8 teams from MLS will play short games the new tourney in Miami, next week several commercials and promos in Fox espanol announced the copa!
It was entertaining.. Almost did it at the end.. I guess we shouldn't be talking about it without an [R] though.. His first match on FSWE was better!
I got my tickets from Ticketmaster yesterday, and I plan on attending both matches. I hope we get a decent crowd. The latest news about the city of Miami courting an MLS team is great news. I would be one of the first to purchase season tickets.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/soccer/sfl-rusnak02mar02,0,6151353.column?coll=sfla-sports-soccer http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/sports/soccer/5298153.htm
I think I may go to the weekend game. But, I do not expect a big crowd and don't understand why anyone would think there would be. When the Fusion used to play pre-season games only a few hundred showed up (remember Fulham?) so why would anyone show up to see the other teams? People like the readers of this forum will show as we're soccer die-hards, but with minimal exposure and the feeling of betrayal, I cannot see many at all going.
Stuart get over your feeling betrayal, I'm sick of hearing the violins! Get this... the feeling of being without a team is ten thousand time WORSE!!! You see if by some miracle of God, and miracles do happen, and there is some 12 to 15k or more show up in the stands on any of those days... guess what we're probably back in the running towards getting our beloved Fusion Back! So get over your "betrayal" blues and get up and do your part soldier... show up and quit the whining!!! There is work do and we want to do our part as the die-hards.
Mike, you really misunderstood my post. I was simply saying why I don't expect *others* to go. I'll be going. I seriously doubt more than a few hundred will go, though. I'll ask again... why do you think they would? Firstly, no-one knows it's on: what promotion have you seen or heard? Radio? TV? Herald? Secondly, anyone who was interested saw all the MLS players a couple of weeks ago against Argentina, anyway (would they have been impressed?). Thirdly, whether you acknowledge it or not, there are Fusion fans who now hate MLS and wouldn't do anything to help them. Fourthly, why are they charging us so much, it was free in previous years? Fifthly, most people see this as nothing more than a stick to beat the Florida fans with. They know full well that attendance cannot be expected to exceed a few hundred, yet they will exclaim mock horror when those expectations are demonstrated. I would really love there to be a big crowd, but it is impossible. See you there
Bobby, the "official" attendance stated there was 4,000 last night. If that were true, it would be amazing(ly good). But, from what you say, it appears that it was just a few hundred? I'm still having trouble believing that they have the nerve to charge entry. It is like they are really hoping that no-one shows. What about parking? Please tell me that they weren't charging, or if they were, that it was only a token? Don't ask me why, but I'm actually looking forward to Saturday
I'll definitely be in the stands this weekend but I couldn't pull it off last night. The prices are outrageous. We used to go to Lockhart to see the preseason games for free! Also, I'm surprised 4,000 showed up last night. That is a huge number. I remember the Fulham blowout in Homestead. That was the worst setup I have ever seen or even imagined, a soccer field wedged into a baseball diamond. It was ugly.
There was absolutley no way that 4000 people were in the orangebowl last night. In all sincerity, it was much closer to 400. They must have misprinted the attendance. Anyway, they did not charge for parking, and I am looking forward to Saturday.
Good news about the no-parking fee, as it is already galling enough to pay to watch them kick-around (reports suggest that these are not competitive full-squad matchups). Still, we have to do our bit, huh? Has anyone seen any promotion of these games? I can't understand their motives. Last night's games got mentioned near the back of the Herald's paper in a specially-designed small print created not to be read :/
get a load of this. My spanish is rusty, but I can make out, Hudson saying that the contaction, was a mistake...???? also MLS Hispanic relation manager...mentioned that this market is not abandoned ????? Maybe someone could translate a bit better... Futbol Usualy the better detail is in the Spanish version of the Herald... and YES they said 4000 also last night at the OB.. I like LA kits Oh! do I remember that Fulham game, I drove 92 miles form Boynton to see it. The pitch was horible, but the Brits were bothered less by it, we were getting stuck all the time when we hit the dirt on the diamond. what was the score 4-0 or 5-0 I stopped counting afer 3 http://www.miami.com/mld/elnuevo/sports/soccer/5325853.htm
Let me tell you a crowd of 4,000 can easily look like a crowd of 400 in the caverous and nearly 80,000 seat capacity stadium of the Orange Bowl. By the way, Ieca here is the translation, to the best of my abilities: Copa Carnival begins with nostalgia for the Fusion: If Ray Hudson says so it has to be true: The loss of the Fusion was a big mistake which one day must substantiated(whatever that exactly means?). The emotional coach, which now commands DC United, can not avoid the nostalgia when he speaks of the Fusion and expects one day, not too far away, South Florida will regain a premier league team. “We had everything needed to succeed, but it was all too late” Hudson explained. “We had a great team and we were creating a base of loyal fans. Despite that fact, in the first three years the organization commited many mistakes and in the end it made it impossible to overcome.” For Hudson, the basic problems were regarding the finances, in poor proactive vision for the future of the franchise and in the poor job in establishing a relationship with the many communities which the Fusion could have developed its influence. “My aspirations are that one day DC United can play like the Fusion did” explained the English coach. “In few clubs, have I ever seen such chemistry, with footballers of the class of Pablo Mastroeni, Alex Pineda Chacon, Preki... an unique nucleus of players. In spite of it all, the Fusion and the Tampa Bay Mutiny disappeared from Florida without a trace, leaving a vacuum that many question, WHY? “This wasn’t done properly, because nobody can tell me that this area is not fertile ground for the game of futbol” Hudson indicated. “The aficionado here knows more about futbol than anywhere else in the rest of the nation, and they want quality. Therefore they deserve a team in Miami, not in Fort Lauderdale(I can’t believe he said this, he must be reading my posts!). They have no team, but at least MLS returns to Miami with four preseason exhibition matches in the Copa Carnival, which is part of the one of the largest latin festivals in the country. Unfortunately, this is not a sign that MLS may be considering the city for a future franchise. After the first expansion year of 1998 -when the Fusion became the league’s 12th team-, MLS has proclaimed the six finalist urban areas for which the league will consider for expansion in 2005. Miami was not included. Seattle, Houston, Cleveland, Tulsa, Rochester, and Portland will be on the final ballot wjere MLS will choose the two winners. Miamians will have to wait sitting for the next opportunity. “We are all sad about what happened here , but it was a necessary evil”, explained Carlos Giron, director of Hispanic communications for MLS. “We have to be very clear the league can not ignore Miami and we expect cups like this one will become a tradition”. In the first part of the doubleheader in the Orange Bowl yesterday , the Dallas Burn defeated the MetroStars 3-0, and in the second match the Colorado Rapids defeated 3-0 the defending champs, the Los Angeles Galaxy, in exhibitions for the upcoming eighth MLS season which will begin April 5th. The Copa will culminate on Saturday with matches between the Columbus Crew and DC United- the later team with the veteran Bulgarian striker Hristo Stoichkov-, and the Chicago Fire versus the San Jose Earthquakes. Organizers, which report last nights crowd at 4,000, expect a significant crowd in attendance for Saturdays matches, which will conclude with a concert featuring the famous Venezuelan performer Oscar DeLeon.
I knew ray as a big mouth, but he still had some smart remark: This wasn’t done properly, because nobody can tell me that this area is not fertile ground for the game of futbol” Hudson indicated. “The aficionado here knows more about futbol than anywhere else in the rest of the nation, and they want quality. Therefore they deserve a team in Miami, not in Fort Lauderdale
Must have been about 500 fans there Saturday. The guards moved everyone from the stands behind the bench to the far side of the field for "security reasons". There were several unhappy Fusion fans and one pissed of Devil supporting DCU. THe first game was forgettable, ruined by very poor officiating and weak play (OK, I'm a DC United fan). The second game looked very entertaining, although I only saw the first half. Ching hit a cross (one time) and sent a rocket into the net. I say this kid has won a job with the Quakes. LD and Beasley mixed it up a few times. Fun to watch.
2000, at most, in attendance. DC played very poorly. I did not see the entire second game. DC looks to have a great midfield and back line on paper, but they did not look good on saturday. Also, they really need someone to put the ball in the net. Both DC goals were Marco E. PK's, and they only really had one other good chance at scoring.
The best part of Saturday was the free stuff they handed out. I was disappointed by the level of play and left fifteen minutes into the second game. I still can't believe that they actually charged to watch a couple of practice matches. No wonder no-one wanted to go. MLS: next season just open the gates to your practice games. It really isn't worth paying for, and the fans know it!