I think you make a good point here. The WUSA and their founders created cults of personalities instead of team loyalties although many fans still remain loyal to the old names. Freedom would probably be the closest to creating a loyal fan base because they kept the club going and because of the former stars. It seems that with Mia and the gang the rallying cry was we're doing this so that little girls can see us as idols and believe in themselves so they can grow up to be just like us- to- team concept. Thats how you grow loyalties and attendence from all demographics.
Is there a possibility...... Is there a posssibility that the revised launch date was due to speculation on how the US would do at the World Cup? Wouldn't a US victory be great PR for a new league? If the US fails to win either the Cup or the Olympics I'd think that would damage efforts to market the new league. At least if there was a season in 2008 in the run up to/coverage of the Olys NBC (or whoever's covering the Games) could show clips from games and make remarks like "Kristine Lilly scored 10 goals for the Breakers this year." OK, I'm just really disappointed. Truly, I'm concerned that 2009-2010 will be giant sucking black holes as far as publicity is concerned for the league. I don't see how you can pass up the exposure of the Olys. I just don't think you can say "WUSA II will debut seven months from now!" and think people will remember to tune in. *sigh*
Re: Is there a possibility...... If you have to rely on publicity from the WWC to be successful, it won't be successful. FWIW, though, I consistently hear that people are interested. I think once it is launched, there will be a lot of interest no matter when it happens. The key, of course, is making sure it lasts this time. Womens pro soccer may not get a third bite at the apple.
Re: Is there a possibility...... As far as I can see, there is no publicity leading up to the WWC... people may accidentaly come across a game while flipping channels at night, but I honestly do not think the majority will know there is a WWC.... both major events being so far away with the live games telecast at 4:45 and 7 ish will not inspire people to go looking for a game to watch in 1-2 weeks after it starts, even if the US wins, there will be no magazine covers (Except Soccer mags) no mention of it anywhere.... I dont see where they will get exposure from the WWC ansd Olympics... all it means is that US Soccer has to pay the players salary for another 18 months.
Re: Is there a possibility...... The Olympics will generate some publicity simply by being the Olympics. Even if the games are early in the morning, I imagine at least highlights of the U.S. will make the NBC telecasts.
Re: Is there a possibility...... This needs to be repeated. The Olympic effect of waiting until 2009 isn't the "boost", but avoiding the "disruption". In the end, it comes down to executing the long term business plan.
I think people are repeating one of the big errors of the WUSA- the mentality that the USWNT is the be all and end all of a professional league and ignoring the international stars. The "founder" label, mispronouncing names, the very name of the league all treated foreigners as afterthoughts and excluded them.
Re: Is there a possibility...... Maybe not on English-speaking channels, but at least in Galavision they have been advertising it a lot.
I think someone made the point that trying to get fans of teams versus fans of players is what is hoped for. Im not sure I agree with the name of the league hindering its success though and what do you mean about foreigners being treated as afterthoughts?
I mean I don't think it is a bad thing for MLS to have a cult of personality around a foreign star like Beckham, but despite having some fantastic international talent, the WUSA seemed to me to treat them only as supporting actors, pushing the USWNT players as the stars. Even today, articles talk about the importance of a pro league to the US team and to soccer in America and never about its importance in growing women's soccer or women's sports in general internationally. Look at the NBA, where players like Nowitzki, Nash and Yao get top billing. I wonder how much merchandise the NBA sells to fans overseas or from broadcast rights in other countries. Just as the NBA is considered the premier pro basketball league worldwide and is developing a worldwide following, I think the eventual goal for a U.S. women's soccer league isn't just success domestically, but to be embraced by women's soccer fans, sponsors and investors all over the globe. The league should be "branded" like that from the beginning. To me, the WUSA was marketed as a league founded by and existing for the benefit of the USWNT.
Im not disagreeing with anything you said but I think there is another dynamic that exists here in the US and no where else in the world and that's women playing the most popular game in the world. No where but here is it so prevalent, beleive it or not. That goes for Europe as well.
A new women's professional league here in the US will definitely benefit the USWNT and make our players better. Our team has won 2 of the 4 Women's World Cups played and 2 of the 3 Olympic tournaments. They've never finished out of the top 3 in any of these events. We are the standard bearers for the world when it comes to women's soccer. A pro league is needed to keep our ranks strong. I believe that as the league grows it should allow for more and more international players to come, play and take their experiences back to better their own game and that of their respective national teams. The introduction of international players into a US league takes time. I think what MLS has done over the years (though I could be wrong...and I know Drum'r will correct me if I am). Allow for a limited number of international players on the roster as you grow your own talent pool. Then when the financial stability is there, pay a little more for the marquee international players. Lets get started with a focus on our shores but then look outward to further enhance the game of the league as a whole. Though because we are the standard bearers of women's soccer, those international players will look to see if the league is stable and want to be over here to simply play in an environment they will not find anywhere else in the world. Thats the advantage of being the big cheese. We get to pick the wine to accompanies the meal.
I'm all for a strong, healthy, vibrant womens professional soccer league. I think it benefits the sport as a whole, benefits the US WNT and benefits the game here in the US. As far as limiting foreigners, I'm not sure that is something that needs to be changed from the last league. Seems like they had a good balance. But the key is continuity and stability. Let the game grow to large proportions on its own.
How long has it been that the NBA is having some of its top stars come from overseas? How long has it taken to get to this point? Through all the 60s, 70s, 80s and into the 90s, haven't the top NBA stars been "all-American"? Stars matter. Name-recognition matters. At the box office and in the stands. In the years when the league was around (I'm talking about the WUSA), the US women's team were the stars that people knew, particularly in the US. And they are the ones that help draw people to the games as well as legitimize the quality of the league. As it was, I thought the WUSA did a good job of letting people know that the best players in the world were playing (except the Swedes, sorry about that Sweden). Sun Wen, Sissi, Katia, Kelly Smith, Marinette Pichon, Dagny Mellgren, Hege Riise, Birgit Prinz, Maren Meinert, Charmaine Hooper, Julie Fleeting... to name some of them. Were they individually as well-known as the American women or did the WUSA make them as well-known? No but anyone with an interest in the league knew, collectively, that they were there and they represented the best in the world. The NBA, NFL, major league baseball have all been major fixtures on the American sports scene prior to their trying to expand or develop "a worldwide following." I'd be happy if a women's soccer league could do the same. If it could be the premier league in the world, attracting the best players around the world, the way the NBA is now doing (and the way the major European soccer leagues do), all the better.
A good point. An important point. I want to say: a thematic point. But as such, it's only one good point among many conflicting ones, not the whole picture. For one thing, the WUSA wasn't around long enough for the players to "retire and go away" and take their fans with them. The league "retired" before any of the players did. So that wasn't the WUSA's problem. Not that it couldn't (or wouldn't have) become a problem. Sooner or later it happens whenever a sport develops a superstar. The NBA had this with Michael Jordan. Jordan helped put fans back in the seats and when he left (both times), he took some fans with them. So it's worth pondering, as Andy suggests, how to develop loyalty to the team (or to the game) rather than to an individual player. But I don't think you can ever totally solve that problem. Interest in sports, to some (significant) degree, will always be tied in with stars, or at least that's what the past has shown us.
Apples and oranges. Basketball was invented and played in the U.S. Only recently have there been foreign players good enough to play in the NBA. In contrast, right from the first year of the WUSA, there were just as many international stars as US stars. USWNT bench players get called "founders", but someone like Riise and Sun Wen don't? I don't think the casual fan (and by definition almost everyone in America is at best a casual WUSA fan) knew those players. Outside of Mia, most of the public would be hard pressed to name a single other player. I think that was a shame. It was something of a golden age of women's soccer and no one knew about it. Those were absolute legends who came to the WUSA and they deserved more recognition as such.
I agree. I remember thinking, "if only these people knew that the best female soccer players from all over the world were playing in their backyard." It was pretty special. I'm still in awe over the fact that I got to see a front line of Mellgren, Meinert, and Lilly (a lineup any national team would kill for) on a regular basis. They did a little bit of marketing of international players (I remember magazine ads featuring Hamm and Sun Wen), but they should have done more. The international players were definitely a huge draw, once people knew they were there. I took my dad to a game, and he kept coming back, because he "loved those Germans." My younger cousin absolutely fell in love with Dagny Mellgren. It took the Breakers until the 3rd season to finally put out Meinert t-shirts, and they sold out at the first game that they were available. I'd like to see them raise the cap on international players this time around (and certainly go no lower than 4 per team, like last time). A world-class league helps raise the level of play all over the world, and that can only be good for the sport.
Here's an article from yesterday on Soccernet about the launch. It talks about the importance of having everything in place before starting. It also addresses the issue about the Olympics. http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story?id=463682&root=us&cc=5901
Now Peter Wilt weighs in ... http://chicagosports.chicagotribune...t19sep19,1,4225703.story?coll=cs-sports-print Wilt wants new league to avoid old problems .... Wilt said the new league, tentatively titled Women's Soccer LLC, will avoid the mistakes made by the Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA), which closed down in 2003 after only three seasons. The WUSA got a boost from the 1999 World Cup, won by the United States, but relied too heavily on the buzz, which eventually died down. "The new league is being done more conservatively," Wilt said. "The salaries will be reduced. We're going to be smart with money rather than throw it out the window, as was done last time. This league is also going to work with the men's league (MLS). Last time around, it stood alone and didn't reach out to MLS. "That relationship will provide an experienced staff and existing relationships." ....
where money is concerned, wusa looked a lot like nasl. didn't hit as big as nasl, but ended up in the same place....
True. Perhaps a more international structure would help. A team in Toronto or elsewhere in Canada would be great- two divisions of 4 teams(east/west). Maybe even a whole (south) division in Brazil would add an atmosphere of international play to the games. Division-whole travel could dut down on travel costs. Anyway, just a thought.
A Canadian team is a very good idea - Vancouver and Ottawa are two of the best and best-supported W-League teams. I don't see Brazil, though: let alone the travel issue, a country that scarcely supports its women's national team is unlikely to embrace professional women players, particularly if many of them aren't Brazilian.