Put up or shut up...

I actually watched this video about 3 times and it's sad how the ultrafans want soccer but only 100 people show up. I don't know what will happen but it doesn't look good.

http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/soccer/story/940102.html

 

Only 100? Geez. Thats sad. Sorry I couldnt make it(see where I live), but I doubt 101 would have made much difference.

 

Miami FC announced today that a decision about the 2009 season will be made in the next coming days and that the team is still looking for support in order to give a final answer if the Blues will or will not play this year.
Over the weekend, Miami FC teamed up with supports group The Ultras to organize a soccer marathon. Soccer lovers from all over South Florida flocked to Monsignor Edward Pace High School to play for 24 hour non-stop. The event attracted more than 300 people.
The kick-off of the 24-hour Soccer-a-Thon was on Saturday, March 7th, at 6 pm and the final game ended at exactly 6 pm on Sunday, March 8th.
At the same time, in an area close to the field where the games were held, a silent auction also took place. Items such as a vintage Miami FC official jersey signed by Romário, Zinho and other players, a weekend stay for two with breakfast included at the Marriott Miami Airport Hotel (with discount coupons for Starbucks and the Cane Fire Grille Restaurant), a Marlins Certificate, which includes: 4 regular season tickets, 4 official hats, and a VIP tour of Dolphin Stadium and 2 Swim with the Dolphins Certificates courtesy of the Miami Seaquarium, among others were auctioned out.
Miami FC would like to thank the Ultras and the companies and individuals who donated item to the silent auction that took place in an area close to the field where the games were held: Marriott Miami Airport, Miami Seaquarium, Teofilo Cubillas, Chef Manny Cruz, Brasserie Restaurant Brickell Key, Debbie la Rocca, Red Bull, Aaron Davidson, The Florida Marlins, Dr. Alex, Tula & Tupi Kids Clothing, Avant Garde Spa & Salon and last but not least, Traffic Sports USA.
To keep the pro soccer dream alive in South Florida, please go to: http://www.miamifc.com/product_info.php?products_id=36 and buy your season ticket now!

 

300, 101,100 it still isn't enough...what happened to the other 1,000 that come to the games?

 

Actually IIRC the Seattle USL Sounders didn't draw all that well. They were not well supported in USL; their owner didn't market or promote them, as many fans of the USL Sounders complained at the time. If it had simply been a matter of USL attendance, neither Seattle nor Toronto would be in MLS. Soccer fans in Seattle and Toronto are easily as "snobbish" as those in Miami. I really don't think you can blame the fans and paint with such a broad brush, not when the ownership itself is so sadly lacking in long term commitment.

Besides, how many soccer fans in South Florida actually know that Miami FC exists, even now? Not all soccer fans are nerds who hang out on internet discussion forums or join ultra supporters groups (no offense). You have to market and promote the team if you expect to attract any fans. Traffic Sports has spent next to nothing on marketing Miami FC; it is insulting for them to blame the fans when they, as owners, have done everything they can to remain invisible to their potential fans. Did they really expect to simply start playing and have fans magically show up out of thin air?

Seriously comment upthread nails it: you have to stick around for more than a few years if you expect success. You can't keep repeating the same pattern of mistakes over and over and expect success. As someone once said, 90% of success in life is simply showing up and being there. The surest way to guarantee failure is to keep quitting the instant you fail to become an "overnight success". Most "overnight success" stories entail decades of hard work in obscurity.

This is the problem USL has that MLS does not have: too many impatient and/or cheap owners who jump into the league quickly without knowing what they are doing and/or without long term commitment; owners who are just as quick to fold.

 

I don't think you can blame the fans or the city of Miami. It is impossible to think that in just three years of existence a USL team is supposed to draw so much support in a country that doesn't support football. Traffic Sports is the problem. What kind of business outfit believes they can go to the United States in a city with several sport franchises and pick up a decent following in just three mediocre years of existence? That is crazy. Either these Brazilians are just poor businessmen or they are just plain naive. A team must have a chance to grow and even more in a big city in a country that traditionally does not support the sport. Shame on Traffic if they leave that city.

 

The number of 100 people was a guess I made after playing soccer for about 20 hours. I really had no idea how many had shown up. Miami FC after the event had the chance to count all the waivers that were signed, so over 300 was the real number. I agree that still is not a great number, but we organized this event in about a week with no promotion other than internet, email and som phone calls. So having said that 300 is not bad at all.

 

For those of that did not make it out to the Soccer-a-Thon Saturday, you missed the chance to play alongside or against Miami Fusion great Diego Serna. He believed in our mission and showed up to play with us fans. It was pretty cool.

 

http://miamiherald.typepad.com/total_futbol/2009/03/miami-fc-far-short-of-5000ticket-threshold.html

 

This is starting to sound like a bluff. I don't seriously think Traffic Sports can be that naive from a business sense. Indeed they have done nothing to improve the team's performances themselves. I think after its all said and done this seems like a way of marketing the team. Create a crisis environment in order to sell tickets to the poor fans who feel they will lose the only pro foot team in town. Just dreadful.

 

If that's the case they should really be ashamed of themselves

 

I do not believe it is a bluff. I deal closely with the team and there are some employees that are worried about losing their job. Aaron Davidson has said all along to me that they don't have to hit the 5,000 mark. That is a number that will impress the Brazilian ownership. If we do hit it we will have a team for sure, if we do not then who knows. They may sit out a year and reorganize for 2010.

 

What's the point of sitting out. How well did that work for the NHL? Or MLB (and they only sat out part of the year)?

Who knows if the Silverbacks will ever come back. Better yet, would they have folded knowing that the MLS bid was going to fall apart?

 

It's a complex problem, because what do you do...stay the track with the team, but play in Ft. Lauderdale and see if the attendance goes up. Fold and re-organize which probably won't change anything even if you get a Ronaldo "the fat one" which won't change things, Miami FC had Romario the first year and nothing changed. I don't know if the attendance doesn't go up, then USL has to realize that Miami isn't a soccer city. Even if they said "buy 5,000 season tickets and you are guaranteed a MLS team" I don't think their would be anyone interested.

http://translate.google.com/translate?sourceid=navclient&hl=en&u=http%3a%2f%2fwww.elnuevoherald.com%2fdeportes%2ffutbol%2fstory%2f400838.html

 

See for yourself what the 24 Hour Soccer-a-Thon looked like. Whether it was a success or not we had a lot of fun.
http://www.miamisoccerfan.com/Soccer/Photos/Pages/Soccer-a-Thon.html

 

Your 100% correct. It is a mess. And for the most part it has been since the team's inception. Signing most players just weeks before each season, slim to no effective advertising, poor venue, etc. etc. It hasn't exactly been the greatest example of how to run a soccer team. But that doesn't mean it cannot be fixed and made better, and hopefully Traffic decides to right the ship instead of going down with it.

Having a mess of a team to improve is better than having no team at all.

 

Here is a statement from a sports fan from Miami:


They're insane if they think any rational person would pay $200 to watch a bunch of semi-professionals play at a park that is not even up to high-school stadium quality.
Traffic dug their own grave three years ago when they decided to ignore the youth soccer programs and English-speaking residents of South Florida. This sport needs grass-roots level support to survive and thrive in the US, and they made giant mistakes in trying to develop it.
Goodbye Miami FC. We barely knew you.

 

Is soccer dead in Miami, no. Is Miami FC dead as long as Traffic is involved (even with Pachuca's support), yes.

Find an owner that gives a damn about Miami, and building the sport's pressence not just in Miami but throughout Florida and the rest of the country, and you'll have success.

 

Sadly, Whoever said that is right. That's why they've only sold 1,250 or so season tickets as opposed to the 5,000 Traffic wanted. USL is minor league in the first place, but it's not even a well run USL team. To get anyone to buy any season tickets is nothing short of amazing.

However, many of us fans have let the guys here in Miami who work at Miami FC know what the problems have been and what needs to be done. The question now is whether or not the big wigs in Brazil will listen to them. They have a small, but dedicated, core of fans who will come out for live soccer whatever the venue, however bad the play, whatever league it is. Now they need to fix the problems keeping the casual fans away. First on the list, making most casual fans aware the team even exists. If they play this year, having some games at Lockhart is a step in the right direction. Unfortunately FIU has decided they are too good for USL, so that's no longer an option. If they decide to stay in this for the long haul, Lockhart would be the venue of choice in my book until a small SSS can be built. Once they get the marketing and stadium situations upgraded, then they have to try for some team continuity from year to year. Develop some chemistry, put a quality team on the field. Then they'll start to see some better turnouts at whatever stadium they play at.

 

Much truth in this statement from a Herald reader. Traffic could have done may things differently & better.

And this part of dr's post adds to the 1st post quoted above.

However, this puts it all in perspective. Things may have been done wrong to the point that Miami FC is in desperately bad straits, but all of that can be fixed if the commitment to fix it is there. Hopefully a greater than ten-fold increase in season tickets will show that there is some commitment here. We'll probably know if Traffic sees it that way by weeks end.

 

See I don't know why FIU won't let Miami FC play. Here in Tampa USF and UT said they where more than willing to allow the Rowdies play their inaugural season if they don't get a SSS built by next year. In my mind FIU would help build the Miami FC brand to young people and the community.

 

Best guess, FIU thinks they're too good for a minor league team. Why that is, I don't know, especially since FIU is in a minor league D-1 Gridiron Football conference.

 

Yeah it's especially poor behavior on FIU's part because just before the FCB/Claure bid news broke in early fall, they were apparently ready to sign a lease deal with Miami FC. And MFC is willing to pay rent to play there. Even with the "big international matches" FIU wants, the vast majority of days FIU stadium will be sitting there empty. Why not let someone pay you to use it? Doesn't make any sense to me.

 

Maybe it's a case of a little guy trying to make themselves look important by pissing all over a smaller guy.