Wednesday, October 26, 2005
I can use the money...
Now, I'm not sure if that's the value if I were to sell the blog or if that's what I should be able to get if I were to sell ads (more than the Google things on the right...down a bit) But, email me if you wanna send me money.
Scaryice, who does the Climbing the Ladder blog, has been rolling out the BASAs (Blogosphere American Soccer Awards) this week. It's worth checking out what a bunch of unpaid "experts" think (as compared to the paid "experts" who vote for the official awards) I voted...and to be honest it was one of the toughest things I've done in a while. I kept changing my votes up until I submitted them...and even then I wanted to change my mind again after. Oh well.
It seems that by not being able to watch the Chicago-DC game on Saturday I missed the start of a whole new debate. I don't usually like to link to BigSoccer on here but in this case I'm making an exception. I guess Section 8 fans at Soldier Field had flares they lit and a bunch of paper to throw around. The link I just posted is an amusing debate on the pros and cons of that type of support. Personally, I go to games to watch them and shout at the players, ref, coaches and anyone else that comes to mind. (I got some surprised looks from soccer moms at Invesco this year while hurling abuse at Steve Sampson while wearing Galaxy gear) However, I know that some people want to support their teams in different ways.
Various fan groups (both in the US and elsewhere) have developed different ways of supporting their team. As far as I'm concerned, to each their own. I enjoyed watching Galaxy games from the upper deck sitting right on the halfway line. I was surrounded by other season ticket holders who were much the same as I. I've spent time with LARS (and even the Galaxians a loooong time ago) and found I wasn't able to watch the match the way I wanted...so I moved. The point I'm (slowly) getting to is that MLS is still young. In other parts of the world, teams have been around forever. Depending on how you want to support your team, you buy tickets in the area that allows you to do so. For most regulars to games, they've probably figured out where they want to sit. However, part-timers, the bulk of ticket buyers, don't attend enough games to understand what's going on...who's fault is that?
MLS officials say they want to fans in this country to develop the same passion for the sport and their team as they see in Europe and South America...but they really don't want too much passion or the Soccer Mom crowd might get scared off and not buy tickets. I've been saying it for years and this seems as good a time as any to say it again, most MLS games don't sell out...why not create different sections based on more than just price to allow people to watch the game the way they want to without creating any friction? Everyone is happy, everyone has a good time and everyone wants to come back (as long as Sampson doesn't give them reasons not to).
Anyway, now that the league has pretty much abandoned the idea of Americanizing the sport, it's time to create family sections and other areas to encourage better attendance.
Boy, I rambled longer than I'd expected there. ¶ 8:48 AM
My blog is worth $10,161.72.
How much is your blog worth?
Now, I'm not sure if that's the value if I were to sell the blog or if that's what I should be able to get if I were to sell ads (more than the Google things on the right...down a bit) But, email me if you wanna send me money.
Scaryice, who does the Climbing the Ladder blog, has been rolling out the BASAs (Blogosphere American Soccer Awards) this week. It's worth checking out what a bunch of unpaid "experts" think (as compared to the paid "experts" who vote for the official awards) I voted...and to be honest it was one of the toughest things I've done in a while. I kept changing my votes up until I submitted them...and even then I wanted to change my mind again after. Oh well.
It seems that by not being able to watch the Chicago-DC game on Saturday I missed the start of a whole new debate. I don't usually like to link to BigSoccer on here but in this case I'm making an exception. I guess Section 8 fans at Soldier Field had flares they lit and a bunch of paper to throw around. The link I just posted is an amusing debate on the pros and cons of that type of support. Personally, I go to games to watch them and shout at the players, ref, coaches and anyone else that comes to mind. (I got some surprised looks from soccer moms at Invesco this year while hurling abuse at Steve Sampson while wearing Galaxy gear) However, I know that some people want to support their teams in different ways.
Various fan groups (both in the US and elsewhere) have developed different ways of supporting their team. As far as I'm concerned, to each their own. I enjoyed watching Galaxy games from the upper deck sitting right on the halfway line. I was surrounded by other season ticket holders who were much the same as I. I've spent time with LARS (and even the Galaxians a loooong time ago) and found I wasn't able to watch the match the way I wanted...so I moved. The point I'm (slowly) getting to is that MLS is still young. In other parts of the world, teams have been around forever. Depending on how you want to support your team, you buy tickets in the area that allows you to do so. For most regulars to games, they've probably figured out where they want to sit. However, part-timers, the bulk of ticket buyers, don't attend enough games to understand what's going on...who's fault is that?
MLS officials say they want to fans in this country to develop the same passion for the sport and their team as they see in Europe and South America...but they really don't want too much passion or the Soccer Mom crowd might get scared off and not buy tickets. I've been saying it for years and this seems as good a time as any to say it again, most MLS games don't sell out...why not create different sections based on more than just price to allow people to watch the game the way they want to without creating any friction? Everyone is happy, everyone has a good time and everyone wants to come back (as long as Sampson doesn't give them reasons not to).
Anyway, now that the league has pretty much abandoned the idea of Americanizing the sport, it's time to create family sections and other areas to encourage better attendance.
Boy, I rambled longer than I'd expected there. ¶ 8:48 AM
