Who is going to build the stadiums? MLS and its owners almost never build without public subsidies. The biggest puzzle on the expansion front is that some of the best team candidates are in locations where the city won't pony up the subsidies. If cities won't pay for MLS stadiums as it is, how do you get them to subsidize a 20k stadium for a team that
might make it to MLS, and if it gets there
might stay up. Who is going to pay the debt service on a 20k seat stadium when there's no national TV money and 4k people attending every game? Or will we have first division teams in 12k stadiums and smaller? What owner would pay to build even an 18k stadium knowing the team can be relegated? CFG? They can't build one as it is.
Some tech entrepreneur with more money than sense started a 4th division semi-pro soccer team in Kingston NY (pop. 23,210)
and can't shut up about pro/rel. His stadium seats 1,500. The entire county has 182k people. He gets his wish. They move up the pyramid, and he builds a 18k stadium. Then they get relegated and there's an 18k stadium in Kingston NY for a minor league team.
Pro/rel advocates, including the ones who say, not now, but some time in the future, have to stop being delusional. Let's say we have 3 divisions with 20+ teams each. You're telling me we can build another 40 or so 18-25k seat stadiums in this country of which 40 or so will be underutilized most of the time? Who is building them? Where? MLS has tried to build in NYC, Boston and Miami for 20 years and accomplished bupkis. Or explain how we can have 1st division world class soccer with stadiums of 12k capacity. Or sharing with college football, or minor league baseball.