New York Islanders And NYCFC Challenging For Belmont Development

The New York Islanders are in on Belmont with their RFP being submitted to the state for the empty plot of land. But they aren’t the only ones said to be interested in the piece of land. So is New York City Football Club.

The New York Islanders need to get out of the Barclays Center as soon as possible and they need a hockey first arena. They’ve submitted an RFP for the empty plot of land at Belmont Park. Perfect. That could cure the Isles woes in every regard.

If they get it.

In the race for Belmont there seems to be another player; New York City Football Club (NYCFC). The second New York MLS club is looking for a place to play that they can call their own. At the moment they play at Yankee Stadium. (Note: The Yankees own a 20% stake in the club.)

NHL fans might not be aware of the MLS and so maybe they don’t factor this new player in the Belmont plot as serious. They may also see the fact that the Cosmos a soccer club had their proposal canceled after years for the same plot as a reason to discredit it further. I’m here to tell you, don’t. NYCFC is a serious contender.

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All About The Benjamin’s

As with anything money matters. And in this instance, it matters big time. The proposal for the Cosmos was pulled due to the fact that it became increasingly clear that the team wouldn’t be able to build their 25,000 seat stadium. Because they were quickly running out of money thanks to dwindling attendance.

The Cosmos play in a second-tier-ish professional North American Soccer league that shed a number of teams last season due to financial considerations. Unlike NYCFC.

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NYCFC play in the MLS, where stars from various European leagues cross the Atlantic to extend their careers a few more years. Players like Andrea Pirlo and David Villa are both on NYCFC’s squad. With the latter aged 35 being named to Spain’s World Cup qualifier squad after netting 19 goals this season alone.

The Pigeons as they’re called, play in a market league, with big-name stars and growing revenues and interest amongst the populace. Five Thirty-Eight studied the popularity of teams in the “Big Five” leagues and some MLS teams ranked higher than NHL teams. And that study was done three years ago. The MLS has only grown since then.

The Seattle Sounders and LA Galaxy both ranked higher than the New York Islanders.

And then there’s the money. As I indicated on our podcast this week, NYCFC is owned by the New York Football group which is itself owned by Sheikh Mansour. For the footie lovers among us, that’s the same guy who owns Manchester City Football Club. A man who has a net worth of $38 billion.

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So what’s the worry level for New York Islanders fans? Is this soccer franchise actually going to come in and steel this empty slab from right under our feet? I’m not confident they will, but it’s not something to discredit in the slightest. These are serious players that have the finances to make this work. Unlike the last soccer-centric bid.