I wasn't there, but if there were other events at Toyota Center or Downtown Convention center, may have forced more people to the Minute Maid lots. I havent been to a Dynamo game with full parking lots in a very long time, and now I usually just park in a few smaller lots that are cheaper that I use for Astros games
Interesting thread in reddit. Its a hard question to answer. https://www.reddit.com/r/dynamo/comments/16ld738/mls_network_on_x_dynamo_last_in_attendance_again/
https://www.houstondynamofc.com/hou...and-verizon-partner-for-fan-appreciation-week Huh, I would have thought Dash and ownership so against misogyny and guns they wouldn’t invite 90s rap stars to postgame concert!
In our market, an FO cannot just gut the club from everything like top staff in the office to our Dynamo Girls to haulting promotion giveaways that had teeth, like good hats, Dynamo soccer balls, Dynamo towels, pennants and so on to as well just fire coach after coach to where the word gets out with agents and their players where they view Houston as a toxic destination. Then wrap this up as attendance nose dives and said FO take aim at the fan base for attendance woes. If one wanted to take down all that was built in the first 7 seasons for Houston Dynamo success, no one could have done a better job at it all honestly.
I really don’t know what the fix is at this point - it’s clear they’ve lost such a large portion of the traditional Dynamo fan base that they can’t replace it all with new folks. But it also seems like all of a sudden this season they sort of stopped trying. Dynamo are literally in last place in attendance in MLS in 2023 on a per game average basis and as many know I think those figures are inflated. They are also near last/first with the largest percentage drop on attendance year over year (Galaxy are down 10.5% vs Dynamo 10.0% down). Victor Araiza has a new podcast and he talked about this a bit last week - mostly about things that don’t cost much that the Dynamo could do (like outreach, etc). Would they work? I have no idea. I was looking for Dynamo highlights on YouTube and this guys’ videos popped up (think I’ve linked to him before), go watch this and see how anemic the crowd is for the Dash on a Saturday night game. Vanilla Ice can’t save this. I don’t want to hear a single person tell me how great or important the Dash fanbase is after watching this video.
Vanilla Ice can't save this. Add this to the list of things I never thought I'd have to contemplate in life!!
Wait until the woke Dash fans re-sing Funky Cold Medina by Tone Loc and remember the lyrics that take a shot at transgenders or crossdressers: “Verse 3] I went up to this girl, she said, "Hi, my name is Sheena" I thought she'd be good to go with a little Funky Cold Medina She said, "I'd like a drink," I said, "Ehm, I'll go get it" And then a couple sips she cold licked her lips, and I knew that she was with it So I took her to my crib, and everything went well as planned But when she got undressed, it was a big old mess, Sheena was a man So I threw him out, I don't fool around with no Oscar Mayer wiener You must be sure that your girl is pure for the Funky Cold Medina” You can’t make this up!! Someone will protest I am sure. I can’t believe they didn’t at least remember the Tone Loc song lyrics, but I guess as an NWSL club you can pick and choose your outrage
I got curious about the ticket price expectations currently vs in the top era of Dynamo soccer. I was able to find a copy of the 2012 season ticket chart. https://assets.sbnation.com/assets/669016/2012_DynamoStadium_seatingplan_final.jpg prices then compared to 2024: Supporters $250 to $340 Upper Endline $400 to $360-$480 depending on specific section Upper sideline $425 to $600-$740 Upper center circle $500-$880 Endline lower $550 to $800-$940 Sideline lower $1,040-$1,440 The rest are VIP tickets which we know have been mashed up over the years so it’s really not a fair comparison. Imo these aren’t super drastic increases but I can definitely see how they would be a barrier to entry for someone coming back for the first time since the mid 2010’s. That’s kind of a down the road thing though, I really can’t explain the y-o-y drop aside from the boost of signing HH worn off. Ultimately winning is the only real fix. They have to make at least consecutive playoff appearances.
Forgot to add, this was my source for 2024 prices https://seatgeek.com/houstondynamof...sting_series=f444a45d730e3fa81fd19e3d868f192d
I don't think considering inflationary and other pressures that the increases in 10 years are out of line, its that the experience isn't any better than it was 10 years IMO. I used to give the organization like $3,000 a year for 3 season tickets and then you realize they didn't even staff the place properly and if you aren't going to about 60% of the games, it's better to just buy seats off of StubHub or SeatGeek vs. eating multiple games where you can't resell tickets. I personally believe the Apple TV deal really hurts MLS markets like Houston, Colorado, Chicago - teams that have not done well recently and draw poorly and have high Spanish-speaking populations. Dynamo are virtually invisible to the average fan. Can see LigaMX and EPL easier on TV than the Dynamo. Check out the below thread posted in reddit for "Member Prices" for playoff games. $129 for a 200 level ticket? (assuming not a premium seat). Non members probably $140, no one is paying that for first round playoff games. I know there is a spectrum here, but even lower bowl seat pricing is too high for a Dynamo playoff game. https://www.reddit.com/r/dynamo/comments/16n6jds/playoff_pricing_for_season_ticket_members/
Attached is a link to the 2023 MLS Attendance table. Dynamo is last and also has the largest % drop year-over-year in this table. I think this table includes the LA Galaxy home game at the Rose Bowl where the other one on reddit excludes that game https://soccerstadiumdigest.com/2023-mls-attendance/
On the playoff tickets, Dynamo website has the pricing and an FAQ: https://www.houstondynamofc.com/mls-dynamo-playoffs The below is frankly absurd (would apply to the 1st round best of 3 where the Dynamo would have possibly 2 home games if they finish high enough), I know the Astros refund for any playoff games purchased but not played within a few days of the games being taken off the schedule. If Dynamo lose, does my card get refunded? No, we are unable to refund payments based on the outcome of the matches. Once your card has been charged for a specific round, the payment is non-refundable regardless of the team’s performance
This is the payment for the playoff tickets. Not only will you pay no matter the outcome, you must decide now if you are going to opt out of the playoffs- Members not interested in reserving their seats for the Playoff run at the special member pricing, must opt-out here by Monday, Sept. 25 at 6:00 p.m. If members opt-out, HDFC cannot guarantee their regular season seats will be available for any Playoff matches. If Members decide to purchase Playoff tickets after opting out, they will not receive Member pricing on any matches.
forgot to add I think the whole Widder Hostage Negotiator scheme of having your “season membership” automatically renew unless you opt out by July 31 adds to reasons why they don’t sell more season tickets: and if you opt-out, they basically take away your remaining benefits even though you paid for the full season. That’s garbage, it basically tells you what they think of you as a customer. I can recall maybe 2014 or 2015 the renewal date was roughly the end of the season, which is more reasonable.
The FO in 2014ish decided to leverage season ticket sales and renewals with an extremely heavy handed approach. Which is the last path to take with us Houstonians. We work way to hard for our paychecks. All Americans do. It's just us are extremely forgiving to the point of being held hostage is how we appear at face value to cutthroat executives. Them never knowing how their approach will backfire in time. Which is exactly where our club is at with attendance these days. As a native, it reeks of Bud Adams and how his way of being with Houston sports fans. I.e. loyalty to his team while his business model shows little loyalty or even appreciation back.
in theory at that time the FO had some leverage to do so (Canetti emailed me one year asking if I was going to renew before the deadline because they wanted my seats for a sponsor of I wasn’t renewing). they don’t really have that now unless someone loves their seats and the loyalty discount. even late season 2016 games the Dynamo drew pretty well after a few down years. It’s just a decade of erosion has caught up with the club. Yeah, not really Segal’s fault, but I don’t see a whole lot that they are doing differently other than more premium seats and areas and squeezing more dollars out of existing customers (and likely cutting costs private equity-style). Ideas are plentiful but Solutions are hard.
The fact that our club has not found a lucrative revenue stream by cultivating, squeezing, pro prospects from our vast existing pool of highly talented youth players is the first solution. National media and soccer pundits from all over declare over and over the youth soccer scene, both boys and girls, here in the Greater Houston Area is Tier 1 in the nation. And yet our city got more local players on MLS rosters pre Dynamo existence. 17 years on with our Academy it has been Deric and Memo with any decent first team minutes. None sold abroad!
Another Reddit thread on attendance, this one comment I thought was good: “It seems like every time they have a hunch that people might show up they raise the prices causing people to not show up. Vicious cycle.” https://www.reddit.com/r/dynamo/comments/16oj2z7/a_quick_rant_about_attendance/
https://reddit.com/r/MLS/s/U1LnH2mX4I From the Reddit MLS forum, discussion on STH playoff pricing. They sure do pay a pretty penny in STL.
No NFL or NBA team, no nearby college football teams. Its Cardinals, Blues, and STL FC in a traditional soccer market (deep local soccer ties). Some complaining on the Dynamo pricing - I think it is a bit much considering they are unlikely to sell out any playoff games in round 1. I think the structuring and commitment to purchase the full strip of ticket is not the best client service I've seen. I don't know what non-premium 200-level seat is is worth $129 for a 1st round game vs. Vancouver. Even today, look at the pricing model or algorithm they use for the FC Dallas game on the 30th - they are not selling many tickets to that game at those prices. And then the pricing model lowers the prices as the game gets closer. Dynamic pricing is a mess for a low-to-moderate demand event like the Dynamo. You end up with folks like me that are like "OK, if prices drop enough I'll buy and go or otherwise I'll just watch on Apple TV". And then Saturday comes and rather than go Downtown I lose interest and watch on Apple TV going back and forth with college football or the Astros. Just price the tickets right at the start and not make buyers play some damn game to get a good value.
They have 65 comments on that thread, then another talking about last night's attendance along with a debate about butts in seats. Im with the guy who thinks it was like 7k in the stadium last night
The FO reported, well MLS listed, 13,000 and change. Sure. Brighter note, Bassi turned up inside our hinchada and got to business with his impromptu drumming to Dynamo hymns of fight and devotion!