I would disagree about that in the case of St. Louis. We have no other option...it's not like the Otters and the Blues....we have a minor league option or nothing.
I was surprised about ATL as well. We've heard nothing at all about it (of course, that is typical). Also, Silverbacks Park didn't meet USL minimum standards, much less those of the NASL (only 3000-4000 seats, depending on who you talk to). I just wonder if they weren't thrown in the mix to get enough teams, and then "just kidding guys, 2012 for sure!"
I don't agree on this. In 2011 you are going to have (it looks like) 8 or 9 D2 soccer teams. In all of these areas, there is no immediate area D1 (MLS) team. Your "inferior good" analogy makes sense, but just not in this case. If Wal-Mart is the only game in town, what is it "inferior" too? What is the "superior" product on the soccer pitch people are going to spend their money on in a more robust economic climate rather than D2?
Your premise operates on the idea that d2 soccer only competes against other levels of soccer. If you consider all entertainment options, d2 soccer very likely comes in as an inferior good.
I can only speak for myself, but I don't go to D2 soccer as an "inferior good" to replace more expensive options. I would not replace my AC season tickets with Rams season tickets no matter what the economy might do. I just want to see pro soccer, and D2 is what we have, so I support it. I can't be the only one in that situation.
Again, you're introducing variables that are supporting your argument, but not supporting reality. Just to take it a step further then I already did, let's just say "entertainment goods" is sports. I'd love to hear an argument for D2 soccer being in competition with a dance club, movie theater, or opera for "entertainment dollars." However, I do not have any hard statistical evidence to base it on, but I strongly believe that the fans showing up to D2 soccer games or most likely hard core soccer fans, or at the very least, sports fans in general. So if you want to introduce other major league sports into the equation, then most of these cities now do have competition for the dollars that are available to spend on live sports. But I suspect most D2 fans are like Seph - not making an economic choice to attend games, but rather are attending because they are soccer fans and this is their local team.
I would say that I am in the same boat as you. I don't believe a large portion of our fellow game attendees are though. Think about all those guys that sit on the far side of the field.
Are you sure we still have a team? The most recent news release by the NASL suggest otherwise. Now, it doesn't mean we won't have a team in 2011, but St. Louis is not mentioned at all. So I'm a little concerned. http://www.nasl.com/article/nasl-provisionally-sanctioned-by-ussf
AC is dead. IMS reporting that players were told on Sunday. http://www.insidemnsoccer.com/2010/11/23/ac-st-louis-players-told-team-is-done/
not dead just yet. here's from the facebook page:AC St. Louis would like to state that despite unsubstantiated reports to the contray the club has yet to make any final decisions with respect to their participation in the upcoming 2011 season. These reports apparently stem form the club’s decision to not renew club options in the contracts of some players.