First, the Cleveland City Stars (USL-1) were put up for sale. Now their sister club, the Cascade Surge (PDL) is also on the market. The Salem-based club is owned by Surge International, a nonprofit organization that uses soccer as part of its sports ministry program. The Surge has produced a multitude of talent over the years, including soccer gurus Mark Geissbauer and Dr. Aaron Tredway. And don’t forget Martin Rennie, Terry Boss, and Darren Sawatzky. Rennie is the current Head Coach of the
“Major League Soccer has had a relationship with the United Soccer Leagues since MLS’ inception in 1996. The USL’s size and longevity speaks to the sport’s widespread popularity and the need for multiple professional divisions in the United States and Canada.” “We recently evaluated the opportunity to purchase the USL but elected to not submit a bid for the league. We will continue to communicate with the USL as both organizations work to grow the sport of soccer in the region.” The
Sources close to United Soccer League franchises report that the USL could be under new ownership in the coming weeks. Umbro, the league’s majority owner, was purchased by Nike in the fall of 2007. At that time there were some serious questions regarding whether Nike wanted to be in the business of running a soccer league. Therefore, it is not much of a surprise to see Nike looking into unloading the league onto another party. The deal would reportedly give money back to the
An article this week in the Cleveland Plain Dealer broke the news that the club was up for sale. Everyone knows that there has been struggles on and off the field this season, but this came as a surprise to many. No official statement has been given by the club; the topic was revealed to the reporter during an interview with Dr. Aaron Tredway, who serves as Executive Director of the City Stars. The article focused on the negative aspects of the situation,