unique based on the needs and strengths of the partner. But they all have common elements including but not limited to:
- Opportunity to Train at each other's Training Grounds for our respective preseasons.
- Home and Away Series in a meaningful Competition.
- Exchange of Players and Coaches.
- Business Summits where we share best practices.
- Opportunity for each others players to Train with the other’s team.
- Cooperative sales efforts for sponsorships.
- Joint efforts in developing camps and academies.
As I'm sure you know, we're in our second year of our partnership with Mexican club Tigres UANL; and in our first year with Brazilian club, Atletico Paranaense….and, in discussions with European clubs.
In Tigres, we have a great partner with a terrific management team. Last year, we kicked off the Rio Grande Plate at PHP in front of 17k fans and won 2-0. Then returned to Mexico a week later and won the series in PKs in front of close to 20K fans. What a great start to the partnership!
Plus, since Tigres is among the most successful teams in Mexico at running a great business operation, we learned a lot from them on how to successfully sell/market to Mexican soccer fans.
I'm a firm believer in the philosophy that it's easier to build your business with good partners. That said, one of the strategic goals I set for FC Dallas when I started 14 months ago was to develop strategic international partnerships with a Mexican club, a South American club and a European club. Each partnership is unique based on the needs and strengths of the partner. But they all have common elements including but not limited to:
- Opportunity to Train at each other's Training Grounds for our respective preseasons.
- Home and Away Series in a meaningful Competition.
- Exchange of Players and Coaches.
- Business Summits where we share best practices.
- Opportunity for each others players to Train with the other’s team.
- Cooperative sales efforts for sponsorships.
- Joint efforts in developing camps and academies.
As I'm sure you know, we're in our second year of our partnership with Mexican club Tigres UANL; and in our first year with Brazilian club, Atletico Paranaense….and, in discussions with European clubs.
In Tigres, we have a great partner with a terrific management team. Last year, we kicked off the Rio Grande Plate at PHP in front of 17k fans and won 2-0. Then returned to Mexico a week later and won the series in PKs in front of close to 20K fans. What a great start to the partnership!
Plus, since Tigres is among the most successful teams in Mexico at running a great business operation, we learned a lot from them on how to successfully sell/market to Mexican soccer fans.
- Interesting Note: one idea we took away from our Business Summit in Monterrey last year was how to "hawk" beverages at soccer games. Tigres started to sell beer out of stationary buckets in every aisle at the stadium, instead of hawkers walking around – and their per caps increased dramatically. We tried it at this years InterLiga and our per caps on beverages increased $3.75 per person compared to the previous years InterLiga (which we found impressive.). Gracias, Tigres!
We're looking to finalize the '07 Rio Grande Plate dates ASAP - should be early to mid July, which will be a great warm up for SuperLiga (another benefit of the partnership.)
Our partners in Brazil - Clube Atletico Paranaense - are very forward thinking and dynamic. They run one of the most successful youth player development systems in the World, selling tens of millions of dollars worth of players every transfer window (second in Brazil to Sao Paulo).
They have an amazing Training Center that Brazilian National Team has used, which includes a hotel on site.
They also have a great stadium - Kyocera Arena - with a naming rights deal which is very rare in South America. In fact, they were the only team in Brazil with a naming rights deal for their stadium. And, they're aggressive about building their brand in America.
This will be an amazing partnership. CAP Executives just spent a week with us here in Frisco to learn more about our business operation. What we can offer is that we make money based on the business and not relying on player sales, which is very interesting to them. Then we're sending some of our coaches to Curitiba to learn about their Youth Player Development Methodology, Strategy, Philosophy and Plan, which will blow you away. It's very impressive. There's a plan for each kid starting at the age of 12. We hope to have a CAP player with FCD this season, so the coaches will take a look at a few players when they're down there, as well.
We plan to spend 12 days (Feb 26 through March 9) in Brazil training at their World Class Complex. We'll play a few First Team games including 2 "gated" games, where we'll share in the revenue of the games. Plus we'll play the First game of the Inaugural USA-Brazil Challenge on Wed. March 7th at Kyrocena Arena. The return leg will be Sat. March 31st at PHP, which will serve as the final preseason game for FCD, and also, the unofficial kickoff for Dallas Cup, which starts the next day. This will be Bonus Game A for Full Season Seat Holders. It should be a quality partnership.
We're in discussions with multiple prospective European Partners; we've met with Celtic who flew to Frisco to meet with us, a few English Premier League Clubs, and a couple of Italian Serie A clubs.
The key to these partnerships is making them meaningful and for that to happen, both partners need to see value in the partnership. So sometimes, it's not the biggest name club, but if it's a strong club that can help us get better and if we can also help them get better, than we have a strong partnership, by definition. I believe these partnerships will help us become a better club - on and off the field.
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
"SuperLiga for FC Dallas"
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FC Dallas General Manager Michael HitchcockI've been meaning to post this since MLS made the announcement that FC Dallas is one of four teams that will play in the inaugural SuperLiga - as you can imagine, we're very excited to be participating...
(A) The North American Championship?
(B) Credibility with Soccer Fans by taking on the top Mexican Clubs?
(C) International exposure for FCD through Global TV Broadcasts?
(D) $1 Million Dollars for the winning team?
(E) All the Above.
What's the best Reason to be excited about FC Dallas' participation in this summer's SuperLiga Tournament.
Answer is (E) All the Above.
We couldn't be happier that we have the opportunity to represent our fans and North Texas in the North American Championship, SuperLiga. This promises to be a great tournament. What an amazing opportunity for our players, organization and fans! What makes it even better is that FC Dallas is hosting all 3 First Round SuperLiga games at Pizza Hut Park.
Let's analyze the Super Week at Pizza Hut Park:
- Tue July 24th vs. Pachuca... Reigning Copa Sudamericana Champions who beat our partners, Clube Atletico Paranaense, in the Semifinals. Speaking with both of our partners, CAP and Tigres; Pachuca has a great team and we'll need to bring our "A" Game.
- Sat July 28th vs. Chivas Guadelajara... Chivas won the last Mexican Tournament. This will be a special atmosphere at PHP. We need our fans to rally for this one which could be the make/break game for both teams.
- Tue July 31st vs. LA Galaxy...Could this be Beckham’s Debut in America? If so, PHP will be electric. We'll know soon enough but regardless, this should be an interesting match up for the primary reason that depending on results from first 2 games, winner may advance to the Semifinals!
We're proud to be invited to SuperLiga with such select company. We plan to make the most of this opportunity and we feel that having home field advantage could be the difference. We need you at the Park for Super Week! Info on Tickets will be announced soon.
Dax in Germany
FCD midfielder Dax McCarty has had a rough start to the new year. First, after playing in almost every game for the U.S. U-20's in 2006 and leading the team in scoring, he was not selected for the team that last week successfully qualified for the 2007 FIFA Under-20 World Cup which will be held in Canada this summer. Then, upon his return to Dallas, he was diagnosed with a hernia by FCD team physician Dr. Christopher Siodlarz.
Dr. Siodlarz scheduled Dax to visit renowned German specialist Dr. Ulrike Muschaweck in Munich, Germany this week to have an operation. Today, Dax had a successful operation and is scheduled to return to the United States on Thursday. He'll go home to Orlando, Florida first, and is expected to arrive in Dallas on Monday, Jan. 29. Dr. Muschaweck has performed numerous surgeries on MLS players, most recently on New England forward Taylor Twellman. Through her technique, athletes have been able to return to the playing in as little as 10 days.
Dr. Siodlarz scheduled Dax to visit renowned German specialist Dr. Ulrike Muschaweck in Munich, Germany this week to have an operation. Today, Dax had a successful operation and is scheduled to return to the United States on Thursday. He'll go home to Orlando, Florida first, and is expected to arrive in Dallas on Monday, Jan. 29. Dr. Muschaweck has performed numerous surgeries on MLS players, most recently on New England forward Taylor Twellman. Through her technique, athletes have been able to return to the playing in as little as 10 days.
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
Cassar Joins Coaching Staff - Ruiz Update
Steve Morrow today finalized his coaching staff for the 2007 season. While Oscar Pareja and Marco Ferruzzi return for their second and third seasons as assistants respectively, it's interesting to note that Jeff Cassar, an original college draft pick by Dallas in 1996, is the new goalkeeper coach. Check out the official release for more.
We also learned over the weekend that Carlos Ruiz will not be joining the Guatemala National Team ahead of the UNCAF Nations Cup. He was originally scheduled to depart for Guatemala last Thursday, though he found out at the airport that day that his flight had been changed to Friday. Seems like the flight mix up cause some problems and he'll be able to begin the 2007 pre-season with his FC Dallas teammates in a few weeks instead of the middle of February.
We also learned over the weekend that Carlos Ruiz will not be joining the Guatemala National Team ahead of the UNCAF Nations Cup. He was originally scheduled to depart for Guatemala last Thursday, though he found out at the airport that day that his flight had been changed to Friday. Seems like the flight mix up cause some problems and he'll be able to begin the 2007 pre-season with his FC Dallas teammates in a few weeks instead of the middle of February.
Monday, January 22, 2007
Closing in on the Preseason
A quick trip down to the FC Dallas locker room cements the fact that the start of the preseason is just around the corner. Earlier this morning a bevy of players stopped by for a morning workout and to catch up with the coaching staff and a few of their teammates. Making an appearance at 9200 World Cup Way today were David Wagenfuhr, fresh off a vacation to Jamaica earlier this month, as well as Bobby Rhine and Shaka Hislop whose sightings are becoming more and more prevalent.
Also spotted was 2006 FCD Defender of the Year Chris Gbandi who is back in the Metroplex fresh off a week-long training stint with IK Start of the Norwegian First Division.
We'll have more with all of theses guys as the preseason gets under way progresses but for today the spotlight will remain on the star of the weekend, Mr. Kenny Cooper.
Fresh off his goal-scoring National Team debut against Denmark on Saturday, we caught up with Cooper once he got back to Dallas and there is a new story on his experience up on fcdallas.net. Also, we won't be able to use the entire interview for that story, so we'll give you a few of KC33's quotes that were left on the cutting room floor later on Tuesday.
Also spotted was 2006 FCD Defender of the Year Chris Gbandi who is back in the Metroplex fresh off a week-long training stint with IK Start of the Norwegian First Division.
We'll have more with all of theses guys as the preseason gets under way progresses but for today the spotlight will remain on the star of the weekend, Mr. Kenny Cooper.
Fresh off his goal-scoring National Team debut against Denmark on Saturday, we caught up with Cooper once he got back to Dallas and there is a new story on his experience up on fcdallas.net. Also, we won't be able to use the entire interview for that story, so we'll give you a few of KC33's quotes that were left on the cutting room floor later on Tuesday.
Saturday, January 20, 2007
First Cap, First Goal for Cooper
Big congratulations to Kenny Cooper who scored on his National Team debut in this afternoon's 3-1 win over Denmark at The Home Depot Center. The FCD forward started the game on the bench but was summoned by head coach Bob Bradley in the 63rd minute to replace Eddie Johnson.
Nineteen minutes later Coop killed the game off when he slotted the ball past Danish keeper Jesper Christiansen to give the U.S. a 3-1 lead with just eight minutes to go. Heath Pearce sent Cooper through on goal and the 22-year old calmly slid his shot past Christiansen for his first goal while wearing the Red, White and Blue.
Coop was so ecstatic with the tally that he wheeled away and pulled his shirt off in celebration, earning the requisite yellow card (also his first in international competition) for his effort.
A great afternoon for Bob Bradley, getting the win in his first game in charge and the same can be said for Cooper who will now be looking to be included in Bradley's squad for the game against Mexico on February 7.
Once again, from everyone at FC Dallas and Pizza Hut Park, congratulations Kenny!
Nineteen minutes later Coop killed the game off when he slotted the ball past Danish keeper Jesper Christiansen to give the U.S. a 3-1 lead with just eight minutes to go. Heath Pearce sent Cooper through on goal and the 22-year old calmly slid his shot past Christiansen for his first goal while wearing the Red, White and Blue.
Coop was so ecstatic with the tally that he wheeled away and pulled his shirt off in celebration, earning the requisite yellow card (also his first in international competition) for his effort.
A great afternoon for Bob Bradley, getting the win in his first game in charge and the same can be said for Cooper who will now be looking to be included in Bradley's squad for the game against Mexico on February 7.
Once again, from everyone at FC Dallas and Pizza Hut Park, congratulations Kenny!
Cooper to Wear the Stars and Stripes
U.S. National Team head coach Bob Bradley named the 18-man roster that he will use for his first game in charge against Denmark on Saturday. After impressing in his first National Team camp, Kenny Cooper has been selected as one of Bradley's 18. The 22-year old will wear the No. 20 shirt as he looks to collect his first cap in his country's first game since the 2006 World Cup.
Bradley has elected to go with a forward pairing of Eddie Johnson and Nate Jaqua to start the match, leaving our boy Coop on the bench. Tune in and see if he comes off the bench to earn his first cap later in the match. The game will be aired live on ESPN2 starting at 3:50 p.m. (CT). You can also catch the game via tape delay on Galavision and online through ussoccer.com's MatchTracker.
In case you've already forgotten Cooper's first appearance in an FCD uniform, he came off the bench on that day too. He entered the Hoops 2006 season opener against Chicago in the second half and went on to score the game-winning goal five minutes later in a 3-2 win over the Fire at Pizza Hut Park on April 1.
Here's to hoping that Kenny has a similar impact this afternoon!
Bradley has elected to go with a forward pairing of Eddie Johnson and Nate Jaqua to start the match, leaving our boy Coop on the bench. Tune in and see if he comes off the bench to earn his first cap later in the match. The game will be aired live on ESPN2 starting at 3:50 p.m. (CT). You can also catch the game via tape delay on Galavision and online through ussoccer.com's MatchTracker.
In case you've already forgotten Cooper's first appearance in an FCD uniform, he came off the bench on that day too. He entered the Hoops 2006 season opener against Chicago in the second half and went on to score the game-winning goal five minutes later in a 3-2 win over the Fire at Pizza Hut Park on April 1.
Here's to hoping that Kenny has a similar impact this afternoon!
Friday, January 19, 2007
Dario Sala Checks In
Hi friends, hope everyone is doing well.
I went to Mendoza with my wife Margot, and we were marveled with the mountain range of Los Andes, the Aconcagua hill (the tallest in the Americas), and with the 480 wineries and vineyards of Mendoza. We went to sample wines and we brought some of the best to uncork with friends in Dallas. We ate many barbecues (Argentine asados) and gained a little weight. But, well, a little rest is not all that bad, and besides, the suspension won’t permit me to play until May, therefore I have some time to get in shape, hahaha!
On the Beckham news, I’m happy, since the signing of one of the most marketable players in the world will not go by unnoticed, at least in the United States. I hope that the news spread wide, signifying this – the growth of MLS. On the football side, it may not affect us too much, but it is good that the league adds players with international experience - and bringing them in at an age where they can still bring out their best within our clubs in the League.
This, in my opinion, is a key moment for MLS. The Commissioner will have extra pressure, as will the GMs of each team, to make their clubs strong with their signings; and the players also, since we have to be the performing arm of all the elements of promotion that the league has underway.
We, from our position, are the ones charged with showing the product that MLS wants to sell to the American public: Soccer! For them, we cannot compromise within or outside of the field: on the field, being competitive; and off the field, interacting with the public – making them feel that they are in fact, the most important part of this story; in respecting the fans and returning the affection and support they give us lies the true spirit of football. Because if there were no fans in the stadiums, for what would we be playing soccer?
On the other hand, it is very important to have a serious effort on the youth divisions since we are trying to do this at this time. For the 20 and 21 year old kids, they’ll have to give them continuity, when it’s their turn to be the key players in a few years. A professional preparation for National Team U-20, U-17, and U-15 will not give us young players that are already professionals at early ages – which signifies that the a refill is possible. To be better understood; you can’t have a 28 or 29 year old player in one position and his reserve of 21 or 22 years old not have the slightest idea of what it is to be a professional footballer. Therefore, with structured work and competitive reserves, you can close the distances in these generations.
Well friends, I hope this message was not lost in translation and that not much was edited because I consider every line in this letter important……….chauuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!!!
I went to Mendoza with my wife Margot, and we were marveled with the mountain range of Los Andes, the Aconcagua hill (the tallest in the Americas), and with the 480 wineries and vineyards of Mendoza. We went to sample wines and we brought some of the best to uncork with friends in Dallas. We ate many barbecues (Argentine asados) and gained a little weight. But, well, a little rest is not all that bad, and besides, the suspension won’t permit me to play until May, therefore I have some time to get in shape, hahaha!
On the Beckham news, I’m happy, since the signing of one of the most marketable players in the world will not go by unnoticed, at least in the United States. I hope that the news spread wide, signifying this – the growth of MLS. On the football side, it may not affect us too much, but it is good that the league adds players with international experience - and bringing them in at an age where they can still bring out their best within our clubs in the League.
This, in my opinion, is a key moment for MLS. The Commissioner will have extra pressure, as will the GMs of each team, to make their clubs strong with their signings; and the players also, since we have to be the performing arm of all the elements of promotion that the league has underway.
We, from our position, are the ones charged with showing the product that MLS wants to sell to the American public: Soccer! For them, we cannot compromise within or outside of the field: on the field, being competitive; and off the field, interacting with the public – making them feel that they are in fact, the most important part of this story; in respecting the fans and returning the affection and support they give us lies the true spirit of football. Because if there were no fans in the stadiums, for what would we be playing soccer?
On the other hand, it is very important to have a serious effort on the youth divisions since we are trying to do this at this time. For the 20 and 21 year old kids, they’ll have to give them continuity, when it’s their turn to be the key players in a few years. A professional preparation for National Team U-20, U-17, and U-15 will not give us young players that are already professionals at early ages – which signifies that the a refill is possible. To be better understood; you can’t have a 28 or 29 year old player in one position and his reserve of 21 or 22 years old not have the slightest idea of what it is to be a professional footballer. Therefore, with structured work and competitive reserves, you can close the distances in these generations.
Well friends, I hope this message was not lost in translation and that not much was edited because I consider every line in this letter important……….chauuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!!!
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Supplemental Draft on Thursday
FCD has two selections in Thursday's MLS Supplemental Draft, which will take place by teleconference call from the MLS Headquarters in New York at 2:00 pm CT. Eligible players include all those that were eligible for the SuperDraft but were not selected, as well as any additional college seniors that MLS coaches submitted to MLS by Tuesday afternoon.
2007 Supplemental Draft Selections:
1st Round: 9th overall pick (Natural Selection)
4th Round: 6th pick (45th overall) - was acquired from New York on March 2, 2006 in exchange for Steve Jolley.
Here's what happened with FCD's other three natural picks in the 07 Supplemental Draft:
2007 Supplemental Draft Selections:
1st Round: 9th overall pick (Natural Selection)
4th Round: 6th pick (45th overall) - was acquired from New York on March 2, 2006 in exchange for Steve Jolley.
Here's what happened with FCD's other three natural picks in the 07 Supplemental Draft:
- 2nd Round: 9th selection (22nd overall) - traded to Los Angeles on July 19, 2006 for the rights to Marcelo Saragosa.
- 3rd Round: 9th selection (35th overall) - traded to Colorado on Feb. 14, 2006 along with the team's third round 2007 SuperDraft selection in exchange for a Youth International Slot for one year. In 2006, FCD had four Youth International Slots, used on Ramon Nunez, Roberto Mina, Dominic Oduro, and Marcelo Saragosa. The slot goes back to Colorado for the 2007 season, leaving FCD with three at the moment.
- 4th Round: 9th selection (48th) - traded to Kansas City on July 19, 2006 in exchange for the rights to Alex Smith.
Wallace Scores for U.S. U-20's
Anthony Wallace, FC Dallas' first round pick in last week's MLS SuperDraft, is part of the United States Under-20 Men’s National Team that is Panama competing in the CONCACAF Under-20 Final Round Qualifying Tournament.
The U.S. side tonight defeated Haiti 4-1, with Wallace showing up on the box score for two of the goals. In the 26th minute, Wallace assisted on the first U.S. goal by sending a left-footed cross from the left flank into the penalty area that was flicked on by Andre Akpan to the side net. With the score 2-0 in favor of the U.S., Wallace made it 3-0 in the 49th minute by hitting a left-footed shot from a cross by Robbie Rogers past the Haitian keeper for the goal.
Up next for the U.S. team is Guatemala on Friday, Jan. 19 at 5:30 p.m. CT (live on GolTV). The U-20 men will wrap up the tournament against Panama at on Sunday, Jan. 21, at 5 p.m. CT. GolTV will carry this game, though it's not definite it will be live.
The top two finishers in Group A will advance to the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Canada, which will take place from June 30-July 22 across six cities – Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Edmonton, Burnaby and Victoria.
The U.S. side tonight defeated Haiti 4-1, with Wallace showing up on the box score for two of the goals. In the 26th minute, Wallace assisted on the first U.S. goal by sending a left-footed cross from the left flank into the penalty area that was flicked on by Andre Akpan to the side net. With the score 2-0 in favor of the U.S., Wallace made it 3-0 in the 49th minute by hitting a left-footed shot from a cross by Robbie Rogers past the Haitian keeper for the goal.
Up next for the U.S. team is Guatemala on Friday, Jan. 19 at 5:30 p.m. CT (live on GolTV). The U-20 men will wrap up the tournament against Panama at on Sunday, Jan. 21, at 5 p.m. CT. GolTV will carry this game, though it's not definite it will be live.
The top two finishers in Group A will advance to the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Canada, which will take place from June 30-July 22 across six cities – Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Edmonton, Burnaby and Victoria.
Fish Sighting
The office was little more empty than normal today, given the weather, so some of us were a little surprised to see Carlos Ruiz walking through the halls.
For those that don't know, Carlos goes by Fish to his teammates. Even in Spanish people call him Fish (though some still call him Pescado, or Pescadito).
We had a chance to catch up with him before he went down to the gym and to meet with head coach Steve Morrow. Fish leaves for Guatemala on Thursday to begin training for the UNCAF Nations Cup Tournament, where five Central American teams will look to qualify for the CONCACAF Gold Cup. The UNCAF Tournament will be played in El Salvador from Feb 8-18.
Tells us what you've been doing during the off-season:
Ruiz: "I've been able to spend time with my family, spending part of the free time here in Dallas. I went to Guatemala and brought my daughters with me to Dallas - we spent around 12 days here. We went back to Guatemala on December 20 and I began doing some benefit work, visiting kids in orphanages and hospitals. I was also working with a local bank - Banco G&T Continental - doing promotions (NOTE: Carlos now has his image on a Credit Card for this bank). I was able to spend the Holidays with my daughters, and now I'm in Dallas, thinking that I may not be getting called in to the Guatemala National Team."
Were you told that you were not going to be part of the Guatemala roster?
Ruiz: "They had not told me that, though the media had been mentioning it. It's that Dario Gomez had not revealed the roster until a few days ago, actually a week ago I think. The head coach of the team, Hernan Dario Gomez, was not in Guatemala, he was in Colombia. So I didn't really believe the reports much since Dario had not announced the roster. Now that's he's in Guatemala, he's called in 26 players. He'll cut back to 20 players for the UNCAF Nations Cup that begins on February 6.
How do you feel physically?
Ruiz: "There's time, time to feel ready and good to go. So for the moment, I'm going to go talk to Steve (Morrow) to see what's the work ahead of us to prepare for the next season with Dallas; find out more details about our pre-season, and find out what days I need to be where, depending on when our Tournament with Guatemala ends."
What do you think of David Beckham joining the League?
Ruiz: "I think that MLS won in having a player like David in the League because of his image. Hopefully it can win also on the football side. Many things have being said that he's coming for other things also, but we as soccer players and as part of MLS are expecting that he'll come and do his role, play soccer - independent of the things he does outside of soccer. Hopefully he'll have the majority of his time on the field, showing the type of player that he is. In that way, the League's image wins and so does that of soccer in the United States."
Have you heard that FC Dallas has been in talks with Edgar Davids?
Ruiz: "Yes, I know about it. Every MLS team is now able to have a 'known' player. Davids is a tough player, who is recognized all over the world for what he does on the field. It would be a good thing if he comes to Dallas for his experience and for the type of game he plays. He's a defensive midfielder that is very strong and would add some balance to the midfield, on the defensive-side.
There are many teams looking to bring in name players, and as I said before, if they come to play soccer it would be good for soccer in the United States because at the end of the day, MLS would come out on top."
For those that don't know, Carlos goes by Fish to his teammates. Even in Spanish people call him Fish (though some still call him Pescado, or Pescadito).
We had a chance to catch up with him before he went down to the gym and to meet with head coach Steve Morrow. Fish leaves for Guatemala on Thursday to begin training for the UNCAF Nations Cup Tournament, where five Central American teams will look to qualify for the CONCACAF Gold Cup. The UNCAF Tournament will be played in El Salvador from Feb 8-18.
Tells us what you've been doing during the off-season:
Ruiz: "I've been able to spend time with my family, spending part of the free time here in Dallas. I went to Guatemala and brought my daughters with me to Dallas - we spent around 12 days here. We went back to Guatemala on December 20 and I began doing some benefit work, visiting kids in orphanages and hospitals. I was also working with a local bank - Banco G&T Continental - doing promotions (NOTE: Carlos now has his image on a Credit Card for this bank). I was able to spend the Holidays with my daughters, and now I'm in Dallas, thinking that I may not be getting called in to the Guatemala National Team."
Were you told that you were not going to be part of the Guatemala roster?
Ruiz: "They had not told me that, though the media had been mentioning it. It's that Dario Gomez had not revealed the roster until a few days ago, actually a week ago I think. The head coach of the team, Hernan Dario Gomez, was not in Guatemala, he was in Colombia. So I didn't really believe the reports much since Dario had not announced the roster. Now that's he's in Guatemala, he's called in 26 players. He'll cut back to 20 players for the UNCAF Nations Cup that begins on February 6.
How do you feel physically?
Ruiz: "There's time, time to feel ready and good to go. So for the moment, I'm going to go talk to Steve (Morrow) to see what's the work ahead of us to prepare for the next season with Dallas; find out more details about our pre-season, and find out what days I need to be where, depending on when our Tournament with Guatemala ends."
What do you think of David Beckham joining the League?
Ruiz: "I think that MLS won in having a player like David in the League because of his image. Hopefully it can win also on the football side. Many things have being said that he's coming for other things also, but we as soccer players and as part of MLS are expecting that he'll come and do his role, play soccer - independent of the things he does outside of soccer. Hopefully he'll have the majority of his time on the field, showing the type of player that he is. In that way, the League's image wins and so does that of soccer in the United States."
Have you heard that FC Dallas has been in talks with Edgar Davids?
Ruiz: "Yes, I know about it. Every MLS team is now able to have a 'known' player. Davids is a tough player, who is recognized all over the world for what he does on the field. It would be a good thing if he comes to Dallas for his experience and for the type of game he plays. He's a defensive midfielder that is very strong and would add some balance to the midfield, on the defensive-side.
There are many teams looking to bring in name players, and as I said before, if they come to play soccer it would be good for soccer in the United States because at the end of the day, MLS would come out on top."
Snow Day at Pizza Hut Park
Many of us at FC Dallas and Pizza Hut Park are originally from outside of Texas, so some of us were somewhat surprised this morning when we learned that Frisco Schools and other major school districts were closed today because of the weather. Yes, the roads were icy and I'm sure many were surprised to see the quarter inch of snow on the ground. However, in the mountains, midwest, and northeast, it seemed like we needed a lot more snow to get to a day off. These kids have it nice!
As our staff travels from many parts of the Metroplex to Frisco, we followed suit and asked staff to work from home if they did not feel comfortable or safe driving on the roads. The hard working staff that we have, most have been online or in the office today.
As our staff travels from many parts of the Metroplex to Frisco, we followed suit and asked staff to work from home if they did not feel comfortable or safe driving on the roads. The hard working staff that we have, most have been online or in the office today.
Sunday, January 14, 2007
"Behind the scenes: SuperDraft"
Michael Hitchcock, FC Dallas General Manager:
Big couple of days for FCD and MLS last week! Kicked-off by the announcement of Beckham to LA, our developing discussions with Edgar Davids has generated significant interest and media exposure, with numerous articles and features by media from Dallas to South America to Australia and to Europe. The next week will be interesting and we hope it works out and Davids is wearing FCD Hoops this up coming season.
Back to the Super Draft…From the second we enter the lobby of the Hyatt Indianapolis on Thursday to check in, it's a whirlwind of trade talk. Every team is exploring multiple trade options. While some are legit offers, most are GMs/Coaches doing a "little fishing."
We had a few goals entering the '07 Super Draft:
(1) Trade a player and create salary cap space
(2) Draft Anthony Wallace in the First Round
(3) Draft Ibee with our 14th Pick
(4) Pick up at least two other players (out of our list of 4 we identified.)
(5) Improve our Draft position for '08.
We have an afternoon full of MLS meetings that I rudely step out on multiple occasions to take calls (from Davids’ reps, our ownership, GMs with trade offers, and media interviews). I'll need to find out what we discussed in the meetings but I can tell you it's all very positive these days in MLS meetings.
The trade talks heat up on Thursday night, we (Steve Morrow, Oscar Pareja, Bobby Hammond, and I) went out for dinner at PF Chang’s to discuss our final strategy for Friday's Draft and review intell that we've acquired on what players the other teams are planning to pick. Then it's back to the Hotel Bar. It's an intense scene (something out of a movie) with every coach, GM, and agent in attendance and talking trades in "sidebar" conversations inside the bar and outside in the lobby.
Going back to Goal 1 – we wanted to trade Greg Vanney during the Draft. Greg is a good player and a great person (who I respect a ton) but we're going in a different direction with our defense (athletic, aggressive, physical) and we can always use the benefit of salary cap relief. We had three teams interested (at different levels) during the evening. The talks continued late into the night and two of the three teams dropped out (who knows if they were really interested or just fishing.). We pick up the negotiations the next morning, and we finalized the deal 30 minutes before the Draft began on Friday, with the Colorado Rapids. We wish Greg and his family all the best in Colorado.
The Draft Kicks off... (I'll ask one of our coaches to provide an in depth analysis of our Draft). But I'll share the basics. The SuperDraft, as an event, keeps getting bigger and better every year. This year it's in an impressive, well decorated room, nationally TV broadcast, with tons of fans in attendance.
We really wanted to pick up Anthony Wallace with our first round pick. Anthony could be a starter for FCD this season. We were exploring moving up our position in the First Round to get Anthony but we felt confident after Cbus (who I think would have picked Wallace) traded their 2nd Rd pick to Chicago, that we might be able to get Wallace at #9. It was a gamble, but we had decent info that told us (if Cbus didn't pick him), that we might get him. So we stood our ground and ended up getting our #1 player. Quite a few Agents and GMs told us Wallace at #9 is a steal, and we agree!
We then had the #14 pick, which we picked up in the Ronnie trade deal with Toronto, and knew there was a good chance we could pick up Ibee (Abdus Ibrahim), who has the potential to be a phenom. He’s the second youngest player ever drafted (to Freddy Adu) and is a good kid who we believe in. Can't wait to see the potential realized! Our plan is to help him develop as a player, a professional and as a person.
We picked up the 18th pick from Colorado in the Vanney deal and drafted Andrew Daniels. We think Andrew can be a great defender in MLS – a smart player who's athletic with very good size. One to watch...
Then with the 22nd pick (our Natural 2nd Rd pick), we selected Ryan Guy, who's an interesting player who had a strong combine. Hard worker, great attitude and could surprise some people.
In the 3rd Round, we selected a local player, Scott Jones, who played at Jesuit High School with Kenny Cooper. He could be a sleeper who has an impact.
Daniels, Guy and Jones were 3 of the 4 players we wanted to pick up in the 2nd/3rd Rounds (Goal #4 going into Draft.).
We had two 4th Rd picks…traded one to RSL for their '08 4th Rd pick and selected Tommy Krizanovic from Jacksonville University. He could be interesting.
We also accomplished our 5th Goal - we traded one of our 3rd Rd picks next year to Colorado for their 2nd Rd pick, plus we added 4th Rd pick. So, for 2008, we have one 1st Rd, two 2nd Rd, one 3rd Rd, and two 4th Rd picks.
All-in-all, a great SuperDraft for FC Dallas! We accomplished our goals. A lot of the credit needs to go to Steve Morrow and his coaching team who did an amazing job. They developed our plan and strategy and did our home work and research on all the players and other teams' strategies. Special kudos to Marco Ferruzzi who created our playbook (scouting binder that included every piece of info we could have needed.) It's a thing of beauty. We were by far the most prepared and professional team at the Super Draft and Marco's efforts were a big reason why.
We went to dinner at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse on Friday night to celebrate a good SuperDraft, and then flew back from Indy on Saturday morning.
Time will tell who had the best Draft, but we feel good about the fact we created a plan and accomplished the goals we set going into the weekend!
Big couple of days for FCD and MLS last week! Kicked-off by the announcement of Beckham to LA, our developing discussions with Edgar Davids has generated significant interest and media exposure, with numerous articles and features by media from Dallas to South America to Australia and to Europe. The next week will be interesting and we hope it works out and Davids is wearing FCD Hoops this up coming season.
Back to the Super Draft…From the second we enter the lobby of the Hyatt Indianapolis on Thursday to check in, it's a whirlwind of trade talk. Every team is exploring multiple trade options. While some are legit offers, most are GMs/Coaches doing a "little fishing."
We had a few goals entering the '07 Super Draft:
(1) Trade a player and create salary cap space
(2) Draft Anthony Wallace in the First Round
(3) Draft Ibee with our 14th Pick
(4) Pick up at least two other players (out of our list of 4 we identified.)
(5) Improve our Draft position for '08.
We have an afternoon full of MLS meetings that I rudely step out on multiple occasions to take calls (from Davids’ reps, our ownership, GMs with trade offers, and media interviews). I'll need to find out what we discussed in the meetings but I can tell you it's all very positive these days in MLS meetings.
The trade talks heat up on Thursday night, we (Steve Morrow, Oscar Pareja, Bobby Hammond, and I) went out for dinner at PF Chang’s to discuss our final strategy for Friday's Draft and review intell that we've acquired on what players the other teams are planning to pick. Then it's back to the Hotel Bar. It's an intense scene (something out of a movie) with every coach, GM, and agent in attendance and talking trades in "sidebar" conversations inside the bar and outside in the lobby.
Going back to Goal 1 – we wanted to trade Greg Vanney during the Draft. Greg is a good player and a great person (who I respect a ton) but we're going in a different direction with our defense (athletic, aggressive, physical) and we can always use the benefit of salary cap relief. We had three teams interested (at different levels) during the evening. The talks continued late into the night and two of the three teams dropped out (who knows if they were really interested or just fishing.). We pick up the negotiations the next morning, and we finalized the deal 30 minutes before the Draft began on Friday, with the Colorado Rapids. We wish Greg and his family all the best in Colorado.
The Draft Kicks off... (I'll ask one of our coaches to provide an in depth analysis of our Draft). But I'll share the basics. The SuperDraft, as an event, keeps getting bigger and better every year. This year it's in an impressive, well decorated room, nationally TV broadcast, with tons of fans in attendance.
We really wanted to pick up Anthony Wallace with our first round pick. Anthony could be a starter for FCD this season. We were exploring moving up our position in the First Round to get Anthony but we felt confident after Cbus (who I think would have picked Wallace) traded their 2nd Rd pick to Chicago, that we might be able to get Wallace at #9. It was a gamble, but we had decent info that told us (if Cbus didn't pick him), that we might get him. So we stood our ground and ended up getting our #1 player. Quite a few Agents and GMs told us Wallace at #9 is a steal, and we agree!
We then had the #14 pick, which we picked up in the Ronnie trade deal with Toronto, and knew there was a good chance we could pick up Ibee (Abdus Ibrahim), who has the potential to be a phenom. He’s the second youngest player ever drafted (to Freddy Adu) and is a good kid who we believe in. Can't wait to see the potential realized! Our plan is to help him develop as a player, a professional and as a person.
We picked up the 18th pick from Colorado in the Vanney deal and drafted Andrew Daniels. We think Andrew can be a great defender in MLS – a smart player who's athletic with very good size. One to watch...
Then with the 22nd pick (our Natural 2nd Rd pick), we selected Ryan Guy, who's an interesting player who had a strong combine. Hard worker, great attitude and could surprise some people.
In the 3rd Round, we selected a local player, Scott Jones, who played at Jesuit High School with Kenny Cooper. He could be a sleeper who has an impact.
Daniels, Guy and Jones were 3 of the 4 players we wanted to pick up in the 2nd/3rd Rounds (Goal #4 going into Draft.).
We had two 4th Rd picks…traded one to RSL for their '08 4th Rd pick and selected Tommy Krizanovic from Jacksonville University. He could be interesting.
We also accomplished our 5th Goal - we traded one of our 3rd Rd picks next year to Colorado for their 2nd Rd pick, plus we added 4th Rd pick. So, for 2008, we have one 1st Rd, two 2nd Rd, one 3rd Rd, and two 4th Rd picks.
All-in-all, a great SuperDraft for FC Dallas! We accomplished our goals. A lot of the credit needs to go to Steve Morrow and his coaching team who did an amazing job. They developed our plan and strategy and did our home work and research on all the players and other teams' strategies. Special kudos to Marco Ferruzzi who created our playbook (scouting binder that included every piece of info we could have needed.) It's a thing of beauty. We were by far the most prepared and professional team at the Super Draft and Marco's efforts were a big reason why.
We went to dinner at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse on Friday night to celebrate a good SuperDraft, and then flew back from Indy on Saturday morning.
Time will tell who had the best Draft, but we feel good about the fact we created a plan and accomplished the goals we set going into the weekend!
Saturday, January 13, 2007
FCD Player Updates
As many have heard by now, FC Dallas has been in talks with former Holland International midfielder Edgar Davids. He's played with some of the top clubs in the world, including Ajax (Holland), Barcelona (Spain), Inter Milan, Juventus, and AC Milan (Italy), and is currently with Tottenham in the English Premiership.
We began conversation with his representatives a few weeks ago, and had our most recent last night following the MLS SuperDraft. We'll see where this goes from here, but one thing that is certain is that FCD head coach Steve Morrow believes Edgar could be a key piece in helping us win championships.
Some other bits on current FCD players:
We began conversation with his representatives a few weeks ago, and had our most recent last night following the MLS SuperDraft. We'll see where this goes from here, but one thing that is certain is that FCD head coach Steve Morrow believes Edgar could be a key piece in helping us win championships.
Some other bits on current FCD players:
- FCD selected six players in yesterday's draft. We'll have more thoughts and stories on these picks on fcdallas.net in the coming days. In the meantime, here's a few articles: related to the picks: Ibrahim; Wallace; Guy; Dallas Morning News; Star-Telegram; Al Dia; 3rdDegree; ESPN.
- We also made another major move, in trading veteran defender Greg Vanney to the Colorado Rapids. Greg was a true professional with FC Dallas and served the team with great dedication. We wish him well in his future.
- Defender Chris Gbandi will be going to Norway this week to begin working out with IK Start, a club in the top division in Norway.
- Midfielder Arturo Alvarez will begin training with Mexican First Division club, Pumas UNAM this week. We were looking to get him in with Tigres, but since our partner team struggled during their last campaign, we both agreed that the timing was not right in order for Arturo to get quality training with them. With Tigres' approval, we arranged this opportunity with Pumas.
- In the event other teams are interested in FC Dallas players, the coaching staff would evaluate any opportunity collectively and with the player and make a decision that would be in the best interest of both the team and player.
- Forward Carlos Ruiz will join the Guatemala National Team on Jan. 18 as they begin preparations for the UNCAF Nations Cup, which will qualify five Central American teams into the CONCACAF Gold Cup. The UNCAF Cup takes place in El Salvador from Feb. 8-18. Gold Cup will be played across the United States next summer.
- Newly acquired defender / midfielder Adrian Serioux will join the Canadian National Team in Florida this week for an 11-day camp.
- With the selection of Anthony Wallace, FC Dallas will in fact be represented on the U.S. U-20 team as they attempt to qualify for the U-20 World Cup next week in Panama beginning with a game against Haiti on Jan. 17.
- Finally, we've received positive news on midfielder Ramon Nunez and goalkeeper Shaka Hislop with regard to their residency status. There's a chance that both could receive their green card prior to the start of the season, thus not counting as Youth or Senior Internationals respectively.
Thursday, January 11, 2007
"Beckham to America"
Michael Hitchcock, FC Dallas General Manager:
Great news out of MLS Headquarters today. If you haven't heard, David Beckham is coming to MLS to play for the LA Galaxy. Which means the world's most popular athlete will play at Pizza Hut Park this summer or fall.
This is an amazing announcement for MLS and the growth of soccer in America. Any time you can bring a rock star to your sport, it will improve the media coverage (in U.S. and overseas), fan interest (in U.S. and overseas), business interest (from sponsors and partners) and overall credibility and awareness for MLS (in U.S. and overseas.) And that's what we have, a Rock Star with the highest profile athlete on the planet coming to MLS and Pizza Hut Park.
I've been asked on our plans for the Designated Player Spot. Our approach has been, and continues to be, if we can identify a big name International Player that will help build our brand but most importantly, increase our chances of winning a championship for our fans, than we'll sign a designated player.
That said, we're in conversations with prospective Designated Players during this International Transfer Window and if it makes sense competitively and we can agree to terms, we'd love to bring one of them to FC Dallas and Pizza Hut Park. This is an exciting time for MLS and FC Dallas. It'll be a fun year for soccer fans throughout the Metroplex.
More exciting news to be announced soon.
Great news out of MLS Headquarters today. If you haven't heard, David Beckham is coming to MLS to play for the LA Galaxy. Which means the world's most popular athlete will play at Pizza Hut Park this summer or fall.
This is an amazing announcement for MLS and the growth of soccer in America. Any time you can bring a rock star to your sport, it will improve the media coverage (in U.S. and overseas), fan interest (in U.S. and overseas), business interest (from sponsors and partners) and overall credibility and awareness for MLS (in U.S. and overseas.) And that's what we have, a Rock Star with the highest profile athlete on the planet coming to MLS and Pizza Hut Park.
I've been asked on our plans for the Designated Player Spot. Our approach has been, and continues to be, if we can identify a big name International Player that will help build our brand but most importantly, increase our chances of winning a championship for our fans, than we'll sign a designated player.
That said, we're in conversations with prospective Designated Players during this International Transfer Window and if it makes sense competitively and we can agree to terms, we'd love to bring one of them to FC Dallas and Pizza Hut Park. This is an exciting time for MLS and FC Dallas. It'll be a fun year for soccer fans throughout the Metroplex.
More exciting news to be announced soon.
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
CORRECTION: Presale ticket info for U.S. Game
FCD Hoops Nation members should have received an email with instructions on how to pre-order tickets for the U.S. versus Guatemala game that will be played at Pizza Hut Park on March 28. FC Dallas Season Ticket holders should have received a call. The presale opportunity is available from 10 am.-11 p.m. TODAY, Wed. Jan. 10 only.
If you are a season ticket holder and did not receive a call, please contact your account representative at 214-705-6700.
If you're a member of the FCD Hoops Nation and have not received an email, please send an email and type "USA" in the subject line to fcdhoopsnation@fcdallas.net and the presale details will be sent to you directly.
If you are a season ticket holder and did not receive a call, please contact your account representative at 214-705-6700.
If you're a member of the FCD Hoops Nation and have not received an email, please send an email and type "USA" in the subject line to fcdhoopsnation@fcdallas.net and the presale details will be sent to you directly.
Tuesday, January 9, 2007
U.S. Nats Host Guatemala at Pizza Hut Park
Today we finalized details with the U.S. Soccer Federation and announced that the U.S. Men's National Team will return to Pizza Hut Park to play Guatemala on March 28. It's the fourth game they'll play since last summer's World Cup, as the team continues to prepare for the Gold Cup and Copa America next summer.
As some may remember, the two teams also faced each other in Feb. 2006 in Frisco, so some are wondering why the same opponents are returning. Here's the answer: Pizza Hut Park wanted to host a U.S. National Team game, along with many other events. Since U.S. Soccer Federation determines the schedule for the team, and looks for venues and dates that work best to fit their needs, it turned out that in order for Pizza Hut Park to be a venue that Guatemala was to be the opponent for the date that fit both U.S. Soccer and Pizza Hut Park.
March 28 is a FIFA International Fixture date, which means that all clubs around the world must release players for national team duty if they are called by their countries. Therefore, there is the possibility that new U.S. National Team coach Bob Bradley could call in any of the players that are currently playing in Europe.
This game also presents the chance that we may see FCD forwards Carlos Ruiz and Kenny Cooper face each other in their own stadium. Kenny is currently with the U.S. team as they prepare for the friendly versus Denmark on Jan. 20, and Carlos is expecting to join the Guatemala team next week as they begin preparing the UNCAF Tournament, which takes place in February.
As some may remember, the two teams also faced each other in Feb. 2006 in Frisco, so some are wondering why the same opponents are returning. Here's the answer: Pizza Hut Park wanted to host a U.S. National Team game, along with many other events. Since U.S. Soccer Federation determines the schedule for the team, and looks for venues and dates that work best to fit their needs, it turned out that in order for Pizza Hut Park to be a venue that Guatemala was to be the opponent for the date that fit both U.S. Soccer and Pizza Hut Park.
March 28 is a FIFA International Fixture date, which means that all clubs around the world must release players for national team duty if they are called by their countries. Therefore, there is the possibility that new U.S. National Team coach Bob Bradley could call in any of the players that are currently playing in Europe.
This game also presents the chance that we may see FCD forwards Carlos Ruiz and Kenny Cooper face each other in their own stadium. Kenny is currently with the U.S. team as they prepare for the friendly versus Denmark on Jan. 20, and Carlos is expecting to join the Guatemala team next week as they begin preparing the UNCAF Tournament, which takes place in February.
"Great Weekend at the Park"
Michael Hitchcock, FC Dallas and Pizza Hut Park General Manager:
I love the InterLiga Tournament. If you're not familiar with the tournament, it's a pre-season tourney (for the top Mexican Clubs) with something very important at stake - $ and the prestige of competing against the best South American clubs in Libertadores Cup. In its 2nd year at Pizza Hut Park, InterLiga is always full of great goals, exciting end-to-end action on the pitch, passionate fans in the stands, and the pageantry that makes this game great!
This years InterLiga didn't disappoint. It all starts in the parking lots, where this year we hosted a Festival in the Gold Lot. Thousands of fans watching bands, visiting sponsor booths, waving flags, celebrating their passionate support for their club. It's something special. I love seeing entire families sporting full kits for their favorite teams (mom/ dad/ sons/ daughters). It's a great scene. It's exactly the type of passionate support that we're trying to create for FC Dallas.
As the host of this great tourney, we shouldn't have favorites but I couldn't help but sport my Tigres tie for Saturday’s doubleheader. Tigres, our partner club in Mexico, has won the last two InterLiga's and done well in Copa Libertadores. We first met with Tigres one year ago during InterLiga '06, where we started to work on the partnership that was finalized a couple months later. We took advantage of their visit to Frisco to discuss the '07 partnersh
I love the InterLiga Tournament. If you're not familiar with the tournament, it's a pre-season tourney (for the top Mexican Clubs) with something very important at stake - $ and the prestige of competing against the best South American clubs in Libertadores Cup. In its 2nd year at Pizza Hut Park, InterLiga is always full of great goals, exciting end-to-end action on the pitch, passionate fans in the stands, and the pageantry that makes this game great!
This years InterLiga didn't disappoint. It all starts in the parking lots, where this year we hosted a Festival in the Gold Lot. Thousands of fans watching bands, visiting sponsor booths, waving flags, celebrating their passionate support for their club. It's something special. I love seeing entire families sporting full kits for their favorite teams (mom/ dad/ sons/ daughters). It's a great scene. It's exactly the type of passionate support that we're trying to create for FC Dallas.
As the host of this great tourney, we shouldn't have favorites but I couldn't help but sport my Tigres tie for Saturday’s doubleheader. Tigres, our partner club in Mexico, has won the last two InterLiga's and done well in Copa Libertadores. We first met with Tigres one year ago during InterLiga '06, where we started to work on the partnership that was finalized a couple months later. We took advantage of their visit to Frisco to discuss the '07 partnersh