MLS in Pittsburgh?

    The last few years have seen the rapid expansion of Major League Soccer.  This has had many effects throughout the landscape of the United States.  The fact is that soccer has never been more popular in this country and numerous cities are looking to instill their brand on the league.  The new price tag for an MLS team is now 100 million dollars.  This a deep expense and needs the backing of a big time owner and the construction of a soccer specific stadium.  There is one city that always seems to be left out of the debate of getting an expansion franchise. If you have read the title of this post than you will know I am talking about Pittsburgh.  Pittsburgh has a metropolitan area of over two million people which would be perfectly capable of sustaining an MLS club. The city already sustain 7 professional sports teams including three of the big four and a USL soccer franchise, The Pittsburgh Riverhounds Football Club.  I think the lack of an NBA team in Pittsburgh actually favors the formation of a putting an MLS team in the city. There will only be the competition of the NHL, which I believe is a complete different demographic from soccer supporters, and the Pittsburgh Pirates who are almost always fighting for the last place in the MLB.  Major League Soccer could potentially thrive in the area.

 There are of course many different issues that go along with a getting an MLS franchise.  The first argument I usually come across is how is the pro soccer team in the area supported now.  This argument really does not hold any weight.  Indeed, the Pittsburgh Riverhounds are not selling out every game. They are, however, going to be building a soccer specific stadium on the waterfront later this year (http://www.riverhounds.com/).  This could see the attendance at those games go way up.  The support of minor league teams does not translate into support of a major league franchise.  This means that the minor league does not have to be a thriving to deem a city worthy of a major league franchise.  This is true of the minor league Portland Timbers and the Seattle Sounders.  They were not selling out their home games before they became a major league franchise.  This also shows us that a team in Pittsburgh could be viable.  The other argument that some people throw out is that the formation of an MLS team in Pittsburgh could draw fans away from other MLS teams in the region and doom those already formed franchises.  Lets take a look at the teams that regionally surround the area. There is the Columbus Crew, Toronto FC, DC United and the Philadelphia Union.  All of these franchise are hours away.  The closest being the almost 3 hour drive to Columbus.  This would not draw faithful Crew fans from their team.  It does, however, form immediate rivalries with the Columbus Crew and a cross state rivalry with the Philadelphia Union.  It would increase the appeal of the league and form great heated games.  The big question with the formation of the team is finding an owner.  If one of the owners of the big three teams in the area step up and that is a big if, I believe that Pittsburgh could make an excellent site for an MLS franchise. It should at least be in the discussion of a potential site for expansion.