3,314 attendance in Chicago tonight.— John D. Halloran (@JohnDHalloran) August 20, 2017 I was one of them.
So I want a first-hand opinion: Yuki Nagasato had her first start of the season, played the whole game and even assisted Ertz for lonely Chicago's goal; how did you see her in general? The chemistry with the rest of the team was decent? Of course, in a 1-3 home loss, it's difficult that any player shine, but I'd like to have the opinion of someone who watched the whole game at the stadium (I didn't even watch the streaming because it was too late for me in Italy).
She had some very nice touches on the ball, and I was impressed with her work rate. But she doesn't seem like she's quite meshing with the rest of the attack yet; of course, part of that may have been that Press also seemed off her game and wasn't meshing with anyone.
Here's an item the Thorns produced that's pretty neat, even if you're not a Thorns fan: Play with rhythm: A symphony of Thorns soccer. #BAONPDX pic.twitter.com/Qjw49rKXjC— Portland Thorns FC (@ThornsFC) August 24, 2017
https://www.socceramerica.com/publi...aign=17868&hashid=6YravZalrGQnCVikplb6CsfOqks Staying power. The NWSL's average of 5,083 fans a game still ranks second in its five seasons, a testament to its staying power. The other two women's leagues -- WUSA and WPS -- saw decreases in their second and third seasons and then folded. Women's Pro League Attendance: AVG. TEAM (YEAR) 5,083 NWSL (2017) 5,558 NWSL (2016) 5,046 NWSL (2015) 4,139 NWSL (2014) 4,270 NWSL (2013) ---------------------------- 3,518 WPS (2011) 3,601 WPS (2010) 4,490 WPS (2009) ---------------------------- 6,667 WUSA (2003) 6,957 WUSA (2002) 8,116 WUSA (2001)
I would say that median attendance is a better measure than average. The Thorns completely distort the picture. And attendance and folding is not a cause and effect pairing, so your phrasing is less than optimal. The WUSA folded because 1) the business plan was terrible and 2) the league office never had the people necessary to line up national sponsors and 3) the business plan was terrible - 15k/game average wouldn't have saved the WUSA. The WPS folded because Dan Borislow's lawsuit was not immediately thrown out by the judge in Florida. Again, nothing to do with attendance.
Considering the NWSL does profit-sharing, the average isn't a bad statistic to look at, even if it's skewed by Portland. Also, the msilver made still about NWSL holds if you look at median attendance (taking numbers from Kenn's site where I can): I can't find already-compiled medians for any other season except 3,356 WPS (2010) but I'm pretty sure those patterns held too. Attendance drops may not have been the majority cause of WPS or WUSA folding, but falling attendance still makes a noticeable contribution due to falling profits and more difficulty in getting/retaining sponsors.
I should have all the medians somewhere. In fact, the season-ending lists for the last few years on my site should contain medians and highs and lows.
Last few years, yeah - but I couldn't find the season-end detailed lists for 2001, 2002, 2003, 2009, or 2011. And the attendance project summary articles only list the means. (I don't doubt you have them, but my quick-n-dirty search earlier using just the league names didn't pull them up.)
Yes, I was not doing all that back in the WUSA days. I can go back and pull them from the data, though.
A little note: according to the Thorns, their attendance this year makes them the first women's professional team based in the US ever, in any sport, to average over 17,000 fans for a season.
Didn't some women's team in England in the 1920s draw ridiculous crowds (Doncaster Belles or something?) until the FA stepped in and banned women's soccer from any stadium used by a team registered by the FA? EDIT: It was the Dick Kerr Ladies I was thinking of. And the FA ban was in 1921.
At this point, I would not expect much of a walk-up crowd for Sunday's game in Cary. The forecast continues to worsen. And it includes thunderstorms, so delays could come into play as well.
AND we are 1000 tickets away from selling out the @TheNCCourage @nwsl semifinal vs @chicagoredstars on Sunday. #PackThePark #NCFCProud (2/2)— Curt Johnson (@curtjohnson17) October 6, 2017 Lack of walk-up sales won't be a huge concern. My one question will be if they can top the attendance from the 2013 final. Looking like that will happen.