Is that simply a hypothetical or have focus groups actually told the FO that? GO SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES!!! -G
You think the Merc is bad: try watching a newscast from "NBC Bay Area," the once San Jose News Channel...utterly appalling to say the least!! I didn't know there were skyscrapers and Bay bridges on North First Street (sarcasm). And just for the record/clarification: my original rebrand idea did include "SJ" in the title. (Glad I got that off my chest)
Two major league sports franchises in Buffalo (and Orchard Park) 6 major league sports franchises in the bay area for the Quakes to compete for shelf space with.
I know how it is to live in a town where the only thing that counts is football, having spent most of a year in Lincoln, NE. It was a long time ago, 1966/67 to be precise, but even those ancient times, the relatively small town (and capitol of Nebraska) was all Huskers (Cornhuskers to be clear), all the time. Back in those days, the stadium held the equivalent of just over 1/2 of the city's population and there was never a game Saturday when it was not filled beyond capacity (it holds more now). While not a pro team, the fact is that the town practically lives and dies depending on the fate of the team. There are other such cities, that I know, but Lincoln has been the only one in which I lived, or lived near. Even the Raider nation, as it once existed, never came close.
You deceptively quote me by excising the remainder of my sentence: "and I'm not talking about merely sports stuff." Follow the links I offered and it will become evident. The comparative question of civic pride is more extensive than the quantum of major pro sports teams. San Jose is effaced by its proximity to San Francisco. You unconsciously underscore this point by citing "6 major sports franchises in the bay area." Only two are in San Jose, just as in Buffalo. (There are quite a few major sports franchises in New York State, and the Yankees have historically had a following in Buffalo akin to the Giants in San Jose. The Giants are not really San Jose's team, as evidenced by the quixotic effort to lure the A's, anymore than the Yankees belong to Buffalo.) Insipid photos of fruit will not enable true understanding of the issue at hand.
The 49ers are technically San Jose's NFL franchise, as they play in our suburb of Santa Clara and within one mile of our northern city limit. However....
Not to mention the 49ers were formed around a kitchen table in downtown San Jose by one of San Jose's former mayors.
But again, you are comparing a much smaller, (Buffalo is barely larger than Fremont) and more insular community than what we have in the bay area. And what percentage of people living in the Buffalo environs are natives compared to the percentage of people living here who are natives? I am not surprised at all that your (anecdotal) evidence shows a greater sense of civic pride in Buffalo.
Not to defend KNTV or even broadcast TV in general (I have not received a satellite, cable or broadcast signal for about 4 years now, although I watch TV daily), but since KNTV became the Bay Area NBC affiliate several years ago, the notion of it being a "San Jose" station flew out the window. KNTV is the only NBC station in the San Francisco Bay Area and I imagine NBC has a lot to do with how the station presents itself. Prior to the NBC deal, KNTV was the ABC affiliate for the Monterey/Salinas viewing area...not many actually know that....KGO was, and still is, the Bay Area ABC station.
we’ve played 2 matches at Candlestick that I can recall. A friendly or preseason tournament match vs Atletico Madrid and a there was a doubleheader 10 years ago where we lost to the Crew with Lenhart and Robbie Rogers scoring then Barcelona played Chivas or som Mexican club right after. As for a rebrand to The Bay or whatever the one point I would make is that that fans in the South Bay often don’t realize is that the Quakes - and the Sharks to a lesser extent - are almost 100% invisible to your average sports or even soccer fan in 2/3 of the Bay Area. SF, Marin, northern San Mateo county, Oakland and the majority of the East Bay. One literally never sees anyone in any Quakes gear in these parts, even at fields. The team misses out on 2/3 of the Bay Area population. This obviously hurts attendance, revenue and our ability to compete. Having some Bay Area brand name could sound weird and wouldn’t solve this problem but might help.
It’s going to be really tough for the Quakes to attract a Bay Area crowd. They have to do a lot of things better to make that happen, but I honestly don’t think that’s Fisher’s goal. There’s a reason he built an 18k stadium (smallest in the league). He wants to run a small team and use money ball tactics. He knows that’s not going to attract the biggest crowds in the league and he doesn’t care. The A’s new stadium is going to be super small too. Fisher is all about small team, low budget, money ball. If someone wrote a book about it I’m sure it would be fascinating [emoji6] I think one problem Fisher needs to solve immediately is that the Quakes are too small. They can’t even get a sponsor. I think Fisher does see that as a problem as evidenced by Fox’s early departure. In my opinion you can’t play money ball in MLS because the league itself is already money ball. There’s no fat to be trimmed. We think of Atlanta as lavish spenders, but in the world view they are a small team. To win in this league you just need a few quality players. You don’t need a four year plan you just need to buy 3 great DPs. Literally any team in MLS could win the cup any year they want just by going out and spending big bucks. Vela destroyed the league but there are lots of players better than Vela out there. *The quality disparity between players is so great that money ball tactics won’t over come it.* Sorry for going off on a tangent.
The lack of attention from 2/3 of the Bay Area (several million people) is, IMO, not really a Quakes problem. Now, lack of attention from San Jose (and cities next to San Jose) is a Quakes problem. This franchise does not really need to have fans driving, training, busing to San Jose for a 2 hour game. It just needs fans from the largest city in the Bay Area, and it's immediate neighbors, to be doing that. Who gives a crap what team people in Marin County support? If they need a soccer team to support, then they should get one for themselves. Yes, I live a lot father away than anyone in the "Bay Area", but I realize I am an outlier. The franchise really does not need my attention, although it has it.
It isn’t too difficult to understand as sports fans have a lot of different options today than they did say in the 70’s , 80’s or even 90’s. You have tons of cable and internet games going on at the same time not to mention endless soccer games. It’s cheaper to watch tv or online than it is to get out of your chair and drive to a game. Most Euro snob fans thumb their nose at MLS and especially the Quakes. Most Raider fans I talk to for example complain mostly the shape of the team as opposed to them leaving for Vegas. I’m thinking many of them can care less that they left Oakland.
no sponsors, no new players, no team president, no communication, yup, Quakes are too small. way too small. except on Fisher's balance sheet. Johnny Fisher is a joke. I thought losing our championship team to Houston was brutal, getting John Fisher as our team owner is worse. He has sucked the life out of soccer in the Bay Area, and shows no signs of slowing down. this off season has to be our worst ever, so far. unbelievable that we're doing exactly nothing to improve. we never got any official word on our team president, and still no word on a team sponsor... …completely pathetic.
All symptoms of an underlying problem that if not fixed will continue to get worse. It’s a poorly run organization. Without a president it may not actually be running at all. MLS is strange. On the one hand you have billionaires throwing hundreds of millions to be a part of this league and on the other hand we have clubs with some serious health issues. #1 issues is Chicago and NY #2 issue is probably Philadelphia #3 issue is the Bay Area #4 Colorado I’m sure I’m missing some other obvious ones.
and, our health issues are protracted, we've been limping along since '08. it's so painfully bad in San Jose, its amazing anyone goes to games at all. Fisher really is a worst case scenario.
Personally I want the Bay Area to have the best soccer team in the world - I believe that can happen too (not any time soon). Given that, I don’t mind another MLS team in the Bay Area (maybe Oakland?). However, if you love San Jose and you want the best team to be in San Jose you should not want another team in the Bay (at least not under current circumstances). I don’t think it will kill the Quakes but it would certainly stunt their growth (if they ever wanted to grow).
Btw - if the bay ever did get another team I would continue to exclusively support the quakes in MLS. I would be happy to see better soccer in the bay though. I just don’t see the Quakes being interested in growing. Just like I mostly watch the A’s and not the Giants even though I’m happy the Giant’s exist.
I want the Quakes to be the best soccer club in the world. But, as the Stones counsel, you can't always get what you want. Meanwhile, the more the merrier. Bring it on, Sacramento, and Oakland and SF.
I want the quakes to be the best too. I think that’s something me and you have in common but unfortunately not Fisher.