In case no one has seen this, Zygi Wilf has once again thrown out his intention to bring MLS to Minnesota, this time to bolster public support for the new proposed stadium in Arden Hills. Here's the source article. What do you think? Can Minnesota support MLS if we can't even get 2,000 to our NASL team? I know that D2 attendance doesn't really translate, but I'm beginning to wonder if our soccer community is at the place where we can stand united behind a team. My hope is that the identity provided by an MLS team would be a catalyst for that community. My other concern is whether Wilf would listen to the supporters at all in the team's naming, branding, etc. Soccer fans in the US are not like NFL fans, who will gladly gobble up any crap (Randy Moss trade, stupid jerseys, and the anti-christ himself) you put in front of them. We like to be a part of the discussion (see: Timbers Army). As a side note, this would spell certain doom for the NSC Stars, but it's a long way off if it ever does materialize.
If Zygi is serious, he'll buy the Stars and throw himself into their promotion. Are you paying attention, Traffic? Reach out to Zygi. Offer him the Stars.
Toronto Lynx pulled 1k in A-League/USL-1, the Sounders pulled in 3k, and Philly didn't even have a team. What a community pulls for lower division teams has little to do with how well they will pull for a MLS team.
And why would he want them? They have no benefit for him except if he likes wasting money. He is not looking to invest in soccer. He is looking to invest in MLS. I don't think he wants soccer as much as he would like another tenant in this stadium. So in a sense he is using MLS. Garber has no problem being used if the money is there.
Apparently, some fair-weather fans would drive a long distance to support an MLS team, but can't be bothered to support the Stars. I hear it's because Minneapolis/St. Paul is only concerned with major league sports. They don't care for minor league sports that aren't within easy walking distance of their home. Must be nice...
#beatingadeadhorse As I've told you before, I was a season ticket holder for the Thunder for 2 of the 4 years I lived in the cities. Others who post on this board are what MLS considers "casual" fans, not "fair-weather." I don't think the Thunder or the Stars have ever had a single fair-weather fan. Even when they were in the championship every year, the weather wasn't all that fair. If you'll notice, you pulled a quote in which I stated that very fact.
This makes absolutely zero sense. Why would Zygi ever even think of buying the Stars? Their facility is only relatively close to his own proposed site, they have little to no infrastructure, very little fan support, and players who are (and I say this without malice, cause these guys have been great to watch at times this season and were a surprise last year) of a lower caliber than he'll need in MLS. Why would a person who can afford to own an NFL team ever dirty has hands with any D2 sports franchise, let alone one that's struggling to forge its identity? Are you that Nick P? Your profile says you don't play, so I guess not, but on the off chance, props. I think it's a valid question, and it's one that's been asked before by people who are close to decision makers in MLS. I mean, we haven't really been on the expansion radar since 2000, and that was a year after the Thunder won the A-League. It was also over a decade ago. The Twin Cities soccer landscape is a pretty disjointed one, in which most fans of soccer support a foreign club; whether those fans can be "bothered" with MLS is still up in the air. And outside the Cities, there's just relatively little soccer culture. Most high schools don't even offer it as a sport even an hour outside the metro area. I doubt most of the state even knows there is a Major League Soccer.
True, but you continued to question whether a MLS team would draw the various soccer communities together. I probably didn't articulate my response properly, but the point I was trying to make was that the answer to your question is generally yes. In the case of Toronto and Seattle, you had a small portion of the community that followed the lower division team, while a much larger community that either didn't follow professional soccer, or followed teams outside the area. While in Philadelphia you had a soccer community that followed other MLS teams, or non-US teams. In all cases, the creation of the MLS team drew the majority of the soccer community together. The hard part is keeping the soccer community interested in what MLS has to offer. To a certain extent, the original MLS teams had the same effect, but the lack of quality and various other issues in the league at the time drove people away and you need a focused FO to maintain that interest. I don't have an experience with Zygi, but if he's only interested in a MLS team to fill dates in the stadium, then you've got a high likelihood of another owner similar to Kraft, but if Zygi is interested in the MLS team as a money generating venture, then hopefully you've got a situation similar to the Sounders (even though the Sounders and Seahawks have different ownership groups).
I would drive the long distance to support a Minnesota MLS team, but I won't drive up to support the Stars. Given that KC is closer to me and we have a superb PDL team here, I have no reason to support the Stars considering their play is between the two (plus I generally loathe teams with that name). However, I do drive to the Cities for Vikings, Twins, and Swarm games. And I would support a Minn MLS team in a heartbeat for the same reasons. Make it a purple jersey and it'd look great in my closet next to my vikings collection (all former players, sadly). I prefer the Cities to KC anyway. You were probably referring to people in the metro though. I'd guess it's the whole "Major League City" attitude where people won't support a local minor league team on principle.
The TC metro would support an MLS team just fine. When the MN Kicks played at the Met in Bloomington, they were always one of the better supported (attendance-wise) teams in the old NASL. I was a MN Thunder season ticket holder for many years, and they had a real chance to be something and move up, but a variety of mishaps and misfortunes (Old Man Lagos departing the program, the rivalry with the Milwaukee team ending with the demise of the Wave, and the ill-advised ownership change) has gotten me so disillusioned about the state of pro soccer in MN that I think only a guy like Zygi can put it together. Hell, I live only 10 minutes away from the NSC and I can't be @ssed to go watch the Stars.
That's what ticks me off, I guess. Sports snobs. It's an elitist attitude of, "I can't be bothered to slum it with the lower leagues. It's not good enough for my tastes." There you go. And this guy is a mod on a soccer board? Ironic.
What does NSC stand for, anyways? No Shit it's Cold? Good luck to you guys. The TC would be a great spot for MLS, and your NASL team was one of the few attendance wise bright spots in the league. If the new Vikings owner is serious and can pull this off, you already have rivals in CHI, KC, and TFC, plus rumblings in Det and Milwaukee. Besides, Blue and Red are already overused MLS colors, and not a single club wears purple yet!
Yep exactly, thats why I propose Purple, White and Black. The name could change and I'd be fine. But I think this kit would be the best in MLS. Home Away
It's a really good point that you make at the end of your post. Minnesota may need a single figure to unite around in this case. I'd rather the community develop around a specific fan culture, but as strong as the Dark Clouds have been, they/we don't really have the oomph that Sons of Ben of the Timbers Army seem to carry. But if we want to play a large role in the development of the team and its image (that is, to be considered in its design at all), we'd probably better get a little more forward and a little less "Minnesotan."
So true, so sad. How many people in the Twin Cities even realize that the Stars are around? Not enough, I'd venture (I'd love to see them at a venue closer to the center of the Cities, but that's another rant). I worry about the Twin Cities being an over saturated market when it comes to sports, as it sports the Big Four, along with a Big Ten school. Then again, how much over lap in fan bases? Another concern is the tail-end of the season, having to compete with the Vikings and Twins for attention and the expendable income of sports fans. I'd be a fan from day one if Zygi pulled this off.
What's to say Manny (in my fantasy world where MN is in MLS our head coach is Manny & GM is Peter Wilt) wouldn't succeed at the MLS level like he is at the D2 level?
It's a sad predisposition some people have in Minnesota, a couple seasons ago while at a Gophers game I had someone openly argue that referees are against Minnesota teams because of the Whiskey bottle Vikings game of 1975. Seriously.