For Immediate Release Contact: Dan Courtemanche – (212) 450-1225 www.MLSNET.com CARLOS GIRON NAMED MLS DIRECTOR OF HISPANIC COMMUNICATIONS NEW YORK (Wednesday, March 1, 2000) – Major League Soccer Vice President of Communications Dan Courtemanche announced today that Carlos Giron has been named Director of Hispanic Communications for the Division I professional soccer league. Giron will manage the day-to-day aspects of the league’s communications with the Spanish language media. “Carlos is an excellent addition to the Major League Soccer family,” Courtemanche said. “His expertise in public relations combined with his knowledge of the game and Hispanic culture are exactly what we were looking for in this position.” Giron comes to MLS’ headquarters after spending close to three years with CONCACAF (the Confederation for North, Central American, Caribbean Football Association), where he managed the Communications Department. During his tenure with the region’s soccer governing body, Giron handled the day-to-day communications with the media from the 38-member national associations and other parts of the world. As the Confederations’ press officer, Giron played an integral part in the modernization of the Confederation’s Communications Department. During his tenure, the Confederation established a weekly informational bulletin distributed via email to media outlets throughout the world. Giron spearheaded the launching of the Confederation’s web site, www.FootballConfederation.com, which he managed on a day-to-day basis and also served as its content provider. Largely through his efforts, CONCACAF generated substantial worldwide publicity, raising the awareness level of its competitions, most notably the Gold Cup (the region’s premier competition for national teams) and the Champions’ Cup (the top regional competition for clubs). Additionally, Giron was successful in publicizing the varied soccer development activities of the Confederation. In 1999, Giron served as media officer at the FIFA U-17 World Championship in New Zealand, where he managed the Napier venue. Giron has managed media operations for numerous Confederation tournaments held throughout the region, including two Gold Cup championships held in Florida and California, the Women’s Championship in Canada and the UNCAF (Central American) Championship in Costa Rica. Prior to joining CONCACAF, Giron was a staff writer with The Jersey Journal from 1995 to 1998 and served as Sports Editor for El Nuevo Hudson, the weekly Spanish edition of the daily newspaper owned by the Newhouse Corporation. Giron served as the soccer beat writer for both publications. “I look forward to helping MLS reach out more effectively to the Hispanic soccer community by, among other things, ensuring that the Hispanic media receive the service they require to cover the league and the many exciting developments taking place as we near opening day of the 2000 season,” Giron said. Born in Guatemala City, Giron grew up with a passion for soccer and is fluent in the Spanish language. Giron, 34, is a graduate of the State University of New York (New Paltz), where he majored in Political Science and Journalism. He is the proud father of seven-year-old Alfonso, who’s birthday is today, March 1. MLS