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ATLANTA -- Major League Soccer is closing in on a deal with Falcons owner Arthur Blank to bring an expansion franchise to Atlantas new downtown stadium.Lynn Swann Jersey . The team would likely begin play in 2017, when the $1 billion retractable roof stadium is set to open next to the Georgia Dome to provide a new home for the NFL Falcons. "Our discussions with Major League Soccer continue, but we do not have a final agreement at this time," Kim Shreckengost, the chief administrative officer for Blanks AMB Group, said Tuesday in an email to The Associated Press. "We hope to complete the agreement soon, at which time we will make a formal announcement." The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has reported that a new team will be announced April 16. "We are continuing discussions with Arthur Blank to bring a Major League Soccer expansion team to Atlanta," said Dan Courtemanche, a spokesman for MLS. "However, we have not finalized an agreement at this time." The MLS has long coveted the Atlanta market, the largest in the U.S. without a team, as it moves toward its goal of expanding to 24 franchises. The 19-team league has already announced expansion franchises in New York City and Orlando that are scheduled to begin play next season, in addition to a provisional franchise in Miami owned by a group that includes David Beckham. That team is contingent on a deal for a new soccer-specific stadium in south Florida. There are no such concerns in Atlanta, where the Falcons new stadium was designed to accommodate an MLS team, providing Blank with additional revenue streams for the elaborate facility. While most MLS teams are moving toward smaller stadiums that are built solely for soccer, the Atlanta franchise would follow the model of teams in Seattle and Vancouver, which play in larger facilities downsized to provide a more intimate setting. For instance, Vancouvers BC Place has a curtain system that blocks off the upper deck, reducing capacity from 54,000 to 21,000. Atlantas new stadium will likely have a similar capability. Atlanta had two franchises in the old North American Soccer League. The Chiefs won the leagues first championship in 1968 but folded after the 1973 season, having spent their final year known as the Apollos. The Chiefs returned to the NASL in 1979 when the Colorado Caribous moved to Atlanta. That incarnation lasted only three seasons, never drawing as many as 8,000 fans a game before folding due to heavy financial losses. Atlanta has a team in a new version of the NASL, a league that ranks below MLS on the U.S. soccer ladder. The Silverbacks play at a 7,500-seat stadium on the outskirts of the city and are apparently not involved in talks on the MLS expansion team. Jack Lambert Steelers Jersey . - Defenceman Luke Green was taken first overall by the Saint John Sea Dogs on Saturday in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League Entry Draft. Dermontti Dawson Jersey . The Canadians rose to No. 11 from 12th in the rankings released Wednesday following their bronze-medal performance at the recent FIBA Americas championship. LONDON -- After a gloomy start to 2014 for English Premier League teams in Europe, Tottenham achieved what five rivals failed to do -- win. Arsenal, Manchester United and Manchester City all opened the Champions League knockout phase with first-leg losses, while Chelsea drew. But on Thursday, straight after Swansea was knocked out of the Europa League, Tottenham overturned a 1-0 deficit against Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk to win 3-1 at White Hart Lane and advance to the round of 16. Roman Zozulya headed the Ukrainian side in front at the start of the second half but, after Christian Eriksen levelled from a free kick, he was dismissed for head-butting Jan Vertonghen in the 62nd minute. Within six minutes, Emmanuel Adebayor scored twice to set up a meeting with Benfica, which beat PAOK Salonika 3-0 to go through 4-0 on aggregate. The last 16 will see two meetings of national rivals that should lift Europes less illustrious competition, with Juventus facing Fiorentina, and Sevilla playing Real Betis. Juventus replicated its 2-0 first-leg victory over Trabzonspor in Turkey, with goals from Arturo Vidal and Dani Osvaldo. And Fiorentina was held to 1-1 by Esbjerg of Denmark but advanced 4-2 on aggregate.Ben Roethlisberger Steelers Jersey. . Swanseas loss at Napoli gave Italy a third team in the next round and kept Rafa Benitez on course to win back-to-back Europa League titles. The Spanish manager, who lifted the trophy with Chelsea last season, saw his new team emerge 3-1 winners over Swansea after a goalless first leg in south Wales. Napoli will next face Porto, which drew 2-2 at Eintracht Frankfurt to advance on away goals with a 5-5 aggregate draw. But Serie A rival Lazio went out, drawing 3-3 at Ludogorets after losing 1-0 at home. Three Spanish teams also remain in the competition. Sevilla beat Maribor 2-1 to complete a 4-3 aggregate win over the Slovenian side, and Betis advanced 3-1 on aggregate after winning 2-0 at Rubin Kazan. Valencia relied on its 2-0 away win to oust Dynamo Kyiv after a scoreless draw in Spain, and will next face Ludogorets. Lyon beat Chornomorets Odesa 1-0 to setup a meeting with Viktoria Plzen after the Czech side beat Shakhtar Donetsk 3-2 on aggregate. Ajax conceded another three goals against Red Bull Salzburg, losing 3-1 to allow the hosts to advance 6-1 overall. Salzburg will next play FC Basel after the Swiss side beat Maccabi Tel Aviv 3-0. wholesale nfl jerseys wholesale jerseys ' ' ' |
