“Obviously that makes us, in the short term, worse off on the pitch, but it’s the right thing for them,” Sims said. “Every situation is different regarding why players might depart or might come back, but in the grand scheme of things, the benefit that we get from City Football Group in terms of the global scouting network and everything that we have at our disposal to find players that, frankly, I don’t think other teams are able to find, and finding them with the right values, that far outweighs anything that we would feel in the moment.”
The CFG affiliation of course includes the group’s most prominent club and namesake, Manchester City FC, which currently is under investigation by the English Premier League for allegedly breaking various financial rules over several years. Sims doesn’t believe that situation will impact the MLS club.
“Right now, I’d say I don’t see any spillover or anything like that for us. It’s been 100% business as usual,” Sims said. “Man City is a sister club, not a parent club, so it’s a little different. For me, it’s something I pay attention to, but in terms of trickle down on anything of how we operate the club, it’s been complete business as usual.”
As for NYCFC’s other ownership partner? According to Sims, the Yankees remain committed to the MLS club, even as NYCFC plans to build a soccer-specific stadium beside Citi Field in Queens, which came together after a previous plan to build near Yankee Stadium fizzled.
“I was wondering when we were starting pivot and we started looking at places outside the Bronx what the Yankees would think about that, and they were 100% supportive from the beginning with zero hesitancy,” Sims said. “They support this club, they want to be part of this club long term. People have asked are the Yankees going to get out now that it’s Queens, as far as I know, as far as they’ve shared with me, there’s zero intention. They see the value of the club, they want to be in it. They know that this is something we need as a club to ultimately see the full potential of the club, and it’s a fantastic project overall for the community.”
