SSS do make a difference when it comes to how MLS appears on TV. It was nice to watch a soccer match in the US when all the seats are filled with fans. The game had a feeling of importance. Even though I dont care for PKs, the drama was palpable and having the stands full adds to it. SSS really do make a difference and I think the league is right to require them for future franchises. Kudos to Pizza Hut Park. It is not the best name for a stadium but its a damn good facility.
uh dude, sorry but the 90's at rfk, and ne stadiums were so much better! bring it back to those places! sss looks like minor league, just like abc's broadcast of it, MINOR LEAGUE!
MLS Cup needs to be held at one of the team's home pitch. I know they prefer to have things planned out WELL in advance for the Cup, but nothing will ever come close to the Cup DC won at RFK. Have a bye week after the Conference Finals a'la the NFL, team with the most points for the season gets homefield advantage. The game will sellout given 2 weeks time, and it's still long enough for the visitors fans to set up hotels and flights.
I much prefer not being able to see a single empty seat from any camera view to seeing many empty seats (MLS Cups 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000). Plus, had DC United and New England not made it to the Cup in their homes in 1997 & 2002 respectively, those would not have been sellouts. Soccer championships played in stadiums built for the sport with a sellout crowd is ALWAYS better. How does it look minor league? How was ABC's coverage minor league (outside of the no trophy presentation)? If you are going to make laughably bad statements, try to at least explain why I shouldn't have a stomach ache after laughing at you.
1.the cups at the bigger stadiums have had better atmosphere and have drawn TWICE as much as people as todays cup did........(no offense to houston, great turnout, and LOVED the smoke bomb, great first year for you supporters) 2.read the ABC sucks thread, enough said
You forgot one thing: In your opinion. The atmosphere at MLS Cup 1998 was not great, nor was it all that great in 1999, 2000, and even 2002. Atmospheres in 2003, 2005, and today far surpassed any before it. Soccer played in stadiums built for the sport, in front of a sell out crowd, is always better. Always. Always. Disagree if you like. But always.
I suppose the NBA Finals and the Stanley Cup Finals look minor league because they are in regular 18,000 to 20,000 seat stadiums rather than in huge 65,000+ domed arenas.
The only advantage of playing at a SSS is that it has a built-in stage for some stupid band to play during halftime. I guess a built-in stage is necessary for a soccer stadium. Well, maybe here it is. RFK does not have a built in stage but I am sure a temporary structure could have been built behind what is the dugout if needed. This whole SSS thing is a big joke. There is nothing soccer specific about these stadia other than it is controlled by MLS owners who get to keep profits from parking and concessions. Why so many buy into this hype has me baffled.
yea, but PHP doesn't have a built in warning track and outfield wall. SSS's are better for finals because of the atmosphere. So what if there's a stage, the facility is a great place for soccer, and I personally loved the atmosphere. rep to JCUnited, i totally agree
behind the one net there are no seats, just the warning track and right field wall for the Nats. would look great on tv...
Soccer & Entertainment Stadiums (SES's) work better than football stadiums for cup finals. How would holding the final in a football stadium sell more seats? The '04 Cup didn't selllout, the '05 Cup sold out on the Friday before the game, and this year's did late on Wednesday (or on Thursday depending on who you ask). Transfer those crowds to football stadiums. Would you like 26K at the Rose Bow? 25K at the Cotton Bowl? The PHP stage may be a nuisance, but there's nothing efficient that can be done about it (for now).
Have you ever been to RFK? Because you sure as hell have no clue about what you are talking about. There never have been seats in that area for DC United. Bleachers were there for the Redskins and for the WC. DC use to have tents and seating for parties and entertainment before baseball came into town. There use to be seating on the other goal but those were removed so the seats that cover the left field wall for soccer matches get rolled back to the third base line. RFK goes through a complete transformation between baseball and soccer. Now have you ever been to the Pizza Bowl? Behind one goal there are no seats because there is a SSS stage for concerts when Soccer is not being Specifically played at the Stadium. Looks great on TV too.
I was at the game today. If it was a sell-out than there was about a 1000 no-shows. On the side the cameras were on, the two sections at either endline were only about half-full. Sell-out was probably another MLS marketing liberty. As for me? I think these SSS are nice for regular season but I hope the MLS brass are aiming for a MLS cups to be in bigger, grander stadiums. PHP does feel like AAA baseball, rather than the Major Leagues.
Read my previous post. And there really is no outfield wall. Behind that goal area, there is a fenced area that is used for the bullpen. In the old days, that wall was a scoreboard for baseball. During the Redskins era, there were bleachers behind the goalposts that were used for the WC. That area has always been empty for DC United, baseball or not.
Pretty sure that the sections that you're referring to were sections where the tickets were distributed to corporate/league sponsors.
dude, i so some empty seats...like rows of them on television...but that didn't matter...the atmosphere was all dynamo...quite good.
The atmoshere was much better this year than it was last year when the crowd seemed to be shot up with novicane. You got to leave it to Houston to give that park a heart beat. Lord knows Dallas fans arn't doing that.
I agree... See SSS work perfect for smaller league matches, but double-headers and special games, like the All-Star game and the Cup need to be held in bigger stadiums... especially if we are gonna be facing teams like Chelsea... There's a reason more than appearance that it needs to be done... its these things $$$$$$$$ Here are the MLS Cup Attendance figures... 1996 - Foxboro Stadium - 34,643 (in the rain) 1997 - RFK Stadium - 57,431 (in the rain) 1998 - Rose Bowl - 51,350 1999 - Foxboro Stadium - 44,910 2000 - RFK Stadium - 39,159 2001 - Crew Stadium - 21,626 2002 - Gillette Stadium - 61,316 2003 - Home Depot Center - 27,000 2004 - Home Depot Center - 25,797 2005 - Pizza Hut Park - 21,193 2005 - Pizza Hut Park - 22,427 SSS Avg. Att. = 23,608 Large Stadium Avg. Att. = 48,134 Now I'm no finance expert... but one would imagine with more than twice as many people showing up, you could make more money a larger stadium than a smaller one... Surely they could make up the revenue lost on renting it out for that one event...
granted.. but at a large stadium, if the home team wasnt playing, do you still think you would average 48K? doubtful... it was all great luck that the rev's were playing at gillette in the 02 final.... i do like the idea of the team with the most points between the 2 finalists gets to host the final.. that would almost assure a sellout.
yeah i'm sure having our final in a stadium with thousands of empty seats will really help the league grow.
And I bet you'd be wrong on that count. The cost to rent the stadium is one thing, but the loss of all the ancillary revenues (parking, concessions, etc. etc.) is a very, very big deal. The only revenue you're generating is ticket sales. That's it. Plus, it's a great way to showcase the benefits of an SSS to communities that are considering them in their own localities.
Hardly... What a sell-out means... is that people wanted to buy tickets to see an MLS game that couldn't... and thus revenue lost, which might otherwise have been earned... We are a fledgling league that needs all the $$$ we can get. Also, I've been watching MLS since the beginning, and the two games with the best atmoshphere were the 1st one in NE in the rain... and the one in DC when they won at home. Next to that I would say the 61K+ that did not sell-out Gillette Stadium was perhaps the greatest stadium atmosphere in MLS history... These SSS (or SES) fields look nice, and it is great to see MLS Stadium's that look full during sparsely attended regular season matches... but there is no way you can tell me that Foxboro, RFK, Gillette, and the Rose Bowl looked empty... It litterally looked like 3 times as many people as were there today... as it often was... and the sound 40-60K people make is much louder and far more resonating than what 20-25K people make...