Stadium Discussion

[KevinJRogers]

Oh shoot, one other thing I forgot and then I have to get busy taking care of Bionic Grandma: the block parties, etc. I'd have the summer itinerary of every city council member, state rep and state senator and make sure someone from the team showed up to shake their hand and stand close enough to them to get in the pictures -- wearing team colors, of course.

We should have a booth at every festival or whatever, too. Run some contests for tickets. Have that board with the stadium designs mounted publicly. Give away some swag.

I'm upstate so I have no idea if any of that is done. But I haven't seen any pictures in the press (where we barely get covered anyway, and that's an issue) and I don't see many on our social media. Lots of gameday stuff, a few pictures of the supporters, some selling, but nothing in the way of a dedicated community outreach program: Media Tweets by New York City FC (@NYCFC) / Twitter

We need to do more.

 

[Seth]

So to me, all this sounds like a lot of excuses. I keep hearing about how hard it is, and how this or that "isn't a great comparison," but in my lifetime there's been a massive amount of construction in New York City. And since I was born in 1962, "my lifetime" means since the 1961 Zoning Resolution.

So someone has figured out how to do it. What I want to know is, why not us? Is this an executive failure? If so, what are the reasons for it? If not, what's the real problem? Because that's the first thing we have to straighten out.

Your points are valid but there's a huge difference between building an office building, say, and a stadium. For one thing, you can fit probably 50 giant office buildings in the footprint of one stadium. But you don't have to get the money, buy all that land, build all those buildings at once the way you would with a stadium. Also, which is going to generate more revenue for the city, a stadium used 17 times a year or those 50 office buildings?

So yes, there has definitely been massive construction in the city over the past decades, but how many of those were for projects that took up 11 acres at one go? Not a simple problem to solve, especially where you don't have the room of a Nashville or a Cincinnati, for example.

 

[KevinJRogers]

Your points are valid but there's a huge difference between building an office building, say, and a stadium. For one thing, you can fit probably 50 giant office buildings in the footprint of one stadium. But you don't have to get the money, buy all that land, build all those buildings at once the way you would with a stadium. Also, which is going to generate more revenue for the city, a stadium used 17 times a year or those 50 office buildings?

So yes, there has definitely been massive construction in the city over the past decades, but how many of those were for projects that took up 11 acres at one go? Not a simple problem to solve, especially where you don't have the room of a Nashville or a Cincinnati, for example.

I understand all of that. It's the very reason why the Jets didn't get their stadium at Hudson Yards. However . . .

I'm sick of hearing what we can't do. I want to talk about what we can do.

I've talked about a lot of it above, but here's another thing I noticed: we did something wonderful in opening all those mini-pitches (they're really futsal, but whatever LOL) but in going through all the public posts the team made about them I didn't see a single mention of a stadium for us. Every single one of those openings were an opportunity not taken.

If we're going to overcome the obstacles to a stadium, we must put it front of mind. We should never not be talking about it. We have to build enough support for it to make it the prize. And we have to make it clear to the political authorities the demand is there for it in the very communities they rely on for votes.

Now, all that being said, maybe the obstacles are too great. (The Islanders would probably disagree.) But I just don't think we're trying hard enough.

We as fans have to do our part, too. On every post I make about the team on social I now put a #LetsBuildIt hashtag in front of #ForTheCity (we need to put those two ideas together, by the way). I think everyone should do that.

Players and coaches should also never let an interview finish without mentioning the stadium. And it's fine to be a little cheeky about it. "Hey, you know all those mini-pitches? How 'bout a standard one for US?"

[Side note: I watched Villareal v. Liverpool yesterday, loved the interior of Villareal's stadium. Perfect for us. Estadio de la Cerámica - Wikipedia ]

Anyway, the one thing we know for sure is, it's definitely not going to just happen on its own.

 

[KevinJRogers]

I understand all of that. It's the very reason why the Jets didn't get their stadium at Hudson Yards. However . . .

I'm sick of hearing what we can't do. I want to talk about what we can do.

I've talked about a lot of it above, but here's another thing I noticed: we did something wonderful in opening all those mini-pitches (they're really futsal, but whatever LOL) but in going through all the public posts the team made about them I didn't see a single mention of a stadium for us. Every single one of those openings were an opportunity not taken.

If we're going to overcome the obstacles to a stadium, we must put it front of mind. We should never not be talking about it. We have to build enough support for it to make it the prize. And we have to make it clear to the political authorities the demand is there for it in the very communities they rely on for votes.

Now, all that being said, maybe the obstacles are too great. (The Islanders would probably disagree.) But I just don't think we're trying hard enough.

We as fans have to do our part, too. On every post I make about the team on social I now put a #LetsBuildIt hashtag in front of #ForTheCity (we need to put those two ideas together, by the way). I think everyone should do that.

Players and coaches should also never let an interview finish without mentioning the stadium. And it's fine to be a little cheeky about it. "Hey, you know all those mini-pitches? How 'bout a standard one for US?"

[Side note: I watched Villareal v. Liverpool yesterday, loved the interior of Villareal's stadium. Perfect for us. Estadio de la Cerámica - Wikipedia ]

Anyway, the one thing we know for sure is, it's definitely not going to just happen on its own.

Oh, and I probably should say -- all things considered, the fastest route to a stadium is probably still the GAL site. That's the place where the plans are apparently most advanced, although despite SoupInNYC 's in-depth reporting it's still not clear how advanced. And the quote from one of the local politicians about not even seeing a stadium design yet is troubling.

Willets Point is a little tougher to get to via the subway, too. And if I'm not mistaken they broke ground on the environmental remediation component of Related's plan last July with a three-year timeline. Figure two years to build a park and we're past the World Cup, unless the remediation can be accelerated and the paperwork and permissions expedited (Abu Dhabi dropped $15 billion on a massive chip fab up here in Southern Saratoga County, so I don't think money is an issue LOL).

But if we could get everything stamped in the South Bronx by, say, the middle of the summer next year, or maybe even by the end of next year, we could make it. Which makes this latest failure a real killer. Right now it's over 10 valuable months, wasted. And I still don't know exactly why it happened.

 

[Jon]

Oh, and I probably should say -- all things considered, the fastest route to a stadium is probably still the GAL site. That's the place where the plans are apparently most advanced, although despite SoupInNYC 's in-depth reporting it's still not clear how advanced. And the quote from one of the local politicians about not even seeing a stadium design yet is troubling.

Willets Point is a little tougher to get to via the subway, too. And if I'm not mistaken they broke ground on the environmental remediation component of Related's plan last July with a three-year timeline. Figure two years to build a park and we're past the World Cup, unless the remediation can be accelerated and the paperwork and permissions expedited (Abu Dhabi dropped $15 billion on a massive chip fab up here in Southern Saratoga County, so I don't think money is an issue LOL).

But if we could get everything stamped in the South Bronx by, say, the middle of the summer next year, or maybe even by the end of next year, we could make it. Which makes this latest failure a real killer. Right now it's over 10 valuable months, wasted. And I still don't know exactly why it happened.

I wish I still had your optimism, but this club has killed that for me. I'm just going to enjoy the cheap tickets that are available for every game.

 

[FredMertz]

Given the attendance so far this year, it's hard to imagine that anyone is in a hurry to advance the stadium project.

How do you average 17,000 fans per game without ever actually having 10,000 for any of them?

2022 MLS Attendance - Soccer Stadium Digest

We saw a strong close at the gate on the 2022 MLS attendance front in Week 34, led by good crowds for Orlando and New York Red Bulls matches.

soccerstadiumdigest.com

 

[moogoo]

Given the attendance so far this year, it's hard to imagine that anyone is in a hurry to advance the stadium project.

How do you average 17,000 fans per game without ever actually having 10,000 for any of them?

2022 MLS Attendance - Soccer Stadium Digest

We saw a strong close at the gate on the 2022 MLS attendance front in Week 34, led by good crowds for Orlando and New York Red Bulls matches.

soccerstadiumdigest.com

the average is for 2022 average. we've had around 15-19k fans at games this year. 2021 numbers were low for covid reasons and don't figure into the 2022 average. the final column is last week's attendance vs San Jose.

that being said, i think your point is valid. attendance #s have gone down steadily since the first year of the club. But I think the club is well aware that a lot of that is because many people just don't want to watch soccer at yankee stadium. a new stadium will definitely surge attendance and I wouldn't be surprised if we sell out of season tickets the year the stadium opens or maybe even the year they break ground for construction.

 

[FredMertz]

the average is for 2022 average. we've had around 15-19k fans at games this year. 2021 numbers were low for covid reasons and don't figure into the 2022 average. the final column is last week's attendance vs San Jose.

that being said, i think your point is valid. attendance #s have gone down steadily since the first year of the club. But I think the club is well aware that a lot of that is because many people just don't want to watch soccer at yankee stadium. a new stadium will definitely surge attendance and I wouldn't be surprised if we sell out of season tickets the year the stadium opens or maybe even the year they break ground for construction.

They might be able to claim that as tickets sold or some other fudge, but there is no way there have been even 10,000 people in the seats at any of our home games this year.

 

[moogoo]

They might be able to claim that as tickets sold or some other fudge, but there is no way there have been even 10,000 people in the seats at any of our home games this year.

10K in yankee stadium would look extremely sparse.. i'm sure they fudge the numbers a bit, but even at the easter sunday game, there were more than 10k people there. but in any case, tickets sold is what matters to them. if they sold every seat and not a single fan showed up, what do they care? they have the money and that's reason enough to keep going and build the stadium.

 

[Kjbert]

People don’t want to watch soccer in a baseball stadium. And the concessions suck. And the service sucks. It’s a bad game day experience.

 

[moogoo]

People don’t want to watch soccer in a baseball stadium. And the concessions suck. And the service sucks. It’s a bad game day experience.

I think if they were able to at least lower the prices of concessions it wouldn't be so bad and it would actually put more butts in seats. but the high prices and poor overall quality turns a lot of people away. yankees must make an absolute killing on the profit margins for food

 

[Kjbert]

I think if they were able to at least lower the prices of concessions it wouldn't be so bad and it would actually put more butts in seats. but the high prices and poor overall quality turns a lot of people away. yankees must make an absolute killing on the profit margins for food

Crappy service
Poor food options - it’s not even a good baseball stadium hot dog
Half the concessions are closed
They don’t have all the entrances manned
You’re either far away from the field or have a tough viewing angle

It’s just bad. And it’s $45 to park

 

[FredMertz]

10K in yankee stadium would look extremely sparse.. i'm sure they fudge the numbers a bit, but even at the easter sunday game, there were more than 10k people there. but in any case, tickets sold is what matters to them. if they sold every seat and not a single fan showed up, what do they care? they have the money and that's reason enough to keep going and build the stadium.

They could be counting “tickets distributed” which would include freebies.

 

[Higgs1]

Do they factor in ALL our home games in this data? I'm sure those games at RBA, Connecticut, Belson, LAFC's home stadium, didn't get more than a few hundred.....

After experiencing Citi Field I can tell how bad YS is too. We need our own stadium so bad, but it just seems like it's never going to happen. It's like when the news covers MLB/NHL/NBA/NFL nightly & are excited rangers could win the first championship in 13 years for NYC.....yet we won last season. No one (most) gives a shit about soccer here.

 

[SoupInNYC]

Do they factor in ALL our home games in this data? I'm sure those games at RBA, Connecticut, Belson, LAFC's home stadium, didn't get more than a few hundred.....

After experiencing Citi Field I can tell how bad YS is too. We need our own stadium so bad, but it just seems like it's never going to happen. It's like when the news covers MLB/NHL/NBA/NFL nightly & are excited rangers could win the first championship in 13 years for NYC.....yet we won last season. No one (most) gives a shit about soccer here.

I think it's just MLS attendance, which would exclude LA, Connecticut, and the one RBA game (haven't played at Belson yet)

 

[KevinJRogers]

I wish I still had your optimism, but this club has killed that for me. I'm just going to enjoy the cheap tickets that are available for every game.

Unfortunately, that is by no means an unreasonable view. And the fact any of us can feel that way, rightfully, is the biggest executive failure of them all.

 

[KevinJRogers]

"Let my people goal!"

Maybe this is what we need. And don't even try to tell me we can't find a Moses in the Big Apple.

#NYCFC #LetsBuildIt #ForTheCity

How Soccer Moses led Nashville SC fans to the promised land — Geodis Park

Nashville SC super fan Soccer Moses made it big during the club's first MLS match in 2020. Last Sunday, he made it to the promised land: Geodis Park.

www.tennessean.com

 

[moogoo]

"Let my people goal!"

Maybe this is what we need. And don't even try to tell me we can't find a Moses in the Big Apple.

#NYCFC #LetsBuildIt #ForTheCity

How Soccer Moses led Nashville SC fans to the promised land — Geodis Park

Nashville SC super fan Soccer Moses made it big during the club's first MLS match in 2020. Last Sunday, he made it to the promised land: Geodis Park.

www.tennessean.com

excuse you - we have the NYCFC Pigeon.

 

[Keith Putnam]

No one (most) gives a shit about soccer here.

Huge amounts of people all over the NYC metro area care deeply about soccer.
It's MLS they don't care about.

 

[DeGrozz]

"Let my people goal!"

Maybe this is what we need. And don't even try to tell me we can't find a Moses in the Big Apple.

#NYCFC #LetsBuildIt #ForTheCity

How Soccer Moses led Nashville SC fans to the promised land — Geodis Park

Nashville SC super fan Soccer Moses made it big during the club's first MLS match in 2020. Last Sunday, he made it to the promised land: Geodis Park.

www.tennessean.com

We just got that dirty looking dude that pretends to be homeless on the subway.