Orlando City SC MF Kaká said that over the last few days, he "received numerous calls from friends and family in Europe and Brazil" who watched the team's inaugural game on TV, and their "biggest impression" was the crowd of 62,358 at the Citrus Bowl, according to Paul Tenorio of the ORLANDO SENTINEL. Kaka: "Everybody was speaking about that and everybody was asking me how it is to play here in this atmosphere and in the league. A lot of questions about that, and I just said it’s amazing, it’s unbelievable" (ORLANDO SENTINEL, 3/12). Meanwhile, Magic CEO Alex Martins said of the MLS team's entry into the Orlando market, "Competition makes everyone sharper no matter what business you're in. Orlando can be a big-time sports city, but big-time sports cities are not built on one successful franchise; they're built on multiple successful franchises." In Orlando, Mike Bianchi writes in an "ideal world, Martins is absolutely right." If the Magic were winning, having a new MLS franchise in town "would not have any effect whatsoever on the Magic's popularity." The problem is the Magic "aren't winning right now," so it "is naïve to think that there aren't at least some sports fans who have bailed on the Magic and jumped on the soccer bandwagon." Bianchi: "That said, I don't think we would even have a Major League Soccer franchise if not for Martins and the Magic helping open the door for them" (ORLANDO SENTINEL, 3/12).
BIG FISH, SMALL POND: In Salt Lake City, Christopher Kamrani notes MLS Commissioner Don Garber yesterday explained that Real Salt Lake's "success in the smallest market in the league is a banner victory for the league." Garber also "took time to levy a statement that goes against a narrative believed among some MLS fan bases." He said, "We are much less focused on market size as I think people in small markets think we are. It's just not something we think about that much" (SALT LAKE TRIBUNE, 3/12).
