Will MLS players, team owners reach a deal ahead of the Whitecaps’ season opener?

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VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – This Saturday’s Vancouver Whitecaps home opener at BC Place will not go ahead unless Major League Soccer’s players and team owners sort out a new deal soon.

Free agency remains the sticking point, with players wanting that right in line with other pro athletes in North America.

With the beginning of the MLS season mired in uncertainty, the Whitecaps are preparing as if there will be a game, but the clock is ticking.

“It’s something that’s a part of the business,” says club president Bob Lenarduzzi. “You need to accept that and hope that between the two parties, you can come to a resolution where both parties are satisfied.”

If there is a work stoppage, Lenarduzzi hopes it won’t affect the momentum the team has been building since joining MLS in 2011.

“Like all other sports, I think there’s always a concern,” says Lenarduzzi. “But like all other sports, there seems to be a rebound, and people tend to move on from whatever the issues were in the labour dispute, and do what people do as fans — enjoy the sport.”

The last time the collective agreement expired, players and team owners signed a new deal just five days before the 2010 season.

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