Soccer in the City

Discussion in 'Eads Brigade' started by powesp, Dec 29, 2008.

  1. powesp

    powesp New Member

    Dec 27, 2007
    San Diego
    Club:
    St. Louis Lions
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Health and soccer to all! From what I have read and experienced in travels to Spain and England, soccer clubs thrive on the fan base that exists in the precincts of their stadium, Barcelona - Camp Nou, Chelsea - Stamford Bridge and a 1000 more. MLS has decided to go suburban instead of urban. SLSU - Collinsville, instead of north St Louis off of I-70 or south off of 55. Well and good. It must have everything to do with financial viability for the investors, which cannot be overlooked, coupled with the greater St. Louis aversion of having anything at all to do with the core historic neighborhoods of the city. So be it. But, I ask, what is to become of the supporter groups that need proximity to the grounds and a common place to converge for pre- and post game cheers? Appleby's? Don't be absurd. Aside from this blogging, how do supporters learn and practice their chants? I know that corporate led enterprises tend to take the common guy for granted - he has nothing to say, forget him. The corporate response for chants will be some moron on an organ. Yes, the MLS experience should be family friendly, but let's be real, this is pro-soccer. It needs an urban vibe. Can you imagine Boca Juniors out in the pampas? It has to be in the neighb!
     
  2. Cville K C

    Cville K C Member

    Nov 3, 2008
    Collinsville, IL
    Club:
    Saint Louis Athletica
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I think that the fans make the atmosphere, not the neighborhood. There are both positives and negatives to both suburban and urban stadiums. Tailgating may actually be easier in surburban stadiums. Most major midwestern colleges are not located in large urban areas, but there is not much that beats the atmosphere of college football Saturdays in towns across the midwest (Champaign, Ann Arbor, Iowa City, Lincoln, Norman, Columbia, etc.). Only a few of these are major cities (Columbus, OH), but most are suburban sized communities.

    No, I think the atmosphere can be just as good in the suburbs if the fans are into it. But if someone wants to open an English-style pub next to the new stadium in Collinsville, that would be great!
     
  3. jasontoon

    jasontoon Member

    Jan 9, 2002
    Seattle, WA
    Club:
    Seattle Sounders
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I think the plan calls for a soccer pub on the premises.

    While I completely agree with the original post, I have high hopes that Cooper's involvement in English soccer has taught him the importance of atmosphere, and a few tricks for letting it flourish.

    I'm not a big tailgater - parking lots make crappy hangouts, unless you're a car - so I'm hoping there's some kind of pseudo-Euro hangout area outside the stadium: a little "square" or something with some trees and benches and food/drink stalls.

    I also dream of shuttles from places like the Amsterdam soccer pub on Morganford, so fans can congregate early, ride to the game, then come back for more afterwards. Each part of the metro area could develop its own little supporters' scene (with South City leading the way, of course ;)).
     
  4. Sport Billy

    Sport Billy Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 25, 2006
    Don't forget that the ground level flat parking at the stadium will make for excellent tailgating.
     
  5. powesp

    powesp New Member

    Dec 27, 2007
    San Diego
    Club:
    St. Louis Lions
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Health and soccer to all! The virtue of sales, income, and business taxes, not to mention concession and parking revenues and taxation contributing to the St. Louis economy instead of the Collinsville economy seems apparent. A Hyde Park stadium or a South Broadway stadium, any stadium in the 61 square miles of the city, puts the team and the soccer community in critical mass. The stadium should be viewed as a long term infrastructure and community resource project. Long view - 50 years. Are Eads Brigade and other supporter groups going to allow corporate sponsors to dictate the terms of this club? Tailgating is not a soccer practice - it is a football, specifically NFL practice. College towns have a built-in partisanship for their 30,000 captive audience students plus the alumni. St. Louis fans would support bars, shops, and restaurants around a stadium if it were located at 14th and Mallinkrodt. Pro soccer, that is big league soccer, is a tradition of hard core local support. Local does not trump regional. But what real St. Louisan would support the Missouri Cardinals of O'Fallon? Of course, this line of thinking is Overcome by Events since if SLSU gets the bid, it's over the bridge for all Southsiders.
    Hopefully the quality of play and the action and passion created by it will make thinking about improving St. Louis seem irrelevant.
     
  6. Cville K C

    Cville K C Member

    Nov 3, 2008
    Collinsville, IL
    Club:
    Saint Louis Athletica
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I used to work up in the area you are talking about (actually less than 4 blocks from there) and that is probably the last place I would want a soccer stadium.

    The issue has been discussed quite a bit and no matter where anybody wants the stadium, the fact is that Collinsville is the only place that was interested in working with Cooper to get the stadium issue done. There were no other options. No other city had the land and wanted to get involved.

    And actually, I would hope all real St. Louisans would support the team whether it was in St. Louis city, St. Charles, Collinsville, or anywhere in this area. People support the Cardinals, Rams (well, most of the time), Blues, etc. from all over the midwest.

    Your point about urban atmosphere is well taken, but I don't think there is anyway the stadium gets built in St. Louis city, not now and not in the near future. Without a stadium, there is no team, period.
     
  7. Sport Billy

    Sport Billy Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 25, 2006
    Please. The Cardinals have some of the best attendance in MLB - and they can't save downtown. I hope you realize that 90-95% of soccer fans in St. Louis live OUTSIDE the city limits.

    THE TEAM WILL NOT BE IN THE CITY - GET OVER IT. IT'S COLLINSVILLE OR NOTHING.

    BTW, what "corporate sponsors dictate the terms of this club"?
     
  8. PopsKrock

    PopsKrock New Member

    Jul 18, 2007
    Belleville
    Club:
    AC St. Louis
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Well since they pay the bills...


    I don't care if it's a Curling practice. We shouldn't be bickering about who is more soccerish.
     
  9. billno63

    billno63 New Member

    Dec 22, 2008
    Princeton, IL
    Club:
    AC St. Louis
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Tailgating is not just an NFL practice, but an American practice. It's done at college football games, major league baseball games and this past week it was even done in Chicago at a hockey game. I realize that we want to bring the best of the European traditions to the American game, but is it so wrong to also want to add some American traditions to the game?
     
  10. powesp

    powesp New Member

    Dec 27, 2007
    San Diego
    Club:
    St. Louis Lions
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Honestly, I would choose no St Louis franchise over a stadium in Collinsville. If 90%+ people live outside of St. Louis proper then that is there problem, and yes, it is a problem. And, the corporate sponsors are the ones who are too cheap or too spineless to put a stadium in a real city. There is no Collinsville without St. Louis, not vice versa. The problem with downtown St Louis is all the people who abandoned it for the suburbs, not the city itself. For me, the only spin we americans need to put on the sport of soccer is the United States winning major tournaments, not Brazil or whoever else normally would. We have a chance to give St Louis a true stand out soccer team, and potentially create a new mecca of US soccer. If we follow the traditional model of MLS franchises, then we do not stand out or lead the way at all, and we do not achieve this. If we cannot be visionaries and leaders, god forbid, maybe Miami should get the team. Lets be the best we can be, not just settle for another suburban field. Well, if we put the team in Collinsville at least we have a name for the new club, the Hoosiers.
     
  11. Sport Billy

    Sport Billy Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 25, 2006
    Here's to not seeing you at the games. :rolleyes:

    Thank God we won't have to hear this crap in person. :D
     
  12. powesp

    powesp New Member

    Dec 27, 2007
    San Diego
    Club:
    St. Louis Lions
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Health and soccer to all! Gee Sport Billy, you really know how to hurt a guy. Jeepers am I really in the corner until my elders let me out? How can I get to Appleby's or Taco Bell from this scary corner. I think I'll order five dozen Krispy Kremes and watch Big League Bowling from Thule, Greenland to recompose myself.
     
  13. billno63

    billno63 New Member

    Dec 22, 2008
    Princeton, IL
    Club:
    AC St. Louis
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Does it hurt Dallas that its football team plays in Irving and its baseball team plays in Arlington? Does it hurt New York that both of its football teams play in East Rutheford, NJ? Does it hurt Detroit that its basketball team plays in Auburn Hills? Or has it hurt the Chicago Fire in any way that its soccer team plays in Bridgeview? The answer to all of that is no, and if anything the Fire have gained more respect since moving to the suburbs. Whether you put the team in Collinsville, downtown St. Louis or wherever, its still going to be an MLS team in St. Louis, and I can guarantee that most of the soccer fans in St. Louis will support it.
     
  14. KeeperDad30

    KeeperDad30 Member

    Jul 14, 2006
    Lincoln, NE
    Club:
    Sporting Kansas City
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I don't know what rock you have been under for the past 2 years, but Cooper did not pick Collinsville because it was cheap land or because he is from Ill. or any other silly reason you can think of to justify why he isn't building in the City. He picked it because he talked to several other cities in the metro area on both sides of the river including the city of St. Louis and none of them were willing to work with him to get a stadium built except for Collinsville. So if you want a stadium in St. Louis City, why don't you go make a billion dollars and get yourself some investors and put forth a bid. The prospective team will be successful regardless of where the stadium is. St. Louis is one of the birthplaces of American soccer and people will turn out once there is a product on the field, even if they are not hugely supportive of the effort to get a team here.

    This decision has been made, there is no room for discussion now, so either support the effort or sit down and shut up!
     
  15. STLSpurs

    STLSpurs New Member

    Dec 3, 2008
    St. Louis
    Keeper Dad is right. Urban soccer would be great, but that's not happening anytime soon. Maybe in a good 20 years. Or maybe you can convince the Lions to move to South City or something, powesp. Until that happens, let it go.
     
  16. STLREF

    STLREF New Member

    Dec 31, 2008
    Oakville
    Club:
    AC St. Louis
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    What a scrooge. I would be ecstatic to drive to Collinsville to see an MLS team I can call my own. By the way, hoosiers live in Indiana.
     
  17. Cville K C

    Cville K C Member

    Nov 3, 2008
    Collinsville, IL
    Club:
    Saint Louis Athletica
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Yeah, I was going to say something about the hoosier comment since I actually live in Collinsville and have all my life, but I really didn't want to make it personal and get into the name calling thing.

    I'm glad that other's agree that having a team is first priority and somehow we'll figure out a way to make Collinsville work for everyone once we have the team. Like I've said, if Cooper had only been able to build the stadium in St. Charles or downtown, I would still want the team and would support them. Getting the team, that's first and foremost.
     
  18. jasontoon

    jasontoon Member

    Jan 9, 2002
    Seattle, WA
    Club:
    Seattle Sounders
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I found your argument sympathetic up to this point. Now it's just pathetic.

    My wife is from Collinsville and is anything but a hoosier.

    So you wouldn't support an MLS team in Collinsville, but you list the Lions (who play several times further away from the city) as one of your teams? That doesn't make sense.
     
  19. donate_blood

    donate_blood Member

    May 30, 2003
    St. Louis
    Most of us would like the new soccer stadium "centrally located" in the city, but the politicians in the city of St. Louis are not cooperating.
     
  20. StlSpursFan

    StlSpursFan Member

    Jan 29, 2008
    Da 314
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    Nat'l Team:
    Russia
    can we move this to AC St. Louis, in case this becomes relevent again as I hope it does
     
  21. SilentAssassin

    Apr 16, 2007
    St. Louis
    Why not just move the whole Eads Brigade forum to AC St. Louis, since it is going to be a supporter's club for them, now?
     
  22. Sport Billy

    Sport Billy Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 25, 2006
    Yes, we will be supporting AC, but our goal has always been and remains bringing an MLS team to St. Louis.
     
  23. raven65az

    raven65az New Member

    Jan 10, 2008
    St. Charles, MO
    Club:
    Aberdeen FC
    Nat'l Team:
    Scotland
    First of all, we wont miss you at the matches in Collinsville...secondly..Hoosiers are in Indiana....Collinsville is in Illinois...numpty
     
  24. StlSpursFan

    StlSpursFan Member

    Jan 29, 2008
    Da 314
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    Nat'l Team:
    Russia
    I guess out in the exurbs you've never really experienced St. Louis culture, Hoosiers is an area specific term for lower class degenerates, stemming from a period when mine workers from Indiana were brought in to break up a local strike.

    Real culture doesn't exsist in the suburban America, get a life.
     
  25. Seph

    Seph Member

    Dec 2, 2004
    St. Louis, Mo., USA
    Club:
    St. Louis Lions
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Yeah, this post just shows all the St. Louisans that you must not be from around here, or you'd understand the term "hoosier" as a generic term for urban rednecks.

    For example, when I used to live in South City, I had a neighbor with a Confederate flag hanging in their living room window. What a hoos.

    If you're still confused, check out the song "Hoosier Love" by ska band MU330. Great stuff.
     

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