To be honest, the people of OKC didn't WANT the energy, when they came in. There was no hue and cry from the masses. They did a good job of marketing, and have seen returns on that. I agree with @TheFalseNine that they will need to market the independence, higher league, etc...etc... I hope it works. I'll do anything I can to help
Man I wish Rayo all the luck, and I understand the didn't pay for an expansion franchise but rather joined as partners with the dormant OKC franchise; I just wished everyone involved took a look at the big map and made the best decision possible. Maybe that did happen; who knows. I think that if they are going to succeed in OKC then Manusooner is spot on about being first with a stadium [and the right stadium too]. How in Rayo wants to go with this franchise might be best answered by the stadium situation.
It also wouldn't surprise me that the team they put together, even in a short window, will be competitive. Think FtL last year. Bringing in some of their guys from Spain to add with NASL/USL veterans should be a higher quality than the Energy.
It depends on who you ask. Some want it and some are happy with the Energy FC. No I don't think they can coexist the two groups hate each other so coexisting is not in either groups plans. On the bright side an Oklahoma city derby is pretty intriguing
And that's just it. Rayo didn't "slip in" and get a free franchise in NASL. The franchise fee was paid, or arrangements for it were made, 3 years ago by OKCFC. To my knowledge, the league never refunded the fee (not sure if that's possible anyway). Rayo gave the ownership of OKCFC the financial ability to FINALLY move forward. You may have already read through this, and some other, threads related to OKCFC and know about the road they have traveled just to get to this point. I wish them all the luck in the world. They are good guys, and they are putting together a good FO. They realize that they have an uphill battle. They started fighting it 3 years ago.
Rayo's Wikipedia page I think has said they've been trying to build a new stadium for Rayo since 2009. Wonder what the issues are there.
I guess there won't be too many road trips for the supporters group as the nearest away match will be 740 miles away.
Maybe THAT's the problem. Most of his ventures only last 3-4. If he would JUST wait out the final year
Don't be surprised. All I know is they have a coach lined up who has "MLS experience". That is all they told me
As a co-founder of that group and the one who came up with the name, I'll sell you the scarves I have left for $100 each.
I was listening to The Football Show this morning on SiriusXM and Ray Hudson mentioned Rayo OKC and how he was excited to see it. Thought that was pretty cool