Departure of Brian OÆDonovan signals new era on both coasts

Perhaps it was the accent, a classic, lilting echo of his roots in County Cork, Ireland. Perhaps it was the eloquence with which he spoke of soccer, a sport he didnÆt embrace until long after heÆd left the Emerald Isle.

Perhaps it was because every time a major international soccer event had been played at Foxboro Stadium, there was Brian OÆDonovan. No U.S. team has ever lost at Foxboro, and although the Revs have lost quite a bit since the formation of MLS, somehow OÆDonovan and his staff have kept the fans coming.

The perception of OÆDonovan being a ôsoccer guyö didnÆt tell the full story. His resignation leaves a hole in the Kraft organization that wonÆt be easily filled.

ôIÆm not a soccer guy, per se,ö said OÆDonovan, who served as general manager and then chief operating officer of the Revs. ôIÆm a big fan of the game, and IÆve learned a lot about the game itself and the dynamics. But I would say the juice of this project goes beyond the game itself.ö

For the last five years, inculcating the Revs into the New England sports marketplace was his project. The Revs have been among the leagueÆs attendance leaders each year despite never having finished above .500.

SIXTEEN YEARS OF SERVICE. OÆDonovan leaves the Kraft organization after 16 years of managing Foxboro Stadium, handling international soccer events as well as concerts and NFL football, and overseeing the Revs.

His departure is just one of several major changes pending to the operations of Kraft Soccer, which includes the moribund San Jose Earthquakes as well as the Revs.

Both are deemed to be among the best soccer markets in the country. In the contrary nature of soccer, both markets have been cursed with poor teams.

MLS operator-investors Robert Kraft and his son, Jonathan Kraft, have an agreement with the league to run the Quakes until November. To officially ôbuyö the team in MLS parlance ù to acquire the league standard 49 percent ownership of the team ù they must pony up a sum believed to be $15 million.

The Krafts still wish to operate a second team in addition to the Revs. But thereÆs a possibility ù according to a source ù they may drop San Jose to take over the other league-run team in Tampa Bay.

Operator-investor Jonathan Kraft did not return phone calls in time for his comments to be included in this article. Managing Director of Kraft Soccer Sunil Gulati, who oversees the soccer aspects of both teams, declined to speculate on the future of San Jose as well as his own status should the Krafts elect to pull out. Commissioner Don Garber also refused to comment.

The league isnÆt putting all its San Jose hopes on the Krafts. Talks with prospective local investors have been going on for months, and although few details have dribbled out, several Silicon Valley companies are in the loop.

The teamÆs major sponsor is Yahoo!, and former MLS executive vice president Randy Bernstein left MLS to join the Internet giant.

Prior to BernsteinÆs move, a consortium of three companies that included LSI Logic, Inc., had been in discussions with the league.

AN UNCERTAIN FUTURE. The ownership situation casts clouds over the future of General Manager Lynne Meterparel and Coach Lothar Osiander. Meterparel came to San Jose from her post as director of crowd-building with the Revs.

Saddled with two playoff misses in two seasons, Meterparel has torn the crowds down. Whatever worked in Boston hasnÆt in San Jose.

This yearÆs San Jose attendance average of 11,501 is a drop from 14,959 in 1999. But the 1999 figure includes an attendance of 73,123 for a doubleheader with the U.S.-Brazil WomenÆs World Cup semifinal; for the other 15 dates the average was about 10,800.

In three seasons prior to the Krafts, San Jose averaged 14,827.

The RevsÆ 2000 attendance average of 15,676 is the lowest in team history despite a .500 record.

SAME TALE IN SAN JOSE. For Quakes fans, the story is sadly the same. Their team will miss the playoffs for a fourth straight year.

There could be shakeup of the teamÆs roster as well as in the front office. Khodadad Azizi has been a bust, Ronald Cerritos missed most of the season through injury and is tired of losing, and Abdul Thompson Conteh canÆt seem to please Osiander.

The coach was hired to replace Brian Quinn last September upon the recommendation of Meterparel. HeÆs been unable to motivate Azizi and has been muttering about getting better players since midseason.

A trade that sent Mauricio Wright from San Jose to New England in exchange for Mike Burns and Dan Calichman cast further suspicion, unfounded or not, as to GulatiÆs dual role.

Osiander deserves a second season, since a relatively thin squad has been ravaged by injuries to key players.

According to a source, should the Krafts decide not to purchase the Quakes or extend their current agreement, whatever they spent running the franchise will be reimbursed. When the agreement was reached in November 1998, those operating costs were estimated to be $5 million.

COSTLY DECISIONS. There were troubles on OÆDonovanÆs watch, starting with the coaches he helped select.

OÆDonovan hired Frank Stapleton, who left after one season. He had to fire Thomas Rongen, who lost control of the Revs after a promising first season. He handed the job to Walter Zenga, who stamped a boyish personality on the team so indelibly he too had to be jettisoned.

ôWhatever moves we had made in the previous four years hadnÆt worked out, so we needed to make a sea change,ö said OÆDonovan.

ôWe needed to make a paradigm shift here. Sunil has been a very, very important part of what I believe is one of the great organizations in sports.ö

He dismissed speculation of a schism with Gulati as the cause of his departure. ôI actually encouraged them to hire Sunil,ö he says.

With the assistance of Gulati, the Kraft group hired Fernando Clavijo as its coach. He has brought the team to the verge of a playoff berth.

The Revs will open a new stadium in the spring of 2002. CMGI Field is being built next door to Foxboro, and its configuration includes a lower section (capacity: 30,000) and field dimensions ideal for soccer.

OÆDonovan will stay on until his replacement comes aboard. By then, the Krafts will probably have made their decision on San Jose, where the league has extracted so little out of so much potential.

by Soccer America senior editor Ridge Mahoney