Anyone who has had their heart ripped out and their meager offerings of the soul trampled on knows that one of the best ways to heal is to jump back on the proverbial saddle. We’re not talking rest-of-your-lives-ride-into-the-sunset so much as a quick romp at the rodeo.
So maybe that’s the approach jilted Chargers fans ought to take when considering the latest talk of another professional futbol team coming to town. Yes, that is futbol, not football.
An investment group out of La Jolla, FS Investors, has local soccer fans gleefully buzzing after presenting their ideas for bringing a Major League Soccer team to the city of San Diego—specifically to Qualcomm stadium where the Chargers used to play in the NFL until their recent move to Los Angeles.
Some Bolts and NFL-only fans say talk of replacing the team is too soon. Stuck in the grieving process they are still grappling with the idea that their beloved team has left town and they are holding on to hope the Chargers will return. Or, another NFL team will want to call San Diego and Mission Valley’s Qualcomm stadium home. Either of those scenarios may happen, though probably not and definitely not any time within the next five years.
So filling the need for civic pride through a top division sports entity via MLS in San Diego may be what sports fans need to get them past the break up blues. While there are plenty of other teams to cheer for in this county—Albion Pros, Chula Vista F.C., SoCal Surf, The Sea Lions, Gulls and Sockers—none of them has the allure of being a top league team. If FS Investors can convince MLS Commissioner Don Garber that San Diego merits serious consideration for an expansion team, San Diego’s soccer team could fill that immediate void. They could be that rebound dalliance football fans need to get over their psychic hurt.
During an informal meeting with about 20 leaders of soccer supporters clubs and fans Wednesday night, Nick Stone touched on his group’s plans for building a joint-use stadium for an MLS team and San Diego State University. They envision razing The Q and supplanting it with mixed-use housing, retail, a park, all the trappings that developers usually talk about when presenting their grand designs to boards and elected officials. They also had the provocative idea of having professional Mexican soccer teams play here in an attempt to appeal to Liga MX fans and strengthen ties between the States and Mexico. Most impressive, however, is their claim that the project will be privately financed between FS and SDSU.
It’s still too soon for even avid futbol fans to commit to the proposal Stone and his colleagues are advancing but it doesn’t hurt to hear what they say, listen and let them woo the MLS and sports fans to their hearts’ content.
Stone and Company are meeting with Garber Monday to make a case for San Diego.
