San Diego Fusion

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Fusion face first-year challenges

By Larry Knowles

May 22,  2006

San Diego--Local semi-pro soccer team San Diego Fusion, halfway through its inaugural season in the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL), face the challenges typical of an expansion team in a growing, yet underexposed, lower division soccer league: signing sponsors, procuring stadium and practice fields, and getting players with full time jobs to fully commit to the team.

To date, the Fusion have signed Adidas and Soccer Post, a soccer equipment retailer, to sponsorship deals. Adidas provides the team with equipment and apparel discounted at the same rate as an NCAA Division I collegiate program. The sporting goods manufacturer has also promised to look at the Fusion closely next year and consider the team for a more comprehensive sponsorship that would include a shoe deal and complementary merchandise.

The organization has also had a frustrating time finding a stadium and practice facilities to call home. The Fusion had initially eyed Junior Seau Field in La Mesa as their home turf, but a deal fell through in part because the city’s Parks and Recreation Department gives youth organizations priority when allocating the field.

Monnar has run into the same problem in other towns, as well. “It’s been very difficult to find fields,” Monnar stated. “Adult programs typically get the leftovers.”

Balboa Park downtown sits in an ideal location, but was never seriously considered. It’s the current home to second year NPSL team and intra-city rival, San Diego Pumitas. After an anxious search for a home in their home town, the Fusion landed at Helix High School Stadium in suburban La Mesa. A deal came about after a Fusion player mentioned that he knew the Helix High School athletic director, and as it turns out, Helix High was looking to rent out the field for the spring and summer.

Their home at Helix was short-lived, however. A few weeks ago, the team learned that Helix will soon be tearing up the field and putting in new turf. They’ll play one more home game at the stadium before moving to a second new home at Poinsettia Park in Carlsbad. Monnar pointed out that one benefit of the move is that the club has a substantially higher fan base in North County.

Securing practice fields has also been exasperating. The team currently practices three nights a week at three facilities spread throughout San Diego County. On Mondays, they’re at the indoor field at the Mission Valley YMCA; Wednesdays, they play alongside a six-on-six league at Junior Seau Field in La Mesa; and Thursdays, they drive twenty miles up to Carlsbad to practice.

On top of financial and logistical challenges, the new organization is facing the reality that their players have full time jobs, families, school, and other commitments, and cannot always meet the demands of playing in a national league. Every other weekend, the team is on the road, and plays matches in places such as Las Vegas, Denver, Phoenix, and Albuquerque.

“One of the issues we’re running into is commitment,” Monnar stated. “It’s been a challenge for some of the guys, because this is a national league. It’s not a rec league.”

Monnar says that he’s learned volumes from his experience as general manager so far, and he’s quick to point out that there have been a lot of positive developments. He’s seen the same group of loyal fans attend Fusion home games, including “Mr. Heckler, who loves the game but hates the refs.”

He’s also been pleasantly surprised by the way the players have shed club rivalries and banded together, as many on the roster have spent years playing against each other for local club teams. “You have guys who compete on a daily basis for different teams, then unite under one umbrella for a common cause,” Monnar asserted. “It’s similar to the U.S. National Team or other National teams.”

The Fusion general manager remains upbeat about the team’s future as well as the future of elite soccer in San Diego. “I’ve always believed in our talent in San Diego. It was just a matter of putting an actual management team together to run a team.” And with Major League Soccer considering putting a franchise in San Diego for the 2009 season, the Fusion, he noted, might be in the right place at the right time.

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Larry Knowles is the editor of Vyuz. He can be reached at lgkiii@vyuz.com