Coming Seasons Attendance

Attendance will likely have an early season reduction and if the team does well a mid and late season push. The team has been dreadful for three seasons, while us "internet nuts" and a few others might get very excited about Earnie Stewart, I'm not convinced that he's explosive enough to provide a boost at the box office. DC United not making the playoffs for three years will out weigh any attendance boost from players. However, when DC comes out of the gate strong, people will flock back to RFK!

As for "feeling sorry" for other MLS towns? I say they need to get of their fat lazy butts and fill their stadia! If they can't with their current marketing then they need to consider alternative marketing schemes. In San Jose, they couldn't buy a fan to come watch the MLS Champions last season, KC was the same way in 2001! Boston has been the complete opposite of those two loser towns! Fans went to see the dreadful Rev's squad despite finishing last or near last every season! I "feel sorry" for those fans because they got hosed by the Galaxy in the final last season. That little fish sure does know how to flop around...

 

I think the two MetroStars games are going to be huge! With traveling fans coming down and an increased rivalry with the Atlantic Cup and off-season trades, these two games should be able to bring the average attendence up by themselves!

 

That's a key element for me. Putting the upper deck off limits will make the lower deck seem far more crowded. The plus will be the atmosphere. The minus may be the atmosphere.

Before this, anybody could walk up for virtually any game and buy a ticket for virtually anywhere in the stadium. Wherever they sat, they could sprawl out, relax, not have to worry about their neighbors. That definitely helped me get some newbies to come along at times. Bring your kids, they'll be able to screw around while we watch. That will be gone.

But that's no real loss. They were probably never going to be frequent return customers anyway. Now, anywhere you sit, you're going to have people on all sides. That creates an atmosphere of "hey, maybe this isn't a joke league! maybe attendance is better than I'd heard." Now, anywhere you sit, you're going to have somebody who REALLY REALLY demonstrates the passion for the team within a few seats from you. That creates an atmosphere of "hey, maybe people care about this. maybe I've been missing something." The uninitiated will want to be part of it, the more passive fans will want to join in.

And the concentration of noise will definitely have a positive effect on the field. I doubt the upper deck voices had much impact.

The downside is that there will likely be more low-level incidents: greater density, greater potential for incidents. Nothing horrible, but perhaps it seems less family-friendly.

I think on balance it will create a far better sports atmosphere (as opposed to a better "outing" atmosphere) and will help the long-term attendance.

My dream would be for singing (without full-game standing-- that will drive some people away) to catch on in the west seats. The constant cheers and music, I think, are a key differentiator from the Big 4 sports. I know that has impressed a lot of folks. If the non Supporters Sections picked up even one or two songs and a few key cheers (other than DC United clapclap clap clap clap and DC boom boom DC boom boom), it'd be an amazing, amazing venue.

 

Man, if there isn't at least a small increase then I fear for the future of the league.

MLS seems to be marketing itself more and more to the hard-core fans of the game (rightfully so) and if they don't react to what by all accounts is a very exciting lineup, then there's little hope.

I can't remember looking forward to the start of a season as much as this year.

 

I look for a few things this season.

1. DC United should increase average attendance by 2k. It'll be harder with the reduced capacity preventing the attendance-skewing high numbers, but I think the team will be better and the increased number of Saturday matches makes this very possible.

2. Fuller looking crowds all around. With our increase and capacity downsizing we should get more people into a smaller space. Chicago and Dallas will play the Brimstone-on-Turf Cup to a substantially filled and lower-capacity crowds, so they'll look good on TV. Having less than half of the crowd present for a TV game is disgraceful, and packing them into the area at the edge of the field is crucial for our TV exposure.

3. Metros and Revs should be improved. Clearly the Nicol Revolution is better than the Clavijo Revs, and adding Nowak, Moore, Shalrie Joseph (2002 draftee), and Noonan (2003 draftee) make them a much more exciting and skillful team. Bradley alone makes the Metros worth watching, and I expect a significant attendance spike as Bradley lights them on fire in the middle of the season as he always seems to do.

4. Crew Champions. Winning the US Open Cup should help attendance, as should McBride's stellar showing in the EPL. I think the Buckeyes will love the increased Saturday games.

5. Home Depot Center. It appears the LA Galaxy are doing everything right to pack that place, I sure hope they do. Hong, Memo, 2002 Open Cup, 2003 MLS Cup, things are really looking up!

6. KC Ticket drive. Lamar's Crusaders have done a good job getting season ticket sales, the interest is growing. Unfortunately, I don't think much of the team's offseason moves.

7. San Jose inroads. Late last season it sure seemed as if the residents of the Bay Area were finally getting behind their team. Games were decently attended and the fans seemed very into the games. I expect this Donovanmania to continue, and hopefully it will become a strong and loyal Quake following.

8. The Rapids led the league in attendance last season mainly because of gimmicks. Double headers (i.e. USA v. Mexico), July 4th tradition (hugely attended, kudos!) and the newness of the Broncos' stadium helped. Hopefully the Rapids can come somewhere close to those numbers with only their July 4th game a guaranteed major seller.

9. Bottom lines move into the black. With the new stadia arrangements and other less obvious factors in their favor, I would not be surprised to see the Crew, Galaxy, Revolution and Wizard make a profit or at least come very close to breaking even. With the Fire, Burn, and Quakes losing less money, and good attendances for the Metros, United and Rapids, MLS should lose significantly less money this season.

So, while several teams will likely have lower or flat attendances (i.e. Dallas, Chicago, Colorado), I still see the league's average increasing slightly, which would be a major success actually. I see United and the Metros being the major attendance gainers.

-Tron

 

Word of mouth advertising sure helps. I always get asked about the team around the office. A few have even gone. Big boost in attendance could be found if local media did more than close their broadcast with "oh yea United played tonight, yawn... and won at home." Kudos to Goff and Post for the commitment!! How do we get that putz Michael to show some highlights? I hate bull riding.

 

Fixed your post.

 

The two most important things in MLS promotion are it's current fans and the media and we can't expect much help from the media. The league could never afford the kind of promotion that a tiny bit more help from the media could provide.
That being a given, fans working on those who are already fans of the sport in this country, who will attend Euro team matches in big numbers but pass on MLS games, is the biggest base out there we can look to. I've given up on certain fan bases such as the Mexican fan base in LA, at least for now.
That's the group (ex-pats, etc.) MLS is targeting but they can't do anything close to what the existing fans can do to bring them in.
Lots of "pub work" is needed!!
Also, the work on atmosphere at the games will help.

 

as long as they dont hook earnie up with a nickname like john "the juggler" harkes or some mumbo jumbo ill be happy...

Earnie "the bert" Stewart

 

I may have been drinking a bit so these may not be the most clearly formed ideas...


1) Have a big half time show! Some teen pop idol or something ethnic...

2) Change the rules so that one goal equals six points and a team gets a free corner kick that counts as one. In addition every corner from regular play results in three points.

3) No ties. Have them play and every five minutes reduce each side by one player. that full field 1vs.1 will really pack them in!

4) Larger goals. Make the goal stretch from one side of the field to the other.

5) Allow players to actually pick up the ball and carry it.

 

If you are wondering what you can do as a current fan, check this out from the DCU web site:

Club Liaison Program

Do you want to be an even bigger “player” on the D.C. United team? Then Club Liaison could be the position for you! Represent D.C. United by disseminating ticket information and news to your local youth league. Your continued efforts to keep the soccer community informed and aware of pertinent D.C. United affairs are rewarded through various premium, promotional and gift items. Don’t wait to take advantage of this unique opportunity; call customer service for more information at (703) 397-5467.

 

Media Campain?

I suppose that this post is intended for all of BS, plus other soccer forums.

Does anyone know who the people at ESPN, Comcast, etc, are that we can contact and express our desire to have an MLS tonight, or a brief section on SportsCenter, or local sports coverage, etc.

We all have expressed our dissatisfaction about United and MLS coverage. And I'm sure some of us have contacted these sources on our own. But as fans of the sport, I think we need an all out campain as fans, as we are the ones responsible for showing these people/stations that there IS a strong and growing fan base that follow soccer. And soccer fans are the greatest fans in the world. If we tell them exactly what WE think would help the sport, than maybe, if we are lucky, they will see that it is US that they are serving. And by telling them what they are doing well, and areas that they could use improvement (in a positive manner so they don't throw out our comments). Only positive things can come out of this, as it gives these stations a more to cover, which means greater oportunities at those levels.

I stayed up to watch World Cup Tonight... hell, I stayed up to watch the World Cup... but they did a good job with World Cup Tonight. They've shown that they are capable of doing something. They just need to keep it up.

With a media campain, we could choose specific areas (our platform) and focus on getting these out to the general public through these outlets. I am a big fan of the grass roots efforts, and I think that everything about soccer in the US is grass roots. It starts there every spring and fall on the overly used fields in the suburbs and rural neighborhoods all across this country. I don't think that there is anyone of my close friends who didn't at some point play soccer in their life. Some were better than others, but they all look back at that time with a smile. If we could just use the media to help pull those emotions out to the forefront, soccer and MLS and DCU would flourish.

Anyway, this post has gotten too long. I've just gotten tired of bashing the media for their lack of coverage and now I want to try and change it. I haven't looked for these contacts myself yet because I wanted to put my thoughts down first. But I will look to see if I can find contacts around that would be the appropriate people.

 

I expect a spike in attendance this year. Just look at all of the traffic (including newbies) that hit the boards today with Hristo's signing announced. Gonna be fun -- grab your season tickets quickly, and if you wanna have some fun, get them through one of the supporters' clubs.

GM

 

This thread is getting a little of track. I think the purpose was two fold predictions about attendence in DC and ways to improve attendence in DC. Let us leave the general media bashing to the other forums. What are some practical suggestions for how we as fans can increase attendence.

1) Pub Crawls and Word of Mouth are extremely effective.

2) Geoff how can we help you show the post that we appeciate their increased coverage of DC United and our appeciation for the excellent job you are doing.

Any one else.

 

Who's Geoff?

 

I was excited to hear about this change this season. Very glad that United is working to enhance the atmosphere at games. We bring friends/casual soccer fans to matches a few times each season and its usually hit or miss. Bringing them to a packed and lively lower bowl should make a good impression.

 

That would be Steven Goff of the Washington Post (and not Geoff Aunger, Canadian National). A simple slip of the fingers.

80 days to the Home Opener. I'll be bringing some newbies, some of whom approached me to ask if I was willing to take them (after years of proselytizing). Bu-wah!

dadman