The other cities El Paso is up against for a Major League Soccer team and where those cities stand

Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber has said he would like the league to expand to 25 teams from the current 19 by 2020.

MountainStar Sports Group, owners of the El Paso Chihuahuas baseball team, are not the only ones vying for a Major League Soccer expansion team.

San Antonio, Austin, San Diego, Las Vegas, Sacramento and Minneapolis are all in contention and at varying degrees of wooing MLS.

Where the cities stand in the process:

Las Vegas: In May 2014, Las Vegas’ mayor and City Council gave the go-ahead to a partnership of development company Cordish Cos. and Findlay Sports & Entertainment. The partnership was created to try to land a MLS franchise and to find a way to pay for a downtown soccer stadium, according to a report in the Las Vegas Review-Journal. The article states a new soccer stadium is expected to cost about $125 million and the MLS expansion fee would be in the $70 million range.

The Las Vegas Sun reported on May 14, 2014 that the companies planned to build a 24,000-seat stadium in downtown Las Vegas at Symphony Park and that the stadium would be designed specifically for a pro soccer team.

An official from MLS confirmed discussions to bring a franchise to Las Vegas, according to the Las Vegas Sun.

San Antonio: The San Antonio Scorpions hosted FC Dallas in early March in front of a sold-out crowd of 8,000.

Some called the game a possible preview of a future MLS matchup in the San Antonio team’s stadium.

According to an article on MLS’ official website, Scorpions president and general manager Howard Cornfield believes his club has put itself into position for MLS expansion consideration by building a stadium in Toyota Field that some MLS clubs would be envious of and, more importantly, can be expanded to a capacity of 18,500.

MLS Commissioner Don Garber was in San Antonio in January to meet with that city’s mayor, as well as the owner of the NASL’s San Antonio Scorpions.

Garber was asked about the possibility of San Antonio getting a franchise and said, “There are lots and lots of opportunities we’ve looked at in Texas.”

In March 2014, Garber was asked about the possibilities of Austin or San Antonio getting a franchise. “He said It’s premature for both markets. …. Expanding in Texas is something that is likely to happen. Where that happens, when that happens is still to be seen.”

Austin: The City of Austin in March 2014 passed a resolution supporting an MLS feasibility study. Read the full resolution at http://bit.ly/1smw3uB

Also, the Austin Aztecs, an existing soccer team, will be joining the USL PRO league in 2015, which team owners say would bring them a step closer to bringing an MLS franchise to Austin.

In March 2014, Garber was asked about the possibilities of Austin or San Antonio getting a franchise. “He said It’s premature for both markets. …. Expanding in Texas is something that is likely to happen. Where that happens, when that happens is still to be seen.”

San Diego: Garber told the Associated Press in Feb. 2014 that there have been discussions about having a team in San Diego. San Diego Sockers spokesman Craig Elsten told the San Diego Reader in February that, to his knowledge, the San Diego Sockers of the Pacific Arena Soccer League were not involved in the discussion.

This past March, Garber was asked about certain cities getting an MLS franchise. Here are his responses:

Minneapolis: “Minneapolis is on the short list.”

Cleveland: Question: “Will there ever be MLS in Cleveland?” Garber: “Ever is a long time.” Acknowledged talks about a team there “many years ago” but nothing as of late. “What I would say to folks that are living in Cincinnati, the folks that are living in Dayton, folks that are living in Cleveland: Support the [Columbus] Crew.”

Detroit: “We know that there’s some interest. There hasn’t been any discussions. Not sure it’s on the short list, but you never know.”

North Carolina: “North Carolina is a market we’ve always looked around it. … We’ll monitor it. We’ve said we need to get south of Washington D.C. … Who knows. Further expansion, but not sure Carolina is coming any time soon.”

Sacramento: “I would encourage every fan in that market, support the [new USL Pro side Sacramento] Republic, get behind it, build that team, build that brand, show that there’s a real appetite north of San Jose for professional high-level soccer, and we’ll see what happens.”