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Now let's continue. Reds Baseball kicks off about seven ten, and I first
pitch about eight ten. Of course, big story, which is FC Cincinnati's
undefeated, untied, unstored on in first place and the Red Legs maybe in
first place come another week from now. The Bengals picked when the Super Bowl
Saviors should win the National College Basketball Championship next year, and U see Bearcats
might win the national football title. Yes, I'm in fantasyland. But Jeff
Birdings, the CEO and chairman of the board of FC Cincinnati, and Jeff
Birding, can you tell us before we talk about Messi and Ronaldo maybe teaming
up with FC, can you talk about what the hell's going on with FC?
Who can't lose a game? What happened? Well, we have a
great coach in Pat noon In and a great GM and Chris Albright and a
great fan base, a great stadium, and you put all that magic and
together and you're gonna have a great season. And that's where we've been this
year. The US Cup. Of course, I met Commissioner Gerber about four
or five years ago at Nipperd Stadium. Could you have seen at that point?
I think in that game FC lost in the semifinals of the US Cup.
And now it's going to happen against semifinals, maybe with Messi and Ronaldo.
But nonetheless, could you have seen the growth of FC the previous what's
happened in the past five years? Could you have seen that at the Knipperd
Stadium it's packed thirty two thousand people, and of course the restrooms are overflowing,
you can't get a hot dog, people are going nuts, the parades
opening, and they lost that game with Gerber president, But nonetheless, could
you have seen the growth of this thing? Well when Carlner and Scott Farmer,
George Joseph, when when we found that FC Cincinnati, it was to
be a winning team, and we certainly experienced that in the minor leagues,
right We were the New York Yankees of Minor League soccer, and then we
quickly moved into MLS as an expansion team and certainly fumbled the transition. But
our goals have always been to be a winning team to represent the city,
and we were. Our ambition was to get back to being that winning team
and as we were in the minor leagues, and win more trophies. So
this is certainly what we had been working so hard for to deliver for our
wonderful fans and for this, you know, our proud hometown. And can
I tell you why I thought MESSI would play a team? Could you have
envisioned Messiah? You called it a year ago? You called it a year
ago. It was. It's amazing that here we are having this conversation.
I say, I wasn't a believe. You were a believer. You're we
gotta get Messy. We're gonna have mel Stadium. And I was laughing sort
of with you, going come on, Bill, and here we are,
Well, this is what I thought. I've done work for the BBC,
which is not the Burbank Broadcasting but the British Broadcasting Company, and I do
live call ins to London. I'm kind of the voice of the Midwest.
They think I'm normal in London, and I talk to people there and they
said, look messy. This is a couple or three years ago. If
he can win the World Cup for Argentina, if he can actually conquer the
World Cup, and he won like the Golden Boot, like seven years ago.
I said, Okay, look at it this way. Let's say he
wins the World Cup, which would have been in a year or two.
Let's say he wins that. And let's say at that point Argentina has a
forty percent inflation rate, which it does online. They had fifty percent one
year and forty two percent the next. This year is going to be thirty
eight percent inflation. The money he's making in Argentina is devalued greatly, and
he's already conquered Barcelona. The Barcelona they were getting rid of players, they
weren't signing. He didn't feel like he was in control of what's happening in
Barcelona. And I said, at this point, there's only one thing to
do to keep his promise to David Beckham. And he told Beckham a few
years ago, look, if it's possible for me to join you in Miami,
I'm going to do it, and so he's looking for a place to
live with his three kids. Argentina may not be the place. Europe is
not the place. Why not come to America. There's a continent to be
captured. And that's why I thought Bessie would do it. Well, I
mean again, I'm being real serious. You called it in a way that
some of us thought was really not possible. He is the biggest, the
most famous professional sports player to ever play in the United States, And just
to give the listeners some idea of that, he has four hundred and sixty
nine million followers on Instagram. That's more followers than Steph Curry, Lebron,
James, Patrick Mahomes, Tom Brady, Otani, Alex Morgan, Jimmy Butler,
Tiger Woods, Travis Kelsey, Mike Trout, John Morant combined, combined,
combined is four hundred and sixty nine million followers on Instagram. He is
instantly the biggest name in US sports. If there was right now and mount
rushmore of athletes in the world, in the world, I'm not sure an
American would be on it, but I know that Messi would be the top
athlete in the world. Is that fair? Yes, it is. It
is. I mean, when you have to remember soccer while it's still catching
on here in the US, and we've made enormous progress. It is the
most popular sport in the world. There's more people playing soccer on this planet
than every other sport combined, and so everywhere around the world, the biggest
sport and the biggest star. The goat is messy. Well, is he
going to play? And our fans are going to get an opportunity to see
him play. Our season ticket holders are gonna have an opportunity to buy their
own seats. The stadium of course will be full. We're playing for a
prophy and it should be a heck of a night on August the twenty third.
Are you reasonably confident he's going to play on the twenty third? I
mean, obviously the deal hasn't been inked yet, but he's announced his intentions.
So assuming that this works where he signs with Miami, he of course
is going to be on the field they're playing. They're playing for a trophy
too, and you know, and we have a great stadium. It's been
said across the board it's the best soccer stadium in the United States. I
can't imagine a scenario unless he's injured, where he wouldn't play, So he
would play for a team that's not very good. Right now, I think
Miami I don't follow it closely. I think Miamie's not very well. They're
last, the last, their last, and nc's first. We are and
so messy. If he SAI, that's why you play the game, right
Yeah, Well, I mean a last place team can be the first place
team all the time, but none in soccer. So you're saying the dominant,
the greatest player in soccer, better than Pelee, better than and Bope,
better than Ronaldo, is going to be in Cincinnati sitting at the end
of a bar in OTR having a beer. Is that what you're saying.
That's what I'm saying. And just to give you a sense, because I've
heard some people ask me, is this like Michael Jordan going to the Wizards,
and uh, he's MESSI scored I think twenty goals this past season.
I mean that that's not someone who's not still performing at extraordinary level people who
fall soccer. Scoring goals is hard, and a player scores twenty goals in
one of the top leagues in the world. He's still a phenomenally good player.
Assuming all this takes place, you know, our team will be up
for the challenge. But you know, it's he's pretty good. How much
money I've read some reports he's got a deal with Apple TV, MLST.
Did FC financially participate in getting Messi to Miami? I think the short answer
is we don't know the details of the deal. There will the deal,
once it's done, will be brought to the Board of Governors. Carl Lindner
will have an opportunity to review the details and um and ultimately have to you
know, the owners will have to approve it. So we've seen some of
the media reports, but at this point that's all we've seen is the number
about two hundred and fifty to three hundred million for Messi. Again, haven't
seen the details. I've seen that in some of the public discussion, But
until we get a memo Carl gets a memo from the from the from the
commissioner regarding what the deal is, I'm not going to speculate here. I
don't think that's fair. What's the top salary for the top player, inc.
Who is the best player for your team? Um, I think Luco
Acosta are attacking midfielders, is probably our highest paid player. But can you
tell me what he makes or not? Is that private? It's it's no,
it's it was, It's been announced publicly. I think he makes about
two million a year made, and Messi's two fifty. I don't. I
really don't know what the number is. But you know, if I would
say this, if anyone's seen the movie Air, which is about Nike coming
up with the Air Jordans and partnering with Michael Jordan as he was coming out
of UNC and Michael Jordan got a percentage of all the Air Jordans that Nike
has ever sold, and that was a transcendent deal, uh, for for
Nike and for Michael Jordan, who's of course the goat in the in basketball.
My sense is based on some of the media reports as it might be
a deal somewhere akin to that, But obviously that was an enormous deal to
help Nike and Michael Jordan and his family. So my guess is this will
have some elements of that, but I don't know the details. Are you
shocked that Messi maybe in Cincinnati a t q L in about seven weeks shocked.
Yes, yes, for sure. We were watching the drawing yesterday because
when Miami we won Tuesday Miami one Wednesday, there was a question of who
would host the game. So yesterday there was the drawing, and of course
the drawing for who would host the game was coming on, you know,
the next day, after the news about Messi going to Miami. So then
we win the drawing yesterday where our FC Cincinnati is going to host Miami,
and then all of a sudden it's a feeding frenzy of just you know,
look, people who are a sports fans, right, we like to see
the goats, We like to see the greatest stars and Messy coming to Cincinnati,
which Bill Cunningham you called over a year ago. My next next is
going to be I think when people think you're kidding, there might be some
knowledge behind your kidding. Well, I will tell you you called it.
I'm thinking about Ronaldo is next because my wife says, I'd look like Ronaldo
when he gets done in Saudi, when he gets done in Saudi Arabia,
wouldn't he want to join maybe FC Ronaldo. Well I don't know about Ronaldo,
but I will say this with Messi signing in the growth of soccer in
the United States with all the stadiums, thirty teams now, um the Apple
deal where people all over the world are going to be able to watch MLS
games, watch Messi on Apple. UM, this certainly becomes a more attractive
you know where where other great players and UH will have more inspiration and with
the credibility that Messi brings to come to Major League Soccer and certainly at some
point you know FC, since I will be a part of that. I've
watched the interviews with Lyon only talks about his three kids, talks about his
wife. He wants the stable situation. When he was in Europe, he
stayed in a hotel as kids were living out of a hotel. He wants
a home. I can see him and back him getting a nice place in
and around Miami, one of those mansions they have, one of the islands,
and just putting roots down in America. And that's what's This is still
the let's be honest, for all of our troubles, this is still the
greatest country in the world. And for you to your point, whether you're
the goat or you know, another fine human being, to be able to
have an opportunity to come do what you love and what God gave you the
abilities to do in our country in the United States of America's a phenomenal opportunity
and it certainly this gives credibility to what all of us is owners and key
leaders in Major League Soccer have been building, some for two decades and some
of us for you know in Cincinnati here eight years. Now, are you
ready for the big question? Sure? Sure, Bill fire Away on August
at twenty third, if Messi plays at TQL, do you have two tickets
for me and Penny? Yes, we will. We will one hundred percent.
We will need Bill Huntingham in the house. Jeff Birding, thank you
very much. It's good to be with you. Thank you, Bill.
God bless America. Thank you. Messi and Ronaldo sharing in the ball at
TQL is my next dream. On news Radio seven hundreds WLW. The federal
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