SoccerVancouver Whitecaps' Paul Barber is a cut above MLS

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He must be stark raving mad and I told him so. How could he leave the team he's supported all his life, enjoying its best season in a generation, to join a club that isn't even yet part of the big league?

 

He is Paul Barber, the recently hired CEO of the Vancouver Whitecaps. We have never met face to face but recently had an illuminating conversation on my weekly radio show. He left his post at Tottenham Hotspur earlier this month to lead the Whitecaps' transition into Major League Soccer next year.

 

Diehard Spurs fan

 

Turns out we have plenty in common. We both share fond boyhood memories of watching the great Glenn Hoddle at his best. A supremely talented midfielder with a flair for scoring spectacular goals, Paul and I used to stand, in awe, behind the goal on the Paxton Road terrace at White Hart Lane.

 

After the 1978 World Cup, won by Argentina, Tottenham took the bold and, in those days, unprecedented step of signing two players from the Argentines' championship winning team.

I'm sure Paul remembers the ticker-tape reception reserved for the debuts of midfielder Ossie Ardiles and striker Ricky Villa.

 

All very interesting I hear you cry, but what's a big shot from a major English club doing in Canada? In all seriousness, what was he thinking quitting Spurs - a team close to qualifying for the UEFA Champions League for the first time and on target for its first FA Cup Final appearance since 1991?

 

The link isn't hard to find. It can be traced back to a conversation between Barber and Canadian NBA star Steve Nash. The latter is another huge Spurs fan and his accumulated wealth prompted him to buy shares in the club. Tottenham is a publicly owned company, listed on the London Stock Exchange.
 
The two have kept in regular contact along with Whitecaps' co-owner Jeff Mallett, the former power behind the throne at Yahoo! Mallett has also, with Nash, invested in Women's Professional Soccer in the US and English Championship club Derby County.

 

Barber's role at Tottenham should serve him well on the west coast. He was heavily involved in Spurs' plans to build a new stadium, virtually on the same site as the current ground. He also oversaw the club's development of new training facilities before resigning his post.

 

He now finds himself on a different continent, at a different construction site, but with the same goal. Barber speaks passionately about his vision for the Whitecaps' new training complex which, he hopes, will help develop the next "world class talent".

 

Owen Hargreaves has had many critics in Canada for 'abandoning' his country of birth. Barber is not among them. From his perspective, the more top class players developed in Canada and exported to the top European Leagues, the better it reflects on Canada, globally, as a serious breeding ground.

 

Selling the Whitecaps brand

 

Another of Barber's priorities will be selling the brand. He was responsible for the commercial operation at Tottenham and has chosen to move to a team, which is already well known beyond its borders. Selling the Whitecaps in Vancouver is a no-brainer. The next step involves the country, the continent and eventually to foreign markets. 

 

History and heritage have their place with any sports team or franchise. The Whitecaps' 1979 NASL triumph has recently returned as a topic of debate when comparing the crowds packed into Robson Square for the 2010 Winter Olympics. Barber recognizes the buzz and knows it needs to build.

 

Keen to maintain the momentum, he addressed the Vancouver media last week to help launch the One-Year-Countdown to Major League Soccer. There is no question the fans will snap up the next batch of 2011 season tickets which go on sale shortly - but Barber wants more.

 

He has seen what has been achieved across the border in Seattle where the Sounders are regularly playing to crowds in excess of 30-thousand. He will have heard about the vibrant soccer markets in Toronto and Montreal and a striking new stadium in New York.

 

Barber makes no excuses for his demands. He has publicly challenged Vancouver fans to create the best atmosphere in MLS, bar none. He wants the Empire Bowl and ultimately BC Place to be the most intimidating place to play in North America.

 

Some of it is sabre-rattling of course but Barber understands the value of passionate home support. The boy I never knew standing on the Paxton Road End, is merely a fan with a business brain and a top class resume.

 

Paul Barber will never score a goal for the Whitecaps, but his leadership and experience will ensure Vancouver comes ready to play in 2011

 

And since he is clearly a man of vision and influence, I wonder whether he's got his hands on some tickets to watch Spurs at Wembley in the FA Cup semifinal? Too bad it clashes with the Whitecaps' season opener against Minnesota.

 

 

 

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