Jolly good times
Throughout the current USL/NASL controversy soccer being experienced in the US, Puerto Rico, and Canada there is one recurring phrase: ‘best practices’. This often comes up when discussing the constant mismanagement from the USL’s part and the potential that the NASL group could actually prove to be capable in running a division II league professionally and appropriately – taking established best practices into account. And if you need a club to exemplify the complete opposite of best practices in terms of running a club and communicating with its fans, then look no further than the Puerto Rico Islanders.
While teams have been jumping the sinking ship that is the USL, the Puerto Rico Islanders haven’t uttered a single word about the current state of affairs or what to expect for 2010. Nothing, nada, zero, zip. While there was recently a brief quote in the Primera Hora newspaper by one of the member of the ownership group, he essentially gave no new information. The PR Islanders are staying with the USL and that’s it – nothing new, as this was what the club was saying back when the whole USL/TOA mess began.
Needless to say, the longtime PR Islanders supporters are on edge. A large number of fans are fearful of not having a 2010 season, or even worse – the demise of the club. And while we constantly hear the back and forth between the USL and the NASL, there is little mention of what will happen to our Islanders. No news on new signings, tryouts, 2010 plans, nothing. With little information, most are resorting to mere speculation and even negativity.
Our attempts to get some answers from the Islanders ownership group have proven unsuccessful, as our multiple attempts to communicate with club president Andres Guillemard have gone ignored. Unfortunately, this kind of nonexistent communication is what the fans are by now used to. It’s often easier to get information about the club from third parties than from the team itself. With little to no transparency in how the club is run, fans are left with a feeling of alienation and powerlessness when it comes to being involved in what happens to their team.
Currently, the USL-1 can only count 3 teams amongst their ranks: Puerto Rico, Portland, and Austin – and Portland will be leaving for the MLS in 2011. Unless things change drastically, the USL-1 seems to be pretty much defunct for all intents and purposes. While our expectation is that some sort of compromise will be reached soon, there is still many concerns that should be addressed by the team’s front office. At this point in the off-season, it also becomes an issue of making it more difficult for the team to even resign players and put together a professional roster. Judging by comments made by some players on the Islanders team, they are not only concerned – but also appear to be in the dark about what might happen with the team.
With the international attention that the USL brought to the USL-1, the team is undoubtedly an important club for both the USL and the NASL. At this point, if Puerto Rico announced that they were moving to NASL, we could probably expect Austin and Portland to follow suit. Unfortunately, it seems for better or for worse that the Islanders’ ownership is looking to ride this out in silence for as long as they can and make a move after the fallout has cleared.
The next couple of weeks could be crucial in deciding the outcome of this controversy, hopefully we hear something from the Islanders before the end of the year.
