MLS said Wednesday that it had narrowed its list of potential cities for expansion teams down to four: Cincinnati, Detroit, Nashville and Sacramento.
It looks like neither Charlotte nor Raleigh will be getting a Major League Soccer team anytime soon.
MLS announced Wednesday morning that it had narrowed its list of potential cities for expansion teams down to four: Cincinnati, Detroit, Nashville and Sacramento, Calif. Charlotte and Raleigh, two of the 12 cities that submitted bids, will be eligible to try again for a team in 2018 or later.
The league’s decision not to pick Charlotte isn’t completely surprising. In October, Charlotte’s bid essentially fell apart when city and county leaders failed to reach an agreement on public-private financing of the proposed $175 million soccer facility in time to meet the MLS’s upcoming decision date.
Charlotte Motor Speedway CEO Marcus Smith headed the ownership group bidding for a team in Charlotte. He said when the deal unraveled that he was still interested in landing an MLS team, but that it would be difficult to do so without public money.
Experts had similarly said that a lack of support from the city could weigh on Charlotte’s chances of landing a team.
Smith has not said whether he will submit another bid to land a team in Charlotte. MLS4CLT, the ownership group, could not immediately be reached for comment.
North Carolina FC, a Cary-based team that plays in the United Soccer League, was hoping to make the jump to the MLS. The team earlier this year proposed to build a stadium on state-owned land in downtown Raleigh and is waiting on elected officials to weigh in.
MLS said the four finalist cities will make formal presentations to Commissioner Don Garber and the league’s expansion committee on Dec. 6 in New York.
“The league made it clear that while only Cincinnati, Detroit, Nashville and Sacramento are being considered for the next two expansion teams, all remaining markets are under consideration for the following two expansion clubs that will be announced at a later date,” MLS said on its website.
The Raleigh News & Observer contributed.
