I'm not sure what it is they accomplished. Quite frankly, i think sam's army is more of a social club than anything else.
Sam's Army is pretty visible when you look at the stadium. I would think that they would have more Sam's Army at the stadium, the group was pretty small at the game, it was only a section.
The only thing with being with Sam's Army - and the reason we didn't get our tickets with them - was because you HAVE to wear red. I know it's our color and all, but we had white National team jerseys that we wanted to wear - or else we'd had purchased our tickets with Sams' Army. But we were very vocal where we sat too - right behind the Mexico bench!
I didn't sit with the Army although I believed I am a registered member because I was sitting in the more expensive seats in the dead center of the field.
I am not a member - but would have liked to have sat with them. Except it was difficult to get tickets in that same section. Get the tickets blocked off easier and more people would buy them - or at least have a consistent way to request a section. Which may not have been possible this time.
I was there... and in the Sam's Army section. I don't consider myself 'self importiant' at all. Remember.. it was a NOT a weekend game. If it was on a weekend, I know that the Sam's Army section would have been stonger. It was mostly a local Dallas/Houston group... and most of them had never been US game. Texas is a really big High School 'pointy end' football state, so it was somewhat approporate, and a bit humorious when a humorous "Hit 'em again harder harder" chant started up in the 1st half when a Mexican player went down. At least they didn't try the infamous.... "1,2,3,4 what do you think those cleats are for... Let's Stomp 'Em" or "Rah Rah Ree, kick 'em in the knee. Rah Rah rass... kick 'em in the other knee" ;-) Not sure if Sam's Army are "self important" or not. But, the folks in red seem to be the only one's standing and cheering in a somewhat organized fashion the whole game long. Said the Houston Chonicle ... "Even though the Mexican fans held the numerical edge, the most eye-catching section of the Reliant stands was in the south end zone where members of Sam's Army stood out in their red shirts. " US Soccer must think that Sam's Army is fairly importiant?? The Army gets a price break from US Soccer. A US Soccer official made sure that the Sam's Army banner was placed in the staduim before the game started. And, the picture... http://images.chron.com/content/news/photos/03/05/08/usmex/photo12.jpg
Northside Rover... Take your internet browser and point it at http://www.sams-army.com You will find all the info on how to join in on all the fun. Usually links for tickets are posted soon after the games are announced. They have ticket info up all the way through the Gold Cup match against Martinique on 7/14. Hope top see you at a game soon.
I actually may join Sam's Army. If a national team game is every in the NYC area, I would definitely try to get seats with them. It seems like a good bunch to sit with and you know that when you sit with them, you don't have to be bothered with fans of the opposing team.
You can help bring games to the NYC area. Lobby the New Jersey legislature in favor of a soccer-specific stadium for the MetroStars. Meanwhile, there's a very organized group of Sammers in your area called the "North Jersey Brigade". They coordinate efforts to travel to USA matches in nearby venues, like Columbus and New England.
Thanks a lot, I will look into it. I don't know if I could make the trips, but I would love for the USMNT to play another game here in the NYC Metro Area soon. I think if another game came here, it would sell out. There has been a lot of success selling tickets to the Manure/Juventus game in July in Giants Stadium, I think it sold out.
Ask the US players what they think of Sam's Army. I don't think too many people are interested in what you thinks...
weak....fake "ultras" i watched the game...saw them but never really heard any "chants" from them...sad really...
Re: weak....fake "ultras" I was sitting in that section, and like someone mentioned earlier, the section was full of new people...which is good, but I think most folks there didn't really know what was up, which would explain the quietness. I was in the section in Miami for Argentina game and that was much better in terms of coordination, volume, etc. As far as the "self-importantness" of Sam's Army, I don't really see it, because I see it as a pretty disorganized group and one where most people are strangers to each other. I can tell some people know each other, but that's a rarity for the most part. I've sat in that section at a few games and always try to introduce myself to those around me. Some people in that section do try to assume a "leadership" role by trying to rile others up to cheer. I don't really think this works because most people don't like taking directives from people they don't know. Eventhough I know they're just being passionate about the game, some people probably feel like they're being yelled at. Anyway, people traveling regularly to matches is still a rare thing amongst US fans and those that see more than a few games a year are probably the overwhelming minority. People trying to organize coordinated support and cheering are trailblazers of sorts and despite its disorganization sometimes, it still has noble intentions. Over time, it will get better.
its just all this, "look how great WE did. look at all the things that WE did. WE accomplished OUR mission!!!" that's great that you're there and pretty organized, vocal with all your shirts or whatever, but the focus is on the game and the players not what the supporters are doing imo. plus there's all this whinning that goes on. "the players didn't clap for us at this or that game. nobodies wearing read blah blah blah." it takes more to be a fan than sitting in a certain section and wearing a certain color is all i'm saying.
i do think they're great for being there and for legitimately trying to start something but i stand by what i said.
Folks, let's try to remain relatively civil here. If you don't like what Sam's Army does, you don't need to sit with them at games.
As far as self important - at least they're trying. At least they are getting it done. There was a very noticeable block of US fans together at the game. No other group of US fans stood out. I'll take what's working. I'm the biggest contrarian "don't tell me what to do" kind of guy. But in this area, it's all about the collective. Coming together and doing the exact same thing as everyone else. Dae Han Min-guk! ---- As far as complaining about not hearing them... If you're basing that on watching the game on TV, then you really have no understanding of how microphone placement affects the sound you hear versus what goes on in the stadium. And even different places in the stadium get completely different audio experiences. Plus they were a couple hundred against 69,000. I was astonished how clearly they came across from time to time. The best part - non-Sam's Army - was that the majority of the crowd was cheering both teams during the last 30 minutes of the game.
That's the difference between the average fan you'll find anywhere and the fanatics you'll find behind many goals around the world. What happens on the stands might not be as important as the match, but it's very close at it's least. So there you have it. You don't have that attitude. Solution? Don't join 'em and watch the game. But don't criticise something you don't understand. BTW. I believe the US is the only country in the world that has 'organized' supporters behind the NT. My worst nightmare would be a bunch of those orange idiots doing that. but that's another story
I've said before and I'll say it again. I really do appreciate what Sam's Army has done when looking at the broad picture. They've gotten a consistent thing going that, despite its flaws, is still the only thing up and running. I still think that you need to inject some more passion in one form or another, I know when I go to a game I very rarely actually watch the game. I'm more concerned with contributing to the chants and other things, but that's just me. I'm sure people can chant and watch a game at the same time. I think once the qualifiers role around you'll see the most vocal group of supporters we've seen.
No, not yuck. I see you're an Ajax supporter from Amsterdam. I assume you're not familiar with soccer in the US, then. The vast majority of the crowd were American citizens and American residents. A majority also have ancestral ties to Mexico. Due mainly to the suck that has been the US national team over the preceding decades, most hispanic immigrants, and their children who still follow soccer (as opposed to switching to only "American" sports) identify with their club and and national teams of their "homeland". It is a given that most games in the US against Mexico or latin American countries will be "away" games. Even though the vast majority of the crowd are actually tax paying Americans. ----- The fact that most of the crowd was cheering for "both" teams at the end is awesome. It represents that segments of the hispanic population are beginning to accept the US National Team as their team. Perhaps if the game is a WCQ, we would not have had that response, but perhaps if the US were playing someone else - say Costa Rica - a lot of those Mexican-Americans might just show up and cheer for the US of A. It's all about progress and acceptance. Ten years of results on the field appear to be slowly turning the tide of acceptance in the latin American communities. You may say "yuck", but it's a much needed milestone for fans of American soccer. If you haven't lived here, and haven't been going to US games for the last ten years, then you likely wouldn't understand, and your reaction would make sense.