What should have been the end of an "up" year for MLS is being ruined by playoff attendance... if increases at the gate really came in because of the playoff race... why hasn't anyone gone to see the playoffs... I don't agree with the "lack of promotion" argument... those last couple of games should have been promotion enough. Bottom line: MLS avoids midweek games like the plague during the summer... now we're talking about suspending play for competitions next summer... Why can't the season start a little earlier and over the course of 26 games have the season end in Aug and the playoffs run Aug/Sept??? Labor Day weekend playoff games, anyone?!?
i take it you did not notice the ways that the final games were able to achieve large attendances... am i correct in this? i imagine i am so let me spell it out when mls gets games that do very well attendance wise, it's generally because they targeted large group sales (be it large groups or large numbers of groups)... youth teams, leagues, places of business... etc. that takes effort and time to pull off those great attendances... and so they typically pick a few games to target... july 4th, doubleheaders, end of the season, etc. playoffs don't allow for this to take place because they simply can't tell when and where their team will be playing, or if they will EXAMPLE: so how can you sell 300 tickets to a youth soccer league for a playoff game that the rapids might have on wednesday or saturday???... depending on if they were seeded higher than the burn... and that was a team that knew they were in the playoffs if you are going to bother to whine about the way things are, please apply some simple thought it's 3:30something in the morning, i was piss drunk at the game, i've sobered up... become dead tired and easily came up with that by thinking simply and rationally... give it a try, you might be surprised with what you can accomplish -jim
Originally posted by jmeissen0 i take it you did not notice the ways that the final games were able to achieve large attendances... am i correct in this? i imagine i am so let me spell it out Yes, and I believe I was told "playoff fever" had something to do with it... alright, go ahead and start spelling it out in yet another whiny "we don't have time to market the playoffs" diatribe... when mls gets games that do very well attendance wise, it's generally because they targeted large group sales (be it large groups or large numbers of groups)... youth teams, leagues, places of business... etc. generally, but not completely... youth teams, leagues??? can't you just ADMIT that it is a bad idea to have the playoffs start after Labor Day? Or are you just TOO DRUNK to make that connection? that takes effort and time to pull off those great attendances... and so they typically pick a few games to target... july 4th, doubleheaders, end of the season, etc. There's a HUGE difference between 50-60,000 for July 4, big attendances for doubleheaders, 15K sellouts in Chi-town without "doubleheaders" and the REMARKABLY WEAK playoff numbers... only Columbus/SJ on a Sat nite got over 10,000... you can't tell me group sales are that overwhelming... but I'm sure you'll try anyway... NEXT... playoffs don't allow for this to take place because they simply can't tell when and where their team will be playing, or if they will Quit being an apologist and say it--say it with me-- slurred speech and all... MLS playoff attendance "SUCKS," is "PATHETIC," "MOVE THIS LEAGUE NOW!" EXAMPLE: so how can you sell 300 tickets to a youth soccer league for a playoff game that the rapids might have on wednesday or saturday???... First, that's kinda my point: MLS avoids weeknight games like the plague until PLAYOFF SEASON... Wed or Sat??? Gee, lemme think about that one-- How 'bout: "ADMIT ONE: FREE TICKET TO GAME ONE OF MLS PLAYOFFS!"... no dates mentioned... after all, I'm sure nobody's worried about a sellout... depending on if they were seeded higher than the burn... and that was a team that knew they were in the playoffs Good God... EIGHT OUT OF TEN teams MAKE the playoffs... "oh, gee... we just don't know if we'll get in..."-- sorry, the odds are WITH you that unless you're DC United there's a 9 in 10 chance your team will get at least one home playoff game... if you are going to bother to whine about the way things are, and if you're going to get all apologetic and defensive because nobody gets a chance to properly "market" the playoffs... it's the FRIGGIN' PLAYOFFS... you shouldn't HAVE to market them... you act like those good crowds at the end of the season all got collective amnesia and thus needed LOTS AND LOTS OF ADVERTISING?!? pull my finger... no, the other one... please apply some simple thought Very simple thought... maybe it's not the "marketing"-- maybe the interest (fan, media, public in general) is JUST NOT THERE on weeknights in September... It's called an opinion... I'm not gonna agree with the flock of lemmings on this site who give constant "marketing" excuses for playoffs... ya honestly think those big crowds at the last couple of regular season games at... hmmm... Denver, Boston, Columbus, San Jose... geez, even Dallas and KC-- KNEW ABOUT THE PLAYOFFS? I think they did. it's 3:30something in the morning, i was piss drunk at the game, i've sobered up... become dead tired and easily came up with that by thinking simply and rationally... give it a try, you might be surprised with what you can accomplish -jim Rational thought suggests that although group sales may be lacking at playoff time, the excitement should lead to a bigger walk-up crowd... But surprise, surprise... after EIGHT games... only 3 of which were on Sat night-- only Columbus' 13K... everything else under 10K... can you FEEL the EXCITEMENT??? Oh, yeah... YOU'RE the one being rational... It's like MLS became the idiot who went to the doctor and said: "Doc, it HURTS when I do THIS" (weeknight playoff games, no televised playoffs on ESPN, soccer played on crappy fields with football lines, 6-8,000 fans becomes the norm rather than the exception) "Well," says Dr. USRufnex, "maybe you should STOP DOING THAT!"