North American Pro Soccer 2019

[SFGiants58 12,958]

34 minutes ago, Wings said:

 

Hi I'm not just smug. I'm smug & legendary. 

 

“I bet you can’t beat my all-time record keg stand time! I only had to get my stomach pumped once while doing it.” TKE chants ring off in the background, while a freshman pukes all over the pool table.

[Digby 5,290]

Glad that's all over with, but still think the crest is lifeless and still not very convinced about Austin as a market. 

[Jer15 965]

On 1/14/2019 at 9:09 PM, Digby said:

 

That was my point! It’s a way bigger city than people think but they operate decidedly small-time. It’s odd.

 

I get the impression that, ever since he became the main shareholder in Bologna, that's where the focus has been. 

 

[DG_ThenNowForever 13,892]

Josef Martinez resigned in Atlanta for five years. I don't know if numbers are available yet, but it's a huge deal that the league's best player (in 2018) is staying in the league rather than moving on.

[JackieMoon 329]

8 hours ago, Digby said:

Glad that's all over with, but still think the crest is lifeless and still not very convinced about Austin as a market. 

I don't see how when Texas already has Dallas and Houston. I think there could be a better following somewhere else.

[MJWalker45 5,045]

2 hours ago, sohiosportsfreak said:

I don't see how when Texas already has Dallas and Houston. I think there could be a better following somewhere else.

They're counting on San Antonio,  San Marco's and the I-35 corridor to make the trip in as well as locals. Finding somewhere to park still hasn't been fixed but if all of the bus station changes occur some of the congestion could be fixed. I also keep hearing they plan to work with UT in some capacity, but that still hasn't happened yet. 

[-kj 2,215]

3 hours ago, sohiosportsfreak said:

I don't see how when Texas already has Dallas and Houston.

 

It's not like Texas is a massive state with a large population or anything.

[4_tattoos 1,300]

I seriously hope the first Austin at Columbus game nationally is televised.

 

https://ftw.usatoday.com/2019/01/austin-fc-mls-expansion-precourt-columbus-crew-reaction-most-hated-fans-twitter-cities

[Sykotyk 953]

4 hours ago, Mockba said:

 

It's not like Texas is a massive state with a large population or anything.

Because nobody complains when Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington each have a team in a league but San Antonio is just one too many in Texas. Geography lessons should still be taught in schools and it's clear that they're not. 

[Red Wolf 5,061]

People get wrapped up in state lines a lot. It's like how San Jose vs. the Galaxy is supposed to be this close, in-state rivalry but the distance between the two is greater than the furthest distance between two English Premier League teams.

[Gothamite 22,669]

Yeah, we see this argument against adding another California team all the time.  And it’s silly then, too. 

[JackieMoon 329]

10 hours ago, Mockba said:

 

It's not like Texas is a massive state with a large population or anything.

 

Tad bigger than Rhode Island

[Brian in Boston 2,311]

13 hours ago, sohiosportsfreak said:

I don't see how (Austin will work as an MLS market) when Texas already has (MLS teams in) Dallas and Houston. I think there could be a better following somewhere else.

 

How? Apparently the same way that Columbus and Cincinnati are expected to coexist as the home markets to viable MLS franchises located a mere 113-mile drive from one another.  

[MJWalker45 5,045]

12 minutes ago, Brian in Boston said:

 

How? Apparently the same way that Columbus and Cincinnati are expected to coexist as the home markets to viable MLS franchises located a mere 113-mile drive from one another.  

MLS didn't appear to want that until they were forced to accept it. That being said, if New York and LA can have two teams, distance between cities should never be used as an excuse.

[Digby 5,290]

8 minutes ago, Brian in Boston said:

 

How? Apparently the same way that Columbus and Cincinnati are expected to coexist as the home markets to viable MLS franchises located a mere 113-mile drive from one another.  

 

In fairness, none of the MLS brass intended for there to be both a Columbus and a Cincinnati. 

 

Seriously, I dunno, I guess I just think Austin is a bit of a gamble when there are seemingly more sure bets elsewhere. It certainly is a different city demographically than Dallas or Houston, but the relative underperformance of those two off-pitch still gives me pause. Austin is a young and hip and increasingly moneyed city; does the new team fill that pro sports-shaped hole in ATX, or does it turn out that Austin is content as-is with UT and lots of live music? And I don't know Austin geography terribly well, but that stadium site looks a bit out of the way, it's not exactly the Sixth Street entertainment district here. And of course Austin seems highly unlikely to move the needle on MLS TV ratings, as the new smallest market in the league.

 

And of course this was all amplified before the Crew were saved and they wanted to simply trade one young, midsized capital city dominated by college sports for another, which never made a ton of sense.

 

So I dunno, we'll see. Feels inconsequential really, when you separate it from the Crew mess. A bust wouldn't be a disaster, a rousing success would still be low on the league's attention totem pole.

[JackieMoon 329]

Apparently everyone is getting all butthurt over my comment. Jeez take it how you like. It's just my opinion.

 

I was stating my reason because the two Texas teams were 18th and 20th in attendance last year. Why would you throw another team in the area and dilute it more?

[Brian in Boston 2,311]

3 hours ago, sohiosportsfreak said:

I was stating my reason because the two Texas teams were 18th and 20th in attendance last year. Why would you throw another team in the area and dilute it more?

That's just it! An MLS franchise based at a stadium at McKalla Place in Austin, Texas isn't in the same area as franchises playing at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, or at BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston. In point of fact, each of the teams will be based out of a home venue that is, at minimum, more than a 160-mile one-way drive from the other two... with the average driving distance between the home stadia of the three teams coming in at 216 miles one-way. As such, the notion that fans in either of the two existing Texas MLS markets are regularly driving 540 miles round-trip in order to take in anything at the other club's stadium besides their rivalry matches stretches credulity. Similarly, the idea that denizens of Greater Austin are routinely driving anywhere from 326 to 432 miles round-trip to get their MLS fix in Houston or Frisco is a bit far-fetched.

 

Further, we're talking about three distinct - and growing - markets. According to 2017 U.S. Census estimates, these are three of the most populous municipalities in the United States (Houston at 2,312,717 residents... Dallas at 1,341,075... Austin at 950,715), each anchoring metro areas that are expanding at a double-digit clip (Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington at 7,399,662 residents for +15.15% growth since 2010... Houston-The Woodlands-Sugarland at 6,892,427 residents for +16.42% growth... Austin at 2,115,827 residents for +23.28% growth).     

Look... would it have been better for FC Dallas and the Houston Dynamo if the teams had drawn more than 77% and 76% of capacity, respectively, at their home stadia this past season? Yes. Might Austin prove to be a dud market for MLS? It's possible... particularly with Anthony Precourt at the helm as investor/operator.

However, that said, there's no reason to believe that, in and of itself, simply granting a Major League Soccer expansion team to Austin is going to at all impact - let alone significantly impact to the point of dilution - the pool of fans for either FC Dallas or the Houston Dynamo. While the three franchises will all be operating in the same state, that state is 268,581 square miles in area... with an estimated population of 28,701,845 people. Think about that. Between them, the Dallas, Houston, and Austin Metropolitan Statistical Areas are home to 57% of the entire population of the second-most populous state in the union. 

 

[Pharos04 1,148]

Feels like people don't grasp how large Texas really is.  Especially between the 3 cities.  For example, I had to take a bus from San Antonio to Wichita Falls and it took over 6 hours!  AND WE NEVER LEFT THE STATE!!!

 

It's not like Austin borders Houston or Dallas.  There is significant distance between the cities that is enough to warrant the potential for a distinct fanbase that doesn't overlap with FC Dallas or the Dynamo.

 

It would be like people arguing that the Kings up in Sacramento takes away from the Clippers fanbase.  There's enough distance that there isn't any overlap or dilution of the fanbases.

[kmccarthy27 264]

15 hours ago, MJWalker45 said:

They're counting on San Antonio,  San Marco's and the I-35 corridor to make the trip in as well as locals. Finding somewhere to park still hasn't been fixed but if all of the bus station changes occur some of the congestion could be fixed. I also keep hearing they plan to work with UT in some capacity, but that still hasn't happened yet. 

A lot of people in the Live Stream comments on Facebook were making bets how long before he moves to the team to San Antonio. 

[MJWalker45 5,045]

1 hour ago, kmccarthy27 said:

A lot of people in the Live Stream comments on Facebook were making bets how long before he moves to the team to San Antonio. 

He already has his stadium site approved and he's negotiating where to practice. That's more than likely going to be at Lonestars since they were getting lined up to be the biggest academy beneficiary. San Antonio may be better, but I think if PSV decided to move again before even kicking a ball in Austin, MLS would look ridiculous. They'll make sure they play in Austin.