Charleston?

Charleston is way too small for MLS. The Battery have done a nice job surviving as long as they have.

 

I appreciate his lofty dreams, but its not going to happen.

 

A decade ago. And Rochester is bigger. And didn't up happening.

Charleston is half the size of the smallest American cities with pro sports teams (Memphis and OKC, measured by Tv market or CSA) except Green Bay, which is an historical anomaly that wouldn't be created today. I'm all for some small cities in the league, but unless the market is obsessed with soccer the way Winnipeg is with hockey, it's not happening for a place as small as Charleston.

 

I'm not saying it'll happen, but I do want to point out a few things.

1. The Battery average 3,500-4,000 fans per game (in a 5,000 seat stadium) year after year. Charlotte (which is currently under consideration for an MLS team) averaged 1,375 this past year. The well-established NASL Railhawks/NCFC averaged about 4,500 (in a 10,000 seat stadium).

(Now, the TV market is obviously a lot larger in those other places, but Charleston has better attendance than one MLS hopeful, and roughly equal attendance to another MLS hopeful).

2. Charleston (and South Carolina in general) is growing at an uncontrollable rate. The actual city of Charleston, twenty years ago, was 80,000 people. It's now 126,000. Charleston County was 250,000 people. It's now approaching 400,000. Our metro area is pushing 750,000. We've brought/are bringing in massive new companies, too, like Mercedes, Volvo, and Boeing, which have necessitated broadening interstates, new exit ramps, new subdivisions, etc. That explosion will continue for the foreseeable future.

Bottom line: my beautiful hometown is growing into a city at a rapid rate. It's probably not feasible for us to have a team right now, but wait 15-20 years and our bid will look very, very different.

 

Sorry PalmettoSpur, by then MLS will have expanded to 30 or 32 teams and will be full. USL will be your home. I hope you can get an affiliate with either Atlanta or the Charlotte/Raleigh team.

 

Charleston is a great city with a great team but with only a pop of 700k, it can't compare to the Carolinas largest city with 2.5m w/ 2 other pro teams and another with 2m w/ one other pro team.