Landon Donovan finds his post-playing passion in San Diego's MLS expansion bid

Landon Donovan speaks about his role with San Diego's expansion bid and how he got involved with the project in his new hometown.

Brian Straus | Mar 22, 2017

Landon Donovan finds his post-playing passion in San Diego's MLS expansion bid /

Quartyard is an outdoor (see ‘yard’) events space in San Diego’s East Village that boasts a bar (see ‘quart’), a kitchen and a stage. There’s room for food trucks and up to 1,500 people. It may wind up being too large for a party thrown by a soccer team that doesn’t exist, but the hosts aren’t taking any chances. They learned a valuable lesson a few weeks ago, when even they underestimated the local soccer community’s thirst for beer and belonging.

The occasion was Major League Soccer’s 22nd opening night and the place was a pub in Miramar. Interest was high, in part because the most decorated player in American history was promoting the event. Consequently, about a week before kickoff, the viewing party was shifted to a larger bar down the street. But RSVPs continued to flow in. And people wanted to bring their kids. So with just two days’ warning, organizers moved it again to a restaurant near UCSD with around 20,000 square feet of space.

“We originally thought maybe 100 or so would come. But a thousand people showed up at a place that was really out of the way. It made it even more surprising,” said attendee Landon Donovan. “I’ve lived it. I genuinely want people to be a part of this from the beginning and from the ground up. It’s what people love about soccer, when they feel they’re really a part of it."

So Friday evening, fans longing to be “a part of it” will fill the Quartyard for a World Cup qualifying doubleheader featuring the two existing sides that probably are the most popular in this unique nexus between Los Angeles and Mexico—the U.S. national team and El Tri. Donovan spent hours mingling, signing and posing at the first party but won’t attend Friday. Instead, he’ll be involved in Fox’s production of the USA-Honduras matchup in San Jose. But that hasn't stopped him from promoting Friday’s soirée on social media, and he’ll almost certainly be at the Quartyard in spirit. Rallying and uniting the soccer fans of San Diego, his new home, has become a substantial part of Donovan’s new calling. And he’s all in.

MLS expansion: An in-depth look at the many bids for the league's next four clubs

He bounced around a bit after retiring (for the first time) following the 2014 season. Donovan did some marketing and sponsorship work, took classes, helped launch a soccer camp and dabbled in TV. He even returned to the LA Galaxy and played for a couple months last fall. But nothing really captured him. Nothing scratched the itch. During that time, Donovan and his wife, Hannah, moved south to San Diego. They had a son last year, realized during a subsequent visit to her hometown how helpful the in-laws could be and pulled the trigger soon thereafter.

“It’s a pretty special place, and it took me a little while to fully appreciate and understand what it’s all about. I’ve been in L.A. so long, which is pretty hectic and fast-paced. San Diego is very relaxed, very laid back,” Donovan said. “I always thought of it as a really big city. But when you get to know people here, it has a very community-friendly, small-town vibe to it, which I really like.”

San Diego won him over. That sense of community won him over. But it also highlighted the smaller divisions within the city’s soccer scene, as well as that scene’s lack of a focal point.

“I didn’t realize [at first] how many people are involved in the game here in San Diego, and the problem, candidly, is that there hasn’t been an overlying entity to help regulate or motivate in the right way,” Donovan said. “Because there’s been that void, everybody ended up fighting or competing at an unhealthy level. All these youth clubs are completely isolated from one another. They don’t collaborate. They compete for the same players and have been poaching players from each other for many years. In my opinion, it needs a galvanizing and unifying project that brings those people together. If that happens, this becomes a massive, massive home run, because there are so many people, hundreds of thousands, that are connected to the game here and love it.”

• STRAUS: Go further inside the details of San Diego's MLS expansion bid

American soccer’s most prolific finisher then got the service he needed. MLS began soliciting expansion bids and indicated it wants to identify two new clubs this year. The Chargers left town after failing to secure public funding for a new stadium, and a group of potential investors led by Mike Stone, who runs a local private equity firm, saw a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. San Diego losing its NFL team to L.A., created a sporting void. Qualcomm Stadium wasn’t fit for purpose, either for pros or for the collegians at San Diego State. But it was on a large piece of city-owned land with which locals were familiar. Stone, according to The San Diego Union-Tribune, was introduced to soccer by his brother. A partner at FS Investors, Nick Stone (no relation), already was a fan. The pieces and a plan fell into place.

One of the aims of these viewing parties is to collect signatures. Fans can sign there, or at any of a number of places to which the MLS hopefuls send their T-shirt-bearing signature gatherers. Two weeks ago, for example, they were at a Sockers indoor game at the Valley View Casino Center, where more than 6,200 fans watched Donovan lace up his boots once more and take one for the team during a halftime celebrity match. Anyone who’s been off the field for a while knows that indoor is no joke. The lungs catch fire quickly. But for Donovan, Nick Stone—who said he now spends well more than half his time on the MLS effort—and their colleagues, this is a commitment. They'll do what needs to be done.

They’re aiming for more than 100,000 signatures, but 72,000 will be enough to put the proposal before San Diego’s city council. The Stones and their partners would purchase the stadium property at market rate, split the cost of a 30,000-seat, $200 million venue with SDSU (which then would be gifted the MLS group’s half) and use the remainder of the land for a 55-acre park, commercial and residential development and space for a future NFL stadium if needed. The council could either vote on the proposal directly or have a referendum.

Potential, future soccer stadiums in America

North Carolina FC

The Raleigh bid for an MLS expansion team unveiled a stadium plan for a downtown venue within the boundaries of Peace St., Salisbury St., Lane St. and the N.C. Railroad easement.

Miami

David Beckham's ownership group in Miami has released a rendering for a stadium in the Overtown neighborhood, the latest desired site for an MLS expansion bid that kicked off in 2014.

FC Cincinnati

FC Cincinnati doesn't yet have a nailed-down location for an MLS stadium, but the expansion hopeful has released renderings for a 25,000-seat stadium inspired by Bayern Munich's Allianz Arena.

FC Cincinnati

FC Cincinnati doesn't yet have a nailed-down location for an MLS stadium, but the expansion hopeful has released renderings for a 25,000-seat stadium inspired by Bayern Munich's Allianz Arena.

FC Cincinnati

FC Cincinnati doesn't yet have a nailed-down location for an MLS stadium, but the expansion hopeful has released renderings for a 25,000-seat stadium inspired by Bayern Munich's Allianz Arena.

FC Cincinnati

FC Cincinnati doesn't yet have a nailed-down location for an MLS stadium, but the expansion hopeful has released renderings for a 25,000-seat stadium inspired by Bayern Munich's Allianz Arena.

Portland Timbers

The Timbers are adding 4,000 seats as part of a $50 million renovation to Providence Park.

Portland Timbers

The Timbers are adding 4,000 seats as part of a $50 million renovation to Providence Park.

Atlanta United FC

Atlanta United will share Mercedes-Benz Stadium along with the Atlanta Falcons in a state-of-the-art venue.