I think it "proves" a couple of things. One, the Wave run a highly successful youth summer camp program that sustains the indoor team and, two, they can put a few guys on an indoor field and be competitive in a "national" league comprised of nine teams (six at one point).
i absolutely agree that they are one of the more stable indoor teams in the country. Not only have they been around awhile, they are the oldest pro soccer team in the country (Founded August 3, 1984) and that says a lot positively about the organization. Still, even with the incredible success of its camp program, they are not profitable and that says a lot about the viability of the sport as a business. i know they are very hopeful that the new academy in Cudahy will finally get them into the black overall.
i understand that the management and the spending of the club is very important but do you think the "success" of the wave is encouraging to any investors/anyone who would help us to get a team? and show them that soccer can work in milwaukee? or would the wave be interested in saving up money and going outdoor? i dont know what the wave united is doing or if they are still around, but it might be in their best interest to just turn the wave into an outdoor team if they could enter a league like the mls or usl. not only could this be profitable for them but also if a major outdoor team comes to be in milwaukee i'm not sure if people would still go to indoor games anymore. even if the seasons dont line up.
I see the development of the Wave academy is dependent on TIF financing. If that financing comes to be, the facility should flourish like the other indoor facilities within 100 miles; Uihlein, Brookfield, and northern Illinois. Does anyone know if the financing has been approved?
What we did in Madison is have a 5 year plan to break even. It starts with the fact that we did not pay players. Stadium rent (at the time) for Breese Stevens Field was $200/game plus $15/hour for lights. We looked at sponsorship as the primary source of funding with ticket sales secondary. The promotional plan included a jersey sponsor, shorts sponsor, field signage, program advertising, etc. We bundled a lot of the sponsorship packages with VIP and/or other tickets to ensure that someone showed up. Concessions sales were ours to keep, as was beer sales in the beer garden behind the east goal line. Expenses included rent, travel, uniforms, coaching, league fees, phone, website. I had a verbal agreement with former UW coach Jim Launder to coach the side. To solve the parking issues at Breese Stevens I negotiated with the local car dealership to have them move vehicles for Friday night games so that we could get approximately 200 cars in their lot. We charge for parking and split 60/40 with the dealership taking the 60%. I had negotiated a jersey sponsorship with Culver's Frozen Custard and a shorts sponsorship with Pepsi. Both would have brought in about $15k total per year. I had interest in some corporate ticket packages as well as some really good support from a guy named Peter Wilt. We had good press coverage and had started to build some momentum. Unfortunately the guy who was going to underwrite the program got sick and decided not to spend his money. I had the rights for a time but could not raise the necessary cash to cover the USL's credit requirements and didn't feel like putting my house on the line for this venture. Shortly thereafter the Madison Mallards baseball team came to town and my efforts were dead. I had given the business plan to the Madison 56ers but they were less than enthusiastic to have someone show them how to make it work. It's no surprise that the Princeton 56ers of the NPSL are so poorly promoted and marketed. I truly believe that soccer can work in Madison, we just need someone with some fairly deep pockets that's willing to lose money for awhile.
Thanks for posting that! Some good ideas in there (ie the 40/60 split with Don Miller)...Definitely things any new prospective owners could build off of, or from. ...What a shame the 56'ers weren't receptive...
i dont want to be annoying and re-post, but i'd still like to know what anyone thinks about the wave moving outdoors completely.
it seems like it could be easier than starting from nothing though. one could make the point to the owners how the growing outdoor soccer sport will be much more profitable than a stagnant indoor league which releys on (or at least we see to) little kids being brought to games rather than a real fan base. i dont know anything about the owner(s) i would look into it. i know that the movement would have its own issues but it would at least have some money backing it.
I would think that part of the problem would be that the Wave owners do not necessarily have deep pockets, ie: where would the team play? Uihlein is a dump and they do not have the resources to build anything.
that is true, but at least they have some money and i'm sure quite a bit of resources. if they want to go to time warner and say here is our business plan help build us a park, improve a park around here, or spend money to split time with a college they can. and they would be in a much better position to do so than someone else walking in and saying i want this and this. or maybe they can talk to officals at the speedway or other spots also. they dont have deep pockets yet if they come up with a good business plan to get loans/sponser help they stand to make a lot more money if they got into outdoor than they would indoors. i dont mean to imply that i have this magic business plan but i think they should at least look into creating one.
Originally posted by Chinaglia: "Uihlein is a dump and they do not have the resources to build anything." Actually, Uihlein Soccer Park is a Milwaukee County Park, operated for the past 15 years or so by a non-profit youth soccer club. It was home to the USL Champion Milwaukee Rampage for several years and hosted scores of USL league games. It has a lighted main stadium that can accommodate approximately 5,000 fans. This is a belt-tightening era, and neither the County nor the soccer club are in a position to put the necessary money into additional major facility issues (and really, for what? I haven't seen any pro team around here for years), although some work has been done in an attempt to alleviate a standing water problem on the main field during heavy rainfall. Paved parking lots acquired by additional land purchase around the soccer park allow a no-problem parking situation even for the largest of youth tournaments held at the facility. Many improvements have been made over the past 15 years. It also has a secondary lighted stadium that hosts hundreds of high school and youth club games and the State high school championships. The park also maintains an additional 14 youth and adult soccer fields. Every summer, hundreds of adult teams participate in "beer leagues". The Milwaukee Wave have for the past several years used the indoor facility (3 indoor fields), also located on the grounds, for their practice sessions. They also used Uihlein in their unsuccessful attempt to operate an outdoor team during the 2003 - 2005 seasons. Uihlein has also hosted a US Women's National team friendly against China. All in all, not bad for the local dump.
I believe Korea as well. I went to a game in the pouring rain (I thought it was against Korea, it was a while ago, don't remember) and everytime they scored (which was often, IIRC), they slid headfirst through the puddles. Pretty sweet game EDIT: Yup. May 4th, 1997. 7-0 victory
It was Korea, not China, in 1997. Sorry, my bad. Uihlein also hosted the US Women vs. Holland in 1999 (5-0 US).
I've been to Uihlein and played at Uihlein. It's still a dump. I'm not bashing it but it is nowhere near professional standards and needs a lot of work to get there. The main field is the best of what they have but 5000 won't cut it and there is very little in the way of amenities.
USP is certainly raw and lacks all creature comforts, but when it's filled with people, i think it's a really intimate environment that provides a great place to watch a soccer match. i thought the Rampage did a good job creating low tech hospitality with the end line tents on the hill and the unique food vendors they brought in. Whether it's a real number or not is debatable, but i believe the announced A-league championship attendance there was 8,000+, so it can be done (if that number is accurate....you could always bring in additional bleachers relatively inexpensively if that number isn't accurate).
Peter, I agree with you about the intimate environment which created a great game day/night experience, but I'm wondering about "creature comforts". Back in the day (Rampage), you could get a cheap ticket, pay a small parking fee (or park in the K Mart lot for nothing), get a brat and a beer, a good seat, and an accessible (admittedly messy) restroom at Uihlein. (Maybe Chinaglia was referring to the other kind of "dump".) While I don't feel a need to lower standards because we're talking USL, this thread isn't talking MLS, where "creature comforts" perhaps take on a different meaning. Bring USL back to Milwaukee and we'll see about a box for you and Mr. chinaglia!
Don't get me wrong, Uihlein can "work" but will it be enough to pry $$ out of people's hands when they have other entertainment options, especially since the Brewers are actually winning and on the upswing.
Summertime in Milwaukee brings many outdoor entertainment options, but if someone brought a USL team back, they'd be wise to avoid as many play dates that fell on Brewers home dates and the lakefront festivals as possible. That's a tricky proposition for two reasons: that's a lot of dates to avoid and (2) considering the way the USL puts their schedules together where teams simply sit down in one big room for two days in Tampa and attempt to make an agreeable schedule - crazy. Another point is that neither the Rampage nor the Wave United made the necessary effort to market their teams in the past. Mo' money. Also, I personally think you need at least one player with "star" recognition. Not necessarily real big time, but the likes of Digital Takawira comes to mind. I don't think a bunch of local boys will do it. That's one of the troubles of being a USL owner - you still need deep pockets, even at that level. At Uihlein, there's the additional issue revenue sharing. You got a facility that is owned by local government and run by a private soccer club. Throw in an owner who wants a bigger piece of the pie and what do you have? A team that moves to Franklin, wins a league championship, and then folds! That just ain't right. I wish something would happen in Milwaukee. In the meantime . . . Go Packers! Go Brewers! Come on, USL! (In light of the fact that MLS in Milwaukee is dead.)
sorry if i seem to refuse to drop this but i still think the wave moving outdoors is the best choice for us and them... plus i gotta keep the thread alive
Torres... Howes... Jamar Beasley ... And you picked Digital?! Fantastic! Why not just throw Marcantonio in while you're at it?