Hey Emily,
I want to thank you and NYCFC for the great opportunity.
I could not have had a better time at the club's historic home opener. It is just the third MLS game I have attended and 6th professional game i've been to overall and it was hands down the best experience I have ever had. I know there were some problems people had entering the stadium, as well as problems with lines once they were in the stadium, but I experienced none of that.
After getting to the stadium around
2:00pmand getting some food we got on line at about
2:45 and entered the stadium about 5 minutes after the gates opened. We went to our seats and found a merchandise store right outside, with nobody in there! My girlfriend and I went and bought two shirts, and two blankets because it was so cold out. As I got on line the cash register broke and the cashier did the total on his phone and gave me change out of his own pocket to make the sale. I thought that was great.
Since we were so early to the game we went to see how we could get our vouchers for the meet and greet. We followed the directions in your email and without a problem we were able to get our tickets.
As the game started we could not have had a better time, except for the temperature. Our season tickets are in section 225, so we are right by the midfield line and have a great view.
We were so excited for the meet and greet, and didn't know exactly how it was going to happen, so we left the game about 3 minutes early, which in hindsight I guess doesn't make much sense as we were going to meet the team that was still playing.
Obviously, we were the first people to arrive at the VIP section and were given our wrist bands and let into the event. As soon as we got in we were met by a NYCFC representative that asked us about our experience and he seemed very interested in what we had to say. He gave me his card and said he would be available if I had any questions about anything at all.
That is when our experience went downhill, unfortunately. My girlfriend and I, along with my little brother and his girlfriend, made the trip down from Cincinnatus, New York, which is a few miles south of Syracuse. We rented a car, and a hotel, and made a whole weekend out of it so we didn't have to drive 8 hours round trip in one day.
Since my girlfriend and I are the season ticket holders (little brother is still in school so he can only make a few games, so he buys tickets by the match) we were the only ones that were able to get into the event with the Cityzens program. I knew that was going to happen. My brother knew that was going to happen. We were fine with it. What we weren't fine with was the fact that as the event started and my brother and his girlfriend were waiting outside the VIP area for us to finish they were told they had to leave the stadium. I didn't know that was going to happen so I had the car keys, and my brother had my jacket. My brother told the security guard his situation but the guard told him he had to leave the stadium anyway. I am sure you can imagine how stressful it would be for a teenage kid and his girlfriend to be kicked out of the stadium, with no car keys, and have to go outside in a huge city he's never been in before and wait for a few hours for me to finish. Keep in mind, I said we came from Cincinnatus New York, which is about the most rural town you can imagine. A striking contrast to Bronx, New York. He was pretty terrified waiting outside in the freezing cold for a few hours because they wouldn't let him stay in the stadium. He says he probably won't be going back to any more games.
From my end on the inside of the meet and greet I thought things could have been a bit more organized. Actually, a lot more organized. None of the staff members there knew what was happening and couldn't give us any information about how long it would be, who we would see, who we wouldn't see and what the format of the meet and greet was.
As the players came out all of the stars were rushed by a crowd and that made it impossible to get to them. My girlfriend isn't a huge soccer fan, so the only player on the team she knows is David Villa. Unfortunately for her, as soon as he came out a mob crowded around him and it was very hard to push through to get a chance to talk to him, get a picture with him, or get his signature. She didn't get to do any of that and was extremely disappointed and tired after standing around for an hour.
Aside from not even being able to get to meet any of the well known players, the time it took for all of it to happen was extremely frustrating. Players came out whenever they wanted to, and left whenever they wanted to. (Credit to Jeb Brovsky for actually acting like he wanted to be there) I started to hate the entire experience after dreading the 4 hour drive home
at 9PM because I didn't know how long I would have to stay there to actually get the chance to meet a player.
I used up 1000 Cityzens points between my two season ticket cards and I really wish I didn't. Most likely, I won't be able to get that many points again for the rest of this season and I feel like I wasted them on an event that had good promise but was terribly mismanaged. I think its unfair to the people that put their faith in NYCFC by assuming the first event redeemable with Cityzens points would be one worthwhile.
I think it was probably a cool experience for somebody that wouldn't have minded staying there all night and was a quick train ride away from home. Or for somebody that was larger and more aggressive than my girlfriend or myself and could push through the crowds of people to actually meet the players.
I hope you take my input into consideration if any events like this happen in the future. Unfortunately, I wasted my points on this one so I won't be able to enjoy it if it happens.
I really thank you for asking for input (good and bad) in order to make things a more enjoyable experience for everybody. I'm still looking forward to the next home game and putting season tickets to use by supporting my team, but I have lost some faith in the Cityzens program.
Thank you again,
Nicholas Constantino