St. Louis has a stadium deal, but not enough wealthy investors.
Philadelphia has rich investors, but no commitment for a stadium.
That's how the competition stands as the bidding for a pro soccer expansion team enters its final weeks, with league officials expected to announce the winner in January.
How proponents in each city can enhance their plans will help determine if their city is picked to host Major League Soccer's 16th team.
"We're working hard and trying to show MLS what St. Louis can do," said Jeff Cooper, the millionaire lawyer who leads St. Louis Soccer United.
At the moment, the bids of the two cities are inverse mirror images, each one lacking what the other already has.
"If I were a betting a person, I'd put the money on Philadelphia," said Victor Matheson, an assistant professor at Holy Cross College who studies the economics of sports. "I'd guess the size of the market and the deep pockets [of the ownership group] would trump the soccer tradition of St. Louis."
But don't send money for season tickets just yet.
People familiar with MLS can envision alternate scenarios, including the possibility that both cities could be awarded teams, or that a less-known contender could emerge at the last minute.
In MLS, San Diego sportswriter Mark Zeigler noted, "if you show up at the league offices with a wad of cash and blueprints for a 20,000-seat stadium, you immediately jump to the head of the class." And on Dec. 18 Florida officials got in line, when the Miami-Dade County Commission approved a giant public works project that includes $50 million for a new soccer stadium.
Last month, MLS commissioner Don Garber named St. Louis the front-runner, with Philadelphia's chances contingent on acquiring $45 million in state funding to help build a stadium. But league executives also have been complimentary about Miami and other cities.
MLS officials say expansion clubs must have a soccer stadium or a commitment to build one, well-financed local ownership, and a market that's supportive of the game and attractive to sponsors.
Even against that less-than-explicit criteria, it's difficult to evaluate the merits of the two bids. Neither group has released detailed financial information. But some things are known, and it's plain that each city has certain distinct advantages over the other.
For instance, comparing the markets of both towns shows there is, well, no comparison.
