- Montreal Impact (MLS)
-
Montreal Impact
Impact de Montréal
Full name Montreal Impact (English)
Impact de Montréal (French)Nickname(s) Impact Founded 2010 Ground Saputo Stadium
Montreal, Quebec
(Capacity: 20,341)Owner 
Joey SaputoHead Coach 
Jesse MarschLeague Major League Soccer 
Home coloursAway coloursThe Montreal Impact (French: Impact de Montréal) will be a Canadian professional soccer team and a 2012 expansion franchise in Major League Soccer based in Montreal, Quebec. The team will replace the Montreal Impact of the NASL, and will be overseen by the same organization, led by owner Joey Saputo. The Impact will become the league's 19th franchise and third Canadian club.
Contents
History
Toward the end of 2007, much speculation had been made about a possible franchise move for the lower division Impact to Major League Soccer. The construction of the expandable Saputo Stadium further suggests an interest on the part of the group to move up to the top level North American league. Although Toronto FC held a three-year Canadian exclusivity deal that did not expire until 2009, they stated in March 2008 that they would gladly welcome the Impact into MLS.[1][dead link] Chairman Joey Saputo held talks with George Gillett (former co-owner of Liverpool F.C. and owner of the Montreal Canadiens) regarding possible joint ownership of a franchise.[2] On July 24, 2008, MLS announced they were seeking to add two expansion teams for the 2011 season, of which Montreal was listed as a potential candidate.[3]
On November 22, 2008, the group's bid for an MLS franchise was not retained by commissioner Don Garber. In response to Vancouver's successful bid in March 2009, Impact GM Nick De Santis commented that he expected chairman Saputo to pursue and ultimately realize his vision of Montreal as an MLS franchise someday.[4] By May 16, 2009, the Montreal Gazette reported Garber and Saputo had resumed talks for an expansion team to begin play in 2011.[5]
On May 7, 2010, Garber and Saputo officially announced Montreal as the nineteenth club in Major League Soccer, set to begin play for the 2012 season.[6] The MLS franchise will be privately owned by the Saputo family.[7]
On June 14, 2011, the Montreal Impact announced they've reached a five-year agreement with the Bank of Montreal (BMO) to become lead sponsor and jersey sponsor when they join MLS as an expansion team in 2012.[8]
Team name and logo
In regards to keeping the name "Impact", Montreal stated its intention "to maintain its name and global team image". The official logo for the team was revealed at the start of a match between the NASL Montreal Impact team and the NSC Minnesota Stars on August 6th 2011. "[9][10][11][12][13]
The logo is a shield in blue, black, white and silver containing a stylized fleur-de-lis and four silver stars, overlaid with the Impact wordmark. The fleur-de-lis, which also appeared on the logo of the NASL Impact team, is a globally recognized symbol of French heritage, and features prominently on the flag of Quebec as a reflection of French Canadian culture. The four stars represent the four founding communities of Montreal identified on the city's coat of arms.
Stadium
- Saputo Stadium; Montreal, Quebec (2012-future)
Montreal will play its home games at Saputo Stadium, built for the second division Impact but designed with expansion in mind anticipating a move to MLS. The Quebec government announced $23 million funding to expand to more than 20,000 and to build a training field with a synthetic turf next door.[7]
If needed, the neighboring Olympic Stadium will also be used for special events which demand a larger capacity (examples of these include the team's home opener, the MLS All-Star Game, playoff games, or fall/winter international games)[14]
It was announced on July 17, 2011 that the expansion of the Saputo Stadium would be delayed and not ready in time for the MLS opener. As a consequence, the team’s first home game and perhaps several others will be played at the Olympic Stadium.[15]
Broadcasting
TVA Sports will serve as the official French-language broadcaster of all Impact games not broadcast as a part of the league's contract with the TSN family of networks (which includes French-language sports channel RDS). TVA Sports will air 24 games during the team's inaugural season.[16] CKGM, which recently re-launched as part of the TSN Radio system, will serve as the English-language radio flagship of the Impact.[17]
Players and staff
Current roster
As of November 1, 2011.[18]
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
No. Position Player 2 
DF Nelson Rivas 6 
MF Hassoun Camara No. Position Player 22 GK Evan Bush 28 
MF Siniša Ubiparipović Transfers in
Date Player Position Previous Club Fee/Notes Ref October 3, 2011 Nelson RivasDF 
Inter MilanFree [19] October 11, 2011 Hassoun CamaraMF Montreal ImpactFree [20] October 21, 2011 Evan BushGK Montreal ImpactFree [21] November 1, 2011 Siniša UbiparipovićMF Montreal ImpactFree [22] Staff
As of October 4, 2011.
- Sporting Director — Nick De Santis
- Director of Soccer operations — Matt Jordan
- Director of Player Development & Head Coach of the Academy — Philippe Eullaffroy
- Head Coach — Jesse Marsch[23]
- Assistant Coach — Mauro Biello[24]
- Assistant Coach — Mike Sorber[25]
- Goalkeeping Coach — Preston Burpo
- Team Manager — Adam Braz
- Equipment Coordinator —
Remy Eyckerman - Equipment Manager — Aldo Ricciuti
Administration staff
- Executive VP of the Impact and the Saputo Stadium — Richard Legendre
- Vice President, Corporate sales & development — John Di Terlizzi
- Vice President Finance — John Papadakis
Footnotes
References
- ^ CANOE - SLAM! Sports - Soccer - Montreal to bid for MLS franchise[dead link]
- ^ "Gillett launches MLS bid". Sky Sports. March 27, 2008. http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11095_3353672,00.html. Retrieved March 27, 2008.
- ^ Major League Soccer: News: Article[dead link]
- ^ [1][dead link]
- ^ Phillips, Randy (May 16, 2009). "New coach, same old problem". Montreal Gazette. http://www.montrealgazette.com/Sports/coach+same+problem/1603145/story.html. Retrieved May 17, 2009.[dead link]
- ^ Freedman, Jonah (May 7, 2010). ""Passionate" Montreal named as 19th MLS city". MLSSoccer.com. http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/passionate-montreal-named-19th-mls-city. Retrieved May 7, 2010.
- ^ a b "MLS awards expansion team to Montreal for 2012". Associated Press. July 5, 2010. http://www.tsn.ca/soccer/story/?id=320776. Retrieved July 7, 2010.
- ^ http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5ic3njaaX1eu7yb9oGUZlv0YmtdhA?docId=7146781
- ^ "Montreal MLS 2012". Montreal MLS 2012. http://montrealmls2012.com/faq.php?language=EN. Retrieved September 13, 2010.
- ^ [2]
- ^ [3]
- ^ [4]
- ^ [5]
- ^ "Stadiums". Montreal MLS 2012. June 2, 2010. http://montrealmls2012.com/stade.php?language=EN. Retrieved September 13, 2010.
- ^ http://bcsoccerweb.com/articles-july/montreal-jul-18-saputo-stadium.htm
- ^ Vlessing, Etan. "Quebecor Media Wins Montreal Impact TV Rights". The Hollywood Reporter. http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/quebecor-media-wins-montreal-impact-211328.
- ^ http://tsn.ca/radio/story/?id=377331
- ^ http://www.montrealimpact.com/Team/Roster2012.aspx?language=EN
- ^ http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/2011/10/03/colombian-defender-rivas-montreals-first-signing
- ^ http://www.impactmontreal.com/News/News.aspx?language=EN&ArticleID=1768
- ^ http://www.montrealimpact.com/News/News.aspx?language=EN&ArticleID=1776&Focus=0
- ^ http://www.impactmontreal.com/News/News.aspx?language=EN&ArticleID=1779
- ^ http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/2011/08/10/ex-chicago-and-chivas-star-marsch-named-montreal-coach
- ^ http://www.montrealimpact.com/News/News.aspx?language=EN&ArticleID=1781&Focus=0
- ^ http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/2011/10/05/impact-tab-sorber-assistant-coach-under-marsch
External links
Montreal Impact The Club Stadiums Development System Culture Montreal Impact (USL/NASL) • UM02Rivalries Key Personnel Owner: Joey Saputo
Major League Soccer Seasons (0) 2012Website: montrealmls2012.com/Major League Soccer Eastern Conference Western Conference Chicago Fire · Columbus Crew · D.C. United · Houston Dynamo · New England Revolution · New York Red Bulls · Philadelphia Union · Sporting Kansas City · Toronto FC
Former teams Expansion teams Montreal Impact (2012)
League articles MLS Cup (Playoffs) · Supporters' Shield · All-Star Game · Records and statistics · CONCACAF Champions League · U.S. Open Cup · Canadian Championship · Rivalry cups · Current players · Foreign players · Capped players · Designated Player Rule · Coaches · Drafts · Transfers · MLS Players Union · Attendance · Stadiums · Reserve Division · USSF · CSASeasons Categories:- Montreal Impact
- Association football clubs established in 2010
- Major League Soccer teams based in Canada
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