Johnny Wilson Returns, the Gold Cup Draw, and Let's Get Ready to Rumble!

Well its official, one of the most ever capped Charleston Battery players will be returning to Blackbaud Stadium. John "Johnny" Wilson will be returning to Charleston for another season. Oh how great it is. Though he probably won't be an everyday player, Wilson brings so much experience to a team that really needs it. Not to say we don't have some with Stephen Armstrong and Keith Wiggans, among others, but Wilson will bring experience to the defense. Plus he's good. Hard to forget that.

In other news, the CONCACAF Gold Cup draw will be on Tuesday, March 8th. Why is this important? Well, if you by chance read my first article, you know that one of the venues for the Gold Cup will be Charlotte, NC's Bank of America Stadium. I recommend reading that article, to fully understand the importance of the best international squads in the region coming to the area. But, the venue will likely see one of the 3 countries (USA, Mexico, Canada), one of the smaller, but still powerful soccer powers (Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama), and two smaller countries (Jamaica, Haiti, Cuba, etc.). Hopefully the USMNT will play in Charlotte, as it would be a good chance for the US supporters in the Southeast to show how much they care about soccer.



Maybe we should get this guy to
do the pregame festivities.



And of course on the tail end of the return of Wilson, comes what we've been waiting for since last season ended; the Carolina Challenge Cup! I'm so ready to get this season started, and what better way to kick off the season than having MLS teams and their great supporters come to Charleston. Charleston starts the season by playing DC United tomorrow night at 7:15. Chicago Fire SC and Toronto FC will play at 5:00. It'll be an interesting tournament, and we'll get to see where we're at as a team. Come out to see some great soccer. The Regiment will be there before the game tailgating, and having just a general good time. So be sure to check that out. There will also be games on Wednesday, and a week from tomorrow on March 12th.

Added to the roster for the Carolina Challenge Cup are some of the preseason trialists from the Battery's preseason training. Three of them are from the College of Charleston; two defenders; Sean Flately and Sean Bateau, along with Kareem Yearwood, a forward. Two goalkeepers also will join Charleston. A former Chicago Fire keeper, Andrew Dykstra, and Pat Hannigan, who formerly played for Miami FC of the NASL.

I recommend checking out CharlestonBattery.com's Preview of the CCC, which has previews of all the teams. I will post a preview for the Battery's match with the Fire and Toronto FC, so make sure to check back for that.

If you need to contact me, e-mail me at SCSoccerblog@gmail.com.

CONCACAF Gold Cup Venues in the Southeast: Possible Reason for MLS Expansion?

The venues for the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup we're announced on December 17th. The tournament will be hosted by the United States and will bring in teams from all over North America and the Carribean. The winner will get an automatic bid to the Confederations Cup in Brazil in 2013. How does this affect the growth of soccer in South Carolina?

Simply put, the venues are close to home as opposed to the 2009 tournament that was also hosted in the U.S. The closest venue for the last edition of the Gold Cup was in Washington D.C. for the soccer fans here in South Carolina. This time around one of the venues of the tourny is Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte. The stadium, home of the professional American football team the Carolina Panthers, holds 73,778 spectators and is one of the larger stadiums hosting the tournament. The game that will be played is on June 9th in the summer of 2011.

This is a chance for the soccer fans not only in South Carolina, but the whole of the southeast United States to show that we deserve an MLS expansion. Though it seems the future is dim for an expansion team in the south. The MLS has a goal to reach twenty teams by 2012. With the 19th team in Montreal being added in the 2012 season only one potential spot is left. With Detroit and a revival of the former NASL team the New York Cosmos making strong bids for the 20th franchise, will a grassroots effort be enough to get a team in the southeast?

Don Garber, the Major League Soccer Commisioner, was quoted as saying, "You can’t be a national league unless you have teams in the South." Being a valid point and coming from the head man himself you would hope we could get the whole of the powers at be in on the idea of a southeastern team. And it raises the question: With teams in all corners of the United States, why does the southeast not have a team?

Well, originally there were teams in the southeast. When the MLS was created in 1996 it had ten teams with one in the south; the Tampa Bay Mutiny. The Miami Fusion was added in 1998 along with Chicago Fire S.C. This seemed like a hopeful effort to grow soccer in the south, but it was shortlived. Both teams folded in 2002 and left the south without an MLS franchise. So it seems that the MLS would have problems granting a franchise to any city in Florida. So what is the number one choice?

I think if we did get a team in the southeastern U.S. the number one choice would be Atlanta, Georgia. Owner of the Atlanta Falcons, Arthur Blank, has shown interest in bringing an MLS franchise to Atlanta. Sadly, it seems his number one priority right now is getting a new stadium for the Falcons. If he doesn't show serious interest in bringing the beautiful game to Atlanta in the next year, we'll have to wait for an MLS franchise for a couple more years.