Austin Makes Push for Major League Sports

KXAN repots that the city of Austin is making a push to gain a major league sports team, specifically looking to the MLS for a possible soccer team. Austin is the largest city in the country without a major sports team. Naturally it seems a large reason for this is the University of Texas and the loyalty to the highly successful sports teams the university has generated and any major sports team would have to compete with the university for the attention of sports fans.

“We really have the demographics to support soccer here,” said Mayor Pro-Tem Sheryl Cole who is sponsoring a resolution for a feasibility study into MLS expansion.

The resolution mentions the popularity of soccer in Central Texas as well as the success of the Austin Aztex. MLS teams have drafted eight players from the Aztex, a team in the United Soccer Leagues Premier Developmental League.

The University of Texas, with their 20,000 seat Mike Myers Soccer Stadium, has been listed as a stakeholder in the resolution.

“I cannot speak for the university, but we hope they will be willing participants in the feasibility study,” said Cole. “We want to keep location in the urban core, close in and around downtown.”

The Aztex currently play in the 6,500 seat house park. MLS games average crowds of near 19,000.