NASL Megathread

[sbrylski]

This is my first foray into the "Other Football" section of the forum, so forgive me if there is already a thread like this in existence.

I don't follow foreign leagues very much, outside the final rounds of the Champions League. And in America, non-MLS teams are criminally under discussed. I'd like to use this thread to discuss minor or mildly important NASL news that doesn't quite warrant it's own thread.

A few bits of news from today:

1. North American Soccer League, CBS Sports Network Announce National Television Partnership For 2016
http://www.nasl.com/news/2016/03/31...unce-national-television-partnership-for-2016

The NASL also has deals now to show games on beIN Sports and ESPN3. All these TV deals are far from perfect, but just getting them is a huge hurdle to jump.

2. #BuildChicagoNASL: Behind The Scenes
http://www.chicagonasl.com/buildchicagonasl-behind-the-scenes/

The Chicago NASL team is now projecting an official announcement in June admitting them to the league, which presumably means they are less than three months away from locking in a venue. They are targeting Spring 2017 for their first game.

The article by Peter Wilt also discusses the Supporters Trust they are building, which sounds incredible:

The Chicago NASL Supporters Trust is going to be an important part of the club’s grassroots efforts to build a club that represents and connects with all of Chicago. March has been an important month coordinating those efforts. We are talking to several individuals who plan to be the initial representatives of the Supporters Trust before membership eventually nominates and elects its own leaders once the Supporters Trust share sale process is completed. There is also important work with attorneys going on to develop the framework for the Chicago NASL Supporters Trust. My partner Jack Cummins is leading efforts for the development of the supporters trust, which will offer a share of Chicago NASL Club equity as well as benefits such as limited voting rights. The launch of the supporters trust is anticipated for the third week of April and details on two launch events will be announced soon.

It seems like they are doing everything right and I think the Chicago Fire are going to have some serious competition for their market very soon.

 

[sbrylski]

Here's a copy and paste from the NASL attendance tracker on the NASL subreddit:

Date Home Team Away Team Attendance +/-
4/2 Carolina Railhawks Minnesota United 4,159 N/A
4/2 Fort Lauderdale Strikers Miami FC 2,331 N/A
4/2 Tampa Bay Rowdies Indy Eleven 5,740 N/A
4/2 Rayo OKC FC Edmonton 6,416 N/A
4/3 New York Cosmos Ottawa Fury 5,094 N/A

A bit weak for an opening weekend. The Cosmos need to do better for a tent pole game. Also, Ft. Lauderdale's attendance was absolutely abysmal for their new local derby. On the plus side, Rayo "sold out" (ticket giveaways?) and outdrew the USL's OKC Energy. That battle for OKC is definitely something to keep an eye on this year.

Note that Jacksonville, Minnesota, and Indy have yet to host a game. All have the potential to hit 10,000+ in their openers. On the flip side, it will be interesting to see how many/few fans Miami FC draws.

 

[413Blue]

The Strikers attendance should be a huge concern. Not only was it the opener, it was the new Derby match.

 

[Fantazma]

Here's a copy and paste from the NASL attendance tracker on the NASL subreddit:

Date Home Team Away Team Attendance +/-
4/2 Carolina Railhawks Minnesota United 4,159 N/A
4/2 Fort Lauderdale Strikers Miami FC 2,331 N/A
4/2 Tampa Bay Rowdies Indy Eleven 5,740 N/A
4/2 Rayo OKC FC Edmonton 6,416 N/A
4/3 New York Cosmos Ottawa Fury 5,094 N/A

A bit weak for an opening weekend. The Cosmos need to do better for a tent pole game. Also, Ft. Lauderdale's attendance was absolutely abysmal for their new local derby. On the plus side, Rayo "sold out" (ticket giveaways?) and outdrew the USL's OKC Energy. That battle for OKC is definitely something to keep an eye on this year.

Note that Jacksonville, Minnesota, and Indy have yet to host a game. All have the potential to hit 10,000+ in their openers. On the flip side, it will be interesting to see how many/few fans Miami FC draws.

according to some posts in big soccer a bunch of vouchers were given out thru local youth teams...but i dont know how accurate that is.