My Letter The Yankees Regarding Wfan Soccer Bashing.

[jaycrewz]

Hello guys, this is my first of many posts on this forum.

Id like to share my letter to the NY Yankees regarding the attitude of certain "old guard" NYC radio personalities. Read it over and let me know what you think. I for one think its a shame that a station like WFAN is the NYCFC radio partner. Their hosts have bashed soccer for years, and its only increased as the new team gets ready to play. Management should realize this rubs off on listeners and turns away prospective fans.

I for one am thrilled that NYC finally has a top flight team in the city. While I personally would have liked that the Cosmos and their history represent NYC in MLS, I still will enjoy what NYCFC has to offer despite the "Man City lite" tag that I see thrown at the team. This year is a great year for the growth of domestic football in the United States.

Cheers

As a die-hard soccer fan, born and bred in NY, I am sick of the hate WFAN throws at soccer. Its especially bad because the sport NEEDS to be supported if the new team is to gain fans in NYC.

Im glad some companies, such as the Yankees and ESPN, recognize the growth of soccer, respect the sport, and cover the sport well. Its a shame the old guys at WFAN (Mike Francesa, Craig Carton, Richard Neer, etc) keep bashing the sport. When you have hosts continually saying "no one cares about soccer" and refusing to talk about the new team...it pushes fans away.

Why should I listen to WFAN when I can watch the games on tv, with a network that respects the sport? I dont understand how WFAN hosts can bash the sport in one breath, and then read out an advertisement for NYCFC in the next breath. These guys ignore the high attendance numbers for many MLS teams, they ignore all the young kids who watch European soccer, and they ignore all the young people like myself who found love for the game in their 20s.

Continually looking down on soccer will not bring in new fans. You want to know how I became a huge soccer fan as an adult? Because Fox Soccer was an amazing channel before it went off air. Because ESPN (TV AND radio) did a great job with the World Cup and European Championships years ago. Thats how I became a fan, thanks to those in the media who covered the sport well and respected it!

And to be honest, I wish the Yankees and Manchester City worked out a radio deal with ESPN Radio instead. ESPN at least has soccer programming on tv and the radio, and they dont continually disrespect the sport or the MLS. I cannot even call WFAN and get on air to talk about the new team...so why would I even listen to the radio games? Ill just use tv or internet streams instead.

The Yanks and NYCFC have done well selling out the stadium for the opening game...and the first match for the team down in Florida sold out 60,000 seats. Its time for some older guys in the media to wake up. This isnt the 80s or 90s. Soccer is HERE, its successful, and it is going NOWHERE.

Sincerely,

*my real name*

 

[Mario]

must they forget that a large chunk of NY's population is of Spanish/Latino origin thus engraving soccer into their blood from birth? yet nobody cares..check the ratings of all 7 world series games in one season and compare it to one World cup final, or champions league final... only in america.

 

[NYC_JC]

Soccer/Football in America is still an incredibly niche sport - not even in the top 7 or 8 here. They are not going to talk about a sport that almost none of their audience cares about. Sad, but true. Plus, I wouldn't want these guys touching the game when it is apparent they have very little knowledge.

While I respect your efforts, and even agree with you on most levels, I would much rather see people promote great soccer podcasts, radio shows, etc. that can really educated the fans. I know I would love to see some recommendation on some great soccer content.

 

[jaycrewz]

must they forget that a large chunk of NY's population is of Spanish/Latino origin thus engraving soccer into their blood from birth? yet nobody cares..check the ratings of all 7 world series games in one season and compare it to one World cup final, or champions league final... only in america.

EXACTLY.

Hell, Im not latino, grew up loving MLB, NBA, and NFL...but soccer passion found me thanks to ESPN and FOX giving me a way to get exposed to soccer. Now Ive become an internet soccer junkie. I watch ANY top flight soccer that I can, and even lower division sometimes.

I dont care if its A-league, J-League, La Liga, EPL, or whatever. I love a good soccer match. Ive watch UEFA, CONCACAF, and AFC champions league matches. While most of my focus is on American and Europe for most of the year....my point is that proper media coverage is what tapped into this soccer fever within me.

But according to WFAN, I do not exist. Im so rare anomaly. I mean, how could a kid grow up in NYC, love America sports, and then later in life become a die hard soccer fan, but still love the NFL and NBA just as much?

 

[jaycrewz]

Soccer/Football is America is still an incredibly niche sport - not even in the top 7 or 8 here. They are not going to talk about a sport that almost none of their audience cares about. Sad, but true. Plus, I wouldn't want these guys touching the game when it is apparent they have very little knowledge.

While I respect your efforts, and even agree with you on most levels, I would much rather see people promote great soccer podcasts, radio shows, etc. that can really educated the fans. I know I would love to see some recommendation on some great soccer content.

7th or 8th? Honestly I believe thats very very false.

Look at the soccer contracts on TV. ESPN has MLS, World Cup, and the Euros. Fox had numerous domestic leagues before Fox Soccer Channel died...and now still have Europa and Champions league. NBC has Premier League LIVE every weekend, and some weekdays for big matches. I dont see other sports outside of the big 4, getting such diverse coverage. (And I didnt even mention BeinSports or any Spanish language channels that some Americans watch)

If soccer was such a niche sport, the MLS wouldnt have the ticket sales it does now. If it was so niche Champions League wouldnt have replays showing on Fox Sports 1 from 10 to 2pm on a weekday right up until the next live UCL game. Thats 6 straight hours of soccer on an American national sports channel.

Think about it. Soccer is firmly 5th in terms of most popular team sports. And I could see it overtaking the NHL in ten years if the MLS continues to grow, and if soccer tv contracts continue to increase exposure. People are underestimating how big it is to have new teams smack in the middle of markets like NYC and Orlando.

 

[Slick Rick]

The average age of a sports radio listener is 47. That American demographic is not interested in soccer and is not likely to pick up fanatic level interest at that age either.
The stations know this and a small vocal minority is not changing that.
I would like to hear more attention paid to footy but if is is going to be a 30 second blurb by Boomer Esiason paying lip service because he is forced, no thanks. There are great podcasts and less mainstream places to get your fix.

 

[jerseyhotspur]

when I think of WFAN, I don't think "THE radio station for soccer news in the tri-state area".

so if someone on WFAN talks crap about soccer, I'll never know (nor will I care) . . . because I don't listen to it (I listen to SiriusXM FC 94).

WFAN doesn't cater to soccer fans, so who cares?

 

[NYC_JC]

7th or 8th? Honestly I believe thats very very false.

Unfortunately from a popularity standpoint, it is true.
http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/10354114/harris-poll-nfl-most-popular-mlb-2nd

1. American Football
2. Baseball
3. College Football
4. Fucking NASCAR
5. Basketball
6. Hockey
7. College Basketball
8. Soccer (hopefully)

 

[Mario]

If they could introduce a segment onto WFAN with people who know soccer, it would only help them open up the company's listening audience and could only help promote the MLS and local teams. but in order to do that, they'd need some kind of marketing, especially at the NYCFC home games to let people know they're gonna be in the business for those who do not have XM radio.

Especially that NY finally has a soccer team in NY, i dont see why theyd push it aside.

 

[jaycrewz]

Unfortunately from a popularity standpoint, it is true.
http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/10354114/harris-poll-nfl-most-popular-mlb-2nd

1. American Football
2. Baseball
3. College Football
4. Fucking NASCAR
5. Basketball
6. Hockey
7. College Basketball
8. Soccer (hopefully)

Ahhh... youre counting college sports. I was simply thinking in terms of professional team sports, where traditionally people think about a big 4 in NFL MLB NBA and NHL. Either way, we have 318 million people in this country. There's plenty of room for soccer. And I wish ignorant haters would realize that.

If they could introduce a segment onto WFAN with people who know soccer, it would only help them open up the company's listening audience and could only help promote the MLS and local teams. but in order to do that, they'd need some kind of marketing, especially at the NYCFC home games to let people know they're gonna be in the business for those who do not have XM radio.

Especially that NY finally has a soccer team in NY, i dont see why theyd push it aside.

My issue with WFAN (aka CBS Sports Radio), despite the fact that the average listener may be older, is that many listeners are younger. Im in my late 20s and have listened to WFAN ever since I was a kid. Before broadband internet was widespread, you listened to games on the radio if you werent near a TV. And I still do that when Im driving or working at home.

WFAN has wide reach...and guys like Mike Francesa and Boomer & Carton also have nationally televised radio shows. Bashing soccer thus reaches millions of people and perpetuates ignorance of the sport. I wouldnt mind it so much if these guys werent hypocritically promoting the new team in a commercial spot.

WFAN has a couple of younger guys like Dimitri the Sports Greek, and Evan Roberts, who understand or respect soccer to an extent. So maybe one day they can employ a legit soccer guy who will talk a little about the sport as it grows. I just get annoyed when WFAN (aka CBS Radio) acts like they are stuck in the past, meanwhile Fox, ESPN, NBC and others have clearly seen how much people love soccer.

 

[jaycrewz]

Double post

 

[northernburbs]

Also take into account these are most likely phone polls. Old land lines. I'm over 50 and haven't had a "home" phone for 10 years, most people under 35 never had one. They are probably not being polled.

 

[mgarbowski]

Sports talk radio in NY is heavily dominated by 3 topics NFL, MLB, and NBA. National sports popularity is irrelevant. Everything else is an also ran and subject to disdain. People will call to complain about time spent on other sports. Beyond the big 3, college football gets maybe 10-20% of the attention the NFL does in-season and a bit more for the championship. Whenever hockey fans manage to get through and on the air they seem to spend half their air time complaining that the stations never talk hockey.
Other sports break through only for limited times: golf for the majors, college BB in March, boxing sporadically if there a major bout or someone dies, horses for the Triple Crown. Everything else gets on somewhere between never and random: auto racing, tennis, and yes, soccer. They just won't alienate the vast majority of their audience to promote something even if they broadcast it, because a 10-minute weekly segment won't get folks like the board members here to listen 20-30 hours a week to the rest of their programming, nor will it turn most of their regular audience into NYCFC fans.

 

[mgarbowski]

Also take into account these are most likely phone polls. Old land lines. I'm over 50 and haven't had a "home" phone for 10 years, most people under 35 never had one. They are probably not being polled.

Most polls stopped relying solely on land telephone lines a few years ago but this is still the go-to reason many people give when wanting to explain that a poll is skewed.
I found the Harris article on this year's poll here:
http://www.harrisinteractive.com/NewsRoom/HarrisPolls/tabid/447/mid/1508/articleId/1546/ctl/ReadCustom Default/Default.aspx

It says they surveyed online. How they chose them and ensured demographic variety is unclear. But the good news is soccer moved up to being tied for 5th, behind only NFL, MLB, College FB, and Auto Racing (not just NASCAR BTW). I expect it is a World Cup bounce and it will be interesting to see how it performs next year. Soccer is tied with the NBA and NHL.

Also note the poll is based on asking the person's favorite sport. Arguably total following is more relevant, but I suspect that would drop soccer even lower. For example, the NFL comes in first with 32%, and baseball has 16%. If only half of the people who said NFL also follow baseball then the baseball total jumps to 32. I bet it's higher, and the same thing in reverse. But how many would soccer pick up from each of those? I'm guessing less, although it could easily cause a higher mover percentage wise.

Anyway, my big take away from the newest poll was the nice jump soccer made in one year from the Jan 2014 results to Jan 2015.
Edited to add the word "solely" when discussing polls in the top paragraph.

 

[Drainyoo]

Hello guys, this is my first of many posts on this forum.

Id like to share my letter to the NY Yankees regarding the attitude of certain "old guard" NYC radio personalities. Read it over and let me know what you think. I for one think its a shame that a station like WFAN is the NYCFC radio partner. Their hosts have bashed soccer for years, and its only increased as the new team gets ready to play. Management should realize this rubs off on listeners and turns away prospective fans.

I for one am thrilled that NYC finally has a top flight team in the city. While I personally would have liked that the Cosmos and their history represent NYC in MLS, I still will enjoy what NYCFC has to offer despite the "Man City lite" tag that I see thrown at the team. This year is a great year for the growth of domestic football in the United States.

Cheers

Respect the effort, but two things:

1. Yanks won't give a crap about this. Maybe NYCFC will. Maybe.
2. WFAN isn't a station know for soccer coverage, and the clowns on there right now don't know much about the sport anyway. Most people listening don't care much for the sport either.

This is a lost cause.

 

[northernburbs]

I just started listening to WFAN in the past month Esiason and Carton don't talk sports. During my commute they talk about food and the Mount Rushmore of foods and candy.

 

[Buckley]

pretty sad news from a station who's going to be broadcasting nycfc games...

 

[jerseyhotspur]

If listeners called in more asking about soccer then they'd have to start talking about soccer sooner or later.

But for the more tech savvy MLS Web 2.0 crowd, we have podcasts.

 

[jaycrewz]

If listeners called in more asking about soccer then they'd have to start talking about soccer sooner or later.

But for the more tech savvy MLS Web 2.0 crowd, we have podcasts.

Here in lies the problem.

Twice Ive called in to talk soccer, even tried one of the younger overnight guys who follows the EPL some...and the call-screener said the host wouldnt be up for it. It was 2 AM over the weekend, and even then, I cant get on-air to talk soccer.

Then I asked "well...you guys are now airing NYCFC games...so when did you think I might be able to talk on air about the team?" He replies, "Im not gonna lie to you, I really have no idea." I said thanks and hung up. Not the screener's fault...entirely the fault of the hosts and management at the station. And according to Mike Francesa, the Yankee radio deal was contingent on NYCFC being broadcast as well.

So thats PATHETIC when a sports talk radio station wont let you discuss a brand new damn team, and they are supposed to be the FLAGSHIP station for the team. Screw WFAN. I will use the TV and internet for my games. Ill run up my data plan on my phone if I have to.

 

[FredMertz]

Hello guys, this is my first of many posts on this forum.

Id like to share my letter to the NY Yankees regarding the attitude of certain "old guard" NYC radio personalities. Read it over and let me know what you think. I for one think its a shame that a station like WFAN is the NYCFC radio partner. Their hosts have bashed soccer for years, and its only increased as the new team gets ready to play. Management should realize this rubs off on listeners and turns away prospective fans.

I for one am thrilled that NYC finally has a top flight team in the city. While I personally would have liked that the Cosmos and their history represent NYC in MLS, I still will enjoy what NYCFC has to offer despite the "Man City lite" tag that I see thrown at the team. This year is a great year for the growth of domestic football in the United States.

Cheers

When you write a letter like this, you should ask yourself, "in a perfect world, what kind of response to this letter would I like to receive?"

If you can't reasonably answer that question, what's the point of writing the letter?

What do you want them to say?