League Partnerships?

Discussion in 'Pro Indoor Soccer' started by IndoorSoccerNews, Dec 8, 2012.

  1. IndoorSoccerNews

    Nov 28, 2010
    Maryland
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Why doesn't the MISL have any partnerships with any soccer companies?
    The only partnerships I see are with Kendis and Unation.com
    It seems like the teams are paying a $250,000 expansion fee and are left to fend for themselves...

    The NPSL had a league wide deal with Sportexe to make/install the astroturf at each of the arenas. Not only did it save money, but the league didn't have to worry about teams having sub-standard fields (e.g. Norfolk SharX). The NPSL also had a deal with Patrick to supply the jerseys.

    The second MISL had a deal with a web design company to design all the teams' websites. That was back in the day when it was easy to go on a team's website and see the league standings on the homepage, a countdown to the next game, all the team's/league's headlines, and a score for the last game. It seems like their websites should have evolved over time aesthetically and user wise but they haven't...

    It it was up to me, I'd have a contract with Sports55 to make all the jerseys for the teams; have a contract with the web design company that made the Comets, Vipers, and Riot websites; have a contract with an astroturf company, etc.
     
  2. NSL2004

    NSL2004 Member+

    Jul 23, 2002
    In actual fact the Sportexe deal forced teams to pay twice as much for turf while the league got a generous kickback. (It was also MISL2 if I recall, not the NPSL).
     
  3. IndoorSoccerNews

    Nov 28, 2010
    Maryland
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
  4. Tom Higginson

    Tom Higginson Member

    Jan 12, 2000
    Syd is right. In addition I had their turf tested for quality, pad, thickness, twist.......and even if they hadn't been paying $130,000 per turf as I recall with half going to the league, they could have gotten turf for about $15,000 less and about 30% higher quality. CISL made a similar crap deal for their teams. The Sockers sold me their "old" turf which I put in a Houston facility in exchange for the new CISL deal. Three years later their turf was toast and we used the one we bought from them for peanuts for about 10 more years and it was great stuff. Not having a league deal in my experience saves teams a lot of money.
     
  5. cardshopmd

    cardshopmd Member

    Sep 9, 2008
    Baltimore
    Club:
    --other--
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    The league should try to get a partnership with Budwiser , Pepsi, Or Home Depot for years Budwiser handed out the MVP award at the Championship .
     
    IndoorSoccerNews repped this.
  6. Bluesfan

    Bluesfan Member+

    DC United
    Aug 12, 2000
    Tampa
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    Scotland
    Not a chance of anything that high profile. They would be lucky to get Chico's Bail Bonds at this point.
     
  7. GoStorm

    GoStorm Member

    Oct 24, 2008
    I think a Bail Bond company would be a great sponsor the penalty box. They could even put a poster of like a cell around the back of the area or even put some cell stripes on the penalty box door.
     
  8. kenntomasch

    kenntomasch Member+

    Sep 2, 1999
    Out West
    Club:
    FC Tampa Bay Rowdies
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    You and your actual experience. Don't you know that doesn't mean anything against the wishes of anonymous people online?
     
  9. Tom Higginson

    Tom Higginson Member

    Jan 12, 2000
    Hi Kenn: Can't really say anything. Found the first business plan I ever did cleaning out the attic about 20 years after I founded the company. Don't think I've ever laughed so hard in my life. My ribs hurt for about a week after reading it.

    It's all good here. Lodge is doing well. Enjoying life in the canyon lands. Let's Play is doing well with little contribution from me. Internal growth up 10% or so again so recreational indoor soccer is still kicking butt and we just added a 24th location last month, Cincy again.

    How's life with you?
     
  10. kenntomasch

    kenntomasch Member+

    Sep 2, 1999
    Out West
    Club:
    FC Tampa Bay Rowdies
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Beats the alternative. Glad you're doing well!
     
  11. The Stever

    The Stever Member

    Dec 4, 2003
    Tom & Kenn: You guys post as if you know what you're talking about... STOP IT!
     
  12. the shelts

    the shelts Member+

    Jun 30, 2005
    Providence RI
    Club:
    Nottingham Forest FC
    The Sportexe partnership was great................for the league. They sold a franchise and then told the owner they can get a great deal on a new rug for the rink. It wasn't even a partnership, the league acted as little more than a salesman. The thing that killed the deal more often than not was when the league (actually the company hired by the league to sell franchises on a contingency fee) would send prospective owners an information kit.

    If the buyer was serious he would enter an non-disclosure agreement and the league would provide the names and numbers of past and current owners who were references. Well the vast majority of owners who no longer had an active team in the league would tell the owner, hey if you sign up I can save you $70k right off the bat. Instead of buying the leagues new carpet, buy my used carpet.

    Thats one of the (many) things that killed the Connecticut team. Fresh Money had a deal all hammered out to have the team play at Mohegan Sun and run out of the league office, they could split the office and staffing costs and still have good exposure. The arena had an indoor football carpet, but every time the prospective owners tried to do some due diligence, they were being pitched and pushed to purchase indoor soccer rugs for thousands of dollars.
     
  13. traremark

    traremark Member

    Jul 11, 2009
    Club:
    --other--
    Hey ISN, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

    There is an old saying "The quality of a product is remembered long after the price has been forgotten."

    Not sure if Sports 55 supplies the jerseys for the Blast, but from a fan perspective their road uniforms are horrendous. With the colored huge wide stripe going through the back of the uniform it is virtually impossible to identify player numbers or name.

    How about a contract with Adidas (respected and recognized) to supply the uniforms for the teams? A couple thousand dollars for a quality and respected kit to portray a professional image is well worth the small investment.
     
  14. NSL2004

    NSL2004 Member+

    Jul 23, 2002
    You are right about the impracticality of the names and numbers, but the design of the Blast uniforms is a kajillion times (yes I did the math) better than every off-the-rack Wave uniform offering I've seen in the last 20 years (including the generic charity auctioners--stamping a charity's logo on a uniform is not a design and does not make it collectible).

    I can't speak to their quality, but a uniform should be distinctive and original and probably have at least two colors that aren't white or black.
     
  15. dcunitedTV

    dcunitedTV Member

    Sep 30, 2007
    USA
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I'm with you on this one Syd. Yes, the blast should have made a adjustment to the graphics on the back of the shirt but they are doing the most original/creative shirt design out there. As for putting Charity sponsors on Jerseys...... How about a little creativity before you add the Charity logo. I can't tell if the Wave shirt is a youth team or a professional organization.

    One of the better Wave Shirts
    [​IMG]
     
    mjames1229 repped this.
  16. The Stever

    The Stever Member

    Dec 4, 2003
    The design was cool... Chicago Power had the Red/White/Black version of the same Bukta design... the problem was the location of the "piano keys." They ran too high around the back, so teams had to place a black background over the keys and behind the numbers to make them legible... and the extra fabric added a lot of weight to a cool shirt.
     
  17. cardshopmd

    cardshopmd Member

    Sep 9, 2008
    Baltimore
    Club:
    --other--
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
     
  18. dcunitedTV

    dcunitedTV Member

    Sep 30, 2007
    USA
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    FYI the road jersey was removed form the fan store by request from the Blast.
    Sports55 said the blast told them not to sell that shirt
     
  19. traremark

    traremark Member

    Jul 11, 2009
    Club:
    --other--
    Which speaks to my point Syd.

    You are right, over the past 20 years anytime the Wave has gone away from a proven company with a quality kit such as Nike or Adidas the result has been BAD.

    Having an unproven and relatively no name company out of MD. take over design for the entire league when said company didn't get it right this year would be a BAD decision. Names and numbers need to be clearly seen on uniforms or they are BAD. To state they are "a kajillion times better" than something that was BAD doesn't make it good. At the end of the day, both are BAD.

    One of the major problems I've witnessed with the indoor game is teams in the league repeating other teams mistakes, which comes down to BAD decision making.

    Nike, Adidas, Puma...etc... are recognized and respected companies that supply quality kits to professional sporting leagues. Sports 55 and many of the companies the Wave decided to try over the years are not. I believed from the second I read the initial post on this thread that ISN's intent was to promote Sports 55. With all due respect ISN and even though I have come to realize over the years that your heart is good your opinion that the league partner with Sports 55 is BAD. :)
     
  20. NSL2004

    NSL2004 Member+

    Jul 23, 2002
    I'm less endorsing Sports55 than saying that most MISL and PASL teams' jerseys look like crap and have since about 1988.

    Most of the kids running around the field before, during and after the games look sharper than most of the pro teams.

    If the nicest thing about your uniforms is the sponsor logo you might be a redneck (Jeff Foxworthy might say).

    And if you're wearing an all-white jersey with all white shorts and all white socks it doesn't matter if it's Nike or Haines.
     
    Blastnut2 repped this.
  21. dcunitedTV

    dcunitedTV Member

    Sep 30, 2007
    USA
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Always looks like Hanes! HA HA
     
  22. cardshopmd

    cardshopmd Member

    Sep 9, 2008
    Baltimore
    Club:
    --other--
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    That was because they are going to auction off those shirts on ebay at the end of the year .
     
  23. IndoorSoccerNews

    Nov 28, 2010
    Maryland
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    traremark - Youre right about the away jerseys - the lettering needs to be made more visible. idk why they goofed up on them but all the other designs they have made have been proven good (not just the home jersey, the breast cancer jerseys, the military jerseys, bermuda herseys, and the goalie jerseys) its not the first batch theyve made. you can see them all at blast.sports55.com

    on a side note, i went to ross dress for less about a year ago and saw the same template jersey the COMETS were using (blue nike w/ the two stripes down the back). $14.99 and no im not a regular there, i just happened to pass by. wish i had taken my phone to show you all it. ALSO i know of a guy who bought a bunch of nike shoes for his store and he was S.O.L. - the glue was coming off the souls of the shoes. end of my nike rant. addidas is a well known soccer company and ive never had problems with them though but im personally not a fan of the jerseys they made for the blast last year - too generic.
     
  24. Blastnut2

    Blastnut2 Member

    Feb 25, 2008
    I believe that you are just refusing to accept the premise of NSL2004's statement. You have made legitimate points concerning the Blast's uniform, however you have completely ignored the point about the Wave's uniform. I will grant you that the fabric on the Adidas jersey from last season feels better when you wear it than this year's jersey, but that is a byproduct of the type of fabric that must be used for sublimination. The jerseys are a completely different issue from shoes, the players should wear shoes that they like and are comfortable competing in, however, the uniforms are there for the fans not the players comfort, and as a fan, I would take this year's Blast uniforms, flaws and all, over anything the Wave have worn for the last decade. As fans, we can agree to disagree on whether we like a particular uniform or not. I'm completely indifferent who makes the uniforms as long as teams are trying things to accentuate that fact that indoor soccer is not outdoor soccer. IMO, one of the issues the game has is the large number of people on the inside of the game that want to make it look as much like outdoor soccer as possible. That is just my perspective as someone who helps pay the bills, if however, from your position of earning an income from the sport, you have data that indicates that the Blast's uniforms are affecting the quality of play, I am open to hear that information.
     
  25. dcunitedTV

    dcunitedTV Member

    Sep 30, 2007
    USA
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Would be a great throwback kit for the wings


    [​IMG]
     
    Joey Tee repped this.

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