Is Metro more Jersey or New York?

Does it matter what sektor we are in? Metro is big enough for all. New Jersey is the 6th borough though.

 

it bothers me a little too. but it bothers me more when people act as if NY and NJ r so different. (usually people not from around here or people that move to nyc from someplace far.) nyc is more closely related to NJ than it is w/90% of NY state i wish they would just refer to them as metro.

 

That should read North Jersey is the 6th borough. South Jersey tends to root for Phily teams.

 

Any announcer that still says "New York/New Jersey" is in err. They dropped the city from the name...just MetroStars now-- I still think it should be Metro FC or Empire FC

 

The fans are more Jersey than NY, if you take parking lot license plate polls or what have you. The team is moving further into Jersey with the new stadium, and I think 2/3rds of the fans (soccer mom types) are Jersey.

Personally, being from NY, being a Jersey team bothers me a bit too, but you can't get too caught up in it, we only have one soccer team, pouting about where it's from isn't going to help any of us.

 

I totally agree. They play 8 miles from my apartment - that's New York enough for me.

 

The last time I checked, Giants Stadium was located in NJ, not NY.

 

Personally I think when the Metro's are playing well they are from NY. When they are playing bad they are from New Jersey

The only true way to tell if they are from NY or NJ ask a player what does it say on their pay checks. Is it NY Metrostars or is it NJ Metrostars.

I heard on the Giant players checks it says NY Giants.

Richie

 

Does that mean the knicks and rangers have been nj teams for years? I sure as hell wouldn't want them.

 

Every other team in North America has a location name, so the Metros should too. And it should accurately reflect where they play. So New Jersey, North Jersey, Newark, or Harrison.

And definitely NOT Empire FC. A U.S. team shouldn't be "FC" anyway. Use SC or AFC if you want.

I don't understand why the MetroStars accurately identifying where they are from would bother the New Yorkers among us. I am from NJ, and I root for the New York Rangers. It doesn't bother me they are from NY.

And knowing something about the car insurance area, parts of NJ are definitely cheaper than NY, especially NYC.

 

Don't forget many New Yorkers come on the buses from Port Authority (which I believe have Jersey license plates, further confusing the issue).

As far as the name of the club goes, Metro denotes the metropolitan area. I guess one could argue that the nickname of the team is Stars and Metro refers to NY/NJ. Of course, no one ever calls them the Stars. Only the Metros.

I still liked the time someone suggested FC Metro. That sounds good.

 

I can't stand it when people say "NY/NJ" or "New York". I know it's more American , but what's the big deal with not having a location (city/ state) in your team's name? What about Arsenal, Juventas?

I think the "New York versus New Jersey" question should only be asked if and & when there's an expansion team in the area. And that will only happen when Metro is consistently pulling in 20K.

 

This echoes my sentiments precisely. Having been born and mostly raised in upstate NY, I hated being mocked for living in Jersey when I spent four years in Wood-Ridge, Bergen County, a stones throw away from not only the Swamp with a WTC view from my attic window. In my mind, I'd moved to the NYC area, and working in Brooklyn, I hated when NYers would say, "he lives in Jersey." So I'm even more sensitive to the negative connotations that go with a NJ-affiliation. Having lived in those suburbs, and now those in Rockland, I find the distinction a bit silly (and the urban bias against the bridge & tunnel crowd more and more of a class-based prejudice), with but a very slight cultural difference across the border, though I know many insist they are not just two states, but two states of mind. I was only 15 minutes from Times Sq. when I lived in Jersey; now I'm 45 minutes away but with a NY address, rarely facing any of the attitude I often did with a Jersey address.

The Cosmos kind of ignored their NY name when they moved to the Swamp, following the example of the Giants, who have since reaped the benefits of renewing that connection with the City. I am content with just calling the club "MetroStars," but it doesn't hold any specific geographic resonance in the minds of most Americans, does it?

I'm worried the Harrison deal will hinder the Metros' efforts to be the NYC team, but I've already angered enough of my respected compatriots on these boards, and now cede to their greater wisdom that the NJ permanent address is in the best interests of the club and the future of MLS.

That said, I love seeing the MLS standings in foreign newspapers as "NY," as I do hearing other sides' players and coaches refer to playing New York.

And I look back fondly to the days when Mathis raised his black and red striped jersey in glory to reveal that "I Love NY" t-shirt.

If we win Wednesday night, I want a ticker-tape parade down the Canyon of Heroes!

Oh come on, a boy can dream...

 

I am posting on thread because I am really bored


I think calling the team just NJ Metros would be a big mistake. Now you get both fans NY and NJ. Call it NJ will open up the door one day to start a NY team. Then say good by to the NY fan going to NJ to see a game. After all who would go to NJ if they didn't have to.

NY is the name you "know" the name the world knows not New Jersy

For any league to be taken seriously they have to have a New York Franchise you know that.

Like the Sophranos the NJ Metros would not be considered as an impotant family or an important franchise.

NJ franchise would be considered like Colorado or Columbus. In mob terms it woild not be considered a family, as they said on the show it is more lie a "Glorified Crew" Again like the Columbus Crew.

Just fooling around because there is nothing going on.

 

Ok, I thought I was the only one. But you're right, you can't get caught up in that because it's a local team to support.

For all New York Metro fans: what if MLS starts up a New York franchise without the New Jersey tie in it? Would you switch loyalties to support a "true" New York team or remain loyal to the MetroStars? Just a hypothetical question.

 

What would be wrong with a NYC MLS team? I think that would be good. One more team for NJ to make their b**ch (see Nets/Knicks and Devils/Rangers).

Then the world is stupid. Doesn't the NBA Finals get broadcasted around the world? What team was in that again? Also note that the rest of the world doesn't care about MLS, so pleasing them is a waste of time.

Ok, another reason for a new MLS club in NYC in the future. Besides, the NFL and College Football do ok without a New York (City) team.

I have no idea what you mean by this.

Then Columbus Crew should change their name to New York. That way the media would care about them.

 

The Nets and Devils can only dream of being in the secure positions the Knicks and Rangers are in. The Devils may well be heading...don't think it is Newark, while the Nets covet a location in Brooklyn. Compare the local and national media coverage of the NBA and NHL finals when the local teams have been in them and any idiot can tell the difference. Who won the Stanley Cup this year? Nobody noticed, did they?

And as for the bit about the NFL team: ever take a look at the helmets of the Giants or Jets? You'll see two letters on both: NY.

Ah, but "the world is stupid," okay... I'm not saying it is right; I'm saying that's the way it is, and the franchise name is ultimately about marketing (not that this club's current or past owners were successful at that), not about appeasing minor-league local politicos.

There's a stigma attached to the Garden State that isn't going away any time soon. That might not be easy to swallow when you are enjoying the high life in Piscataway, but it is the way of the world.

 

Lets just hope and say its HARRISON !

 

The Nets don't covet anything right now except to sell the team. One of the potential buyers wants to move the team to Brooklyn. Another wants to keep the team where it is or move it to Newark, which seems to be the only sports project taking longer to start building than the MetroStars new place.

I understand the differences in coverage when a team is from NYC vs. NJ. But the MetroStars aren't moving to NYC, they're moving to Harrison (we all hope). Calling the team New York without actually being there won't generate the extra media coverage they might get if they played there. Then again this is soccer so it may not matter anyway.

Yes, the Giants and Jets still call themselves NY but both actually played there and won championships there before moving, and the Jets at least want to move back.

I won't disagree that there is a stigma, but if you don't want the stigma then move to NYC. Of course NYC doesn't want them, while NJ (at least Harrison) does. I am for accuracy in language, your team name should reflect where you actually play and have always played.

I'm not convinced calling the team New York without actually being there will get more butts in seats or have any other benefit other than using two less letters in the team name. So you may as well tell the truth on where you play.

 

You really can't ask that question, no one (from NY)will answer you honestly. If they say that they won't jump to Brooklyn Arsenal or whatever it's called, let them say they will continue to commute over an hour each way when MLS puts a brand new 30k seat SSS 10 blocks and one subway stop from their house with an 18 year old Freddy Adu on it (while we're getting hypothetical). If they admit to wanting to jump ship, they'd get flamed so they keep their mouths shut.

Honestly, about 40% of the fans would leave. With people bitching about attendance now, what happen after we play 2004 and 2005 in Rutgers while GS gets built, and MLS gives NYC a new team in 2006?

Don't worry, it won't happen until after 2010, but moving to Harrison is Metro telegraphing that a NYC team will eventually happen. Here's to hoping the Metro fan base is big enough to suffer that blow.

On the team as it is now, we're just "metrostars", but you still see NY/NJ in the papers and around the league. If they change to the NJ Metro, it would bother me, but since I'm older than 12 I'll get over it. I grew up in NYC and Westchester, so rooting for an expressed NJ team never occured to me.

As for the "world is dumb, the NJ Nets are on TV" ask yourself why two teams, one a champion (2002-3 Devils) and the other a two time finalist (Nets) can't consistently outdraw two teams that can't make the playoffs (Knicks, Rangers). The NY means a lot in terms of money and panache as well as in fans. If it didn't mean anything, we'd all be rooting for the NJ Metrostars, because that's where the team plays and that's where it's headquarters is.

As Doctor K mentioned, yeah we're not as different as we'd like to pretend we are, but that doesn't stop us from pretending, does it?

 

Well, part of it is that the Knicks and Rangers are really old, while the Devils and Nets are relatively new. Another being the Knicks and Rangers play at a rediculously busy and easy to get to train station, while the Devils/Nets play at a hard to get to arena with no train service. Hence the wanting to move to Penn Station Newark. Wouldn't close the gap entirely, but it would help I think. As will the Rangers giving up 5 goals every game, but that's another story.

My question for the NYC Metro people: If the Metros change their name to New Jersey or some part thereof, would you go to fewer games?

 

MattBurlew,

I understand your point but would argue that "MetroNY" best denotes the region, or that NY denotes far more accurately the north Jersey area, where a majority of people commute in to NYC to work and/or play, than does "NJ." As someone else posted, many central and southern Jerseyites are more likely to identify with Philly culturally.

Having volunteered for a couple of political campaigns in Bergen, I know that there is a problem with local residents whose voting registrations are with other states. A curious, interesting phenomenon that speaks to the absence of identity that plagues NJ.

I've never bought into the notion that the Meadowlands isn't NY. If you can see it, you're there. Should the gridiron Redskins be called the Maryland Redskins? With the Home Depot in a suburb (isn't it?), should the Galaxy not be called LA? The MetroStars are the NYC team. NJ has never, ever done a good job of supporting their own sports franchises.

I honestly think the club is more York than Jersey, and think it best for that angle to be emphasized. Holding out the possibility that there may be a NYC MLS franchise to rival the Metros someday simply prevents the necessary identification.