As Austin FC prepares for its first season of MLS play in '21, club President Andy Loughnane says that the organization’s readiness, preparation and unique market have made it easier to press forward in launching in '21 successfully. Loughnane joins our Andrew Levin on the latest episode of “SBJ Unpacks: The Road Ahead,” to discuss some of the challenges the expansion franchise has faced in preparing to launch during a national economic crisis.
On the biggest challenges of launching a franchise amid the pandemic:
Loughnane: We had to create an adjustment in the way that we went to market with our season-ticket product. For example, when March of 2020 hit and the pandemic started to become of great concern here in North America, we were fairly deep in the premium sales process. I’d say we were about 15% through our premium sales process, so we had to pivot. We had this incredible investment that we had made in a fan preview center, this IMAX theater-like experience that allows you to experience the stadium and the amenities in this cool, small digital theater inside of our business offices. We had access to that technology from November '19 to March of 2020, and we had to pivot away from that. … We made the adjustment to sell remotely. We’re pretty agile in that respect. Our business was built to be a remote operation, if needed.
On if turning down a $35M, 10-year naming rights contract still feels like the correct decision:
Loughnane: We’ve had what I would classify as "very healthy conversations" with several brands across the last several months. Brands have not discontinued sponsorship. At minimum with Austin FC, brands have not discontinued conversations. We’ve worked on closing significant deals, not all of which have been announced. As it relates to the $35-million, ten-year offer that we had evaluated previously, I will reinforce that comment that we believe that Austin, just given the trajectory of the market and the corporate strength in Austin, we believe that there is opportunity beyond that. Over time, that will be measured, but I do believe that the pandemic will leave, and the marketplace will start to restore itself. Our patience will be rewarded in that regard.
On how Austin’s growth as a burgeoning tech capital has impacted the way the club has experienced the pandemic:
Loughnane: We have been fortunate that many, many individuals have viewed Austin FC as this beacon of hope. The marketplace is growing. It’s one of the fastest growing cities in the United States. It does have an incredibly attractive lifestyle, which leads to that. There are strong tax benefits inside of Austin, and if you were to look at the unemployment numbers in Austin historically and across the last six, seven months in Austin, it does outperform the rest of the country. … Does that help serve as a marker of our ability to succeed? It certainly is an indicating point that the strength of this market is just different than it is elsewhere in the country.
