Seriously Stopped Supporting?

[edurban]

If I could just rave for a moment.

I think people in this area just don't understand what it means to have a local team. 99% percent of the world has Brentford or Wigan or Tours or Merida or Portland-before-they-were-in-MLS as their local team. That means years in the wilderness, dicey players and coaches, constant danger of falling out of the 2nd division into the 3rd, threats of bankruptcy, or God knows what. New Yorkers have been brought up watching Premier League or La Liga teams for a few years and adopting the most successful for their own and we think life is all Barca or Real or Chelsea or Man U...but for most of the world your local team represents you without guaranteeing you glory or success. It's just YOU.

We're unbelievably lucky to have the resources of MC and the Yankees...we could have owners who don't care or have shallow pockets and couldn't afford great DPs even if they did care.

One reason that NJRB mean nothing to me is that I was born in Manhattan and still live here and Harrison NJ might as well be Mars for all it means to me. NYCFC is my local club and I'll suffer along with it, up or down.

Like I do with the Mets.

David

 

[NYCFCfan]

If I thought giving up on a team was an option I wouldn't be a Jets fan or a Spurs (Tottenham not San Antonio) fan. I'd be a Chelsea/Patriots/Galaxy fan.

 

[Kevin]

NYCFC fan for life (unless they move out the city). We can lose the rest of the season and I will still go to every game, scream at every goalie, boo at every cross and wear my BLACK jersey every chance.

 

[Mario]

I am also in the boat that believes in Nemec. When we figure things out he will start to get his head on the ball and start scoring goals.

As am I, he offers another dimension to our offense- height, strength, hard work defensively.... we just dont utilize his strengths yet.

We're unbelievably lucky to have the resources of MC and the Yankees...we could have owners who don't care or have shallow pockets and couldn't afford great DPs even if they did care.

I think people in this area just don't understand what it means to have a local team. 99% percent of the world has Brentford or Wigan or Tours or Merida or Portland-before-they-were-in-MLS as their local team. That means years in the wilderness, dicey players and coaches, constant danger of falling out of the 2nd division into the 3rd, threats of bankruptcy, or God knows what. New Yorkers have been brought up watching Premier League or La Liga teams for a few years and adopting the most successful for their own and we think life is all Barca or Real or Chelsea or Man U...but for most of the world your local team represents you without guaranteeing you glory or success. It's just YOU.

people dont appreciate this yet. MCFC and Yankees are the reason why we are here. They have money, resources, other clubs, and want to make a mark on the MLS. The MLS is nowhere near a top tier league to most people in the world/ even in the USA.

also, this is our first local top tier team in the NY area. not new jersey or buffalo but right in the bronx. You're here in the state, you want to finally support a team without being called a bandwagoner, this is our team.

 

[Davo15]

If I could just rave for a moment.

I think people in this area just don't understand what it means to have a local team. 99% percent of the world has Brentford or Wigan or Tours or Merida or Portland-before-they-were-in-MLS as their local team. That means years in the wilderness, dicey players and coaches, constant danger of falling out of the 2nd division into the 3rd, threats of bankruptcy, or God knows what. New Yorkers have been brought up watching Premier League or La Liga teams for a few years and adopting the most successful for their own and we think life is all Barca or Real or Chelsea or Man U...but for most of the world your local team represents you without guaranteeing you glory or success. It's just YOU.

We're unbelievably lucky to have the resources of MC and the Yankees...we could have owners who don't care or have shallow pockets and couldn't afford great DPs even if they did care.

One reason that NJRB mean nothing to me is that I was born in Manhattan and still live here and Harrison NJ might as well be Mars for all it means to me. NYCFC is my local club and I'll suffer along with it, up or down.

Like I do with the Mets.

David

Really good point IMO. I think part of the problem is that for those of us who are not expats, for the American who chose to start watching soccer, the vast majority to some degree or another gloryhunt in their picking of a team. Not saying everyone goes for the current champs but their more likely to pick a side in a major league with a star player or two etc. So it's hard to remember that the vast majority of football supporters world wide support their local side through thick and thin with no real hope of glory or trophies be it small English sides Oxford or Boston etc. Or just a small country like Romania or Austria or something. Sometimes in a room full of American soccer fans you'd be forgiven for thinking Barca, Real, and about 4 or 5 EPL teams were the only teams in the world.

 

[ferrarinycfc]

A lot of euro team supporters will see whats happening and think, well i gave it a shot but nycfc are pretty poor, and they will just go back to supporting their euro teams.

First impressions are everything, especially in a NYC. They need to turn it around soon or the club will continue to lose supporters. I wont be one of them as i think NYCFC will have what it takes in a few years.

 

[jerseyhotspur]

ha, if someone is going to bail on a team after just 8 total games in the history of the franchise, then good riddance.

 

[roxfontaine]

NYC 'TIL I DIE!

 

[Nicholas Constantino]

ha, if someone is going to bail on a team after just 8 total games in the history of the franchise, then good riddance.

I wouldn't have that attitude. Because even though we obviously have a pretty big fan base of die hard fans, it is vital to our success and the success of our league that we have as many fans as possible, plastic or not. That's why like @ferrarinycfc was saying, we need to make a good first impression to hold onto the fans that are on the fence whether or not to support us.

 

[jerseyhotspur]

I wouldn't have that attitude. Because even though we obviously have a pretty big fan base of die hard fans, it is vital to our success and the success of our league that we have as many fans as possible, plastic or not. That's why like @ferrarinycfc was saying, we need to make a good first impression to hold onto the fans that are on the fence whether or not to support us.

Huh? That sounds like a canned, corporate response from Don Garber.

 

[Paul]

I get what you guys are saying about euro club supporters but I still think it comes down to certain individuals (not all euro supporters in general) being gloryhunters and looking to identify themselves with an old club that is highly successful rather than go all in with a new club that is struggling.

Take me for instance: my first introduction to the highest level of football was the 1998 World Cup and I fell in love with that France team and Zidane in particular. I really didn't know anything about club football until Zidane tranferred to Real Madrid in 2001 and I've been following them obsessively for the past 14 years. However, NYCFC has surpassed RMCF for me and while I still watch Real Madrid matches it is different -- I'm not as emotionally attached and I have more than happily given NYCFC so much of my time, thoughts and attention that there really isn't much leftover for Real Madrid and I'm ok with that! If you told me a year ago this would be the case I'd say you were crazy but I wouldn't change any of it now. There's nothing like going through heaven and hell with your hometown club.

So, to sum it up, I think it really just depends on how fairweather you are. If you can't take losing and have to identify yourself as a winner through your sports team, then yes you are a gloryhunter who won't stick around through thick and thin.

 

[kylelovescrayons]

I will say, having long suffered with teams in most leagues it is fantastic when your team wins, and hard when they lose. I think this has been well established in this thread. I will also say that once your team begins to win, especially championships, or making playoffs etc. then your expectations get changed and even regular season losses become heartbreaking. For example my Seattle Seahawks used to impress me if they were still in a game in the 4th quarter, or had a lead on a good team (view point all through the 80s, 90s, and latter half of 2000s.) Now when they lose a close game in the regular season I am distraught.

We all had high expectations for this team, tempered by realism or not, and it's hard to come back down to reality.

I do hope the team picks it up and does better. That being said this is the first time hockey playoffs are going on and the NFL draft is coming up and I am actually paying attention to the MLS. Typically for me as a casual MLS person this is dead time for me. Once Premier League has wound down, and NHL ends I pretty much could care less. Now I care about a team (good, bad, ugly, doesn't matter) and am focused on what else is going on in the league that otherwise I would watch if it was on at a bar.

 

[HamishBK]

You're probably right. But I don't understand that mentality. If you don't make the emotional investment before a club is successful, or at least before the positive occurs, how does anyone get any joy out of that?

To me, being a supporter is about a shared experience - the journey, as it were. Jumping onboard because some team is hot turns what is supposed to be an emotional, soul-wrenching experience into one more akin to buying a new tie. Yeah, you feel good when you wear it, but it's just a tie. You're not connected in anyway.

No one is going to respect anyone any more because they claim a successful team. And what joy do you really get if you haven't been invested? I would get none.

I know I'm off-topic a bit, but just wanted to throw that out there.

TL;DR: I don't understand glory hunting via your fandom.

I'm with you. I never got that personally. I could never see myself being a fan of Barca or any of the purchased powerhouse clubs unless I was born and raised under their banners. Don't get me wrong, I'm enjoying the Champions League for sure, but being good because you have the money to outspend all of your competitors is awful.

I'm a 20+ year Dolphins fan. Enough said. But it will be so much sweeter when we finally do raise that trophy.

 

[Mario]

The expectations were set too high to begin with. I hear people talking about winning the MLS Cup, playoffs, champions league... I mean yeah, we played good against New England... then what? we never had a roster full of depth (in case of a Villa injury) We put all our eggs in one basket, the basket breaks and now we have to start; Mullins, Nemec, or Shelton... all 3 of which haven't earned a starting spot realistically although I prefer Nemec to the others (but thats a different story)

We lose a few games, I'm not gonna say gtfo if you don't want to support the team when they lose, but lets use our heads and think logically. 8 games.... thats like divorcing your wife if she has a girl.

 

[HamishBK]

I wouldn't have that attitude. Because even though we obviously have a pretty big fan base of die hard fans, it is vital to our success and the success of our league that we have as many fans as possible, plastic or not. That's why like @ferrarinycfc was saying, we need to make a good first impression to hold onto the fans that are on the fence whether or not to support us.

Macro view, you're right. Although die-hards may frown at this, it's a huge draw on multiple levels. When I re-watch that New England game and see a packed house of blue and white fans on a cold, miserable March evening, it shows me something; excitement. This extends beyond our city borders and it's infectious. The more support we build outside our city the better it is for the club, and the league as a whole (i.e. merchandising, corporate sponsorships, TV revenue, DP interest).

For this league to grow, we need support, and the "plastic" fans are a necessity. The casual fan will ultimately become the die-hard, so long as the interest remains high. If we become cellar-dwellers, the interest will fade fast among the casuals.

I only shake my head at those who claim to bleed blue and white and fall off as soon as we're not performing after a handful of games in our inaugural.

 

[HamishBK]

The expectations were set too high to begin with. I hear people talking about winning the MLS Cup, playoffs, champions league... I mean yeah, we played good against New England... then what? we never had a roster full of depth (in case of a Villa injury) We put all our eggs in one basket, the basket breaks and now we have to start; Mullins, Nemec, or Shelton... all 3 of which haven't earned a starting spot realistically although I prefer Nemec to the others (but thats a different story)

We lose a few games, I'm not gonna say gtfo if you don't want to support the team when they lose, but lets use our heads and think logically. 8 games.... thats like divorcing your wife if she has a girl.

Totally. That first home game was sadly fools gold. We came out the gate on fire and have gone virtually dormant since. When I re-watch that New England game, it almost seems like a different team to what we've seen out there the past few weeks, even with Villa on the field. We don't have an identity, and that unfortunately, takes time to build.

 

[SayWhat44]

I refuse to temper my expectations I want them to win. Every match, for every signing, EVERYTHING. #justwinbaby

 

[Mario]

For this league to grow, we need support, and the "plastic" fans are a necessity. The casual fan will ultimately become the die-hard, so long as the interest remains high. If we become cellar-dwellers, the interest will fade fast among the casuals.

plastic fans or not, people support the team one way or another. That can lead to the domino effect of creating a group of fans, plastic or not. They'll tell their friends to go/watch a NYCFC game, they watch, possibly support, if they do +1 fan. and then it repeats pretty much...
our team is just as good as our supporters. We could be shit, which we've been lately, but if we are shit with supporters, we give the team some kind of incentive to try to win a game. If we are shit and have no support for our team, we basically fold in a couple years and then we dont have a team to support locally anymore.

 

[HamishBK]

plastic fans or not, people support the team one way or another. That can lead to the domino effect of creating a group of fans, plastic or not. They'll tell their friends to go/watch a NYCFC game, they watch, possibly support, if they do +1 fan. and then it repeats pretty much...
our team is just as good as our supporters. We could be shit, which we've been lately, but if we are shit with supporters, we give the team some kind of incentive to try to win a game. If we are shit and have no support for our team, we basically fold in a couple years and then we dont have a team to support locally anymore.

I agree with you, but that only works in a perfect world if the team sucks. I definitely think we have the fan base here to weather the storm for a while, but if the excitement tempers too drastically and we can't turn it around it'll only be us (i.e. the die hards who frequent team message boards), and that won't be enough.

Note: I'm just speaking long term, worst case scenario here. I definitely don't think the sky is falling after 8 games.

 

[Amon]

I do hope the team picks it up and does better. That being said this is the first time hockey playoffs are going on and the NFL draft is coming up and I am actually paying attention to the MLS. Typically for me as a casual MLS person this is dead time for me. Once Premier League has wound down, and NHL ends I pretty much could care less. Now I care about a team (good, bad, ugly, doesn't matter) and am focused on what else is going on in the league that otherwise I would watch if it was on at a bar.

Same here besides baseball around this time I'm usually not paying attention to anything. But I've become emotionally attached to NYCFC and have been paying attention to more MLS than ever in my lifetime. I obsessively check these forums too even while at work.