Owner and general manager Adrian Hanauer shares his thoughts on Philadelphia joining Major League Soccer for the 2010 season and how it might affect Seattle’s first season.

I was very excited to watch the press conference held last Thursday in Philadelphia.  Certainly it brought back the feeling that I had during our announcement a few months ago. 

I am really happy for the fans of that great city, and look forward 2010 when they are in the league.  They have a great ownership group, a great management team, a great fan base, and I am certain that they will be successful.

Also, speaking from experience, the fact that they have 2-plus years to plan for their launch will be very helpful.  Building a world-class organization takes time. 

The two years will probably drive the fans crazy and drag on, but from a management perspective, the time will fly by.  Also, given that a stadium will be constructed in Chester, obviously, this adds to the necessary runway.

Of course, having 16 teams in 2009 would have been nice.  Still, the unbalanced conferences are not a significant negative.  The most important issue for MLS is slow, steady, managed growth.

Although we have not yet had these discussions, I would imagine that the 2010 launch for Philadelphia means improved strength for our 2009 Seattle MLS roster, such as an anticipated No. 1 pick in the 2009 SuperDraft, and no competition during the expansion draft.  Combined with the chance to bring a few players from the 2008 Sounders to the MLS roster, this means that we should have an extremely competitive side in 2009.

The expansion in MLS is very exciting, and I know that there are many other cities vying for the next slots in expansion.  Right along with the fans, I will be as interested to see how all this evolves.