NEW YORK – The ambitions of the group behind the relaunch of the New York Cosmos soccer club are not just rhetoric.
On Sunday the executives at the helm of the project outlined details of their step-by-step plan and unveiled their end goal of having the Cosmos become an expansion club in Major League Soccer.
The league on Monday acknowledged that there have been conversations.
“We remain focused on securing a 20th team for Major League Soccer in New York,” said MLS President Mark Abbott on Monday. “We have met with the group that owns the rights to the Cosmos name and look forward to learning more about their plans.”
Those plans begin at the youth level, with the formation of the Cosmos Academy in partnership with Queens-based youth club BW Gottschee. The youth side will participate in the US Soccer Development Academy.
The Cosmos have even kicked off a grassroots initiative by acquiring the rights to locally run Copa NYC tournament.
The chairman of the new Cosmos is former Tottenham Hotspur executive Paul Kemsley and the honorary president is none other than former Cosmos legend, Pelé.
“Our plan has several phases, but if you fast-forward, it’s our aspiration to play at the highest level in this country and that’s MLS,” executive director Joe Fraga told The New York Times. “And we are serious.”
