I actually enjoyed watching Marta and Abby on the same team as well as my favorite, Brittany Klein playing with the "stars".
Big difference. The people that go to Notre Dame and North Carolina games are usually student body whom I assume get free or discounted tickets, parents and relatives of players and a some hard core fans like me and some others on these boards. I'm sure there will be more than 5,000 this Friday in South Bend to watch North Carolina vs. Notre Dame. I doubt anyone that has gone to a college game has had to pay $20 to get in and $50 for Club seats to see top level soccer. I've never had to pay more than $5-$7 for a college game And as far as soccer specific stadium, Toyota Park in Chicago is just that, but even getting 7-8,000 makes a stadium of 22,000 like TP look empty. I think the St. Louis folks did a good job. I wouldn't mind seeing the All-Star game at a non-WPS venue like at WakeMed in Cary, NC.
I don't think you can look at just StL for a "lack of" fans. This was for the whole WPS. It wasn't up to just STL to fill the stands. I saw fans there wearing CHI and WASH and even a Boston shirt. The MLB all-star game was filled with people from all over the US, it wasn't up to the host city to fill it. Why should this game be any different?
I also liked it when you Athletica guys sang "Meet Me in St. Louis" at the end of the game. I thought it was a nice touch. You guys should have been on Youtube, but we'll settle for Judy Garland: [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csw2yBYYFdA"]YouTube - Judy Garland - Meet Me in St. Louis (song)[/ame]
The guy tells them to "For heaven's sake, stop that screeching." Imagine what he would have said about us. I'd give Judy the edge in vocal talent.
In its first year I would think all the players would have been at the all star game to support their league. Go ahead make excuses for them!!!This is the players league and they need to make it happen. The truth is they don't watch their own sport! Mrad the soccer god you go to ND and Carolina games games. Well if you do there are a hell of alot more then student body that go to their games. How about the local fans and the many club players from around south bend that attend the games. Besides in the Pros that student body is a fan base! Then Mrad are you kidding me about ticket pricing. The WPS had so many discounted ticket offers. My friend told me that the Red Stars offered that if you went to the opener the next game with that stub was 50% off. Then another game was buy one and get the next for a $1.00. The point is without fans their will be no league!
You're absolutely right. There are local and just fans of Notre Dame and North Carolina that go to their games regularly as well as the students. But to compare the college attendance with WPS attendance, IMO is comparing apples and oranges. And yes, the Red Stars did have ticket promotions, etc. I'm not a soccer god as you put it. I just love the sport. I played it all my life and still do and I watch as many soccer games as I can get my hands on. Notre Dame and UNC are two schools that I have followed regularly since early-mid nineties and have seen and met some great players from both schools as well as parents of players and friends who are fans. Attendance for WPS will only go up. But meanwhile they may have to find ways to cut expenses.
Jenn said they are called skorts and they should give all players the option of wearing those except goalies. They can make them look better though.
I don't remember, and didn't see anything mentioned explicitly earlier in this thread: was there a Game MVP/Woman of the Match awarded at all?
I think they gave the MVP of the game to Rampone at the awards ceremony on the field after the game. The strange thing is FSC named Marta (1 goal, 2 assists) as the player of the game. What about Sinclair and her 2 goals?? I guess you could've had 3 players of the game. LOL! That tall Swedish chick did very well too but not enough for MVP in a losing cause.
IMHO, Sinclair should have got it or Marta. But Rampone kept the defense together after the initial lapses.
And/or increase revenues by hitting this year's sponsorship goals next year. I'm not sure there a lot of expenses to be cut.
Why will attendance go up? Why is that a sure thing? Mrad you can start a new thread on the future of the WPS if you want.
This part was totally unnecessary. You seriously need to stop with the trolling and personal attacks. Totally off-topic for the thread as well.
Yea because no one wants it to end like this [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxvNxsJzyxI"]YouTube - Funny Football Fight[/ame]
WOW that's one of the most amazing fights I've ever seen in soccer. Not one solid punch landed... Just like baseball.
You realize that the "skort" is the evil brainchild of Puma and has nothing to do with Sweden? It first reared its ugly head on the Puma WPS uniform presentation thingy and has never existed before, except in the twisted imagination at the underground Puma HQ in Germany. I feel I really must go ahead and point that out...
I think everybody here realizes that. It got quite the mixed reaction when they were revealed and any time a player warmed up in it.