Are We Resigned to a USL Team?

Discussion in 'Milwaukee' started by 5x300games, Oct 29, 2007.

  1. 5x300games

    5x300games New Member

    Oct 6, 2005
    SE Wisconsin
    Heard a rumor about the possibility of a USL franchise being explored in the Madison to Milwaukee corridor. Are we at the point where we have to "cut bait"?
     
  2. olderandwiser

    olderandwiser New Member

    Jul 13, 2005
    Milwaukee
    I think the last time Peter posted he indicated the Milwaukee MLS bid was on death watch - I think the term he used was "death knell". If I'm not mistaken, we haven't heard anything since.

    This town kicked itself in the a$$ several years ago (before Peter) as far as MLS is concerned. MLS always sounds great, but the reality is that it takes political support, big-money, concerted cooperation, and a perfect piece of real estate to make it happen. Unfortunately, and despite Peter Wilt's work, Milwaukee had none of the above at any point.

    I don't necessarily see a USL return as cutting bait. If I had a decent sized fish on the line and could reel it in, that would be better than coming back to shore emptyhanded.

    Soccer, from top to bottom, has taken a quantum leap backward in Milwaukee the past few years. Where do two steps back and one forward get you? Nowhere.
     
  3. 5x300games

    5x300games New Member

    Oct 6, 2005
    SE Wisconsin
    OandW, I sense we had a golden opportunity with Peter here. I hope that if he ends up moving on, he shares his observations of individuals and entities who have been for an MLS team. Peter seems to be too classy to say anything negative, so I'd like to make sure if there were any companies that had supported the effort, I'd like to make sure I patronize them.
     
  4. olderandwiser

    olderandwiser New Member

    Jul 13, 2005
    Milwaukee
    I agree that an opportunity has passed.

    By the way, you mentioned rumor of a USL team in the Madison-Milwaukee corridor, which isn't much of a corridor at all (unless, of course, you include Milwaukee and Madison). What did you hear? The Ixonia Phoenix?! ;)
     
  5. WarrenWallace

    WarrenWallace Member

    Mar 12, 1999
    Beer and Cheese
    Build a stadium next to the Outlet Mall in Johnson Creek!
     
  6. newcastle1

    newcastle1 New Member

    Sep 29, 2007
    Milwaukee, Wisconsin
    Club:
    Newcastle United FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    a usl team would be ok, but wasnt that what the rampage/wave united were? i'd support them whole-heartedly, but it's just not the same as a full fledged mls team.
     
  7. mkecane

    mkecane New Member

    Sep 9, 2004
    Milwaukee
    The Oconomowoc Pabsts! There's lots of space, and the state even will pay for some of the necessary infrastructure improvements!
     
  8. K-sWeise

    K-sWeise Member

    Aug 7, 2007
    Milwaukee, WI
    i know i should post this elsewhere probably but is there any talk of usl and mls merging? i dont see a way that they dont if soccer gets big enough, i mean it happened with afl-nfl, aba-nba, national league-american league, so why not here? if that happens then i would definately be down for working to get a usl team here. i know usl has been around for awhile it would but mls is getting more money into their system and i would rather have a team in the mls than a league with less power. i guess that goes for everyone but i thought i would just put that out there.
     
  9. kebzach

    kebzach Member

    Dec 30, 2000
    Greenfield, WI
    I honestly think we're at least 15 years away, at least, before this would happen.
     
  10. K-sWeise

    K-sWeise Member

    Aug 7, 2007
    Milwaukee, WI
    well im tired of driving from hales corners/milwaukee down to chicago for a game to cheer for a team i know im going to hate once we get a team here, im sure you have some idea of what im talking about.
     
  11. olderandwiser

    olderandwiser New Member

    Jul 13, 2005
    Milwaukee
    FYI: See www.a-league.com
    USL Discussions.com
    Forum: USL 1st Division
    Thread: Make USL1 a reserve squad league for MLS
     
  12. Madcity

    Madcity New Member

    Nov 5, 2007
    Madison, WI
    I don't think it would be a good idea to get a USL team between here and Milwaukee. Here in Madison we have a National Premier Soccer League team. Its a very good Amateur team that finished in the quarter finals of the league cup. These guys are about as good as amateurs get, but the turnout to see them is poor. maybe they need to be better promoted, but I don't see folks coming out to support a USL team with the same enthusiasm as they would a MLS team. The Wisconsin youth soccer association has offered to buy 10,000 season tickets for a MLS team. Thats a good start. I don't think that they would make that offer to the USL. I still hope we get a MLS team, and I think Johnson Creek would be a great spot. Madison, Milwaukee, Oshkosk and Appleton would all have easy access.
     
  13. markoregon

    markoregon New Member

    Nov 8, 2007
    Regarding the NPSL in Madison, I think your point of not being promoted is really the key. The Madison newspapers rarely write about soccer. So no coverage, no fan support. If you remember a couple years ago, when Madison hosted the finals for the NPSL, the papers gave some advance coverage - and a fairly good crowd showed up at Breeze Stevens Field. I think media have to get on board.
     
  14. sprintjeløy1926

    sprintjeløy1926 New Member

    Sep 22, 2004
    Madwaukee
    Ugh... RTFP
     
  15. daveamos

    daveamos Member

    Jul 29, 2007
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Maybe you're right about the level of support between MLS and USL, but I think either Madison or Milwaukee could draw a few thousand to a USL-1 game regularly. That's generally all that's needed for USL support. As someone who's lived in Portland and gone to countless Timbers games, the atmosphere of a USL game can rival that of an MLS game. As a fan, I can be happy with that.

    So, it sucks that we don't get MLS in Milwaukee, but USL isn't a terrible "silver medal". It's what we make of it.
     
  16. Kevin Alexander

    May 27, 2004
    America's Dairyland
    Well, the Wave outdoor team had, at best, anemic support. It's odd becuase the indoor side seems to draw well. Madison would be okay, but if they're going to "compete" against the Mallards? Forget it.


    As someone in the same boat as you (countless Timbers matches, now an ex-pat in Madison), I would say 107 is *better* than the atmosphere in many MLS cities.

    A properly marketed USL team could have that here, but it's a long road, and first you'd have to convince the prospective owners not to market *solely* to families.

    I know I'm all over the map here, but one last point worth mentioning; any Madison or Milwaukee team has an automatic rivalry with the Minnesota Thunder.
     
  17. daveamos

    daveamos Member

    Jul 29, 2007
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Yeah, that would be a fun rivalry to have! It would be competitive right off the bat, too, because as an expansion team we probably wouldn't fare well immediately and Minnesota is a perpetual cellar dweller. :)
     
  18. Eckstoss

    Eckstoss BigSoccer Yellow Card

    Oct 31, 2007
    I think that's the key. When will a USL owner come along that has a creative vision and the balls to execute?

    Portland does well for a lot of reasons, but partly because it's a party and everyone loves a party. But it's a love hate relationship because there's the ultra fans conflicting with often misguided marketing strategies and family coddling.

    While MLS tries to be mass market, USL could succeed as niche market.

    A USL owner that was progressive enough to forget about the disney mascots and youth soccer crowd could have a real cult hit on his/her hands. Make it an adult experience and have something for the soccer fans, something for people who like strong fan followings, and something for people who like to drink heavily in crowds. Name the team after a local brewery and serve the beer for cheap. Don't crack down on language or creative fan displays. Foster a reputation for being the most badass no holds barred party atmosphere in US soccer. Make the logo and kits cool. Don't be afraid of having an edge at risk of alienating someone. Maybe align around a cause (ala St. Pauli) Be proud of being the scrappy little brother of MLS teams. That's what USL could be - more authentic than MLS.
     
  19. hellothere

    hellothere New Member

    Jan 16, 2007
    ^kinds of reminds me of Minor League Hockey when Madison had a team. Play Rock music during play then every 5 minutes have a fight. Those were the good ole days.
     
  20. daveamos

    daveamos Member

    Jul 29, 2007
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Yes yes yes. I agree with all of that. I think this plan is especially smart in a college town like Madison. What college kid doesn't like drinking heavily in crowds? ;)

    Seriously, though, you're dead on.
     
  21. Kevin Alexander

    May 27, 2004
    America's Dairyland
    The other advantage that this "marketing track" has is that it feeds on itself. I'm sure Daveamos will agree with me that in PDX many people-even if they weren't soccer fans-first came via word of mouth (either a coworker or friend told them of what a great time it was), saw it for themselves, and then did the same thing. A lot of people came for the "scene" but stayed for the soccer. Some came for the soccer but stayed for the scene. It didn't matter; either way the crowds grew.

    This growth can be exponential; five years ago section 107 was wide open. Now it's actually 106, 107 & 108 and you can't find a place to fall down.

    I still contend that a refurbished Breese could be a decent USL facility... The only thing that might take away from that is a restriction on alcohol sales (I'm assuming that this is the case due to high school activities there).
     
  22. olderandwiser

    olderandwiser New Member

    Jul 13, 2005
    Milwaukee




    Another crucial restriction is that the only parking at Breese is street parking. I know little about Madison's public transit system, so I don't know if they could reduce or alleviate parking problems, but I doubt it. Parking would be a "you-know-what" for out-of-towners.
     
  23. daveamos

    daveamos Member

    Jul 29, 2007
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Yeah, I agree with you. I brought friends every time I went to the game, and many came back time after time. The atmosphere and traditions (Timber Jim, the singing, smoke bombs) keep things entertaining, even if they're watching a 0-0 game.

    Are any of the renovations they're doing to Breese increasing capacity? Actually, what is the capacity of the field? 4000 or so? It would be a good location for the team in the beginning, but they'll probably want to be drawing more than that regularly to be successful.

    Parking is also a problem with that location, though if there was a good ownership group, maybe they could work with the city and try to bring a public garage to the general vicinity.
     
  24. Kevin Alexander

    May 27, 2004
    America's Dairyland
    I believe most of the initial renovations are to the structure itself.

    Parking around Breese does suck; no argument there. Public transportation here is decent, but I think the majority of fans would drive. It's not close enough to downtown to park in a garage and walk unless you're realll ambitious. I think the closest one is up by the captiol???

    So the question then becomes, where else to play?

    The McClimon (sp???) center has ample parking, but not much comparitively in the way of actual seating. It's also close to the university, and relatively easy to get to geographically. Driving-wise, I think it would be a pain in the a$$, since a lot of people don't know to take "old" university to get to it (or maybe that was just me when I first went...).
     
  25. chinaglia

    chinaglia Member

    Jan 25, 1999
    Florence, SC USA
    Club:
    Motherwell FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    There can be alcohol sales at Breese. Parking is an issue but can be resolved by working with the car dealership in the area. I had negotiated a deal with them back in 1998-99 when trying to bring a PDL team to town. The problem is Breese itself. USL will not approve for D1 or D2 due to inadequate areas for referees and the locker rooms.

    It is a great facility but really needs someone with $$$ to refurbish it the way it needs to be. Seating is approximately 4500.
     

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