MLS Week 13 Attendance

[Rover]

Missed a week, but here's how we did over the last weekend:

22 June
Crew-Revs: 10,799
FCD-sc: 8,672
RSL-Galaxy: 15,112

25 June
Revs-Metro: 17,194
KCW-sc: 13,458
Crapids-FCD: 9,208
Quakes-LA: 15,917

26 June
Fire-RSL: 8,114

League average is still hurting: 13,954

Good news is that only one club is averaging less than 10,000--FCD (9,093). I'd guess they'll move up once Pizza Hut Park opens in August.

RSL is still in second place with an average of 20,900 (LA is at 22,284). The only other clubs averaging over the league average are Metro (16,613), DCU (16,400), and Fire (15,642).

[DadOf8]

Finally a thread with some semblance of sanity. Thanks Rover. Mucho rep.

[the Bardguy]

Originally Posted by Rover

Good news is that only one club is averaging less than 10,000--FCD (9,093). I'd guess they'll move up once Pizza Hut Park opens in August.

RSL is still in second place with an average of 20,900 (LA is at 22,284). The only other clubs averaging over the league average are Metro (16,613), DCU (16,400), and Fire (15,642).

Why in the world does a club with less than 10,000 get their own stadium? Wow, I just read that Pizza Hut is paying $30 million over 20 years for those naming rights.

The 21,000-seat stadium, part of a 117-acre soccer complex in Frisco built by Hunt Sports Group, will also house 17 soccer pitches. The stadium is scheduled to open in August.

http://dallas.bizjournals.com/dallas/stories/2005/06/13/daily11.html

[El Guapo]

That is what we need. Find some corporation that will pony up some serious cash and help us out to get a stadium instead of relying on politics and goverment officials to try and decide what we do. Name is St. Provo's Girl Park for all I care, just get in on.

[Aerick]

I wonder if the July 4th game will push us over the LA Galaxy in attendance average...

[Rover]

Originally Posted by the Bardguy

Why in the world does a club with less than 10,000 get their own stadium? Wow, I just read that Pizza Hut is paying $30 million over 20 years for those naming rights.

http://dallas.bizjournals.com/dallas/stories/2005/06/13/daily11.html

Good question. It took awhile to get the project going, mainly because they struck out with a couple of cities before finding Frisco. And Frisco was a stretch--it's well north of town and basically a wealthy suburb/exurb.

As for attendance, Dallas used to draw relatively well, considering they played in an old, beat-up stadium (the Cotton Bowl) in a less than appealing part of town. But what did them in was their move to Dragon Stadium, a high school pointy-ball facility with plastic grass in suburban Southlake. The move was in anticipation of the new Frisco facility being completed on time (didn't happen) and to get out from under what the Cotton Bowl was charging them for rent.

High school pointy-ball stadiums in Texas would be college stadiums anywhere else, but Dragon Stadium was terrible for soccer (just ask DJ) and fans stayed away in droves.

They moved back to the Cotton Bowl a year later, but the damage was done.

I'm thinking most (casual) fans are waiting for PHP to open. You'd think they'd have better support now, with one of the two best teams in the league.

[Real Supporter]

I think Real should get KFC to sponsor them. KFC Park. After all this is the home of the first KFC, and KFC could stand for Killing F(choose your own)ing Chivas.

[Old Ska]

Originally Posted by Real Supporter

I think Real should get KFC to sponsor them. KFC Park. After all this is the home of the first KFC, and KFC could stand for Killing F(choose your own)ing Chivas.

Or Killer Football Club

[Braveheart]

good article on MLS' business model

http://www.ussoccerplayers.com/exclusives/480816.html

[Rover]

Originally Posted by Braveheart

good article on MLS' business model

http://www.ussoccerplayers.com/exclusives/480816.html

Interesting article, but I think the writer misses a major point.

I'm no business guy, so those of you who are please correct me if I'm wrong here.

It's true that the real money comes from sponsorships, although at this point MLS still needs to maximize gate revenues (re: our own stadiums).

But his newspaper analogy has a twist. Sure, newspapers depend on ad revenue more than subscriptions. But what does he think ad rates are based on? Circulation, that's what. Advertisers want as many of us seeing their ads as possible, and will pay to get in the higer circulation newspapers if they hit the right demographic.

With soccer, we need to improve our attendance, TV ratings, and the like to convince sponsors that their association with MLS will pay off for them by getting them exposure to new customers.

So attendance simply for the gate is not a goal in and of itself in the long term. But it is one factor in gaging popularity and making our league attractive to the big sponsors.