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***Official Soccer Discussion Thread*** (7 Viewers)

Alex Andrejev

@AndrejevAlex

NEWS: Charlotte FC has sold 73,500 tickets for its first-ever home match against the LA Galaxy. That figure breaks an MLS attendance record

 
El Floppo said:
and amidst all the speculation over the last couple days, Abramovich has just confirmed that he is intending to sell the club.

"In the current situation, I have therefore taken the decision to sell the club, as I believe this is in the best interest of the club, the fans, the employees, as well as the club's sponsors and partners.

"The sale of the club will not be fast-tracked but will follow due process. I will not be asking for any loans to be repaid. This has never been about business nor money for me, but about pure passion for the game and club."

Abramovich is under pressure to sell because should the U.K. government sanction him, Chelsea could be seized as an asset. He would be unable to put any funds into the club and any sale would become extremely complicated.

Sources have told ESPN that Abramovich is seeking around £3 billion ($2.24 billion) for the Blues but his ability to negotiate is severely hampered by the timing of his decision, apparently influenced by mounting pressure on the U.K. government to seize the assets of high-value Russian individuals with links to Russia president Vladimir Putin's regime following the country's invasion of Ukraine. Abramovich has always strenuously denied any ties to Putin but Labour party leader Sir Keir Starmer publicly called on the government to impose sanctions on the Chelsea owner at Wednesday's session of Prime Minister's Questions.
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At this point it seems unlikely Britain will impose any sanctions on Abramovich any time soon.  That said, a deal does seem to be in the works, with the hottest rumors involving a group that includes Todd Boehly and Hansjörg Wyss.  Boehly is an American hedge fund guy who is part of the LA Dodgers ownership group.  Wyss is an ancient Swiss billionaire who has had a number of interests in the sports world over the years.

This guy is all over this, for those interested:

Nicola Imfeld@nicola_imfeld·3h⚽️

#Breaking (1/2): I’m told that the American-Swiss consortium with Todd Boehly and Hansjörg Wyss have found other partners. The team is complete! Negotiations with #Abramovich are already taking place. He still wants to sell #Chelsea quickly.

Nicola Imfeld@nicola_imfeld·3h⚽️ (2/2): The American-Swiss consortium is confident that progress can be made over the weekend. Already on Monday a deal could be announced. That depends on the negotiations over the weekend. Swiss billionaire Wyss will now fly from Boston to California on Thursday afternoon.
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This is a sad day and a huge loss for Chelsea and for London.  Fantastic owner who gave everything to the club and the community. Absolutely incredible that he is writing off 1.5+bln in debt and donating all proceeds of the sale to charity for war victims. He won everything for Chelsea - seems irreplaceable to me. 

 
NewlyRetired said:
Alex Andrejev

@AndrejevAlex

NEWS: Charlotte FC has sold 73,500 tickets for its first-ever home match against the LA Galaxy. That figure breaks an MLS attendance record
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Union probably would've held this record had the Linc been opened at all levels. Only the bottom levels were opened for the Unions first home match. Plus Charlotte is playing in the Panthers stadium similar to how Atlanta play in Falcons and SEA Seahawks. Most soccer affiliated stadiums hold 20K-22K 16 stadiums holds 20-29 and 8 hold under 20K. I also forgot to include Fire playing in Bears stadium. However most of the Football regulated stadiums these clubs play in don't open the full stadium up seating wise for whatever reason. 

Some of us in Philly have suggested bigger rivalry games and Concacafe matches be at the Linc if needed for bigger capacity etc. Not sure if a lot of this is demand or what though. 

 
CletiusMaximus said:
At this point it seems unlikely Britain will impose any sanctions on Abramovich any time soon.  That said, a deal does seem to be in the works, with the hottest rumors involving a group that includes Todd Boehly and Hansjörg Wyss.  Boehly is an American hedge fund guy who is part of the LA Dodgers ownership group.  Wyss is an ancient Swiss billionaire who has had a number of interests in the sports world over the years.

This guy is all over this, for those interested:

This is a sad day and a huge loss for Chelsea and for London.  Fantastic owner who gave everything to the club and the community. Absolutely incredible that he is writing off 1.5+bln in debt and donating all proceeds of the sale to charity for war victims. He won everything for Chelsea - seems irreplaceable to me. 
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The bolded is virtue Signaling at its finest. DailyMail reported this 

Roman Abramovich has a large shareholding in a Russian steelmaking firm making materials used to build the tanks invading Ukraine.

He transferred his shares directly to himself from an offshore company on Feb 16 - 8 days before Putin invaded.

He wants people to forget is little investment here

 
DJackson10 said:
The bolded is virtue Signaling at its finest. DailyMail reported this 

Roman Abramovich has a large shareholding in a Russian steelmaking firm making materials used to build the tanks invading Ukraine.

He transferred his shares directly to himself from an offshore company on Feb 16 - 8 days before Putin invaded.

He wants people to forget is little investment here
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I guess I don't really know how this is relevant. Of course he owns interests in huge oil, steel and aluminum companies that supply customers all over the world. Of course he is scrambling to secure his personal wealth and his assets right now - that is all very well known. Can a shareholder of a steel company somehow alter Russian political decisions?

 
CletiusMaximus said:
I guess I don't really know how this is relevant. Of course he owns interests in huge oil, steel and aluminum companies that supply customers all over the world. Of course he is scrambling to secure his personal wealth and his assets right now - that is all very well known. Can a shareholder of a steel company somehow alter Russian political decisions?
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The company he has interest in helps manufacture the tanks rolling into Ukraine so yes despite "donating" to the Ukraine effort he's been supplying the war effort in Russia. Multiple government agencies believe he cleans Putin's dirty money and could succeed Putin if something were to happen. As well as multiple photos and other things of him being involved with Jeffrey Epstein. 

 
NewlyRetired said:
Alex Andrejev

@AndrejevAlex

NEWS: Charlotte FC has sold 73,500 tickets for its first-ever home match against the LA Galaxy. That figure breaks an MLS attendance record
Click to expand...
Uncle Arthur is going to have to add some seats to the Benz.  He can always just give away the extra seats when the Falcons play.

 
El Floppo said:
Everybody's favorite big eyed lemur, Hector Herrera, appears to be joining Houston this summer.
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And today is looks like they are closing in on Diego Lainez.  I know Lainez has been a complete bust in Spain but there is something about how this kid plays that gives me the feeling he could be really good  in MLS.

 
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NewlyRetired said:
And today is looks like they are closing in on Diego Lainez.  I know Lainez has been a complete bust in Spain but there is something about how this kid plays that gives me the feeling he could be really good  in MLS.
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huh... I get Herrera tbh- the guy still has it, but has definitely lost a step. I think if his heart is in it, he'll be great in MLS and give Houston that top Mexican player they always should've had.

Llainez... I mentioned it years ago after seeing him in some youth games and then first appearing with the seniors- scary good. honestly felt he was Messi-ish with how he attacked the game- and different than the guys like Chucky or Tecatito.

I have no idea what's happened with him in Spain. And even though I genuinely love that he's busted there so far, I still think the kid has to be good enough to make it in Europe to further his career. Holland would be a great spot for him IMO, even if he could probably make a little more coin in MLS with his brand recognition here. oh... #### that. let him come here and hopefully progress less.

 
holy ####, just reading about the queretaro and atlas march in liga mx 🥲 absolutely disgusting. 

search #Queretaro on twitter for the pictures but they are not pretty and very disgusting.

“Pictures and videos shared on social media showed people being beaten, kicked and dragged while others had been left lying on the ground, covered in blood, in what appeared to be the seating area of the stadium in the central city of Queretaro.”

 
Media reports are all over the place in terms of numbers in that game...from 22 injured, to 17 dead. really hoping the death count is zero.

Horrible business down there.

 
Willing to believe that not everyone who looked dead was dead, but there's no way no one died either.  Some of the wounds were horrible and people were kicked in the head dozens of times after they were already unconscious.

Queretaro is trying to whitewash this to protect the team from being disbanded, and Mexico is trying to whitewash it to protect Mexico and its hosting of the World Cup.  Despicable.

On Sunday, Medrano tweeted out a photo and confirmation of one of the dead fans, an Atlas fan. At least two other videos surfaced Sunday of Atlas fans who insisted they had friends who died in the stadium attacks.

In response, Liga MX, Mexico’s domestic soccer league, pointed back to the state’s statement that no one had died. Many questioned it.

“Mexico’s had a history of distrust with government officials over death tolls, whether that’s students gone missing, whether that’s femicide, whether that’s COVID deaths,” said Hérculez Gómez, a former U.S. national team player who spent six seasons in the Mexican league. “There’s a history of government misinformation and distrust amongst its people. And that’s going on right now.
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Dinsy Ejotuz said:
Willing to believe that not everyone who looked dead was dead, but there's no way no one died either.  Some of the wounds were horrible and people were kicked in the head dozens of times after they were already unconscious.

Queretaro is trying to whitewash this to protect the team from being disbanded, and Mexico is trying to whitewash it to protect Mexico and its hosting of the World Cup.  Despicable.
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it's linking this page, fwiw.

but tbh, I'm pretty sure I'm not going to click on anything linked to images of this tragedy. 

and yeah- I agree that I'm inclined to not trust much of what they're saying down there in regards to numbers.

 
El Floppo said:
it's linking this page, fwiw.

but tbh, I'm pretty sure I'm not going to click on anything linked to images of this tragedy. 

and yeah- I agree that I'm inclined to not trust much of what they're saying down there in regards to numbers.
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I was trying to link to an actual news story -- wouldn't share those vids.

 
Went to the Sixers/Bulls game last night game was anything special since CHI lost but Carli Lloyd was there and I met her after the game just by chance walking in the concourse. A little smaller height wise then I thought she was and she was with her husband. Really awesome person. 

 
El Floppo said:
it's linking this page, fwiw.

but tbh, I'm pretty sure I'm not going to click on anything linked to images of this tragedy. 

and yeah- I agree that I'm inclined to not trust much of what they're saying down there in regards to numbers.
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https://twitter.com/xevin001/status/1500574437661286400?s=21

this video literally shows one of the security guards opening the gate to let the fans through, no blood on this one. i don’t believe that there were no casualties 

 
CletiusMaximus said:
Quote
Nicola Imfeld@nicola_imfeld·3h⚽️

#Breaking (1/2): I’m told that the American-Swiss consortium with Todd Boehly and Hansjörg Wyss have found other partners. The team is complete! Negotiations with #Abramovich are already taking place. He still wants to sell #Chelsea quickly.

Nicola Imfeld@nicola_imfeld·3h⚽️ (2/2): The American-Swiss consortium is confident that progress can be made over the weekend. Already on Monday a deal could be announced. That depends on the negotiations over the weekend. Swiss billionaire Wyss will now fly from Boston to California on Thursday afternoon.
Expand  
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This Todd Boehly group is emerging as the favorite to be the new Chelsea owners as far as I can tell.  That assumes a deal gets done, which I think is still a big unknown. 

Offer confirmed, waiting for a response from Roman. https://www.theguardian.com/football/2022/mar/08/hansjorg-wyss-and-todd-boehly-submit-chelsea-bid-roman-abramovich-not-yet-convinced-to-sell

 
El Floppo said:
fyi...

Liga MX: Queretaro home fans banned for 1 year, 'barras' get 3-year ban; owners must sell club.
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Should've been relegated to 3rd or 4th division in Mexico. Liga MX is going to go with State and local law enforcement at matches instead of these private security. ID for fans and supporter sections with facial recognition and no minors allowed in supporter sections anymore. 

 
El Floppo said:
fyi...

Liga MX: Queretaro home fans banned for 1 year, 'barras' get 3-year ban; owners must sell club.
Click to expand...
Fwiw, I mentioned the ESPN show that reacted to the tragedy...Herc, Sebastian (us/Mex commentator) and another mex/us commentator/reporter hosting with a bunch of Mex sports journalists zooming in.

Those three guys were talking about impending punishment needing to be as unprecedented as the actual horrors at the stadium: Kicking the team entirely out of LigaMx for 5 or 10 years, which would send a message to the "bigger" teams and fans that this can never happen again.

As it is...owners make some money selling. Fans and players miss out on live support, but basically COVID days for another year, and a quasi-militarized gang can't go in the stadium for a few years (they can still be outside of the stadium where they've wreaked havoc in prior years). It's not nothing, but relative to what we saw seems like not much more.

 
DJackson10 said:
Should've been relegated to 3rd or 4th division in Mexico. Liga MX is going to go with State and local law enforcement at matches instead of these private security. ID for fans and supporter sections with facial recognition and no minors allowed in supporter sections anymore. 
Click to expand...
I don't get the "no minors" part of this.

It's like they just gave up even pretending trying to solve the problem and eradicate the violence- so they get rid of the potential victims instead?

 
El Floppo said:
Fwiw, I mentioned the ESPN show that reacted to the tragedy...Herc, Sebastian (us/Mex commentator) and another mex/us commentator/reporter hosting with a bunch of Mex sports journalists zooming in.

Those three guys were talking about impending punishment needing to be as unprecedented as the actual horrors at the stadium: Kicking the team entirely out of LigaMx for 5 or 10 years, which would send a message to the "bigger" teams and fans that this can never happen again.

As it is...owners make some money selling. Fans and players miss out on live support, but basically COVID days for another year, and a quasi-militarized gang can't go in the stadium for a few years (they can still be outside of the stadium where they've wreaked havoc in prior years). It's not nothing, but relative to what we saw seems like not much more.
Click to expand...
I am going to guess the owners are not going to make much.  In a sale that is forced like this, no one is going to bid anything close to market value.  My guess is that no sale of worth will happen and that Liga MX will take over the team (not too un-similar to when MLS had to take over Chivas USA and eventually shut it down to pave the way for LAFC)..

As a related note to our own league, we know that MLS has been positioning itself to get closer and eventually merge with Liga MX.  This mess has to give them a moments pause in trying to figure out if that is where they really want to land.  

 
NewlyRetired said:
I am going to guess the owners are not going to make much.  In a sale that is forced like this, no one is going to bid anything close to market value.  My guess is that no sale of worth will happen and that Liga MX will take over the team (not too un-similar to when MLS had to take over Chivas USA and eventually shut it down to pave the way for LAFC)..

As a related note to our own league, we know that MLS has been positioning itself to get closer and eventually merge with Liga MX.  This mess has to give them a moments pause in trying to figure out if that is where they really want to land.  
Click to expand...
they discussed the potential MLS/LMX merge and other relationships they have (I think there's a joint league Cup competition upcoming?) and exactly those concerns. 

they also were unsettled that MLS hadn't really made any kind of statement about what happened... and I don't think has yet.

 
El Floppo said:
I don't get the "no minors" part of this.

It's like they just gave up even pretending trying to solve the problem and eradicate the violence- so they get rid of the potential victims instead?
Click to expand...
I'm not sure it means they're giving up so much as acknowledging that there is risk and seeking to mitigate it while they work on the problem.  Even if they weren't violent, many Ultras sections around the world aren't exactly kid friendly.  Sure, I can sit with my kids with the Barra Brava in DC, but I'm not sitting with them in the Lazio Ultras section unless I want them picking up several anti-Semitic slurs in Italian. 

 
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Ramsay Hunt Experience said:
I'm not sure it means they're giving up so much as acknowledging that there is risk and seeking to mitigate it while they work on the problem.  Even if they weren't violent, many Ultras sections around the world aren't exactly kid friendly.  Sure, I can sit with my kids with the Barra Brava in DC, but I'm not sitting with them in the Lazio Ultras section unless I want them picking up several anti-Semitic slurs in Italian. 
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there's a Lazio Ultra's section in DC?

For sure... not the most kid-friendly spots- as much because most of them are standing the whole time, which makes it harder for kids to see if they want to sit... but certainly for the drinking/behavior you don't want your kid to emulate.

I'm reacting to what I'm perceiving as them punishing the people who have nothing to do with what happened- most of the fans there were just trying to watch a game, including many families. So instead of trying to affect change in a positive way in those sections, they're basically sanctioning worse behavior by eliminating kids and families. my take.

 
"decisive"

Liga MX president Mikel Arriola has told ESPN that Mexico's role as one of the hosts of the 2026 World Cup would have been in jeopardy had there not been a decisive response by the country's football authorities to the fan violence that erupted on Saturday.

The clashes between fans during Queretaro's league match against visiting Atlas at Estadio Corregidora resulted in 26 people injured while police have arrested 14 individuals.

The Liga MX and country's Football Federation (FMF) announced punishments on Tuesday, which included Queretaro being forced to play behind closed doors their home games for one year and a three-year ban for the barras supporters' groups.

"It [the involvement in the 2026 World Cup hosting] was at risk if Mexico didn't resolve and didn't show a capacity of resolving our own industry's problems," Arriola told ESPN.

"Because if not, they [CONCACAF, FIFA] would have imposed the solutions on us. Yes, it [Mexico's World Cup involvement] was at risk, but I think after [Tuesday's] assembly and having informed FIFA of our decisions, I believe we can continue very forcefully going forward".

FIFA were "shocked" by the "barbaric" episode at Queretaro and asked "local authorities to bring swift justice to those responsible."

FMF president Yon de Luisa cut short his trip to Europe to return to Mexico on Sunday to address the situation.

De Luisa said on Tuesday he had been in contact with FIFA president Gianni Infantino in recent days.

"He [Infantino] was very concerned about the events that went around the world," De Luisa said. "At all times he showed us his personal and institutional support so that we took the necessary measures that are needed.

"I think it is very clear to me that what was decided is perfectly aligned with what he requested of us."

Mexico is part of the United 2026 winning bid, also involving Canada and the United States.
Click to expand...

 
El Floppo said:
I don't get the "no minors" part of this.

It's like they just gave up even pretending trying to solve the problem and eradicate the violence- so they get rid of the potential victims instead?
Click to expand...


I think it's more there were a lot of people in there that shouldn't have been in the supporters section. Plus I'm sure there was a ton of underage intoxications that wasn't helping either. Don't know Mexico's laws on sales of adult beverages so can't comment but I know here in Philly every sports stadium cards you and you are allowed 2 drinks per person. 10 yrs ago it was up to 4 or something. Went to a flyers game with a group of us from work. One of my coworkers drove 3 of my friends and I went with others that night. My 3 friends were getting beer all game from my coworker who drove them. We were maybe 17-18 at the time this happened? Anyway after a while and more underage drinking incidents at philly Sporting events they all changed their beer purchasing policies. Now it's 2 drinks per person and you are ID no matter what 

 
NewlyRetired said:
I am going to guess the owners are not going to make much.  In a sale that is forced like this, no one is going to bid anything close to market value.  My guess is that no sale of worth will happen and that Liga MX will take over the team (not too un-similar to when MLS had to take over Chivas USA and eventually shut it down to pave the way for LAFC)..
Click to expand...


Roman Abramovich wants to sell Chelsea for like $3.25B and he's not getting anything close to that because people know he HAS TO SELL THE CLUB 

 
El Floppo said:
"decisive"
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Well now that this is out we can say if it wasn't for the World Cup bid I doubt they'd have taken any action. It's been mentioned by several Mexican American Reporters in recent yrs but the Liga MX President is just as corrupt as most of the politicians and police in Mexico. there's been several incidents over the past few yrs (Obviously not as bad as this) that Liga MX failed to take action on and they blamed the League president saying he's corrupt in the pockets of certain politicians and gangs and Ultras of Clubs down there. 

 
Roman Abramovich's assets are frozen by UK government.  He can't sell Chelsea. 

Also the club will continue playing and season ticket holders can attend, but they can't sell any more tickets for games and I would guess that they can't sell any more merchandise either. 

The UK government gave them a special license to continue operations but is very restrictive on what the club can do.  No idea if they will be able to sell or buy players but I doubt it. 

They may force a sale and then lock away all proceeds so Abramovich can't access the funds. 

What a mess (but obviously the people in Ukraine have it worse).

 
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