Feb. 26: Red Bulls vs. Miami FC

Discussion in 'Fort Lauderdale Strikers' started by DKDynamite, Jan 30, 2011.

  1. DKDynamite

    DKDynamite New Member

    May 16, 2010
    N of WPB
    Club:
    FC København
    Nat'l Team:
    Denmark
    okay so... attendance for tomorrows free game.
    I am going to say 1800-2300. That would be awesome!
    That is more than last years Miami FC average.

    Hopefully all the hype and media coverage (tongue in cheeck) surrounding FT LAUDERDALE STRIKERS have really made a great impact on the soccer community in South Florida.


    You know? If this doesn't break last years average attendance then there is something seriously wrong with south florida "soccer fans!"


    I found out that we have atleast two(SF3s) from up here going to watch New York demolish Ft Lauderdale.

    GO STRIKERS!
    GO REDBULLS!
     
  2. DKDynamite

    DKDynamite New Member

    May 16, 2010
    N of WPB
    Club:
    FC København
    Nat'l Team:
    Denmark
  3. fifty7

    fifty7 Member

    Oct 27, 2010
    Long Island
    Club:
    Everton FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    RBNY supporter here, here's to hoping you guys get a great turnout! Your passion for a team in South Florida deserves it and we'd all be better off as US soccer fans.
     
  4. Antique

    Antique Member

    Nov 11, 2008
    the river of grass
    Club:
    Ft Lauderdale Strikers
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Thank you. I agree.

    Good luck to RBNY after today...:)
     
  5. DKDynamite

    DKDynamite New Member

    May 16, 2010
    N of WPB
    Club:
    FC København
    Nat'l Team:
    Denmark
    Wow, not bad for the Strikers 0-2 against NYRB! FTL not having played or trained much with a "skeleton crew" and NYRB being worn out from training down here in S Florida and Mexico. Henry and Marquez were probably hungover from going out on South Beach...

    So what was the final attendance? 5,000? 6,000? 10,000?:rolleyes:
    Lockhart should have been packed if there IS ANY REAL soccer fans in South Florida who actually give a shit besides us scrubs here in BIG SOCCER....:p


    So who does Fantastic Ft Lauderdale play next in preseason? Puerto Rico? Tampa? Orlando? DC United? Barcelona? FC Copenhagen?....:rolleyes:
     
  6. Antique

    Antique Member

    Nov 11, 2008
    the river of grass
    Club:
    Ft Lauderdale Strikers
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    From what I could get from the Striker folks I talked to there were 3,500 or so there, including more than a few Red Bull faithful. Hopefully, a few of them will follow the Strikers, too.

    Marquez played the 1st half, much to the delight of the folks in the tri jerseys in attendance. Henry went the full 90.

    Overall, not a bad start to the Striker's season. They played before a decent crowd that seemed to enjoy it all. Here's hoping things improve from here.
     
  7. WhiteStar Warriors

    Mar 25, 2007
    St.Pete/Krakow
    Club:
    FC Tampa Bay Rowdies
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
  8. Smoke & Mirrors

    Jul 18, 2010
    Club:
    Ft Lauderdale Strikers
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    WSW you're forgetting a very important fact - this game was not even announced to the public until this past Thursday night at 6 PM. That means the time the public had to learn about the match was from 6 PM Thursday until 2:30 PM Saturday. That's less then 48 hours! Considering that was the case, and outside of a brief mention in the Sun-Sentinel Friday, no real advertising, I'd say the 3,000 - 3,500 that showed up was damn good. This is only the beginning. I heard they sold even more season seats today. The Ft. Lauderdale Strikers are going to be a happening in this area again.
     
  9. Smoke & Mirrors

    Jul 18, 2010
    Club:
    Ft Lauderdale Strikers
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    Hey Antique, I was in Section 122, was trying to sit as close as I could to my season seats. I would agree that the crowd was probably a little over 3,000. Considering the extremely short timeframe and the inability to do much in the way of advertising for it, I'd say it was a success in the stands. The crowd was a little quieter then you'd want, but I think that had to do with the shaky preseason form the Strikers showed, particularly on offense. Lots of missed chances, lots of errant passes, and a lot of it attributable to guys trying to get used to one another I'd say. Overall I was very happy with the day though, and am looking forward greatly to the rest of the season!
     
  10. drSoFlaFan

    drSoFlaFan DEFEND THE FORT!

    Feb 25, 2008
    Plantation, FL
    Club:
    Ft Lauderdale Strikers
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Good effort from the Strikers, they did just start training this week and are getting used to each other. The held their own for most of the match. Would have liked to see more scoring chances though. Arguez looked good, Lancaster was solid as usual. And our new guy Adam "Batman" West did well.

    Crowd was over 3,000. DAMN GOOD for less then 48 hours to get the word out. And from what I heard they sold nearly 100, that's ONE HOUNDRED, season tickets today alone. They were selling like 30 a day this past week.

    I imagine with the lead time and advertising for the home opener we ought to get AT LEAST 5,000 people against Edmonton on April 9th.
     
    1 person likes this.
  11. Smoke & Mirrors

    Jul 18, 2010
    Club:
    Ft Lauderdale Strikers
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    Totally agree with your comments about the game and the crowd. I wasn't familiar with all of the newer players. I did not see much worthwhile from #31 up front in the 2nd half. Thought he looked very slow, maybe even out of shape. #5 showed some promise I thought, he was good on the ball, but couldn't connect on some passes, which to me seemed like a matter of just not being familiar enough with his teammates.

    Another 100 season tickets today is AWESOME! This had to be their best week of ticket sales so far from the stories I've heard around. I was talking with Antique and we were both figuring that over 1,000 season tickets seemed VERY doable. In fact, I posted somewhere around here that I thought the team's season ticket sales this year could probably end up matching their total attendance average from last year (1,250)! Let's hope I'm right! If you can get anyone to give you an idea of where they're at after today, I'd be very interested to hear!

    It might have just been a preseason friendly, but it was really something to be able to walk into Lockhart and for the first time in about 30 years, root for the Ft. Lauderdale Strikers. And to have my son with me made it that much sweeter! You heard anything about any other preseason friendlies? I know the team owes us a couple of additional matches based on the season ticket package details, and we know they won't be USOC matches this year. I'm hoping for a couple more friendlies to hold me over until the season starts! LOL GO STRIKERS!!!!
     
  12. DKDynamite

    DKDynamite New Member

    May 16, 2010
    N of WPB
    Club:
    FC København
    Nat'l Team:
    Denmark
    Very interesting, good to hear.
    BUT it was THE RED BULLS of MLS. Are these same FANS gonna want to come and watch the STRIKERS play Edmonton?(maybe if the snowbirds are still here hehe) or Minnesota?
    These teams don't have as much appeal and draw as the NY RED BULLS.
    Even if more season tickets have been sold than last years ave attendance, that is awesome! I am just hoping for an ave attendance of around 2000 this year.


    The SF3s that watched also thought this: Seems like the strikers are having the same issues upfront that Miami did last year through most of the season, until the last few games. It is early still, and they are getting used to each other again and are getting into shape. Hopefully Shore can get them up to the level, if not higher then they were at the very end of the season last year, that would be a great place to start the season, and of course build and get better from there.

    Very excited about the FT LAUDERDALE STRIKERS 2011!
    can't wait to the opening game!

    SO?... who is next in preaseason?
     
  13. celeste4life

    celeste4life Member

    Dec 16, 2007
    United States
    Club:
    CA Peñarol
    Nat'l Team:
    Uruguay
    As I was doing a line at a youth soccer game today in Weston, I actually heard a group of parents talking about the game yesterday. One of them was there and said the crowd was really good but that he thought it should've been sold out. I told him it was on a 1 day notice so the crowd was really impressive.
    He said the team is good but that the talent difference was noticeable.
    More importantly, all of the parents around him were interestingly talking about the Strikers. That they are going to be supporting the team because they are interested in soccer here growing.

    At the quarter break, I entered the conversation and I asked them if they had purchased season tickets, and they said no but that they might. They said the Red Bulls weren't coming every weekend so they don't want to watch Carolina and Edmonton.

    I then started telling them that the only way we would get MLS is by supporting this team, and that if we did, we would get MLS soon and that we all had to pitch in.
     
  14. Antique

    Antique Member

    Nov 11, 2008
    the river of grass
    Club:
    Ft Lauderdale Strikers
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Quarter breaks? Sounds like AYSO...;)

    You did good by telling them to support the Strikers when they are not playing RBNY but some other NASL team. Hopefully what you said will be understood.
     
  15. drSoFlaFan

    drSoFlaFan DEFEND THE FORT!

    Feb 25, 2008
    Plantation, FL
    Club:
    Ft Lauderdale Strikers
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    People need to disregard the opponent(s). Heck, when I'm looking at the Heat, Panthers or Marlins schedules, the games I want to go to are when they play the Cavaliers, Islanders, or Nationals. The games they are likely to win. I have no interest in seeing any superstar players unless they are on MY team.

    And it's all about local pride. Come out to support the local team. I've said this a million times, but did Portland, Vancouver and Montréal need to see their teams taking on MLS teams every week to come out to games? Nope. Should be no different here.
     
  16. LuckyStriker

    LuckyStriker Member+

    Favorite club? a German one..........
    Apr 14, 2010
    in exile-Statute of Limitations yet to expire
    Club:
    Philadelphia Union
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    heard about it late, had every intention of making it there.
    Unfortunately; my AM itinerary ran long-and then we were notified of a death in the family:(.......

    By the time everything was taken care of, and given the distance to travel for me, I would have missed over half of it-and couldn't justify the expense or rouse the appropriate emotions I think.....

    Still on target to attend the opener as promised. Hope all there had a good time for me.
     
  17. cleansheetbsc

    cleansheetbsc Member+

    Mar 17, 2004
    Club:
    --other--
    Red Bulls fan here. I was at the match yesterday (my flight to upstate NY was cancelled due to the snow on Friday) and also went to the RB scrimmage on Wednesday.

    First, I would LOVE a yellow Ft. L. Striker t-shirt yesterday (but I won't pay $99 for one).

    I am not sure what #5 was doing (is he the Argentinian that used to be on Philly?). Step overs in the open field, moping when he didn't have the ball. He seemed completely disjointed from the rest of the team.

    #31 was hanging out with the RB goalkeeper Condoul at the Wednesday scrimmage.

    #23, the little guy, looked like he has potential, not that anyone in your midfield could find him.

    All your forwards were too slow for the offsides traps. Every call on the end that I sat (players entrance side) was correct in the first half.

    Defensively, you did a good job shutting down the Red Bulls forwards, though I thought Dane Richards took his 'stupid' pills yesterday. Terrible runs by him. Besides the two goals, I don't remember you guys yielding a shot on goal.

    Regular season game, the slide from the back on Aguedelo for the Red Bulls is a red card. Henry should have picked up a yellow for one of his late hits as well.

    Your drummers, etc. were entertaining. My nine-yo son now knows what a 'wanker' is. He thought that and the "she fell over" chants were funny. Guy with the wrestling mask, grow up.

    Glad that game opened to the public.
     
  18. Smoke & Mirrors

    Jul 18, 2010
    Club:
    Ft Lauderdale Strikers
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    Glad you and some of your Red Bull supporter friends were able to make it. I agree with your assessments of the play. The Strikers were too disjointed, there was not a lot of low to their game, especially offensively. The left back madea terrible whiff on the short pass that Henry tapped in for the first goal, but otherwise I think the Strikers played pretty well defensively given their superior opposition. But then defending is alwasy easier then being creative on offense. They havea lot of work ahead on that front. But it is still very early in preseason for us, so hopefully things will improve.

    Good luck to the Red Bulls in the upcoming season!
     
  19. Antique

    Antique Member

    Nov 11, 2008
    the river of grass
    Club:
    Ft Lauderdale Strikers
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    We're glad the game was made open to the public, too. We've all got to thank RBNY for doing it.

    A - The $99.00 was for purchasing season tickets. The T-Shirt is part of the package. I agree that they are desirable. Mine is size L...:D
    (but, I like the matching red T-Shirt better)

    B - Glad you liked the Ultras. As one I thank you for the compliments & am pleased we gave you & your son a laugh or 2. Please understand that our best drummer had a prior commitment & couldn't be at the game. We didn't have our usual assortment cow bells either. We just carried on & did he best we could...;)


     
  20. Quick25

    Quick25 Member

    Nov 9, 2010
    Club:
    Orlando City SC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dv9EmbODrfM"]YouTube - New York Red Bulls: Fort Lauderdale Strikers post match[/ame]

    Great looking crowd...:rolleyes: I presume much was closed to the public to keep people grouped together?

    More pictures found here:

    http://football-miami-n-beyond.blogspot.com/2011/02/strikers-vs-red-bulls-in-pictures.html


    Great idea by the Strikers to help garner interest in the team, however I am curious to see how many people will be willing to make the jump from seeing a major MLS franchise with big name players for free, to paying some money to see NASL competition. Best of luck to them in getting people through the gates in any case.
     
  21. Smoke & Mirrors

    Jul 18, 2010
    Club:
    Ft Lauderdale Strikers
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    The camara angles in the video only showed the south side of the stadium. The fans were all seated behind the camara view on the north side. If you go to the Strikers website you can see the seating layout for games. Again, considering the circumstances, the club did the right thing in using it as a marketing opportunity by not charging admission. Up until 6 PM thursday evening this game was supposed to be a scrimmage and closed to the public. The Red Bulls at the last minute graciously agreed to allow the Strikers to open it up for the fans, and in just over a day's time really, with no chance for local advertising other then one brief mention in the local paper, they got between 3,000 - 3,500 people at the stadium. And in this case it actually was 3,000+, not a team announcing they had 3,000 plus and then people who attended, fans of the team even, admitting umm, yeah, it was definitely more like 2,000. Plus it was not the first time this team ever took the field.

    People who don't know all the facts, who were not actually at the game and able to see what the crowd actually looked like, people who like to toss malatovs at NASL teams at every opportunity will say whatever they're going to say. I think a lot of people who dismiss South Florida as a pro soccer market, and who dismiss the effect the rebirth of the Ft. Lauderdale Strikers will have on attendance, are going to be very surprised as the season goes along. Things have only just begun here in South Florida. You are going to see one hell of a season at Lockhart, both in the stands, and on the field. Go Strikers!!!
     
  22. Quick25

    Quick25 Member

    Nov 9, 2010
    Club:
    Orlando City SC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I can see what the crowd looked like.

    https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-...hI/AAAAAAAACFY/GOl8LY5S6D0/s1600/DSC_4414.jpg

    https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-...kI/AAAAAAAACFU/NdLI2zbj-QA/s1600/DSC_4388.jpg

    It looked like a 18,000 seat venue approximately 1/4 open at best, leaving all the ends, corners, and the entire opposite sideline completely empty. According to the second image there were still ample empty seats in those stands as well. Sure, 3,000 or so given those facts seems like a fair (if not generous) estimate.

    Now you want to continue looking at a crowd in the 70,000 seat Citrus Bowl, in which the sidelines and the end zone seats are open to fans (the lowest bowl of seats having an occupancy of around 13,000 + the boxes) and nitpicking about crowd size? If THAT was 3,000+ people then the Citrus Bowl at least had 2.5-3K paid admission given the difference in sizes between the venues.
     
  23. Smoke & Mirrors

    Jul 18, 2010
    Club:
    Ft Lauderdale Strikers
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    The first picture looks like it was taken at some point during the game. The second one is definitely from pre-game, you can even see a number of the subs wearing pinneys. We could go back and forth about attendance forever. We can talk about how things look from photos and even brief video clips after the fact. I think those at the stadium can always give the best estimates. My only point in comparing the validity of the numbers the teams released in the two staements, beyond what limited visual evidence there is, was that over in the OCSC forums there were a few posters who were actually fans of the team, and attended the game, who said they didn't believe the 3,600 number the team reported as being reliable. From what I saw in posts, people where somewhere between 1,500 - 3,000 on their estimates.

    But here's something I think you're overlooking in this discussion. OCSC had considerable time to promote the game, and despite it being a preseason friendly, it was in fact the very first time the team took the field. I assume, or at least hope, that the club did make some considerable effort in the local area to promote it.

    On the other hand, the Strikers had no time to promote the Red Bulls match at all. Friday was really all they had, and they did pretty much the only things they could do. One was to get an article in the local paper. The other was to make sure the team's followers online, via the team site, their Facebook page, and Twitter, were aware of the last minute opening to the public.

    Considering the two scenarios above, even if you're going to believe the Lions crowd was on the large side of the fan estimates (3,000) and the Strikers crowd was on the small side (again 3,000), which club do you think accomplished more? Paid attendance vs. free is certainly a factor, I'm not dismissing that. But the Red Bulls game was going to be played already anyway. Opening it up for fans just turned it into a big, and successful marketing opportunity. The club sold 100 season tickets at the game. If you consider that a large portion of the crowd only knew about the game because they were already core fans that were paying attention to the team online already, and that it was really just word of mouth advertising by them that resulted in the opportunity to realize good concession sales, 100 new season tickets, and even more positive buzz in the community for the team, I think whatever the cost was for the team to open it up to the public in the way of staffing and security, was way more than worth it. Marketing dollars well spent in my opinion.

    Those of us already completely bought into the team would LOVE for the club to have the "problem" of having to open up more of the stadium to accomodate the fanbase. If the FO continues making the kind of moves it has in the last two weeks, getting the rebranded product out in the public eye in positive ways, they are going to have a very good shot at 1,000+ season tickets. Considering Miami FC had less than 100 last year, that should quiet anyone (like Kenn who has been mysteriously absent lately) who scoffed at the notion that the Ft. Lauderdale Strikers would draw any more then a small inconsequential number of more fans this year. We are well on our way to having the potential to giving the club that seating problem, to them needing to expand the GA sections behind the goals beyond the two sections they have now, to them having to look at more reserved seating on the north side as well. The moves off the field so far are a refreshing change from Miami FC. If the performance on the field can be the same, look out!
     
  24. cleansheetbsc

    cleansheetbsc Member+

    Mar 17, 2004
    Club:
    --other--
    Wasn't a bad crowd. I thought about 2,000. Sun Sentinal said 3,000. I'm sure the club/paper estimates better than me.

    As said, it was supposed to be closed. RBNY reported that on Wednesday night. Only one stand was open, so they only had to unlock one bathroom and concession area (which had looooong lines - A guy in a Costa Rica hat in front of me was gone for 25 minutes of the second half. He shows back up with 5 minutes left in the match with four beers. I just shook my head).
     
  25. Smoke & Mirrors

    Jul 18, 2010
    Club:
    Ft Lauderdale Strikers
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    Considering the situation, I'm not sure if the club knew what to expect in terms of the crowd. Even a lot of real hard core fans and season ticket holders were not able to make it because of the short notice. I went to the concession stand before the game, so it wasn't too bad. But later on, you're right, there was a huge line. But on the flip side, I think they sold a LOT of beers! LOL

    The crowd was definitely 3,000+. I think the team estimate they were telling people was about 3,500. The last game I went to last year was against the Islanders, and that night the crowd was just a little shy of 1,500. Just eyeballing it I could tell easily it was more then double from the Islanders game, so between 3,000 - 3,500 seems very much on the money. If you look at the Ft. Lauderdale Strikers Facebook page, they've posted a few more pictures of the North Side stands where the crowd was sitting. You can see that they are pretty full.
     

Share This Page