Beginning of Story Content

The Montreal Impact face the Portland Timbers at Stade Saputo on Sunday, April 25th in what will be the Canadian club's USSF Division 2 home opener. The Impact goes into this season as defending champions, and they will be looking to repeat that feat once again this year. 

The Montreal club opened their 2010 campaign on the road last weekend, suffering a 2-0 defeat to the Austin Aztecs. Despite that setback, things are looking bright for club president Joey Saputo and his team. 

An announcement on Montreal's status as Major League Soccer's next expansion team is looming, and if rumours are to be believed, that announcement could come any day now. The public courtship of MLS and the Impact is complete, and all that is left to do is to make the relationship formal. 

Good for both sides

Acceptance into MLS will be a plus for both parties. 

The Impact have long been regarded as a model franchise, and their success in the game dates back to the early 90's. Victory in the 1994 American Professional Soccer League final gave the club its first championship, a feat it has managed to repeat in different leagues on two occasions since. 

Joining MLS allows the Impact to compete at the highest level of soccer in Canada and the United States. In order to attract players and increase its fan base, it is important for the Impact to be competing in the best league possible, something that a move to MLS ensures. 

For MLS commissioner Don Garber, accepting the Impact into the MLS family adds a proven commodity with a track record of success and, more importantly, a strong following.  

Despite the success stories of expansion into markets like Toronto and Seattle, MLS still carries its fair share of dead wood. Cities like Dallas, Columbus and Kansas City have all failed to attract significant fan support, which is impairing the league's ability to gain acceptance as a mainstream sport. Nowhere was that more evident than in Colorado last weekend. 

I was there to watch Toronto FC take on the Colorado Rapids, and the announced crowd of just under 10,000 was liberal, to say the least. There were far more empty seats than occupied ones, and the absence of any real atmosphere was palpable. It appears that some of the more established teams in the league are the ones who are in most need of a boost at the box office. 

Strong crowds in Montreal

This season's expansion team, the Philadelphia Union, has started off well at the gate, attracting over 34,000 to its home opener. Next year the league will welcome the Vancouver Whitecaps and Portland Timbers into the fold, and both are expected to mirror the successes of other recent expansion teams. 

As for the Montreal Impact, they have continually been able to attract 10,000 fans or more for 2nd division soccer, and one has to believe that they will be capable of much more when the move to MLS occurs. 

Add to that the natural rivalry that exists with Toronto FC, and you begin to get an idea of what MLS like in a few years time. Regional rivalries, called "derbies" in the UK, are what drive the sport and the fanatical support that goes along with it.  

Imagine busloads full of Toronto fans making the trek to Montreal to shout it out with the Ultras, Montreal's supporters group.  Picture Seattle fans making the journey over the border to support the Sounders when they do battle with the Whitecaps. Those derbies will increase the attention given to MLS, because it will be impossible to ignore the throngs of fans who create such a fantastic viewing experience. 

The trick, of course, is to put a winning product on the field. If the last 15 years are anything to go by, I am confident that Montreal will be able to pull off that trick. 

****************

Got a soccer question for Jason de Vos? Send your queries to soccer@cbc.ca and Jason will answer your questions in a future blog.

You can follow Jason de Vos on Twitter

End of Story Content