Union 2012: Philly to Host MLS All Star Game.

[mixiboi]

This what happens when you have a nice new(DRPA funded) stadium:


Philly Union to host 2012 MLS All-Star Game | Sports | Local Newswire | The A.V. Club Philadelphia

[Brian616]

Sigh. I love PPL, but I feel dirty that it's partly DRPA funded.

[mixiboi]

The Eagles's stadium is also funded by DRPA funds, so the dirt is all around.


So don't feel too bad, they can't take it back.

[RunningMom]

Very exciting! Great for Chester and for the Union!

[Towelie]

This is great news!

This will bring foreign $ to Chester and Philly which is good news. A lot better then what most of DRPA has spent their money on. It would be nice if they could lower the tolls now, but the DRPA officials kid's need free EZ passes.

[randomuser]

Wrong.

Chester will host the MLS All Star Game, even though they want to label the host city as Philadelphia for obvious reasons.

This is great for Chester. I hope they do the city right and do some specials on Chester as more than just what it currently is now. Tell its history (one that America as it is now wouldn't exist without), tell of its innovations and its people, etc.

[ndebergerac]

Peter Nowak fired after just 2 wins and 8 goals scored in 11 matches. I honestly thought his track record might earn him at least the season to get things back on track, but clearly there have been differences of opinions between him and the CEO. The team that got Union to the their first ever play offs in 2011 was pretty much dismantled.

Assistant, John Hackworth takes over for now.

[MariusPontmercy]

Peter Nowak fired after just 2 wins and 8 goals scored in 11 matches. I honestly thought his track record might earn him at least the season to get things back on track, but clearly there have been differences of opinions between him and the CEO. The team that got Union to the their first ever play offs in 2011 was pretty much dismantled.

Assistant, John Hackworth takes over for now.

Good. I have no idea what happened to set Nowak on the path he took for this year, but it certainly was not a good one. It remains to be seen if this was all Nowak, or if it was motivated by the CEO and management above him. In any case, Hackworth essentially has to rebuild now since the core players were all shipped out. We need an all new backline with the exception of Williams and Valdes, a set of maybe three good forwards that can produce and perform like we had in the Le Toux/Mwanga/Paunovic or Le Toux/Mwanga/Moreno trios the first two years. We also need... well we basically need everything. An attacking midfielder to replace Adu who has disappointed, unless he suddenly perks up. We have two good defensive mids in Gomez and Carrol at least. The Farfan twins aren't bad out wide, but we need more options there as well. Torres can't play 90 minutes and I honestly don't see what all the hype is over him, plus he's too small.

[randomuser]

I'm surprised Nowak got fired given his track record before coming to the Union. I'm guessing they traded all of those players to go younger and to save as much money as possible but it's still hard to believe they traded Mwanga given the hype he received when he came here.

By the way, I'm not sure who told you that the DRPA funded the stadium but both Delaware County and Chester paid quite a bit of the funds for that stadium. They screwed over Chester too, because they said they were going to build a mixed-use building in the parcel over with a supermarket, which is the only reason the county and Chester agreed to give them money. Guess what still hasn't gotten built or even environmentally remediated yet?

[ndebergerac]

Another international friendly came to PPL last night in the form of the mighty Aston Villa. These games are often promoted as good experience builders for US teams against more established European sides, yet both teams fielded under strength teams, the norm for such matches. Not sure what I'm missing, but why to fans continually pay good money to watch such pointless exhibitions?

The Allstar game isn't much better, but I guess it must make some money and the European teams like to please their ever growing fanbase with a flying visit. Isn't it time MLS stood on it's own 2 feet and stopped taking mid-season breaks for this nonsense?

[Mr Tips]

Another international friendly came to PPL last night in the form of the mighty Aston Villa. These games are often promoted as good experience builders for US teams against more established European sides, yet both teams fielded under strength teams, the norm for such matches. Not sure what I'm missing, but why to fans continually pay good money to watch such pointless exhibitions?

The Allstar game isn't much better, but I guess it must make some money and the European teams like to please their ever growing fanbase with a flying visit. Isn't it time MLS stood on it's own 2 feet and stopped taking mid-season breaks for this nonsense?

For starters, season ticket holders for most teams have these matches included in their packages. Second, under strength or not, it can be a rare opportunity for some to see clubs in person that they follow abroad. Third, the Union really only fielded a young/reserve-heavy side b/c of the fixture congestion they've had the past few weeks. Previous international friendlies featured most of the regulars. It can be fun to watch some of the young guys on a bigger stage, too (Hernandez scoring in the dying minutes to beat Everton last season comes to mind).

The all-star game doesn't do much for me (and I have that sentiment about any sport's all-star game), but this is the preseason for European leagues. It's a great chance for MLS to collect some extra revenue and get some extra global exposure.