San Jose is Back???

According the FoxSoccer.com, MLS will expand in 2008 and bring back San Jose to the fold. The Earthquakes will be back playing next season. Am I missing something or did this team get relocated less than three years ago for lackluster attendances and lack of overall fan interest? What has changed?

There are many, many other cities in the US that would welcome an MLS team with open arms. Charlotte comes to mind as one of many. Why would MLS go back to San Jose after failing? Can someone please explain the rationale behind this one?

 

My understanding is that the problem last time was a stadium issue, and if they could get a stadium they'd be given a team. That is the kind of market that should do well for soccer and leaving there is a little bit like when hockey moved the North Stars from Minnesota to Dallas.

 

Okay, I am opening a can of worms here, but why is it that American sports franchises think that simply building a stadium will bring people to games? Yes, a new stadium might give you a spike in attendance the first few matches, but that goes away.

I can speak first hand of this from watching the attendance at Fire matches. There was around 20,000 for the first two matches and then things went down hill back to between 10-14 thousand which was comparable to that of their playing days at Soldier Field.

Soccer is not the only sport that subscribes to this theory. Baseball is guilty as well. New stadiums open up and while people will go to see the place, they rarely make regular visits as more times than not the team sucks. Look at the Brewers. Their new park was drawing rave reviews and while people went the first month or so, attendance went back down. Now this year they are winning again and people are coming out. Thus, winning drives attendances, not new parks and stadiums.

That being said, San Jose was a winning team in MLS. Yet they still drew little to nothing. How is it that a new stadium can and will make this organization survive? It baffles me.

 

Tom is right....

This is baffling, MLS is reviving the franchise on no more than the 'promise' of a stadium. No word on where it will be located or even if there's a certainty it will be built.

WORSE, the team will not even have a singular venue when it starts up... imagine trying to get good seats and plan your gamedays when you're not sure where the games are going to be.

I know that core SJ supporters liked the old stadium because it gave the team an advantage but it frankly looked bad on tv.. I cant imagine the atmosphere was much better in person.
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It may not actually be that bad... example is Crew is looking for a new larger practice facility. But before they settle on one of the proposals from various cities/ townships around Cols, they are actually considering a new stadium to be built with it. So this affects plans to improve the present one.

And San Jose should pay attention, as well. Because if the Crew should accept one of the offers, 45 minute drive east of Cols... I aint going. It's not the time, it's the headaches of traffic and construction.

 

MLS can and will succeed in cities where it is wanted. Places where there are NOT as many professional sports. For example, here in Chicago, the Fire is crowded out by the Cubs, White Sox, Bulls, Bears, etc. There is little to no room for them to be popular amongst the public.

However, cities like Columbus, Salt Lake, the aforementioned Cary, NC as well as places like Portland, Oregon, etc might be towns that would embrace a team the way Toronto has this season.

Now, Columbus already has a team and I was just using that city as an example of a good selection by MLS. Columbus is a fast growing town that has a lot to offer, yet the team is not drowned out by other sports teams. The only other professional major league organization is the Blue Jackets. Although you could say Ohio State easily trumps them all. But, I think you get my point.

 

**Have to throw out the gratzi's to all involved in getting the MB back in running, a labor of love to be sure, but a labor nontheless**

Odd choice to be sure, but it seems to me they drew quite well to that old relic (maybe a NoCal can elaborate), the powers that be drew a line in the sand on building a new stadium and the bluff was called.

Haven't seen a game from NC, how many does the stadium sit?? On top of that the owners there have to shell out $30 million on the franchise fee which is probably the sticking point.

To steal and manipulate a line from Field of Dreams, the adage of 'Build it and they will come' is a temporary band aid, you have to put a winner on the pitch and market the hell out of it.

 

SJ had/has about 30,000 fans. There problem was that without their own stadium, the team couldn't support itself financially.

This is, in fact, the big driver for stadiums. By having their own stadium, the team gets the full ticket receipts (minus taxes, costs, and the MLS portion), parking, and concessions. A team that has to "borrow" a stadium is simply not a sustainable thing, at least not at the top pro level.

 

I'm not down with the choice. I think the main logic is that they found an owner in Lew Wolf with deep pockets and a desire to make it work. But where was he two years ago?

MLS keeps talking a big talk about their big 20 mil expansion fee and the requirement of a stadium and owner in place. But again they've simply brushed those standards aside.

I will say that the quakes seemed to be plauged by constant turmoil, ownership and front office changes. Not to mention Lalas for a GM! AEG seemed to do a very poor job with the franchise and yet it was still fairly successful. If it were a decent organization then it could really work. Still I'd prefer a second Canadian team. Montreal would be awesome!

On a side note as anyone else seen the incredible sinking attendance in CHivas Land? Where is Vegara and his big mouth now? He better get off his ass and sort it out.

 

30,000 fans?!!!! About 10,000 of whom showed up/bought tickets on a given gameday.. when they were WINNING. And since the college wouldnt budge on parking or concessions, what else should MLS do?


I can figure it out... STOP bringing in Mexican teams. Or else move Chivas USA to the Mexican league.

Once the SoCal hispanics can go back to pretending their futbol is better and 'more pure', they'll sell out every game.

 

Quakes averaged about 13,500 (lows of 10K, highs of 17K) throughout their tenure here. Spartan stadium is/was a horrible stadium for soccer. Add to that, the logistical nightmare of getting to the stadium (not easily accessible from public transport) which Petty described and, voila, a city of 1 mil, predominately Hispanic citizens, cannot find the support to make the club a successful concern. The stadium issue will be resolved soon because, for some suspicious reason, I believe the soccer - specific stadium will be built along with the new A's park in Fremont. All I know is that Fremont better upgrade the public transit from the BART to the stadium or else it is going to be a nightmare getting in and out of the new stadium.

Also, there's an odd north bay v. south bay dichotomy in this area which prevents residents of either area from travelling to the other, whether it be out of distance, snobbery, weather (its much hotter in San Jose than SF or Oakland), etc. Thus, by putting the team in San Jose, as opposed to a central location to truly take advantage of a top 5 national media market, it isolated many potential fans who wouldn't make the trek to San Jose (wierd, yes, but this is California and the people in the bay area are strangely territorial).

The bay area is getting another team because, as somebody already stated, Lew Wolff bathes in money every evening - and then burns the soiled bills just because he can. A city like Portland, I believe, would be a great choice. No. 1, the pacific northwest is an untapped market and, No. 2, I believe the residents of Portland would rabidly support another professional level team.

 

any way RSL can pawn off about 9/10's of their team to the new San Jose franchise?

 

I saw the Chelsea-Club America game at Stanford and that would be a nice temproary stadium for the Quakes to use. I am a new rsident to the bay Area and am veru excited!