grasshopper1917 Posted February 2, 2017 Share Posted February 2, 2017 I was just wondering if anyone had any insight to why Edmonton drew so poorly last year in NASL? They were dead last in the league and I would think for a city that size they could have got a few thousand fans a night out? Just something I was curious about if someone is from out that way..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
supercanuck1010 Posted February 2, 2017 Share Posted February 2, 2017 A major problem is that not many people want to go to a game at 2 in the afternoon on a Sunday, although there were other problems like weather :/, but probably the biggest factor is that there wasn't enough exposure during the season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shermanator Posted February 2, 2017 Share Posted February 2, 2017 From my perspective 3 hours south I think it's pretty simple. This is a club that had put out a very half assed product both on and off the pitch for the first 5 years of their existence. Outside of the first year there was very little marketing done towards the club. The stadium is better served for high school football than it is for any sort of professional sport. On the pitch the club had never finished in the top half of the season ever. Throw in the worst recession in the province in a generation and that means low, low crowds. More than that, Sunday start times are a killer for the casual crowd. So is the weather. The new GM seems to be changing things up on the marketing side of things. Putting up a pop up store in the soccer centre just seems like a no brainer. No one has any idea of the NASL offseason struggles either, so that won't hurt the club. Not sure what else they are doing advertising wise, but they've doubled their season ticket sales already. On the pitch, the club was actually a good squad for the first time ever and can build on that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThatDaveCh Posted February 2, 2017 Share Posted February 2, 2017 To build on what was already mentioned, this coming season will feature only 5 Sunday afternoon fixtures, the rest being on Friday evenings and Saturdays. Additionally, the recent success of the club and the increased exposure in the offseason has led to the club being much more present in the public consciousness than in years prior. I think these factors, along with what has been mentioned earlier (ie: doubling of season ticket sales) will lead to stronger crowds this coming season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Macksam Posted February 2, 2017 Share Posted February 2, 2017 ^^^^That and the fact they didn't play nice with the various youth clubs around the city also probably contributed to it. I remember when I first heard of the expansion back in 2009 or 2010, I was just underwhelmed by the whole thing. A new or relocated professional sports franchise starting up in a city need a myriad of things checked off to make it work right off the bat, and it looked like they had or did none of those things. I think it was obvious he was gunning for a publicly financed stadium, which his construction company would have bid the tender on. The fact they seem to have turned it around now to a certain degree is amazing. Maybe FC Edmonton will pull a Philadelphia Flyers, a franchise that started pitifully but soon goes onto become one of the city's most beloved sports team. Lol, how fucked up and even further fragmented would our soccer pyramid become then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob.notenboom Posted February 2, 2017 Share Posted February 2, 2017 Apologies as I'm not usually into the self-promotion thing, but it has happened multiple times in the last week or so. However ... I interviewed Jay Ball, FC Edmonton GM, earlier this week and the podcast went live this morning. Many of the things you guys have mentioned he also mentioned and many more. A very articulate guy and you certainly get the sense that the times might be changing for the better in Edmonton. Of course, the proof is in the pudding in the form of butts in seats this season. https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/from-the-black-hole/id625923470?mt=2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuillermoDelQuarto Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 2 hours ago, supercanuck1010 said: A major problem is that not many people want to go to a game at 2 in the afternoon on a Sunday, although there were other problems like weather :/, but probably the biggest factor is that there wasn't enough exposure during the season. thank god they got some friday and saturday evening games. Could potentially have a massive impact. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rintaran Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 3 hours ago, ThatDaveCh said: To build on what was already mentioned, this coming season will feature only 5 Sunday afternoon fixtures, the rest being on Friday evenings and Saturdays. Additionally, the recent success of the club and the increased exposure in the offseason has led to the club being much more present in the public consciousness than in years prior. I think these factors, along with what has been mentioned earlier (ie: doubling of season ticket sales) will lead to stronger crowds this coming season. Only 5 Sunday afternoon fixtures will be a great improvement, but where's that info from? I don't remember reading that, but would love to catch the article/podcast. Hopefully the NASL schedule will be out soon. As it is, their late release will require US Soccer to issue a waiver in order for the SF Deltas to compete in the US Open Cup. Doesn't affect us much, but they're shaping up to be a good team, and with Dos Santos at the helm, will be worth watching. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob.notenboom Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 2 hours ago, Rintaran said: Only 5 Sunday afternoon fixtures will be a great improvement, but where's that info from? I don't remember reading that, but would love to catch the article/podcast. Hopefully the NASL schedule will be out soon. As it is, their late release will require US Soccer to issue a waiver in order for the SF Deltas to compete in the US Open Cup. Doesn't affect us much, but they're shaping up to be a good team, and with Dos Santos at the helm, will be worth watching. Jay Ball said that both on Rabbit Radio, the FCE Official podcast, and then later on FTBH. I don't recall the exact numbers, but there were several Saturday night and Friday night games, and they were very excited about the marketability of those games. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuillermoDelQuarto Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 what rob said. It's going to be a very interesting year if you ask me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BringBackTheBlizzard Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 13 hours ago, grasshopper1917 said: I was just wondering if anyone had any insight to why Edmonton drew so poorly last year in NASL? Part of it appears to be that they weren't papering the house with complimentary tickets and very low price youth soccer oriented group sales, while several of their league counterparts were. Rayo Oklahoma for example were found to be handing out over 3,000 freebies per game before they ran into financial issues: http://midfieldpress.com/2016/09/27/desolation-row-a-final-post-on-the-off-field-drama-at-rayo-okc/ Attendance figures: According to the NASL figures, Rayo OKC’s total announced attendance for the 11 home games between April 2 and July 30 was 48,545. That gives an average attendance of 4,413 per game. According to the contract between the club and the school district that owns the stadium, Rayo OKC must pay a “ticket surcharge” to Yukon Public Schools (YPS) of $1 per ticket sold. Payment is due on the last day of the calendar month. On August 9 – after the current management had assumed direct control of the club – a payment was made in the amount of $13,302 for ticket fees for April 2 through July 30. This payment was for all tickets sold during the season so far. Average announced attendance per game: 4,413 Average charged attendance per game: 1,209 So, with simple math: Average attendance not charged per game: 3,203 With this in mind, and the statement that the new management is severely restricting the dispersal of “free” tickets, the attendance drop-off seems a little less precipitous. Announced attendance numbers for minor league soccer operations in North America should always be taken with a pinch of salt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rheo Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 16 hours ago, rob.notenboom said: Apologies as I'm not usually into the self-promotion thing, but it has happened multiple times in the last week or so. However ... I interviewed Jay Ball, FC Edmonton GM, earlier this week and the podcast went live this morning. Many of the things you guys have mentioned he also mentioned and many more. A very articulate guy and you certainly get the sense that the times might be changing for the better in Edmonton. Of course, the proof is in the pudding in the form of butts in seats this season. https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/from-the-black-hole/id625923470?mt=2 Really enjoyed this (although not quite finished yet). Loved the story about how they had their biggest sale day for tickets on when it looked like NASL was dead. Good reminder that while we're in the soccer bubble over analyzing every little bit of news, for most people ignorance is bliss. Edmonton FC was just their team that was going to be back next season or "wow, there's a new all Canadian soccer league that came out of nowhere" when/if the CPL gets announced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob.notenboom Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 2 minutes ago, Rheo said: Really enjoyed this (although not quite finished yet). Loved the story about how they had their biggest sale day for tickets on when it looked like NASL was dead. Good reminder that while we're in the soccer bubble over analyzing every little bit of news, for most people ignorance is bliss. Edmonton FC was just their team that was going to be back next season or "wow, there's a new all Canadian soccer league that came out of nowhere" when/if the CPL gets announced. Yes all credit to Jay Ball on this one. Great interview subject. Smart, capable, and articulate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rintaran Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 13 hours ago, rob.notenboom said: Jay Ball said that both on Rabbit Radio, the FCE Official podcast, and then later on FTBH. I don't recall the exact numbers, but there were several Saturday night and Friday night games, and they were very excited about the marketability of those games. I keep meaning to add Rabbit Radio to my podcast list! No time like the present. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuillermoDelQuarto Posted February 4, 2017 Share Posted February 4, 2017 I know personally it's going to have a big impact on how involved I can be. Just couldn't be getting hammered on a sunday every week last year. Friday or saturday night however.... Did someone mention they weren't able to bang the drum anymore? lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.