May 2 – There may still be life in the North American Soccer League (NASL) that shelved its 2018 season after US Soccer denied the league Division 2 status, effectively ripping away its commercial underpinning.
New York Cosmos owner Rocco Commisso says he can raise $500 million for the pro league if he receives assurances from the US federation that it will leave the league alone to run its business.
Commisso said he will put $250 million up himself and that he could even raise as much as $1 billion of new money for the league.
He has requested a meeting with new USSF president Carlos Cordeiro who so far has failed to find time to meet though is currently fully engaged in the 2026 World Cup bid campaign.
Cordeiro has a potential earthquake looking for somewhere to happen in terms of Commisso’s determination to get retribution for the NASL and its clubs for what they see as deliberate and co-ordinated action by the USSF, its marketing partner Soccer United Marketing to destroy the league. The NASL accusations have already been subject of an anti-trust suit which claims past and present individuals in both organisations had conflicts of interest and connived to destroy the league and its business opportunity, action that favoured the business interests of the MLS and the fast growing USL.
This isn’t the ranting of an unhinged club owner and the USSF has a very clear case to answer, and likely governance reform as a result – something of an irony in a country that has pledged to clean up the world game’s governing body for the world via its FIFA corruption indictments.
If all goes well, Commisso envisages a 10-team league launching next year in stadiums seating at least 10,000 fans. The $500 million – with likely contributions from Miami FC’s Riccardo Silva and Jacksonville Armada’s Robert Palmer – would include upgrading existing venues as well as supporting NPSL clubs that were lined up to join the NASL if it had received D2 sanctioning.
Commissio has said that promotion and relegation would be part of their league structure – an initiative already championed by Silva for US Soccer but rejected immediately by the USSF.
Speaking to Sports Illustrated, Commisso said that he only wants the same dispensations that were granted to the MLS when it started, and a 10-year clear “runway” to get the league established.
In his letter that was also sent April 13 to the USSF but also to FIFA president Gianni Infantino, Concacaf president Victor Montagliani, and members of the U.S. Senate, he asks for “written assurances that USSF will give us a sufficiently long runway to allow this new initiative to have a realistic chance to succeed.”
Cordeiro responded requesting more information on the proposals. This merited a sharp reply from Commisso who says the fact that he is willing to up $250 million of his own money should merit a meeting. “There is reluctance on our part to share detailed information about our plans and proposals with USSF at this juncture,” (because of its relationship with SUM and MLS) he replied.
From Cordeiro there is a request to move away from legal proceedings to find a common ground. As a former Goldman Sachs investment banker who professes to know little about the game of football, he will understand that this dispute will not be settled by an amicable kick-about with a adversary who knows his way equally around a boardroom table.
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