Tuesday, Sep. 06, 2011

Ownership rule not a roadblock for RailHawks

To keep in line with new U.S. Soccer Federation regulations for Division 2 leagues, the Carolina RailHawks will one day have be sold to new owners.

The team is currently owned by Traffic Sports USA, a Brazilian group that also owns the North American Soccer League and two other league teams.

As of now, there are no indications that a sale will happen before next season. And if it doesn't, few anticipate that it would be a roadblock for the NASL to be sanctioned for next season.

A key element missing from the stated regulation is a timetable. And RailHawks team president Curt Johnson says there's a good reason for that.

"Otherwise, it would put those owners in a situation where they would have to sell something for nothing," Johnson said.

"This is a big point of discussion, because U.S. Soccer is not in the business of trying to limit the negotiation power of the owner. They want the franchise values to be at a fair market price. If you're required by some artificial date ... you would be putting them as a big disadvantage."

The rule also says the owner of multiple teams must present the federation with a plan on how it would relinquish ownership of all but one team. But the federation applies the same rule to its first-division league, Major League Soccer, where the Hunt Sports Group owns the MLS' Columbus Crew and FC Dallas.

"It's clearly something that neither Traffic nor the league thinks is an ideal situation," NASL commissioner David Downs said. "We're in talks with a number of people to try and divest Traffic's interests in those clubs.

"But we all realize that it's more important, in transferring those ownerships, that we do them in a cautionary way to ensure that we absolutely get the right person in place rather than rush to get somebody who does a worse job."

Traffic Sports not only owns a majority stake in the Carolina RailHawks, but it also owns the Fort Lauderdale Strikers and a majority share of the Atlanta Silverbacks. NSC Minnesota is owned by the league, which includes all of the NASL owners and not just Traffic Sports.

"We believe that at the moment the teams are operating at an arm's length and they are truly competitive," Downs said.

"But it's clearly something that all leagues and the federation would strive to eliminate."

The NASL has been denied and approved for sanctioning twice in the last two years.

It was first denied when it first tried to break away from the United Soccer League - which also was denied sanctioning as a Division 2 league - after the 2009 season. In the 2010 season, both leagues played together in a temporary league operated by the USSF.

After the 2010 season, the NASL was approved for sanctioning. The league then went through a tumultuous few months when it lost sanctioning - the change in RailHawks ownership was believed to have played a role - and then was reapproved.

Downs thinks things will go smoother this time.

"It's a very different process, when you're a league that's playing, to get recertified than it is when you're a league trying to get sanctioned that has no history of playing," Downs said. "We don't envision any issue whatsoever, and quite frankly that's the feedback we're getting from U.S. Soccer."

The NASL will lose the Montreal Impact, who are moving to MLS, next season but will add an expansion franchise in the San Antonio Scorpions.