Does anyone know if the Fire made another bid this year to host MLS Cup? I know we lost out last year to LA (really, to Beckham), and they said it was due to our weather. But Goff is reporting Seattle to be one of the finalists. Is Seattle really that much warmer than Chicago in November? I have to think our showings on ESPN this past season would have to help our case if we bid again. Toyota Park and the crowd looked great on TV, better than a lot of other sites. Anyone know if we're in the running this year? http://voices.washingtonpost.com/soccerinsider/2009/01/dcu_mls_updates_1.html
I remember this question being asked years ago about Chicago's weather vs. Boston (I think). Statistical evidence showed that Chicago is indeed a good deal colder in November, and I would expect the same to be true compared to Seattle. Seattle also has the advantage of being a relatively new market excited about the league . . . they'd likely draw a great crowd regardless of who's playing.
Yeah, that's great. Then why didn't we get MLS CUP 1998. We will never get MLS CUP here in Chicago (Bridgeview).
I didn't say Seattle should get MLS Cup because of that, but sorry . . . 1998 Fire was a different case entirely. The whole league was relatively new, and even so, the excitement level surrounding the team and the league was less in Chicago in 1998 than what it seems to be in Seattle right now. If the 1998 playoffs had gone differently and the Fire had been knocked out by LA, I doubt there would have been a tremendous amount of interest in MLS Cup 98 among Chicago area soccer fans. Yes, it would've been a good crowd, but the same could easily have been said for LA (and been proven right). Add to that the fact that LA had a very strong team that year, and the choice of LA to host it on the west coast after 2 years on the east coast made sense. With a pretty strong team and a couple very marketable players on the Fire, this seems to be a good year for us to host it, but there's the issue of weather, and that's a pretty big issue. If the Fire doesn't make it to the final I think there is a decent chance the attendance would be low (unless LA is there ). If the weather is good (that's a big if), a decent number of regular fire fans would be there, season ticket holders would be there (keep in mind the sheer number of season tickets Seattle has sold), but not much more. Seattle has at least twice the number of season ticket holders that we do (and likely even more . . . I'm not sure how many season tickets the Fire will sell this year, but I'd guess somewhere in the range of 5-8k). Like it or not, that's going to factor into the league's decision.
Seattle? Really? By all means lets hold the Cup in another pointy ball stadium. I'm sure they'll even have to cut a few holes in the tarp that covers the upper deck just to accommodate the few more people that will show up. The half-empty stadium, the plastic carpet and the green spray painted gridiron lines will go a long way improve the image of the sport. BTW, the average November temperature in Chicago is 40 degrees, while the Seattle average is a balmy 46.3.
If it came down to Seattle or Bridgeview for MLS Cup, I'd like it to be Bridgeview, but I don't think there's much question that Seattle would get a substantially bigger crowd, if only because of the size of the stadium. Would we be able to fill Toyota Park if the fire isn't playing? I thought we'd do a lot better than we did with the WC qualifier last year (even though it was against T&T). If it comes down to Seattle or LA/Columbus, I'd hope Seattle would get the game. Playing in a football stadium doesn't bother me.
Why is it so hard to just have the team with the best record host the final??? MLS Cup in Columbus this year would have had a special feel to it.
I guess if they want to host the MLS finals exclusively in a SS stadium there will be no scheduling conflicts. but look at the payday.. 22K or 66K? Being that the Seahawks are the prime tenant at Qwest.. schedules will need to examined. 09' looks good here Sounders MLS Sounders vs Chelsea in July Possible World Cup Qualifier this summer MLS final possibilities ... what. SSS?
Yes. Well, maybe not fill it (67k I think would be a lot to hope for), but I expect they'd get a much bigger than normal crowd. If Seattle is going to host a final any time in the next few years, it seems that this year would have the biggest potential. Their fans won't have realistic expectations of making the postseason, so when they don't qualify (as seems likely), the fans won't be as likely to avoid watching the playoffs as they would if they were suffering from a huge disappointment. Giving them one more BIG game to go to would likely be greeted as an extension to the season. I'm done arguing about this, though. Granted, this is all speculation based on Seattle's season ticket sales and also the way I think things would work for me if I was one of their fans. We'll have to see how the season goes for them to get a better idea, but do I think they'd do better than Chicago, LA, Columbus, NY, or New England hosting the final? Yes.
They can bid all they want, but it is my understanding that given the times of year that the All-Star match and the MLS Cup are, the plan is to have the All-Star match in a northern venue and the MLS Cup in a southern venue where weather will be favorable (less hot, or not as likely to be cold & wet). Ergo, the Fire by this logic will only host the crap All-Star match, unless the MLS goes to all SSS's and switches to a European schedule.
Do you know why they put friendly an international games in certian cities so they can see if they can handle big games like this. You know how small toyota park looks on TV.When you had the T&T U.S game, it looked like no one was there, i was an handful of other people. If you can't handle a Word Cup Qualifier how are you supposed to handle a MLS cup.(thats how we look at it, an personally i think you can handle alot more but they have so many new cities to explore an new fan bases to see its not 1999 you all had your time.
I would hardly count T&T a "big game". I'm not sure there are many cities out there that would have had a larger attendance for that midweek game.
I actually think the MLS playoff game(s) are a better indicator than the WCQ against T&T, and Toyota Park looked great for that game. In fact, we had a great crowd for almost every MLS ESPN game we hosted. I have to think potential crowd size would be a point in our favor should we bid.
Looking forward to seeing the Red Bulls play in their new stadium. I've got the year 2015 in the office pool.
LOL you must not have read my past thread. I'm sorry i'm not a red bulls fan an that was my real oppinion i'm more of a lost seattle fan i was drunk when i made this name jozy altidore appealed to me. You can check me out on seattles fourm. An dude was that really a F$^&in threat on the web get a life. Also i was at that T&Tgame an barely 1 side was filled but section 8 was rockin as all ways thanks for drinks chicago.
Note about T&T match. I paid $90 for my seat in 128. The tickets were overpriced across the board and if I remember right it was held on a weeknight.
No he doesn't. Even if he appears to be inebriated while posting I've lost more brain cells tonight reading his posts in this thread than all my drinking since I turned legal drinking age.
That's my point, though. While the teams I listed all have a better chance than Seattle of making MLS Cup, the crowd size for MLS Cup would likely take a bigger hit if their team isn't in the final. Seattle fans will have no expectation of seeing their team make it to MLS Cup, so a disappointing end to the season shouldn't impact ticket sales as much as it would the other teams I mentioned. Banking on a particular team to make it to MLS Cup is the wrong strategy in my mind. I'm not saying Seattle should get MLS Cup . . . I just don't think they should be written off just because they're an expansion team, especially given their strong season ticket sales. I also don't think having the game in an SSS is as important as some make it out to be. Of the 6 MLS Cups hosted by SSS's, the only 2 that looked fantastic on TV were the ones in Dallas.
hahaha lol even your own fans are turning against you because they know i am right. hooligan wanna be.lol(I like your fan spirit though an thats about it , go to TFC thread if you wanna start some stuff.)An the tix i got were like like 40 an because there was no one there i got great seats,i flew up expecting the fire experience there were few but you guys still rocked it, i was hopeing there were more of you. At one point section 8 started singing your not singing over there. It was dead still fun though.PS. O wow your legal good for you. lol