Don Garber Coming To Town on Thursday

The Crew announced that MLS Commissioner Don Garber will be in Columbus make an announcement after the team's training session. There is little indication as to what the topic is, but could be related to several efforts the Crew are working on. Lets take a quick look.

• Goal 10K: The Crew's Goal 10K is the team's main goal, but remains out of reach at this time according to those around the club. Columbus has made great strides, but 10,000 season ticket holders by the middle of 2013 is a stretch. Likelihood: None
• Training Facility: The Crew have been looking to partner with a community to build a large training complex around town, but belt tightening in the recent economy has cut back on cities ability to spend money on these projects. The team talked about land in surrounding communities, including the 36/37 interchange north of town. A company already has over a dozen soccer fields in their plan. Perhaps that's the partnership the Crew were looking for. Likelihood: So You Are Saying There's a Chance
• Naming Rights: Stadium naming rights is another main goal and the team has been reaching out to a lot of people to get a deal done. They were getting closer in March, but some of the leading prospects reportedly stepped back at that time. The Crew have a large signboard designed if a buyer is found. Crew Stadium hasn't had a naming partner since being built in 1999. Likelihood: I like those odds.
• New Stadium: McCullers recently made some noise about the age of Crew Stadium and a need to find a long term solution. He talked about rehabbing the existing stadium or building a new facility. He clarified that it wasn't an immediate call for a facility, but rather to lay the groundwork for future conversations. Likelihood: Less than Goal 10K
• 2019 Draft and NCSAA Conference: The city loves conventions and Columbus would be a worthy site. The team pushed to hold both events now that the city's convention space has been expanded. This makes the most sense, but why does Garber fly out for that. Likelihood: The Safe Bet
• Minority Owners: The Hunt Sports Group have been looking for additional ownership groups for several years with little success. The addition of additional owners would get in to MLS for far much less than it would take in other markets. Likelihood: Outside chance
• Moving the Team: Come on, be serious. Likelihood; No, Nope, None, Zero, Zilch