As reported by Tony Bizjak and Marcos Breton from the Sacramento Bee late Tuesday, Sacramento is expected to be announced as the 29th Major League Soccer expansion team at a public announcement set for next Monday. Other local media outlets (Sacramento Business Journal, KCRA, among others) have since confirmed the Bee’s initial report. It seems now the only thing left is confirmation from MLS, which could come as early as Wednesday.
When the news is made official, it will bring to a close years of Sacramento fighting to gain entry in the upper echeolon of soccer in the United States. From Warren Smith, Joe Wagoner and Erika Bjork — to Kevin Nagle, Ben Gumpert and Ron Burkle (and so many other amazing people in between), it has taken a village to bring this thing to fruition.
At the heart of this bid though is the fans, who for six seasons supported Sacramento Republic FC. They proved Sacramento was a soccer town, filling Papa Murphy’s Park with 10,000 plus fans each match. Coupled with some big investors who believed in Sacramento, and some super smart people behind the scenes, here we are Sacramento. At the cusp of something really special for our city. Our future.
There will be much more to share in the coming days, weeks and months that follow. We can’t wait for Monday, and look forward to bringing you full coverage. This is what we have all been waiting for, and you can bet we will be celebrating like hell come Monday.
Chant it with me Sacramento: Glory, Glory, Sacramento!!
Comments
Wahoo!
Can’t wait…
By bmett65 on 10.15.19 9:28pm
Portland Timbers fan here
But I have been watching you guys almost from day one and have loved what has been going on down there. I’m happy you guys are getting your invite to MLS, and I’m only sorry it took so long to come to fruition! That said, better late than never!
Welcome to the club!
By briancpalmer on 10.16.19 10:58am
More of an MLS question I suppose...
How are the players and teams in general with regards to the fans. One of the things I have enjoyed the most is the relationship these players have with the fans. Many fans are known personally to the players, and the Republic players have gone out of their way to interact with fans after games. Whether it is pictures, autographs, even asking about family for those that they have known for a while, the team seems to encourage this, and the players have delivered. Will the same small town feel be possible when the team moves to the MLS?
By nolookpass432 on 10.16.19 12:19pm
Definitely possible
Especially in a smaller market like Sac. That same sort of feeling/experience is all over the place for the Timbers, but that’s sort of our thing. I can’t speak to other franchises, hough I imagine such a dynamic exists to a varying degrees even in the most apathetic of markets (read: Philly, New England, etc.).
By briancpalmer on 10.16.19 1:51pm