The Sunset State: MLS will no longer shine in Florida after the league's decision to axe the Tampa Bay Mutiny and Miami Fusion - Special section: 2002 MLS preview - Major League Soccer - Statistical Data Included

Soccer Digest, May, 2002 by Clemente Lisi

LESS IS MORE. AT LEAST MLS thought so when it pulled the plug on the Miami Fusion and ordered the Tampa Bay Mutiny to walk the plank.

When the money-losing, six-year-old league decided on contraction in January, it obliterated Florida from the pro soccer map. In the process, MLS heavily skewed the influence of investor-operators of the Anschutz Entertainment Group and the Hunt family.

Tampa Bay and Miami had some of the worst on- and off-field performances in MLS history. (Cumulatively, the two teams enjoyed only four winning seasons and each rank in the bottom three among MLS's all-time attendance averages.) The elimination of both clubs now leaves the Sunshine State time-warped to the post-NASL/pre-MLS days when the only games played in the area were sporadic international friendlies aimed primarily toward Hispanic fans. "Soccer is growing in America, but its popularity hasn't translated to MLS," says Florida International coach Karl Kremser, who trained former Fusion players Jeff Cassar and Tyrone Marshall in their college days. "I hope this is not an omen."

The Mutiny's biggest problem was the lack of an investor, a situation that left the league responsible for bankrolling the team. MLS commissioner Don Garber tried to get the Glazer family, which owns the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers, to come aboard. They refused.

Miami, on the other hand, had an investor, telecommunications magnate Ken Horowitz, but he wanted to leave the team after spending $50 million over the past three years--including $5 million to make improvements on Lockhart Stadium, the first soccer-specific venue in the country. Nevertheless, the facility had been a last-minute replacement after then-commissioner Doug Logan failed to work out a leasing agreement with the Orange Bowl. The team was forced to flee to nearby Fort Lauderdale, but few sponsors followed, leaving the franchise economically crippled from the start.

Horowitz also blames the Fusion's demise on the region's weak sports market, saying Florida lacks the loyal fan base needed to sustain a pro team. "Even more established professional sports teams such as the Florida Marlins, the Miami Heat, and the Florida Panthers are suffering," he says. "The population here is very diverse. Many people simply don't have local ties and have trouble identifying with the teams."

The Fusion, a 1998 expansion team, showed an increase in attendance last year (of nearly 50% to 11,177 per game, below the league average of 14,961), but ranked at the bottom in corporate support and overall revenue. "We would have loved to have kept the team," says Horowitz, who once held a minority stake in the New York City-area MetroStars. "If there was an offer we would have been for it. I have children who play soccer. There is nothing that would have made me happier for the staff, players, and South Florida than to continue to have a soccer team here."

The Fusion had a historic season last year, making their demise even more difficult for fans to swallow. The team captured the Eastern Conference title, won its first-ever playoff series, and broke several team records, including the single-season mark for wins (16), points (53), goals scored (57), assists (89), and fewest goals allowed (36).

The Fusion's success began when coach Ray Hudson was permanently hired. The former Newcastle midfielder, who finished his career with the NASL's Fort Lauderdale Strikers, molded the team into a contender, thanks in no small part to the additions of Carlos Llamosa, Preki, and Alex Pineda Chacon. "We were literally one goal away from playing in the MLS Cup, but the market just didn't step up," says Horowitz. "Yes, we had an increase in attendance, but it simply wasn't enough. I have no doubt that if we could have moved our players and staff to a market outside of South Florida, we would have had a very successful endeavor."

The Fusion even tried to move two of their games to the Orange Bowl--one of which was a doubleheader that included Honduras against Ecuador--in an attempt to drum up support in Miami, but the experiment failed to deliver the corporate dollars the league had expected. Miami finished the 2001 season 16-5-5 and lost 1-0 in overtime to the San Jose Earthquakes in the semifinals, but it was too little, too late after three years of lean fan support. The Fusion went 15-17 in 1998, 13-19 in 1999, and 12-15-5 in 2000, and critics argue that little was done to upgrade the team before last year. "I don't disagree that we probably made mistakes for the first couple of years," says Horowitz. "But we were here for four years and for the past couple of years it was a different team with different management. People knew we were around and they knew our ticket prices. There really wasn't much more we could do."

Meanwhile, the Mutiny--one of the league's original members--had a dreadful final season, finishing 4-21-4 (fewest wins in league history) and failing to make the playoffs for the second time in team history. The Mutiny--who at one time or another featured Thomas Ravelli, Carlos Valderrama (who played the 1998 season with the Fusion), Paul Diaz Arce, and Mamadou Diallo in their lineup--won the Eastern Conference title in 1996, but lost in the semifinals to eventual champion D.C. United.