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The way Major League Soccer and its newest set of owners were talking in March, you'd think there might already be a stadium under construction in Minneapolis. 

But there's still no deal, and talks have moved to St. Paul — and into extra time.

Minnesota actually made two proposals to 

 when the league decided to accept expansion team bidders last year. 

One Minnesota bid was from the state's minor league team, 


. The Minnesota Vikings made the other bid. The NFL franchise has rights to soccer in its 

But top-level soccer has been wary of artificial turf — and particularly of indoor fields — which was reflected in 

a controversy during this year's Women's World Cup

. That's what the Vikings were offering. 

. Soccer teams want to control stadium schedules, branding and concessions, as well as lucrative non-soccer events. That rules out Target Field and TCF Bank Stadium. 

, leaving the team to start from scratch on a new stadium — which is always a contentious political battle in Minnesota. The Twins and Vikings spent more than a decade each angling for their new homes.

What exactly does Major League Soccer want?

Kansas City is the shining city on the hill for Major League Soccer right now. 

Minnesota's ownership group hasn't unveiled its plans yet, but made a 

 the Kansas City stadium, and said it would spend 

 on a privately owned stadium near the Minneapolis Farmers Market earlier this year. 

A new stadium was part of the deal when MLS awarded Minnesota United an expansion franchise, including a $100 million league fee.

The next big thing is Orlando, Fla., where the Orlando City Soccer Club is building a new $155 million stadium right now, expected to open in 2016. 

The team actually decided to upgrade it while they were building it

, in response to crowds at the Citrus Bowl, where the team plays now. 

A number of teams, including those in Kansas City, San Jose, Calif., and Portland, Ore., have been selling out their stadiums. But some others, like Chicago and Montreal, are down in attendance this year, despite having soccer-specific stadiums.

What went wrong with the Farmers Market plan?

It turned out the money Minnesota United planned to spend on a stadium wasn't all its own. The team was 

 with the new facility in the form of a permanent property tax break on its stadium, thought to be worth millions. 

Similar, limited-term subsidies like tax increment financing are common in development deals. But a tax write-off is something new, and 

likely would require a change to Minnesota law

Citing stadium fatigue and wary of setting off a frenzy of tax giveaways to attract business development, 

, and the MLS deadline for a stadium deal went flying over the goal on July 1.

The city of St. Paul, the Minnesota United and MLS are eyeing a 

, which used to be a Metro Transit bus garage and lot, on the 

northeast corner of Snelling and Interstate 94

The spot served as a staging area for the construction of the Green Line, and now is fallow again. It is abutted on two sides by a 

The corner being considered for a stadium is still owned by the Metropolitan Council and is already off the tax rolls, giving the site a slight financial edge over the privately owned and taxpaying Farmers Market site in Minneapolis. 

The 35-acres around the St. Paul site are owned by a real estate developer. It's a prime spot, sitting right at a light rail station, and the city considers it a 

What are the odds something will happen in St. Paul?

Documents from the city indicate Minnesota United 

considered several St. Paul sites in 2013

, when it was first looking to move away from the 

 for training facilities that year. That's since been 

But the 2013 plans show Minnesota United owner Bill McGuire was interested before in 

housing and economic development in the Midway section of St. Paul that would pair with a new stadium

. That may indicate the project's finances may not be solely dependent on soccer. 

St. Paul has also proven adept at winning with sports: It got state subsidies for the 

 in St. Paul, which would be every bit as controversial as the one that failed in Minneapolis.

Is the St. Paul fallback a real deal, or just leverage against Minneapolis?

For stadium-watchers, this has the distinct feel of 2011. That's when the Vikings 

 to build a new stadium at the Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant. 

That deal, in Arden Hills, lit a fire under Minneapolis and spurred a 

MLS isn't ruling out Minneapolis yet, but says St. Paul may have legs

, including a deal with another Minnesota United owner, 


That said, the Pohlads, who also own the Twins, 

, even after the city got a state law passed to build the family's Minnesota Twins a stadium in St. Paul.

Business and Economic News

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Tim Nelson

Author

MLS soccer seemed like a done deal earlier this year, but it's gone into extra time.

Here's why we don't have Major League Soccer yet in Minnesota

Go Deeper.

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