Not Much Magic In The City Of Miami
I had such high hopes of the NASL when it was first announced. It was a chance for the Clubs to take control and run the League the proper way a League should be run.
Now obviously it’s still early days. All of the legal wrangling, and the delay in even having any details of a season to begin with, hasn’t set the League off on the first steps it would have liked. The League owners hands are obviously tied in a number of areas and are still shackled by their forced association with the USL.
It would be harsh to be too judgemental at this stage but things haven’t got off to a great start so far. Crowds have been very low and you do have to wonder how the League can possibly survive once ourselves, Portland, Montreal and all our fans leave for the MLS over the next wee while.
I felt that our home opener last week drew a disappointing crowd of just 4,934 in the grand scheme of things. It seems great though when you look at the 1,235 Miami drew for theirs last weekend and the 1,694 and 1,029 Carolina and Baltimore attracted respectively to their home openers on Friday night.
At least St Louis drew a sold out 5,695 fans to the first professional men’s football match in the city in 33 years. There’s hope there if Claude Anelka doesn’t fuck things up too much (more on that later in the week in the lead up to our game against them next Saturday).
We’d love to the see the League thrive and grow to become a real alternative to the MLS in North America. To do that they need quality franchises. Miami certainly don’t seem to meet that criteria if yesterday was anything to go by.
We covered the shambolic match webcast in yesterday’s blog. We don’t know if we can point the finger of blame at Miami for that, we think not as the other feeds yesterday were also atrocious with regards to the buffering aspect. The other unprofessionalism on display was certainly the work of the Miami franchise.
Making PA advertising announcements during action on the field is just plain tacky. To blast out music whilst the game takes place is just downright wrong. They had the Rocky theme blaring out during one Miami attack yesterday FFS.
I thought there would be some rule against this but turns out there isn’t. There really needs to be if Leagues here want to avoid a mickey mouse tag. Once the NASL have sole control of their affairs, that’ll hopefully be one of the new rules they’ll introduce for the sake of the professionalism in the League.
Sure it’s not Miami’s fault they have to play in vast stadiums devoid of any atmosphere and fans, but you then have to ask, does a franchise with such a low fan base actually deserve to be in the second tier of the game in North America?
You do have to feel sorry for the hardcore Miami fans. At least they try. They’re enthusiastic, try and make noise throughout and it’s not their fault that the rest of the city don’t appear to give a fuck about the team.
I hate to knock anyone that is trying to generate an atmosphere at a game, but come on guys, your Miami sound machine calypso wing is more grating than atmosphere inducing after a while. I really felt we had been conned and were in fact “watching” a subliminal advertising campaign to make us go and see Stomp.
I did find it hilarious though that they were chanting “this is our house”. Not something I’d be fucking bragging about! Never heard anyone proud to say “we love this shithole” before.
Still, good marks for effort lads. It can’t be easy for you there.
There was an advertising board at the game in Spanish that said “America’s team”. Looking at the crowd they had at yesterday’s match, someone seems to have forgotten to tell America that fact.
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>I had such high hopes of the NASL when >itwas first announced.
Really?
I thought it was a total joke considerin Van and Mtl are leaving.
>you do have to wonder how the League >can possibly survive once ourselves, >Portland, Montreal and all our fans >leave for the MLS over the next wee >while.
Ok, so youre not clueless, just a little slow to realize things.
The USL was bush league but this whole saga was stupid beyond belief and having two teams lead the way while theyre planning to leave at the same time was tragically comical.
Even now, its still a bogus league which is one step above just having the Caps playing an exhibition season while waiting.
And NASL?
Really?
Thank god cheesy and tacky couldnt hurt the league more than it did already but using that name really summed up the idea that these clowns arent better than the other clowns.
its ok, well be out of here next year and if Montreal had been stupid and paid 5 million dollars more than Portland did, they would be out of there as well.
Instead they have to stay in this pretend league for another year.
Its ok, we have a pretend national championships for the CL spot, its not like were not used to pretending that something is legit when its not.
The USL was bush league last year and the league has long ways to get back to last years level. When we leave, it will go back another step and when Mtl leaves, one more. which I think will put it behind that Southern Ontario semi-pro league with the Italians, Portuguese and Serbian teams.
>I had such high hopes of the NASL when >itwas first announced.
Really?
I thought it was a total joke considerin Van and Mtl are leaving.
>you do have to wonder how the League >can possibly survive once ourselves, >Portland, Montreal and all our fans >leave for the MLS over the next wee >while.
Ok, so youre not clueless, just a little slow to realize things.
The USL was bush league but this whole saga was stupid beyond belief and having two teams lead the way while theyre planning to leave at the same time was tragically comical.
Even now, its still a bogus league which is one step above just having the Caps playing an exhibition season while waiting.
And NASL?
Really?
Thank god cheesy and tacky couldnt hurt the league more than it did already but using that name really summed up the idea that these clowns arent better than the other clowns.
its ok, well be out of here next year and if Montreal had been stupid and paid 5 million dollars more than Portland did, they would be out of there as well.
Instead they have to stay in this pretend league for another year.
Its ok, we have a pretend national championships for the CL spot, its not like were not used to pretending that something is legit when its not.
The USL was bush league last year and the league has long ways to get back to last years level. When we leave, it will go back another step and when Mtl leaves, one more. which I think will put it behind that Southern Ontario semi-pro league with the Italians, Portuguese and Serbian teams.
Not being from this continent, I always viewed the MLS as a bit of a joke league.
There's still a lot I don't like about it. The NASL (I don't mind the name one bit but then grew up with a glamour view of the old one from afar) if allowed to run the way the owners want has the potential to do all the right things a league should do – organisationwise.
Whether there is any fanbase, or American fans in particular care enough about football, to make this happen and whether the league can market itself enough is looking unlikely but still open to debate.
Remember, it's not definite that the Caps (and Montreal for that matter) won't keep a team in the NASL.
Not being from this continent, I always viewed the MLS as a bit of a joke league.
There's still a lot I don't like about it. The NASL (I don't mind the name one bit but then grew up with a glamour view of the old one from afar) if allowed to run the way the owners want has the potential to do all the right things a league should do – organisationwise.
Whether there is any fanbase, or American fans in particular care enough about football, to make this happen and whether the league can market itself enough is looking unlikely but still open to debate.
Remember, it's not definite that the Caps (and Montreal for that matter) won't keep a team in the NASL.