MLS Seattle Sounders' Inaugural Season Considered A Big Success
 |
Sounders Will Set A League Attendance Record
Sunday With Conclusion Of Regular Season |
The MLS Sounders this year won the U.S. Open Cup, became the first MLS expansion team in 11 seasons to make the playoffs and "will establish a league attendance record on Saturday when it concludes its first regular season," according to Don Ruiz of the Tacoma NEWS TRIBUNE. But the "biggest surprise may be how little any of this has surprised anyone in the organization." Sounders Majority Owner Joe Roth, investor & GM Adrian Hanauer and investors Drew Carey and Paul Allen "signaled their willingness to cut against the MLS grain by committing to play in a downtown NFL stadium, when the league formula called for smaller soccer-specific stadiums, often out in the suburbs." They "let their fans vote on the team name," and Carey "insisted on a marching band and a supporters group with real clout, including the power to vote Hanauer out of his job." Sounders G Kasey Keller: "We had an organization that was willing to go out there and make things happen. ... They made it quite apparent that they wanted to be successful from the beginning." With one regular-season game remaining, the Sounders lead MLS with an average home attendance of 30,739 at Qwest Field, and with "all tickets already gone for Saturday, the Sounders are assured of breaking the league record average of 28,916," set by the Galaxy during the league's inaugural season in '96 (Tacoma NEWS TRIBUNE, 10/23).
POWER TO THE PEOPLE: Carey Thursday said the "level of fan involvement in Seattle is pretty unprecedented." He added allowing fans to be involved in making decisions "marries the fan to the team." Carey: "In Seattle, when we have a lean year … our fans are going to have a recourse. They're not going to stop buying tickets and paying us. They're going to stick around, and it just means more money in everybody's pocket when they do it this way" ("America's Nightly Scoreboard," Fox Business, 10/22).
|
Related Stories By Company
|
Related Stories By Sport
|
One-On-One With Sounders' Drew Carey
November 6, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
Sounders May Expand Stadium Capacity
September 23, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
Sounders Try To Maintain Intimate Feel
June 29, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
Expansion Sounders FC Making Big Splash
March 3, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
Sounders Tap Social Networking For Support
December 3, 2008 :
SportsBusiness Daily
|
Catching Up With RSL President Bill Manning
November 20, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
MLS Commish Sits For Wide-Ranging Q&A
November 20, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
Will Handball Harm Henry's Marketability?
November 20, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
Hansen Formally Buys 49% Stake In RSL
November 19, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
Would RSL Win Create Issue For MLS?
November 18, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
|
|
