also, the only reason i really even know about WPS is through BS. i have seen absolutely zero advertising for the league or team any where in/around NJ
Sky Blue not advertising on TV, but in the local papers. Frank Giase of the Star Ledger covered Sky Blue in his weekly column this past Tuesday. http://www.nj.com/sports/njsports/index.ssf/2009/03/sky_blues_first_goal_to_connec.html
Bueller? Anyone? Game this weekend? Anyone find a way to get to practice or hear any info from the team?
I am going to have to go ahead and ask the same question as the thread title, because it is concerning. Where are the Sky Blue fans? There is very little activity here, and i hope that does not correlate to poor support in the future... Anyway, here's a piece on Keeley Dowling and stepping into her current role: http://www.examiner.com/x-4801-NY-Soccer-Examiner~y2009m5d1-WPS-allowing-Dowling-to-prosper
there are no Sky Blue fans. This board is full of other teams supporters asking where all the Jersey fans are! Their fanbase consists of Sky Blue Soccer's youth teams! I cannot wait until May 31st/July 4th
cobi13, I guess the corollary to the question of "where are the fans?" is "where is the team front office & marketing?" They are the only team other than the Sol to have a shirt sponsor, so that's good (but wasn't that relationship pre-existing? ) What has been going on since the launch & the first home game? SkyBlue & Athletica have the smallest profile on twitter (based on this list) But Athletica seems to have some local stuff going on and a supporter group presence. Have there been player appearances anywhere? Guest slots on local radio? Ads in LGBT papers? Their next home game isn't until May 31, which likely doesn't help matters if their games aren't televised. But that just means they need to ramp up.
Sky Blue still doesn't have a fan-driven supporters group, like Boston's Riptide or St. Louis's Laclede's Army. And it's not like they can rely on the few fans the NY Power had, since they're so far away from Long Island, where the Power played. They're smack in the heart of suburbia, a little too far from NYC to really be associated with the Big Apple--what identity do you craft for your team? And the league didn't do them any favors with the schedule, having five away games in a row so early in the season. Unless the team really dominates on the road, there's no momentum to ride. I'm afraid if they get too buried in the standings by the time they finally get home, they'll be an even harder sell. It's too bad, they're a fun team to watch.
Based on what all you guys are saying is there a chance Sky Blue won't survive? Or would they need to move closer to where the Power fan base is or closer to a larger population area?
The Power had a fanbase??? The league feels the need to have a team in the NY market I guess...I doubt the league will leave that market...As long as SBS keeps paying the bills at least!
SBS - Sky Blue Soccer I don't live in the area, but I really have not seen of heard much from friends who live in the area I drove 2+ hours each way to get to the games. as it was pointed out, there is no Supports club and seems like interest is in the very low 1000's Breakers game should get a decent boost from former Charge fans going to Kelly and Mitts Now the SOL game at rutgers will be sold out (More due to Leblanc being an assistant at Rutgers than anything else) Then the true fans will come into play. I know they had a fanclub when they began in the W-League, but who knows what happened with them.
I still like the work out a deal with the Red Bulls and play at Red Bull Arena next year idea. As for this year, what's the alternative to Bridgewater/Piscataway? I don't think playing at some college on a turf field with football lines is a better solution.
I'm guessing that WPS did think through the site selections, RFR. The first, second, and third requirement for a WPS team was an ownership group willing to foot the bill and spearhead the arrangements to get a team launched. WPS is not single entity. SkyBlue did just that. In fact, at least one announced location (Dallas) pulled out--they were unable to secure a place to play (among other things). It may be that they have a good number of local fans but that those fans do not happen to be on/know about bigsoccer. It may be that they do not have fans outside of the youth club system already in place. I don't know the answer, which is why I asked the question(s). They have an ownership group (yea!) now I'm interested in their marketing and communications/publicity plan(s). And yes, to my mind, playing on grass (even a reconfigured baseball park) is MUCH preferable to astroturf football w/ permanent lines. They have a few weeks to try and build up some more ticket sales for what I assume will be a fairly big homestand (since they've got several in a row on the road).
No thanks... none of the charge fans I know will Root for the Breakers... even if some of the former charge players are there.
Speak for yourself, dude. I'm not proud, I'll take a scarf. Can't wear it at the game, though. By the way, REVS FAN 1, nice win last night. I figured if anyone was going to break LeBlanc's string of shutouts, it would be Kelly Smith, though it sounds like the credit for that one gets spread around.