What time are the lots around Ford Field going to open up (or in other words be manned)? I plan to be downtown in early afternoon and I don't want to park in one of the stadium or adjacent lots and be ticketed/towed because the parking lot owner doesn't send someone out to collect money until 2 or 3 hours before the game.
Past attendance at US Gold Cup games hasn't been great...the Detroit crowd will surely exceed the numbers below. Plus US SOCCER promoted the hell out of the US-Spain game because they make money on that game, but did not promote the US-Canada game AT ALL because that's Concacaf's baby and US Soccer is a selfish organization that doesn't care about attendance if they don't have anything to gain financially. 2009 Seattle - 15,387 RFK - 26,079 Foxboro - 24,137 2007 LA (HDC) - 21,334 HDC - 27,000 (sellout) Foxboro - 26,523 2005 Seattle - 15,831 Seattle - 15,109 Foxboro - 15,211
Too add to what Corona said Canada did not even have a pro Canada crowd at home against Ecuador in toronto. Their soccer fans around the east are usually rooting for other National teams. Very few Canadian National team soccer fans exist outside of maybe edmonton.
I went to a world cup qualifier between Honduras and Canada in Montreal. It was probably 50/50 in terms of support with a long line at the border afterwards with lots of Hondurans from Jersey and NYC.
No vuvuzuelas. I got an email a while ago saying what was banned but fortunately I didn't see drums on the list.
http://www.freep.com/article/201106...s-installed-Ford-Field-Tuesday-s-soccer-games " Organizers are expecting a big walk-up for tickets (sales have topped 20,000). On game day, both Gate A and Gate G ticket windows will be open beginning at 10 a.m. Today and Monday, tickets can be purchased at the Gate G box office, or at ticketmaster.com " That's it ????
It's a Tuesday night, a lot of people have to work... and the first game starts at 6, so even people who work in Detroit until 5 won't have time to get to the stadium by kickoff, let alone people who work all over the state. I can only make it because I can duck out at 2 today, otherwise I would have had to pass as well.
I talked to plenty of people who live in Cleveland, Chicago, Columbus, Indi, and other surrounding big cities that said they would go if the game was on a Saturday night. If you live 3 hours away and the game is at 8, you'd have to get out of work before 5 and some people aren't able to do that. I'll be there in the Supporters Section though. Their bacons really ham.
I'm sure the economy is hurting attendance as well. I had tickets, but I had to sell them. Just can't afford to splurge on the tickets and gas for the trip from Cleveland and back. I wish I could, but other things are more important.
This is a very hectic time of year for me as a high school teacher but there was no way that I was going to miss my national team in my hometown so I will be there raising hell in section 336. For those who WILL be there, check out Hockeytown Cafe before the game; a great hangout for Lions, Tigers, and especially Red Wings games.
Yup. Living here in Chicago I decided to pay for my huge car repair bills instead of make the trek out to Motown. Watching the USA's first HD Gold Cup match ever on tv is a nice consolation prize.
What is this... amateur hour? You have people on here within an hour of Ford Field acting as if it's a HUGE deal to go to the first competitive US National Team game in Detroit in what (17 years). Not only is it competitive, but it's against our rivals right over the border? This is why this section of the country does not get more games? There's a reason the East continues to get the largest percentage of meaningful games. With that said, if this was a Friday or Saturday, I would of been in Detroit as well.
Not sure who these straw men are you're talking about. Other than one guy above, who isn't complaining near as much as you seem to think he is, I've only seen people like me, who live 3 hours away, speaking of not going. You care to pay for my $70 or so in gas, plus tolls, plus tickets, plus parking, and vacation time from work for leaving early? If that makes me an amateur that's fine. At least I have the money to send my daughter to piano lessons and play softball and soccer. I also think that your last sentence is a bit hypocritical. Are you simply trying to wind people up?
Judging by past Gold Cup attendances (see a few posts up), this game will outsell games in Seattle, LA, RFK, and Foxboro...both coasts...so your theory about why the East getting meaningful games and not the Midwest does not hold.
But the East stands up multiple times each year. If Detroit can't show up once every 17 years, it's hard to justify putting games there. There are plenty of other places also looking for games.
That doesn't make sense. Is Detroit supposed to sell 100,000 seats to make up for its lack of games in the area? The product is the Gold Cup, it is what it is and 30,000 is a very respectable crowd for the event. Canada does not have a large following, and other Gold Cup games have Latin teams that are much larger draws...contrary to popular belief, there are not thousands of Canadians that will make a trek on a Tuesday night to follow their team.
espn.go.com/sports/soccer/news/_/id/6637589/united-states-starts-gold-cup-2-0-win-canada Attendance was announced at 28,209. Toward the end of the first half, an American fan club behind one of the goals began chanting "We can't hear you!" at a smaller group of Canadian fans at the opposite end. ...
"Am American fan club" guess they couldn't read the umpteen banners we had up in front of the supporters section. That was a surprisingly well organized supporters section across three sections for a town that doesn't host games regularly. Security was cooperative and mostly left us alone. How did it look/sound on the teevee? The Canadians had a relatively strong showing too.