Last night on Prime Time Sports, Bob McCown referred to Toronto FC as ‘the worst sports franchise in the world.’  This seems a little harsh.  Now if he’d said ‘one of’ the worst sports franchises in the world, I could have gotten on board with that.

In all seriousness, it’s debateable if TFC is even the worst sports franchise in Toronto.  (Feel free to interpret this as you see appropriate.)  In any event, regardless of where the team ranks, MLSE have decided to do something to improve fortunes on the field.

With a resume that makes for impressive reading, the decision to bring Kevin Payne in as the new President and GM is definitely a step in the right direction.  During his time at D.C. United, they have been the most successful team in MLS, with six major championships.

Rumours have been circulating that the league may well have ‘asked’  (persuaded/bribed/threatened?) Payne to go to Toronto to help turn the team around.  Factoring in the money  TFC makes, together with one of the most loyal fans bases in soccer, MLS is undoubtedly aware of how the team impacts on the success of the league as a whole.

(For what it’s worth, Payne is a member of the board of governors of MLS, and sits on the league marketing and competition committees.)

However, whether this is the case or not, who cares?  Bearing in mind how little assistance the Raptors have had since entering the NBA in 1995, I’ll take it!

The Toronto FC fanbase deserves something to cheer about, given how much passion they have shown for the team.  And while I appreciate that this loyalty should not automatically equate to success, we can only hope the appointment of Payne does indeed have a positive impact on the franchise.

In fact, I’ll go as far as to stick my neck on the line and make the prediction to end all predictions: (I hope you’re sitting down for this.) In 2013, Toronto FC will definitely finish with more than their franchise-worst mark of 23 points from this season.


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