FCB Miami: Interview with Barcelona partner Claure

source: miamisoccerfan.com
editing: fcbtransfers.blogspot.com





Do you and FC Barcelona feel confident that MLS will award Miami with an expansion team?
We feel very strongly that the proposition we have set forth to Major League Soccer including the partnership with the Barcelona, playing in South Florida, and our stadium deal with Florida International University, make us very serious contenders for one of the two franchises. The deal with FIU, considering the challenging economic environment and difficulty to raise private and public financing, is a real differentiator. Plus, from a stadium standpoint, we could start playing tomorrow.

How do you plan to engage the community in relation to fan interaction and integration, so that the team enjoys success right out the gate.
Other teams conducted some very interesting outreach programs, and we will have to study those as they were very effective. At the same time, we will have to think strongly about what works best in the Miami market. We have already turned to governing bodies to help drive support to youth and adult leagues and to the other professional franchises in South Florida. We have an engaged ownership group, so I think it will not be out of the question that we may do some sports bar tours and even some media appearances on local networks. In the end however, we are going to require support from all our fans to get the word out.

How do you intend to advertise this Miami MLS team, if awarded a team? Advertisement is the most important way to get the stadium and stands filled. This is something every team in the past has failed at.
This is always a key ingredient to the success of professional sports franchise, and Miami is a challenging market. As I see it advertising has 3 key components. First, it has to build your brand and support it. We are studying how best to leverage FCB, Miami, and our Americas play to make the strongest, most viable connection. Second, it has to attract fans to the stadium and to interact with the team. Since this is still very early on we have not but together an advertising plan, however, we plan to work closely with local advertising and public relations firm to find the best channels to reach fans and supporters. Third, and this is critical to MLS, it has to attract sponsors. Without sponsorship dollars in MLS the equation does not work. We are actively recruiting sponsors across the board, and need to provide MLS a show of strength in the next couple weeks. We need to sell stadium rights, jersey rights, team sponsorships, and stadium sponsorships, but for right now we are looking for four or five key partners.

Will local Soccer figures be involved with BarcaMiami?
We welcome participation and support from everyone. To make this a success we need everyone supporting and pushing it. As far as the long-term management and operation of the team, I have to look closely at that with Barcelona. They will be involved in running all of the soccer areas of the Club, basically replicating the model they use in Barcelona which has proven so successful in Europe.

How do you plan to name the team?
We have contemplated a name the team competition, and our website is set up to launch that type of contest, but we are still evaluating other options. We want to find a way to capture Miami, FCB, and Americas all in one name. No doubt, it is a challenge. We have some upcoming events in the next couple weeks, and it would be great to announce the name at one of those events, so we are trying to move quickly, but intelligently.

We are hearing rumors that Barca/Claure are in conversation with Philadelphia about possibility switching with them the date for expansion start?
I can’t comment on that because I really don’t know much about it. We have always stated that one of the conditions for us was starting in March, 2010. We will not negotiate on that, and the MLS understands our position. Therefore, because the timeframe is relatively short, we expect the MLS will make a decision about our franchise in the very near future, say the next month or so.

I was wondering your plans both short and long term for this team. Specifically, is their any plans on opening a youth academy in the area to develop home grown youngsters? In my opinion Miami is a potential gold mine for potential talent. Also what type of international players are you planning on bringing in? Will you try to cater to the various nationalities in Miami? Is their any plan on potentially sending your own youth players to the Miami franchise, or perhaps buy young South American players, and first develop them in MLS before sending them to Europe?
This is a really good question. We see one of our great benefits to MLS as being able to raise not only the credibility of the league on an international scale, but also as a way to improve the product on the field. We have plans to develop local academies and youth camps to provide players for the Miami team and the Barcelona team. Overall this is an integrated effort between FCB and the local Miami team. We will share players as much as we can subject to MLS and FIFA restrictions. As FCB, we have access to a large talent base and that will definitely help us in recruiting players for the Miami team. As far as international players, we will want a mix of players that reflect the variety in Miami…we will have Brazilians, Argentineans, Colombians, Venezuelans, Caribbean players, Central Americans, and others. We truly want this to be the team of the Americas.

How soon after the MLS approves the bid can we buy season tickets?
We are already collecting names on the website for people interested in season tickets, and very shortly will be asking for season ticket deposits. So please go ahead and sign up and send as many people as possible to the website to sign up. That said, it will probably take some months to finalize the pricing and seating charts that will actually allow you to purchase assigned seats. We understand that this is key for many people so we will try to get it done as quickly as possible.

read the full interview here


Read another interview:
Interview with Barcelona partner Claure

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