Metro Vancouver CPL Club

[Watchmen]

On 4/15/2022 at 12:32 PM, narduch said:

Haven't listened to this yet.

 

Got around to listening to this on the weekend.  Boy, he seemed to regret naming the first team "Pacific".  Made the comment that they're 4 years in and he's still having to explain to people where they play and that a lot of the standings he sees just say the team's city name anyway.  When asked about possible names for the new team, he shied away from names like "Fort" (based on Fort Langley) or involving the Fraser Valley or just Langley (we don't want to offend the people in Surrey), circled back a few times to "global naming/recognition" and "we're in the GVRD".  So I have no idea what they end up naming it, but he sure sounded to me like he'd like to stick "Vancouver" in there somewhere.

[Bison44]

^^^ This.  I know they were trying to be cool, but sometimes you can out cool the people you are trying to win over.  I dont know how many people see me with my Valour gear and ask me where the team is from (and WPG is on the crest!!)  Whatever city you left coast dudes decide (langley/surrey/van),dont make it too cool for school.  Go Surrey shinooks!!  

[Unnamed Trialist]

^

Never found Pacific from Victoria, or Vancouver Island, a problem. Also never seen an online table of CPL with anything but the team names. 

[Watchmen]

6 minutes ago, Unnamed Trialist said:

^

Never found Pacific from Victoria, or Vancouver Island, a problem. Also never seen an online table of CPL with anything but the team names. 

That's fine, but Friend seems to. And I've seen the table in the Vancouver Sun/Province with the city names, no team names, so I can believe he's seen it elsewhere as well.

[narduch]

7 hours ago, Watchmen said:

Got around to listening to this on the weekend.  Boy, he seemed to regret naming the first team "Pacific".  Made the comment that they're 4 years in and he's still having to explain to people where they play and that a lot of the standings he sees just say the team's city name anyway.  When asked about possible names for the new team, he shied away from names like "Fort" (based on Fort Langley) or involving the Fraser Valley or just Langley (we don't want to offend the people in Surrey), circled back a few times to "global naming/recognition" and "we're in the GVRD".  So I have no idea what they end up naming it, but he sure sounded to me like he'd like to stick "Vancouver" in there somewhere.

Anyone interested in CPL really should listen to this interview. Lots of interesting tidbits dropped:

-leaning towards having Vancouver in the team name. Something simple like Vancouver FC.

-Josh Simpson will run Pacific and Rob Friend will run the Vancouver team

-mentioned they have foreign investors. I wonder who these are.

-they basically shopped Chung and McNaughton to TFC.

 

[Bison44]

11 hours ago, Unnamed Trialist said:

^

Never found Pacific from Victoria, or Vancouver Island, a problem. Also never seen an online table of CPL with anything but the team names. 

Of course you didnt, I didnt either but we are dialed in.  You are a soccer connoisseur, if they want to fill the stands they better try and appeal to a broader base of people eh??  

[Cicero]

7 hours ago, narduch said:

Anyone interested in CPL really should listen to this interview. Lots of interesting tidbits dropped:

-leaning towards having Vancouver in the team name. Something simple like Vancouver FC.

-Josh Simpson will run Pacific and Rob Friend will run the Vancouver team

-mentioned they have foreign investors. I wonder who these are.

-they basically shopped Chung and McNaughton to TFC.

 

Having Vancouver in the name will seem dissonant to people from the Valley. Maybe a few people from Surrey think of themselves that way, but most don't, and people from Langley, Aldergrove, White Rock and Abbotsford certainly don't. I'd be surprised if many people from north of the river ever become regulars. These teams draw very local interest. If it were my money, I'd be doing my best to attract the immediately surrounding population, not to have too grandiose a vision at first.  

[Ansem]

I get the whole name thing but it's hardly the major factor for lack attendance and "people not getting it". Lack of mainstream exposure is the main issue here. That complain wouldn't be as predominant if TSN, Sportsnet or RDS explained/said it over and over in the evening news.

How long did it took for foreigners to understand where Lazio, Juventus were from? lol

People aren't that dumb*

Edited April 19, 2022 by Ansem
*Give people more credit, humans are curious creatures

[Watchmen]

8 hours ago, narduch said:

Anyone interested in CPL really should listen to this interview. Lots of interesting tidbits dropped:

-leaning towards having Vancouver in the team name. Something simple like Vancouver FC.

-Josh Simpson will run Pacific and Rob Friend will run the Vancouver team

-mentioned they have foreign investors. I wonder who these are.

-they basically shopped Chung and McNaughton to TFC.

 

Forgot to add in my first post, but they're also looking at buying a club in Europe. Envisions building a structure similar to the City Group and Red Bull, though not on that scale.

[SpursFlu]

I think they want to trick foreign investors who know nothing about the market (seems they don't know much either) in to thinking they're buying in to a soccer team in Vancouver. This would be a big mistake 

On a side note a checked out the grounds. They're already putting up a fence around the facility. Seems there won't be seating in the endzones. I dont hate that. I'm sure they'll put up banners on the fences to inclose the playing field. There is an interesting mound on one end and maybe they'll make that a GA but I think it will likely be considered outside the grounds and you won't be able to see the game from there 

[Ansem]

13 minutes ago, SpursFlu said:

I think they want to trick foreign investors who know nothing about the market (seems they don't know much either) in to thinking they're buying in to a soccer team in Vancouver. This would be a big mistake 

On a side note a checked out the grounds. They're already putting up a fence around the facility. Seems there won't be seating in the endzones. I dont hate that. I'm sure they'll put up banners on the fences to inclose the playing field. There is an interesting mound on one end and maybe they'll make that a GA but I think it will likely be considered outside the grounds and you won't be able to see the game from there 

I don't think it's about "tricking" foreign investors into thinking they are buying a Vancouver club. Any serious investors does its homework.

The rationale is by calling it "Vancouver" they'll get more media attention than just calling it "Langley" or "Fraser". Toronto or Montreal (media) won't care and right now, that's the core of the issue for the league.

Vancouver is harder to ignore (that's their bet).

[Unnamed Trialist]

9 hours ago, narduch said:

Anyone interested in CPL really should listen to this interview. Lots of interesting tidbits dropped:

-leaning towards having Vancouver in the team name. Something simple like Vancouver FC.

-Josh Simpson will run Pacific and Rob Friend will run the Vancouver team

-mentioned they have foreign investors. I wonder who these are.

-they basically shopped Chung and McNaughton to TFC.

 

I agree with others here that you shouldn't put Vancouver in the name of a team in Langley--or at least you have to think hard how to do it. Like Vancouver Langleys, however dumb that may be. YVR, does that ring for people? But basically: probably not more than 10-15% of fans will be from north of the river. So its moot. Or am I wrong?

Pacific FC is a good name, it responds to a marketing idea that was original--no place name, and a strong colour scheme, like for Valour and Cavalry--and like all names you have to grown into them. Give them all time. Could they have gone with the Van Isle they use on merchandising? Think so, Van Isle works too, Van Isle FC, like it.

But anyways, Friend has to have conversations that few fans of the team in Langford ever do. If he finds it frustrating, fine. I am sure people in London Ontario are a little irked but they haven't changed the name. Hope he does not do something to appease folks he has dinner with in Westphalia and turns off the local base.

Edited April 19, 2022 by Unnamed Trialist

[SpursFlu]

12 minutes ago, Ansem said:

I don't think it's about "tricking" foreign investors into thinking they are buying a Vancouver club. Any serious investors does its homework.

The rationale is by calling it "Vancouver" they'll get more media attention than just calling it "Langley" or "Fraser". Toronto or Montreal (media) won't care and right now, that's the core of the issue for the league.

Vancouver is harder to ignore (that's their bet).

So because a bunch of media people in Toronto just know Vancouver it should be called Vancouver. Maybe they need to learn something new. The culture and environment between Vancouver and the Valley is completely different. We need our own identity. How come Forge isn't called Toronto Forge? At what point is Toronto no longer Toronto? I'm genuinely asking

Edited April 19, 2022 by SpursFlu

[Trois Reds]

3 minutes ago, SpursFlu said:

So because a bunch of media people in Toronto just know Vancouver it should be called Vancouver. Maybe they need to learn something new. The culture and environment between Vancouver and the Valley is completely different. We need our own identity. How come Forge isn't called Toronto Forge? At what point is Toronto no longer Toronto? I'm genuinely asking 

Once it gets to Mississauga (just west on a map) it's not Toronto.  Hamilton is definitely not Toronto, it would be like Pacific being called Vancouver Pacific. 

Edited April 19, 2022 by Trois Reds

[Ansem]

3 minutes ago, SpursFlu said:

So because a bunch of media people in Toronto just know Vancouver it should be called Vancouver. Maybe they need to learn something new. The culture and environment between Vancouver and the Valley is completely different. We need our own identity. How come Forge isn't called Toronto Forge? At what point is Toronto no longer Toronto? I'm genuinely asking

I hate it as much as you do but got to see the world for what it is, not how we want it to be. Reality is if the major media center decides to ignore you - you're invisible to casuals.

Also, agree with you that clubs shouldn't cave to stuff like this. The league had the right idea with choosing an identity speaking to your local supporters. I like the branding so far (except York 9).

For better or for worse, the league is stuck with MediaPro for the remainder of the contract. However, the success of our National Teams means that bundling CPL with CSA properties will definitely attract mainstream media who will broadcast CPL. The league will be more mainstream and attendance will increase significantly.

That's why I keep tying "CPL 2.0" with the next TV deal

[SpursFlu]

6 minutes ago, Trois Reds said:

Once it gets to Mississauga (just west on a map) it's not Toronto.  Hamilton is definitely not Toronto, it would be like Pacific being called Vancouver Pacific. 

Minus the Pacific ocean

[Aird25]

51 minutes ago, SpursFlu said:

Minus the Pacific ocean

A few hours and a couple hundred bucks

[SpursFlu]

If people look at Google earth it's completely outdated. All the green undeveloped areas are either, developed, being developed or will be developed with dense residential. So row homes, townhomes or houses that are uncomfortably close to each other. There are plenty of people within walking distance of the stadium. Definitely more than people think. I saw someone point out that there are 600k people within a 20 min drive of the stadium. How many markets including Vancouver in Canada can say that? 

Edited April 19, 2022 by SpursFlu

[brianjc]

What about the following :

1886 Vancouver FC or

1886 FC

date of when city of Vancouver was founded

Just a thought.

 

[Watchmen]

22 minutes ago, brianjc said:

What about the following :

1886 Vancouver FC or

1886 FC

date of when city of Vancouver was founded

Just a thought.

 

They asked Friend about a number in the name, and he shot that idea down.

[narduch]

22 minutes ago, brianjc said:

What about the following :

1886 Vancouver FC or

1886 FC

date of when city of Vancouver was founded

Just a thought.

 

Already done. Besides the Whitecaps probably own the copyright for that name 

 

[Cicero]

3 hours ago, SpursFlu said:

If people look at Google earth it's completely outdated. All the green undeveloped areas are either, developed, being developed or will be developed with dense residential. So row homes, townhomes or houses that are uncomfortably close to each other. There are plenty of people within walking distance of the stadium. Definitely more than people think. I saw someone point out that there are 600k people within a 20 min drive of the stadium. How many markets including Vancouver in Canada can say that? 

York has more. Doesn’t necessarily result in community engagement. So does Mississauga/Brampton but OHL and other minor league teams haven’t flourished. The Battalion moved to North Bay, Ice Dogs to St. Catherines. It’s about more than just population.

[ted]

3 hours ago, brianjc said:

What about the following :

1886 Vancouver FC or

1886 FC

date of when city of Vancouver was founded

Just a thought.

 

If the team was playing in a stadium within the boundaries of the City of Vancouver, that might have been a good idea (except it was done before as above) but for a team in Langley?!? That just seems ridiculous.

[nolando]

9 hours ago, Cicero said:

Having Vancouver in the name will seem dissonant to people from the Valley. Maybe a few people from Surrey think of themselves that way, but most don't, and people from Langley, Aldergrove, White Rock and Abbotsford certainly don't. I'd be surprised if many people from north of the river ever become regulars. These teams draw very local interest. If it were my money, I'd be doing my best to attract the immediately surrounding population, not to have too grandiose a vision at first.  

Just a thought, and NOT saying it's a good idea, but I wonder if Fraser might somehow be incorporated into the team name? I've lived in the Fraser Valley and I have lived in Vancouver for an almost equal amount of time and will agree with those saying that to call this team Vancouver anything is a huge mistake that insults people in both locations.

[JohnnyFranchise]

9 hours ago, Cicero said:

Having Vancouver in the name will seem dissonant to people from the Valley. Maybe a few people from Surrey think of themselves that way, but most don't, and people from Langley, Aldergrove, White Rock and Abbotsford certainly don't. I'd be surprised if many people from north of the river ever become regulars. These teams draw very local interest. If it were my money, I'd be doing my best to attract the immediately surrounding population, not to have too grandiose a vision at first.  

I agree except for the bolded. I could see a lot of people from pitt meadows and maple ridge making the ~15 minute drive to LEC.

They need to stop overthinking this and just call it "Fraser Valley SC" already.