United dropped its first match in USL PRO history at the Peoria Sports Complex in front of 2,888 fans
Anyone else think this isn't that good for the league, as a whole? 3-4 weeks in and 9 out of the 18 games have been played in front of <1,300 people. 5 games played in front of < 750
I'm under the impression the Galaxy aren't terribly concerned about promoting Los Dos. It's looking like they're going to be a drag on the league.
Barring problems, expect good crowds in Orlando, Richmond, Charleston, Pittsburgh, Wilmington and Rochester (if they can improve play). Expect little in Dayton, Arizona-Phoenix, OC. The jury is out on LA II (seen by many as the reserve team), Sac, and OKC.
Sac will be fine - will almost assuredly lead the league in attendance this year as their season ticket sales should guarantee that (with an assist from the drop at Orlando due to their seating capacity). Not sure about OKC. When it is all said and done, the average attendance will be about what it was last year - in the 2600 per game range.
The Reserve and second teams, should probably not be included on the averages, or have 2 averages, one with and one with out. Just my Opinion.
If they are full members of the league, they should be counted. If RSL were to place a team in San Diego that essentially acted in the same manner as LAII we'd still count them wouldn't we? Just because a team is branded the same and in the same market doesn't mean their attendance shouldn't be considered. Besides, it isn't even like Los Dos' numbers are out of line with other teams in the league... it already looks like they will be on par with Dayton, the Blues and Charlotte... and they might not even be all that far behind Harrisburg and Arizona when all is said and done. they just happen to be a bottom tier attendance team.... even if they "stabilize" at the 500 area, thats still more than VSI was drawing.
Once I get around to posting my numbers (maybe later this week, maybe next week), I will be including LAG II. They're a member of the league. Unlike the Reserve teams, they are playing a full season and are eligible for playoffs, etc. The MLS Reserve teams are only playing a few games, so while I am collecting that information, I won't be including it as part of my numbers.
Or, same thread post 49. I didn't see it when I saw a DDL post about they were "near 1000" fans. Oh well. Never hurts to have some verification right?
You would be disappointed. The identity of the visiting team is far less important the the date and the ability of the home team to sell tickets in general. If Dayton goes to Harrisburg and the game draws 1700 and then goes to Sacramento and it draws 10k, what will you have learned? Except in the rare case of an ACTUAL rivalry (which is tough to get in a league with so many teams that are five years old or younger), the identity of the road team means very little.
That is what I expected. The actual die-hard fan will understand the quality/history of the opposing team, but for many it seems which promotion, what is the weather like, etc is paramount.