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WPS Extra Time: What is wrong with people? A look at attendance

Giovanni Albanese Jr. May 3, 2011 29

Giovanni Albanese Extra Time

Five thousand, nine hundred and sixty-one people. Seriously? Allow me to rewrite that number for all you soccer fans to digest: five thousand, nine hundred and sixty-one. It seems more appropriate to write out the number – 5,961 – for emphasis when trying to show you how many people showed up to all three Women’s Professional Soccer matches over the past weekend.

Here’s the question (if you didn’t already read the headline of the piece): What is wrong with people?

In the home opener for the expansion Western New York Flash at Sahlen’s Stadium in Rochester, N.Y. – the same franchise that won the W-League title in 2010, the same franchise that stacked its roster – only 2,164 fans were in attendance. Maybe that’s acceptable for a team that has no postseason goals, or a team that has been around for a while, but this was the first game of the WPS version of the Flash, a team that is expected to contend for the championship, and they only had a showing just over two thousand. Sahlen’s Stadium featured more than a handful of elite players and popular veterans on Sunday, including Heather Mitts, Cat Whitehill and Carli Lloyd for the Atlanta Beat, as well as Marta, Christine Sinclair, Ali Riley, Caroline Seger and Candace Chapman for the Flash.

Meanwhile, in Florida, for the used-to-be Washington Freedom, now-known-as magicJack franchise, in a region of the United States that gets why soccer is the world’s sport, the lowest attendance figure of the weekend – and in league history – showed up to FAU Soccer Field: 1,008. Oh, but it’s understandable, it wasn’t their home opener. You’re wondering how big of a drop-off was it from home opener to second home match for magicJack? You might want to sit down for this whopping figure … sitting yet? OK. magicJack’s opening day attendance was 1,224. After some quick math, that results in a 216 fan decrease. That with arguably the most well-known American female soccer player, Abby Wambach, playing – and still producing, I might add – and guiding her club to a 2-1 win over Philadelphia with a goal and assist. FAU Soccer Field was also cluttered with stars, including Nicole Barnhart, Lori Lindsey and Amy Rodriguez for the Independence, as well as Hope Solo, Lisa de Vanna, Christie Rampone, Shannon Boxx, Tina Ellertson, Nikki Marshall and Wambach for magicJack.

And for the WPS Game of the Week on Sunday, a contest at Harvard Stadium in Massachusetts between Boston Breakers and Sky Blue FC, a mere 2,789 showed up. Boston, who came away with a 1-0 win on the day, features stars like Rachel Buehler, Kelly Smith, Lauren Cheney, Alyssa Naeher, Kelley O’Hara, Amy LePeilbet and Stephanie Cox, while Sky Blue FC sports stars like Heather O’Reilly, Laura Kalmari, Brittany Taylor, Allie Long, Eniola Aluko and Karen Bardsley (who got the night off).

How can we, as fans of the beautiful sport, not send more people to these games which provide us with world-class talent right here on our own soil?

One word comes to mind when I think of the lack of respect these “fans” give to these hard-working, talented soccer players on a week-in, week-out basis: inexcusable.

Don’t get me wrong, those 5,961 fans in attendance in three venues up and down the East Coast, you get it. I don’t want to hear about it being Sunday. I don’t want to hear about the weather – whether beautiful or not. I don’t want to hear one excuse after another. If you had a chance to be at these games, and didn’t go, and you claim to be a fan of the club, you ought to look yourself in the mirror and reassess your devotion.

WPS is a league that is scraping to survive and you’re not at the match? What’s wrong with you? Soccer is a great sport. We all know this. If you’re reading this, I don’t have to convince you that it is the best sport out there. One reason why soccer is perfect, for the fans specifically, is because you know going to the park that it will be two hours. It’s not like baseball that could last four hours at times, nor football, basketball and hockey, which can all vary in times for a number of reasons. It’s two hours; you’re in and you’re out.

So stop dilly dallying, fans. It’s irritating. I feel for those dedicated fans in Los Angeles, St. Louis and the Bay Area that went to watch their respective teams each and every week only to have them taken away at the drop of a hat. I’m one of those fans who spent countless weeks – either glued to the TV or laptop, or at the park – following FC Gold Pride, and now the team gone. Oh, how I’d love to be at a game each week again this year. I’m certain from talking to fans on the social networks that there are people in the Midwest and SoCal that wish their teams would come back.

There’s no time to be a fair-weather fan. Get to the park and start supporting your team and WPS as a whole. You’re ticking all of us off who can’t go to games that you don’t go with a team right in your backyard.

Things to look for this week

First thing’s first, the Tri-State tilt begins with Sky Blue FC traveling to Rochester, N.Y., to take on Western New York at Sahlen’s Stadium on Friday. Then, on Sunday, the anonymous team known as magicJack will host Atlanta at FAU Soccer Field, followed by the WPS Game of the Week, featuring a rematch of the epic 2010 WPS Super Semifinal between Boston and Philadelphia — this game at Widener University in Chester, Penn.

Power Rankings

1. Western New York Flash

2. magicJack

3. Boston Breakers

4. Atlanta Beat

5. Philadelphia Independence

6. Sky Blue FC

Player of the Week

Christine Sinclair, Western New York Flash — 2 goals in a 3-0 Flash win over Atlanta Beat in the home opener at Sahlen’s Stadium.

Quote of the Week

“I am obviously going to be making a lot of changes to the line-up. That’s what happens when you see players not giving enough effort,” said Atlanta Beat coach James Galanis after his club got run over by the Flash attack, 3-0.

TAGS »
POSTED IN » Analysis, WPS
About the author: Giovanni Albanese Jr. View all posts by Giovanni Albanese Jr.

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  • Jedi

    Quote: “I feel for those dedicated fans in Los Angeles, St. Louis and the Bay Area that went to watch their respective teams each and every week only to have them taken away at the drop of a hat.”

    …and Washington/Maryland, and Chicago…. My guess is that those teams, if they still existed, would have had higher average attendance than shown last week. Sad, really, that there has not been more continuity to grow fans–the league (other than Boston, NY/NJ) has become a novelty, amateur act in management despite the quality players remaining.

    Oh, and please–for those of us that supported the Washington Freedom, stop linking magicJack to the franchise because they are under completely different owners/management/location and with only a handful of consistent players. I find it disrespectful of the professionalism of the Freedom to be associated with the management of magicJack.

  • Kenn

    Why is it the fault of the people? Why do we always have to point fingers at those who don’t go and act as if it’s a moral imperative that they go? Most people are okay with sitting on bleachers or their collapsible beach chairs when watching their kids’ U14 game, but not when watching a supposed “professional” game. I don’t care how good magicJack is as a team on the field, there’s more to the sports/entertainment experience in 2011 than what goes on between the white lines (I know it pains some people to hear that, but that’s the simple reality).

    Likewise, a 108-year-old stadium in Boston with permanent football lines? We’re more sophisticated than that now. That’s no longer “good enough.” While some of us may be thrilled to have a team at all and players who play hard while representing our city, that’s not the bulk of people anymore. You have to do more than that. Because they’ve seen more live soccer played at a high level in the “correct” type of environment (properly sized stadiums with grass fields, built primarily for soccer), what was good enough in 1978 isn’t good enough anymore.

    Even if you DO get the ambience right, this is not – demonstrably not – a product that a huge number of people will regularly pay to see. You can call it “unacceptable,” but trying to shame someone into going because Abby Wambach “deserves it” is insane. That’s now how it works.

    Potential fans have SOME (but not all) of the responsibility to care about a local team if they’re fortunate enough to have one (because most don’t). But owners have to meet those potential fans halfway, at least. And as long as you have owners who either can’t be bothered to do any of the things that simply are the cost of doing business or owners who simply don’t have the resources to do much more than the minimum, the idea that you’re going to draw people out of some sense of responsibility is utterly insane.

  • http://almalia.wordpress.com Allison

    Kenn -

    I think that the argument you present makes sense but it has to be looked at from another persepctive. Teams in the NBA or the NFL can create the atmosphere and make the game about more than just the wealth of talent on the field because they have the money to do so (because fans pay absurd amounts for everything from tickets to merchandise). So they have brilliant stadiums and all of that (a lot of that also coming from taxpayer money because it brings so much revenue to the city/state – something WPS will never be able to do no matter the long-term success. So if you are going to complain that fans have to sit on bleachers or in old stadiums, small stadiums, football stadiums and all the rest then yes some of the blame does have to fall to fans. If you don’t go and watch the team play in places like that and support them and help them reach financial stability, giving them an avenue to move into better stadiums, then it IS your fault that the atmosphere is not what you want to have at a game. The money has to come from somewhere and some of that has to come from the fans. Sitting on those large stone benches at Harvard stadium may not be the most comfortable experience for a soccer game but the atmosphere when the Riptide is at full force and there is a good game happening is great. Certainly worth the two hours and the $15 it costs for a ticket.

    So yes, I think fans do have a responsibility to show up and support their teams. If they don’t, then they certainly have no rights to complain when things aren’t improving.

  • jim

    in other words you arent interested. i watch boston and its’ football lines. the interesting thing is i dont even notice the lines because i’m too busy watching the likes of kelly smith. and the thing is played for years along those football lines. or you could just buy a kennasaw state stadium for every team. i agree with the writer…just get out and support the product. it’s good league, good family product.

  • Khbrookes

    Why are you preaching to the converted? How does the size of your readership compare to this weekend’s attendance? How many readers didn’t go?

    Sorry–I don’t like being chastised. Shek did it better.

  • cubik

    I sympathize – I do – but WPS ticket prices do more to keep me and my family away than anything else (well, until the Freedom moved away). The cheapest tickets were $20 each, setting me back a cool $110 for my family of five (parking was an additional $10). By contrast, I can grab front row seats at my local AAA baseball club for $11 each. Even if we let the kids pig out, it would cost much less for an evening out.

    WPS is a business and needs to keep the revenue coming in. However, you are not going to put fans in the seats if the league is using a pricing structure that is more appropriate for a mature, established sport. MLB, NBA, NFL, and the NHL did not begin life charging premium pricing. Drop below the $10 mark for general admission and the fence-sitters (or budget-conscious) fans will be more willing to take a chance on a young league. But even at $13-15 WPS is competing with the cheapest seats at a MLB park.

  • Kenn

    I see your point, Allison, but you have to understand this: in 2011, you can’t start a soccer venture and hope that it sustains itself on the good will of people who others try to shame into supporting the product. You shouldn’t own a team if you can’t provide some of the things that fans/consumers have come to expect in the 21st century – and if you don’t have the wherewithal to do that, perhaps you’ve chosen the wrong avenue in which to invest.

    Sports teams are expensive – you can’t do them on the cheap anymore. You can’t tell me Dan Borislow doesn’t have money. No one likes to lose it, but to completely go on the cheap and present a high school experience and then have someone say, “It’s YOUR fault we can’t have nice things! If more of you came out to watch this wonderful team, maybe one day we could move out of this dump!”

    Of course there’s some truth in that, but it starts with ownership. No one’s saying you have to build your own stadium right away, but there are about eleventymillion other places you could have put magicJack (including, oh, I don’t know, suburban Maryland) where you would have at least started off with something more than what fans in Boca Raton have in front of them.

    This isn’t 1990 anymore. We’re not obligated to support you just because you pay 18 people to play soccer. If you have a local PDL team that has aspirations of one day being professional and you can see they’re trying, that’s one thing. But what are Borislow’s aspirations? We have no idea. He won’t deign to tell us. We don’t deserve to know. We don’t deserve to hear from his players or coach, we don’t deserve to know anything about his team, we don’t deserve any amenities, we don’t deserve anything that even independent baseball teams give their fans.

    And yet you want to tell me HE deserves our support?

    I’m speaking specifically of magicJack here – Rochester is a separate issue. It APPEARS that everybody involved with WNYF has their hearts in the right place and wants their team and organization to succeed. They may just have been under-informed about exactly how big that jump from W-League to WPS can be and how expensive it can be (in money, people-hours and sweat) to actually sell tickets, whether you’ve got Marta or not.

    • http://almalia.wordpress.com Allison

      Kenn -

      As far as Borislow is concerned I am right there with you. He has taken a first rate team and turned it into a joke. Yes, the team is great but from what I hear even the opposing players are not happy with the field they are on. Add to that the fact that the school took away half the bleachers for the home opener because football was having a spring game and it is all the workings of a disaster. However, when it comes to the rest of the league I am a bit more forgiving because at least they are trying to put a good product together with the right environment. Yes, playing in a stadium that has football lines is not ideal but it really doesn’t affect anything. (Heck, if anything I think it makes it a bit easier to see how impressive some of the shots are because you get a true reading of the distance.) And as you point out, the NBA and MLB did not start out in these huge stadiums that they now have. The difference is that they had the interest of the sports fan to justify spending more money and investing in nicer stadiums. Losing money is one thing and I’m sure everybody in WPS went into this realizing that losses were inevitable but to throw away tens of millions on stadiums and the like when your fanbase is (mostly, sadly) composed of 10-16 year old girls with no disposable income of their own would be the definition of stupidity. I’m not saying that all blame for WPS playing in smaller stadiums, and what some call inadequate stadiums, is entirely the fault of the fans who chose not to go. The marginalized status of WPS is a systematic problem – an overcrowded sports landscape in the US, the underappreciation for the talents of female athletes etc. What I put on the fans is the fact that there are complaints about how WPS is not doing all it should and how WPS needs to step up and spend money on better stadiums and all of the other things (better webcasts- which while I do get frustrated that they frequently malfunction I am beyond glad they provide at all as I am not even in the US to be able to attend games anymore- more effecient stat tracking etc etc etc). But while they are complaining they aren’t still going to games (many of them can’t I’m aware because of the locations) and spending the money to support these teams and without the financial support from fans the league is not going to be able to continue. Beyond that, without the support of fans in the stadium what incentive do the owners have to keep the league going? If this is something that we want to be able to continue to watch and support in the long run and have these amazing athletes play in the US rather than find opportunities abroad, then the fans have to be willing to support the league now, in its infancy, even if you have to ignore a set of football lines on the field.

  • Kenn

    Sorry, that graf should read:

    Sports teams are expensive – you can’t do them on the cheap anymore. You can’t tell me Dan Borislow doesn’t have money. No one likes to lose it, but to completely go on the cheap and present a high school experience and then have someone say, “It’s YOUR fault we can’t have nice things! If more of you came out to watch this wonderful team, maybe one day we could move out of this dump!” is ridiculous.

    (The editor in me, sorry.)

  • pasoccerdad

    OK, With Gas prices a dollar higher than they were last year… you can’t expect people to go see entertainment not within 15 minutes of them. To go to a game (family of four) 95 for tickets (20 each plus the “conveinence charge”) 25 for gas (55 minutes each way) 35-40 for food & Drinks

    For 65 dollars, you can go to the movies or dinner or fill the tank for the next week

    This is not a good time to be telling people “Shame on you for not going”

    People are not going because they can’t afford to go

    • jim

      Overkill!

      Rochester – family of four 30$, bus distance to stadium downtown, free hot dog and soda

      MagicJack – if you can info on the game, family of $36, 2-3$ dogs and burgers and 1 dollar soda kida and 3$ beer for drunk dad. plus gas prices are still a bit cheaper here in the south.

      yeah, atl is really overprice. people in boston seem to be ok with pricing.

  • rk_cambridge

    I agree with the writer. People need to step up. Compared to other sporting events it is cheap. It would cost a lot more to go to an MLS game. Also with a little work or commitment you can get better deals.

    Boston has a lot of groups so that brings down the price p.p. They also offer some bundled packs for several games which are good value. They don’t offer a family pack, which is a little unfortunate if mam, dad and kids want to go.

    The league could do a better job with promotion and marketing but that all costs $$.

    My one complaint it that the league does not cater to adult fans… you know the people with the money! When I started going I was able to coordinate a group of friends but that has become increasingly difficult. Hangin with your friends on a nice day having a beer while watching your team is great but then add in the getting trod on by screeching 8 year olds and it is a lot less fun. I can’t think it would be difficult to assign an adult section.

    • http://www.equalizersoccer.com/ Jeff Kassouf

      I agree about WPS not catering to adult fans as much, though the teams are making some effort. I have to say this in terms of money: It is a 100% legitimate excuse. I am far from rich so I can appreciate that. BUT, I’ll also say this: Teams offer $100 season ticket plans. So even if you go to half the home games, you’ve paid less than you would for individual tickets to a few games. We aren’t talking about massive football stadiums here. All the seats are pretty good. So $100 for nine games is $11 per game per person. The gas can add up, but you aren’t going to get a cheaper ticket. You’ll pay more for a movie ticket in a big city.

  • dory

    We live in Virginia and loved going to Freedom games in MD (3 hours each way). No team left within driving distance now, sadly…We miss being at the park with the incredibly talented ladies in these WPS games but we can’t drive a couple of states over to do it.

  • Dude

    I really don’t even care about the stadiums.
    I like it when I see a game and it’s basically just…the players and the field.
    That’s why I go.
    I don’t need the cotton candy, or the hot dogs, or the bizarre healthcare advertising (although I suppose that could eventually come in handy if I actually ate hot dogs).
    .

    I like this league for two reasons…

    1) It’s good soccer. (and I happen to like soccer.)

    …and…

    2) These are self-empowered women.

    They are by no means the only examples of self-empowered women in the world, but I do think that they exhibit that quality, which I greatly respect…..and that can be a really good thing for people to see.
    And so the league does seem to have a pretty good thing going here (if they don’t mess it up, that is, as most professional sports often end up doing).
    .

    And as for attendance…

    I keep getting reminded of that movie “Major League”.

    Where the fans weren’t showing up much, and the owners were purposely underspending…..and in the movie, it was in order to move a team to…..Miami?
    hey, wait, a second…..

  • MW

    Does anybody know what the TV numbers for this season look like? Shouldn’t we be watching/worrying about gate+TV rather than gate alone? A week-to-week swing of a few hundred people doesn’t sound very meaningful.

    • http://www.equalizersoccer.com/ Jeff Kassouf

      We can look into TV numbers. Those are good for sustaining FSC relationship/ads, but gate numbers provide the immediate money. The swing is far more concerning than a couple hundred people if it becomes a trend (and it looks to be that way early on). Dropping from an attendance of almost 4,500 in 2009 to the current average of 2,746 is a huge decrease (almost 40%).

      • jim

        yes, but most of the games so far have been in the east with cold weather. it hurts at the start of the season with only one MJ warm weather team. wny is on friday so it’s not a school night. philly is having its’ home opener. maybe someone breaks 4000 this weekend. then again, are they marketing this as a mother’s day outing game? also chicago and washington arent mixed in the numbers and those 2 were 2 of the franchises who brought in 4k here and there. any word where we can pick up the TV feed online for the wny game?

        • http://www.equalizersoccer.com/ Jeff Kassouf

          There’s no online feed for the TV, just local to Rochester. It’s super local, too, because I get the Syracuse Time Warner Cable Sportsnet and it wasn’t even on there….

          • jim

            i think if someone is in rochester he/she can run it via justin.tv delayed. hope someone is nice enough to do it and post it here friday,

  • Fran

    If the league does not make it, the owners will undoubtedly blame it on people not showing up. BUT, how much are the teams to blame for that not happening? If you check out the advertising budget for the teams, I’m guessing you’ll find very small numbers. People will not come if they don’t know there is a game, or even a team.

  • Ashley

    I agree with the writer as well. Living far, far away from any WPS team (Idaho) – it’s a disgrace that people who are able aren’t going to these, and then blaming how expensive it is. Maybe it isn’t cheap, but, WPS is a business – do people actually expect owners to GIVE away the tickets? I don’t think people will support WPS and I will be shocked if it continues another season. Think of how players like Kelly Smith feel – one of the best players in the world, comes overseas, is likely getting paid way less than she’s worth, to play on a damn football field with 1500 people watching? When European crowds regularly fill a stadium? Um, no. I’d go right back to Europe. And don’t even get me started on Dan Borislow.

    • jim

      Europe crowds fill the stadium for a women’s game. why you think kelly smith and alex scott are in the wps? marta? she plays in front of crowds half the size of magicjack when she plays for santos, not all the time, btw. jackman is providing well for his players with fields, club house, salaries, etc. i dont know what his time table is to get things straight. he picked up the tab to save the team. what else do you want from the guy? sahlen is probably spending thru the nose and look at this opening day crowd. there go putting your name on the stadium. i saw some woman complain about the 275$ family, not getting 4 free t-shirt instead of 1. another person said $13 was too much for a ticket. because of the economy they should be under $9. i give magicjack credit for not wasting 100k on advertising vs spending it on his players. because the end he probably would have gotten the same 1200 at the open. i agree. save and let the team build up vs spending money on people who arent coming anyway. league goes than it’s on the fans. they complain about cheap tickets, complain about having to drive 20 miles, complain about the chilly weather. these are the same fans who would drive 100miles, play 175$ to watch a nfl game in 10 below zero if you gave them the chance. hope the wps makes it.

  • Don

    We’ve been season ticket holders since the start in Boston. I know the Breakers have been competing against the Bruins/Celtics playoff games and that may impact their numbers (some friends of mine did not attend due to the conflict).. I have to agree with some of the previous posters in that if you are not attending due to lines on the fields, etc that seems pretty weak. Would you not attend a game with MLB players on a high school field? How about a NBA game in playground court? Of course you would if you were fans of the team/sport. Where else could you get that close to the action and players. I love the game and I’m a big fan of the Breakers. They are a class team on all levels (players/management) and that is why we go. However I agree that not having other big market teams (Chicago, Washington and LA) does impact the league significantly and I really hope it can survive this year and return for next year..

  • http://www.equalizersoccer.com/ Jeff Kassouf

    I can say as one of the couple thousand people in Rochester on Sunday that it was a disappointing turnout. The players had similar feelings. We’ll see how Friday night goes but I wouldn’t jump to conclusions there. The big test, to me, is the May 22 game against magicJack. It’s on national TV and it’s Abby Wambach’s homecoming. I know some in Rochester think that should produce 10,000+ but they don’t know WPS crowds. If that can draw 6,000, I would call it a big success. Anything more than that is bonus.

  • pasoccerdad

    Economy plays a large factor into how many games I get to because like many others our money is not what is was last year.

  • Sean

    Seeing as how I don’t even live in a state, or close to one for that matter, with a team I can’t directly support any of the teams. I’d have to fly all the way out to the east coast, and that’s not convenient or cheap (unfortunately). The league has talent worth watching. I’ve seen it online.

  • arsenal

    use world cup popularity as an advantage. MARKET the STARS!! I was at Sahlens 7/20/11, people come to see the stars.

  • Marc Silverstein

    so we had attendance at 15K in Rochester, 9K in Atlanta and 6K in Boston…you go WPS!!!!