MLS focused on Las Vegas for expansion

An MLS team in Las Vegas would not begin competition for several years but would complete the league’s aim of expanding to 30 teams. Charlotte FC becomes No. 28 this season — the 10th new team since 2012. St. Louis City will begin play in 2023 as the 29th squad.

Among the obstacles in Las Vegas is a plan to build a soccer stadium. Allegiant Stadium, the roofed home of the Raiders, is too narrow for soccer, but international matches have been staged there.

The primary investors would be billionaires Wes Edens and Nassef Sawiris, who own Premier League club Aston Villa. Edens also owns a stake in the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks.

“Expansion deals are complicated in any market, and certainly going to a place that requires a soccer-specific stadium, you have to be sure everything is aligned in the community, everything’s aligned with building a fan base, everything is aligned politically,” Garber said during a video conference call with reporters. “We’re making a lot of progress. We do hope to finalize something in the first third of the year.”

Garber said MLS is “bullish” on Las Vegas, even though the metro area is 29th in population in the United States and the No. 40 media market, which would be the league’s smallest.

“Market size in the future of media will be less important than market engagement,” Garber said. “Where is the future growth and opportunity happening, and where do we think MLS can be successful?”

Phoenix and San Diego also have been in the expansion mix, and although going beyond 30 has not been ruled out, Garber said MLS will “pause” after determining the 30th team.

“Then we can decide if Major League Soccer is going to expand beyond 30 to 31 or to 32,” he said. “When we said we would have 28 teams, we never thought we would go beyond that. And then when we had a path to 30, we never thought we would go beyond that. … We’ve got some time to figure that out.”

Ninety-seven percent of MLS players are vaccinated against the coronavirus, Garber said.

Similar to other leagues, Garber said, MLS will only test vaccinated players who are symptomatic. Unvaccinated players will be tested more frequently, he added. That policy is still being finalized.

D.C. United traded midfielder Júnior Moreno’s MLS rights to FC Cincinnati for up to $425,000 in general allocation money, three people close to the deal said. With little chance of returning to the club, he was not in D.C. training camp over the past six weeks. United is expected to receive $250,000 this year and, if Moreno hits certain performance thresholds, as much as $175,000 in the future.

The Venezuelan national team player was out of contract after making 97 appearances (91 starts) in four years. He had not been in the league long enough to qualify for free agency, which allowed United to retain his rights as long as it engaged in negotiations. It became clear, though, that he was not in the club’s plans.

Also, United is finalizing a deal with second-round draft pick Sofiane Djeffal, a French central midfielder out of Oregon State who performed well at training camp. He is in the mix for playing time in Saturday’s season opener against Charlotte at Audi Field.

Ola Kamara, MLS’s co-leading scorer last year, rejoined training Tuesday after missing several weeks because of health and safety protocols. He has been the subject of trade talks, but no deal appears imminent.

XDC Network, a blockchain technology provider, is United’s new jersey sponsor, replacing Leidos, whose logo appeared on the front of the team’s uniform over the previous eight seasons. The three-year agreement is worth between $5 million and $6 million per season, two people close to the deal said.