A second Major League Soccer team debuts in the New York City area in two months and you’re already seeing some immature behavior from supporters of the expansion franchise.
NYCFC opens its season in Orlando (another expansion team) on March 8. New York will be without one of their two so-called “designated players” (or cap-exempt/high-paid stars) for that match and the rest of the first half of its inaugural season. Frankie Lampard will stay across the pond until Manchester City closes out its run in the Premier League and perhaps the FA Cup and Champions League. He’s not expected to join NYCFC until July.
When Lampard joined City, there was zero expectation the 36-year-old Chelsea star would contribute at a level that would make him indispensable to the Premier League club. But Lampard has been outstanding for City and the team is in the thick of a title run. As a result, he’ll stay put. And he should.
Problem is, NYCFC marketed Lampard in a way that would suggest he’d be available for the full season. NYCFC’s primary supporters group The Third Rail reacted to news of Lampard’s retention extension by City with “outrage.” The group has two sections at Yankee Stadium saved for them and acts as voice of the fans. When it was announced Lampard would stay on with City, The Third Rail threatened to support “any course of action” aimed at expressing displeasure with management. “Many fans, including our members, decided to support the team, committed to season tickets, and bought merchandise under the impression Frank Lampard would be playing for New York City Football Club, not Manchester City.”
This reaction of course is silly. Immature. It demonstrates a lack of understanding about who wears the pants in the relationship between NYCFC and Man City. Both clubs are owned by billionaire oil baron Sheikh Mansour and there will always be preference given to the team playing in the world’s top league. In its statement on Lampard, The Third Rail made the ridiculous assertion that it will not accept the notion of a pecking order in Mansour’s sporting kingdom. “We reject out of hand any suggestion that NYCFC is in any way secondary to Manchester City FC.”
The MLS has a long, long way to go before fans of their franchises can expect to be taken as seriously as ones that play in the top five or so European leagues. Especially if common ownership exists.
Yeah, there was perhaps some unintended deception by Mansour’s soccer people when Lampard was introduced here as NYCFC’s first DP. But if I was a Third Rail guy, I would be genuinely happy for Lampard’s excellent form and would have no anxiety about his delayed arrival. As a Red Bull fan who’s seen both good and bad designated players added to the team I root for, the excitement associated with the league and the sport need not hinge on over-the-hill stars groomed elsewhere.
One thing I can say for sure about NYCFC’s first season: It’s gonna be obvious pretty quick that their temporary home is gonna be an awkward fit. Playing soccer at Yankee Stadium will prove difficult. There will be anger and resentment from the Yankees over field conditions after soccer matches and fans of NYCFC will be far from the action relative to the sightlines enjoyed by supporters of teams in soccer-specific stadiums.
NYCFC has not yet made even modest progress on securing a stadium site. You’re probably talking at least three seasons at the house Jeter built if the Yankees even allow the NYCFC to stay that long. To me, the interim solution is for the Red Bulls to share their building in Harrison. Unfortunately, NYCFC’s identity seems so locked into the five boroughs that Mansour’s local management team would probably rule RBA out entirely as a temporary home should the Yankees get fed up with torn up fields.
What’s gonna be fun this year for sure are three head-to-head regular season matchups between the cross-river rivals. May 10, June 28 and August 9 are set.