General MLS Discussion
- Thread starter Shwafta
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i am looking forward to their eventual slump of 10 games w/o a win.
That guy works for Transfrmarkt, writes for Forbes, and hosts a Bundesliga podcast.
And I’m 100% sure his post was a joke.
Nah “I will both win and spend the night with your mother, so only you cry”
The highest per-game GD-xGD by any MLS team over a full 34 game season was 2017 Atlanta at 0.75. The next highest was 2017 Toronto at 0.67, and the 10th best ever from 2013 to 2022 over 34 games was 2014 Vancouver at a mere 0.46, which provides some context to how much of an outlier that Atlanta team was.
Through 5 games in 2023, the St. Louis per game GD-xGD is +1.34. That is not sustainable. I can't guarantee:
but a return to normalcy is due. Also, all those gift back pass goals likely had very high xG attached to them, so the differential luck sits on top of all those gifts. Finally, while I think the association of that tweet above with CITY fans was misguided, this is real.
Through 5 games in 2023, the St. Louis per game GD-xGD is +1.34. That is not sustainable. I can't guarantee:
but a return to normalcy is due. Also, all those gift back pass goals likely had very high xG attached to them, so the differential luck sits on top of all those gifts. Finally, while I think the association of that tweet above with CITY fans was misguided, this is real.
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Also, this also is from the St Louis subreddit, and clever. Their fans seem typically split between those who realize this run is ludicrous good fortune, so theyenjoy it while they can, and those intent on taking offense at any suggestion that it is not fully earned.
Every name in the league for the last decade is unoriginal, derivative and generic. I guess they want to use capitalization as a unique signifier.
they should say "st louis" cause there is no other st louis team. we are sometimes referred to as city because there is another team with "new york". but i like that announcers have started to refer to us as the "pigeons". some holdouts still use "cityzens" but i like the ones that use "pigeons"
Yes. I'll take either "New York City" or "the pigeons" from match commentators. I truly get annoyed hearing the awkwardly "NYCFC" especially when some say "N Y CFC" or "N Y C FC" often with a weird emphasis FC.
I truly wish the club would shift towards using "New York City FC" whenever possible instead of the full acronym.
I think we never really leaned into the "city" shorthand because our fanbase is split as to whether to adopt or hate Man City. IMO Orlando fans used it more than we ever did, but it it was never that widespread even for them. If St Louis wants it and can get widespread adoption go for it. It will work or it won't, and that's what matters, ie standard usage. Not who came first. Not legalities.
I think all of the MLS various "United" teams have tried to use United as a solo name, but I don't think any succeeded, not even DC with their enormous head start. It's mostly contextual.
I think "Pigeons" has won the unofficial nickname rights, but it's a weak victory. I think it's gotten strong enough to crowd out anything else, but I don't expect it to become universal, not unless the club officially adopts it more than it has. Too many people don't like it, and it needs too much explanation for outsiders.
- They're called the Pigeons?
- Sort of. it's an unofficial nickname.
- What's the real name?
- Football Club.
- Wut.
Just give me something I can call the team that's less than 5 syllables and self-explanatory to outsiders.
- They're called the Pigeons?
- Sort of. it's an unofficial nickname.
- What's the real name?
- Football Club.
- Wut.
Just give me something I can call the team that's less than 5 syllables and self-explanatory to outsiders.
It's unique in that it's called CITY. Which means when you say the full name of the team, you need to raise your voice and scream the CITY part.
If you specifically tell someone the team's unofficial nickname and they don't ask what the real name is they're either looking to change the subject or exit the conversation.
Speaking just for me, I 'm not big on Pigeons, and the official names don't roll off the tongue so my conversations go:
- what are you doing this weekend?
- going to a soccer game
- who's are you going to see?
- the local MLS team
Which doesn't help sell the team. Even at home, where everyone in my family knows the team name we call them "the soccer team" because it rolls off the tongue easier than NYCFC or New York City FC or what have you. Nobody ever says "NYCFC" and certainly not "New York City FC." My wife asks things like "Is there a soccer game this weekend?" And I'll respond, "Yes but the team is in Houston." Or "the soccer team has a game Wednesday so I won't need dinner." It's weird because "the soccer team" is just one fewer syllable, but it has rhythm and flows while NYCFC does not. Like I start saying NYCFC out loud and half way through I'm like "damn this is a long name how long does this go on?!?!?!" and then I forget what I was going to say. Well, not really but close. Might as well call them one of those Welsh names like Llanfairpwllgwyngyll.
"Yankees" gets spoken more in my home than NYCFC and I've watched maybe 3 Yankee games in the last 8 years. Rangers, Knicks, Giants, Jets, etc. All normal parts of conversation. But the team I have cared most about for 8 years is literally referred to as "the soccer team" because NYCFC is too much of a mouthful. About this I am not exaggerating. No team name should be that unwieldy.
It's great branding, as evidenced by the amazing strides they have made into the consciousness of the city in 8 years while winning the region's only championship.
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easy. instead of pronouncing every letter of NYCFC, turn it into a word itself, like FAFSA. In this case, it'd be NYC (nice) FC (fick/fuck/fakuuuuuu) lol.
i get your point though. i personally like the pigeons nickname but i wouldn't refer to them in that way if asked what i'm doing this weekend. that, as you said, is a problem.
my brother jokingly always says "You're going to nickfick games?" so that's one way to pronounce it which sounds.... bleh
I guess it's better than having to explain that it's a soccer team in a regular pro league, not some gimmicky marketing event like flugtog or something weird.
When talking about the team with friends and family we call them NYC. Due to the nature of the conversation they know I’m talking about NYCFC. It flows off the tongue easily but obviously the down fall is that it’s literally the initials of the city. I think it would be fun the adopt the pigeon full time though. We have the pigeon statue on the goal and had a jock tag of the pigeon as well which I think is a nod to supporters from the club. The other name the flows of the tongue for me is the celestes. I think it’s a pretty word and a pretty color and works well even if it isn’t my first thought most of the time.
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