Meanwhile Raleigh continues to lead the Nation from a EuropCup viewership ratings perspective…charlotte usa…nowhere to be found
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That along with Wake County having the Largest Youth soccer program in the country, it’s clear what wags the MLS tail.
Hint: It’s cash
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Why do we lack the cash? Isn’t our problem less cash than a lack of people with it willing to spend?
If MLS can have Columbus and Cincinnati, two smaller markets in a shrinking state, they can add a Triangle team in with Charlotte. Use Carter-Finley if you must, little different than the refusal to give the Revs or NYCFC homes of their own.
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It’s even more crazy to me because we seemed like we had a pretty solid stadium plan in place at DTS than many other cities had when they got the MLS bid.
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This topic (MLS) seems to be spanning multiple threads right now but it just donned on me that our current brand was probably created to increase our adoption across the state (NCFC), and now that Charlotte has a team, does it make sense to rebrand to something more focused and regional? Charlotte certainly didn’t give a _____ about branding to include the state.
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I’d say yes, but now that we’re basically playing in D3 the relevance factor has taken another dive. The club is far more focused on youth development (another thing that should’ve been a point in our favor as we have one of the best youth systems in the country) rather than pro team results.
I think our main focus should still be getting MLS to Raleigh.
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So on that note… the Canes renewed on PNC through the end of the decade, right? By then we should, in theory, have BRT running in at least three directions and maybe commuter/regional rail. Is it possible that we’ll have turned a corner by then and thus be more capable of drawing fans to a downtown stadium, or am I being too optimistic?
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I think it’s too early to tell. We don’t know how well BRT will be embraced by game day visitors and other infrequent riders. At the end of the day, our community is a major echo chamber about new urbanism and progressive transit; since most people probably still think BRT is just a fancy bus (if they’re aware of the project at all), I’m not sure if they can envision how it could change their game day experiences for the better.
The infrastructure would totally help, but I think the public imagination needs to be there, too, if a downtown stadium is going to stand a chance. In other words, I think if you build it and they get it, they will come. That cultural acceptance will be hard, though, without the Canes and GoRaleigh (and maybe other stakeholders too) partnering together more than we’ve ever seen before.
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Right now, there’s no incentive for the Canes to partner with GoRaleigh. Any person taking the bus to PNC would eat into their parking revenue. Dundon is probably doing the number crunching (or having his employees do it, tbh) to see if the additional revenue from a downtown arena would offset the loss of parking revenue. There definitely would be less team-controlled spaces, as both public decks and transit would cut into those numbers.
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Yeah - TBH the $20 to park there is ridiculous. But people pay it, so I guess not. The few times I have gone to games, I’ll park at one of the office parks nearby and take a 15 minute walk.
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So does that make it okay?
What is he a billionaire for if he can’t pony up his billions. I would argue living in a false class solidarity with billionaires is more ‘delusional’.
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He’s a billionaire who lives in reality….you can complain all you want……he isn’t paying for an arena out of his pocket….nor is any other professional sports team owner in America.
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Well then maybe he shouldn’t have accrued a cost he can’t afford.
Fiscal responsibility. Could cite countless articles about how taxpayers ponying up dough for arenas doesn’t often work out. Like I said, doesn’t make it okay just because it’s common. Hopefully that godawful trade yesterday isn’t related to how much cash Tom has.
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[quote=“Alek, post:2296, topic:299”]
Could cite countless articles about how taxpayers ponying up dough for arenas doesn’t often work out. Like I said, doesn’t make it okay just because it’s common.[/quote]
I think that cases like Glendale and Broward County where services took a hit in the name of keeping a white elephant viable are a cautionary tale for anyone, especially since Glendale has tossed so much in the name of their arena and the Coyotes that they’ve seemingly forgotten about the stadium down the street that can host Super Bowls and Final Fours. Those venues don’t grow on trees.
The tale of Cincinnati getting fleeced twice - building now-U.S. Bank Arena after the NBA’s Royals bailed for Kansas City in the 70s and Paul Brown Stadium in the late 90s - is cautionary in itself. Even Kansas City, who built an arena with taxpayer funds and has had no appetite for a tenant because of the financial hit the city would take, is shameful in itself.
I think the bit about Ned’s longtime girlfriend being a nursing student at Michigan State may have played a role in it do a degree, but these questionable antics seem par for Waddell’s book given what he did back in Atlanta (RIP Thrashers, a team sacrificed to keep a worse off team alive).
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Soccer Stadium Digest today posted the current attendance figures for the 2021 season as of date . The NC Courage averages 5,300 fans a game and NCFC averages 1,600 fans a game . I rounded of the numbers . I still support a DTSouth Soccer Stadium Project .
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How did the Courage stack up with the rest of the league?
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Third place. Louisville gets about 1000 more per game in a larger venue while Portland is in first place by a country mile (average of 15,000).
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Louisville also has a pretty swank new stadium on the edge of downtown.
That’s great for the Courage!
Thanks @jdb820 !!
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If my memory is right , NCFC was 6th out of 10 teams in attendance . A few teams averaged less than 1,000 fans a game .
How about an NFL team for the yet unfunded or built stadium?
The Bills are making noise about leaving NY if the public doesn’t pony up for a new, full-taxpayer financed stadium!