according to reddit chatter, the change came from owners who felt they needed to appeal to the causal fans and "international" soccer fans in montreal.
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according to reddit chatter, the change came from owners who felt they needed to appeal to the causal fans and "international" soccer fans in montreal.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ apparently the team was already hurting financially even before the pandemic, so they probably trying anything to get any new fans they can get. some may not like the "Impact" to be part of the name?
I'm old enough to remember
- when MLS used flashy team names and logos, and suburban locations, to appeal to soccer parents, and then completely pivoted to
- generic Location FC names and urban locations after deciding their real market was sophisticated hardcore young urban single soccer aficionados.
I really try to assume that people running a business know more than I do about what is literally their business, and not mine. But it's hard when they keep making up inconsistent rationales to justify bland sh!t.
I also have to question the appeal to "international fans." MLS is at best a second tier league. Yet the league has fans outside of North America, and they follow MLS generally for 1 of 2 reasons: someone local comes to play in MLS, or they are genuinely interested in what it means to have a US/Canadian soccer culture. Spend 30 freaking minutes scanning some foreign MLS twitter accounts, or listening to a foreign MLS podcast. You know what they never say: "MLS needs more copycat generic team names that sounds like everywhere else especially like where I live." A substantial portion of the rest of the world has a love/hate fascination with US culture. Lean into it. Sell to those people. Because until MLS starts paying enough to attract talent comparable to a Tier 1 league the only way to attract international fan interest is by emphasizing what makes North American soccer unique, and US and Canadian team sports typically have nicknames and logos that are more representational and less abstract. That's who we are and what we do. Don't run away from it.
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i assume users on reddit meant "International Fans" as fans from other countries that live in Montreal and are currently not into the Impact. they are soccer fans but not MLS fans.
We have the same problem here in NYC. There is a huge soccer fanbase, but a very small percentage of MLS fans. Is it cause we play at YS? Is it cause we don't have anybody they want to see play? Is it because they think MLS is beneath them despite it being the best live soccer they can watch without traveling internationally?
It's sad to see, but until the US starts producing some superstar talent at a high level or, like mgarbowski said, MLS starts bringing in big time players in their prime, we won't see fandom grow as much as it could and should.
And most importantly in terms of the point I was making, until then, you won't attract fans by adopting the ephemeral trappings of better leagues.
My question is, how do the smaller european leagues do it? The ones that don't have the superstars. And South America. They have extremely passionate fanbases without all that flair. What are they doing differently?
Culture. Soccer is their #1 sport. Just like here, NFL/NBA are the top 2 sports. They don't need to do a lot to get fans. You become one because you love the sport and it's your local/hometown team. Soccer just isn't as popular here but it is making good progress. I think after 2026, MLS popularity will skyrocket with renewed interest in soccer in the country.
yes many see MLS as beneath them, but its not only fans from other countries. There are still "eurosnobs" that are americans and are hardcore USMNT fans but see MLS as inferior, it may have gotten worse now that they see alot of american kids going to the best leagues. So there is no need to watch live soccer since the best leagues are on TV.
the best US born players are going to leave ( adams, aaronson, etc..) they wont stay. this is why the league tries to get established post prime names to get butts in seats. but then the "fans" are only here for a year or two, the player leaves and so do those fans.
NYC is a soccer town, not an MLS town.....and probably will be for a while. i also think its more of a niche in this city with so much other things going on and other far more established teams ( yankees mets etc). Unless massive money issues occur in europe and players start coming here, it will be pretty much the same as it is now.
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Agree with your overall post, but I do think there is one point of clarification with this part.
The best US born players do leave, but they do so before MLS (Pulisic, Reyna, McKennie, etc.). I think perhaps with some of the success of clubs like Philly, Red Bulls, etc. playing youth and having success with moving them abroad (Adams, Aaronson, Cannon, etc.), I think there is some chance to capture some of the USMNT Eurosnobs to watch some of these young guys play. Now, perhaps that doesn't mean season tickets (or at least initially), but I wouldn't be surprised if someone who doesn't "give a shit" about MLS goes to a Red Bulls game to watch Caden Clark before he jets off overseas, or to watch Daryl Dike.
perhaps, and maybe im being too negative, but it may not happen even then because they will wait until the kid is bought by a top euro team to consider them the "Real deal" and wont watch the kid in MLS even if he has hype/rumors around him ( like aaronson had for example).
EDIT: one thing that is not really directly linked but Topps started having more cards and rookie cards of MLS young players and causes hype in soccer cards, that has brought in some interest in MLS seeing how the likes of aaronson got sold, reynolds going to italy and people are trying to learn more about the league and who the next prospects are. of course this does not equal ticket sales but im sure helps in some form with interest in the league.
Does anyone really think a non-fan is going to become a fan because they relate to "Club de Football Montreal" over "Montreal Impact?"
The name changes and brand changes all over the league is just a way for "advisors" to make money and for the people in charge to think they're doing something important. These changes are almost universally meaningless and makes the league look mickey mouse. When was the last time you saw a NFL, MLB, NBA or NHL team change names? The Charlotte Hornets/Bobcats? This is so silly.
The name changes and brand changes all over the league is just a way for "advisors" to make money and for the people in charge to think they're doing something important. These changes are almost universally meaningless and makes the league look mickey mouse. When was the last time you saw a NFL, MLB, NBA or NHL team change names? The Charlotte Hornets/Bobcats? This is so silly.
Here’s the Expo67 logo:
Can definitely see a line going from one to the other. Perhaps the new logo didn’t just appear out of thin air.
although change was for much different reasons.
Yes, and the Cleveland Indians for the same reason. I'm not counting those -- those are different. This is stupid.
If their entry music isn't "Club Foot" by Kasabian, I'm going to be incredibly disappointed.
Yes, I do think that. No, not as simply as you put it, but if you don't think branding has an impact on how people associate themselves with a particular organization, then I'm not sure what to tell you.
This league and its clubs are trying to gain market share and added exposure when it has very little. I don't think its preposterous that it tries to figure out how to align its brands to do that the best. Comparing that to the other sports leagues here that have been established for over a hundred years and have well-entrenched fanbases, following sports that more people identify to here (or are passionate about), seems a bit silly.
Now is this rebrand and name change a good idea or good execution? That's a different question and I'm not really sure how to form an opinion on that. But calling this a move just so some advisors can make money and executives can feel good about themselves seems quite short sighted.
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