OT:What is Atlanta United FC doing different that the Thrashers did not do?

[Hockeyholic]

Bruins are firmly 3rd in Boston, and yes ahead of the Celtics. Case in point:

game 1 of 2010 Finals between Celtics and Lakers did a 19.1 rating in Boston.
game 1 of 2011 Cup Finals between Bruins and Van did a 25.5 rating in Boston.

in Boston/New England, the Red Sox are religion.

The region is also completely hockey crazy from midgets all the way up to the Bruins. HS hockey is huge, its the home of elite NCAA hockey, the AHL thrives in multiple cities and the Bruins are the Bruins. If you are talking about all age and skill levels, hockey is the #1 sport in New England, easily.

Up until 2001 it was always Sox 1, Bruins 2...the lone exception being the 80s Celtics with Bird. They ruled the roost.

The emergence of the Patriots Dynasty has put the Pats in 2nd (time will tell if it lasts beyond Brady and Bill).

but current rankings are:

Sox
Pats
Bs
Cs

Currently? Patriots are more popular than the Sox. Tv ratings, sports radio, and media attention prove it.

Red Sox have zero personalities. They're boring.

 

[HeHateMeFrisbee]

So besides the Red Wings going through a rebuilding phase how come they are not drawing in their new arena? Every time I see their home game highlights there are a lot of empty seats.

A few reasons...

Honestly, the "Hockeytown" thing was always BS. The average fan in Detroit is a "sports fan" IE, they are into the Tigers and Lions always, and the Red Wings and Pistons when they are good. As both of those teams suck this year (and will do for the foreseeable future) it is going to be rough. On top of that, ticket prices for the Red Wings are out of control, as are concession and parking prices. Additionally, as Detroit has been improving, there are other choices for people with disposable income. There are more bars and nightlife than ever before downtown, and it's much safer.

To get back to ATL United...the atmosphere is fantastic at games, and that is certainly helped by the concession deals that they have. Additionally, with a large amount of latin american immigrants in the Atlanta area, as well as throughout the state of Georgia, there is great interest in the largely latin american talent on ATL United. I live about 90 minutes outside of Atlanta, and there is a large contingent of soccer fans from Athens making the weekly trek to Atlanta to watch games, so this is a statewide thing. I can't see the momentum dying down anytime soon.

 

[BigBadBruins7708]

Currently? Patriots are more popular than the Sox. Tv ratings, sports radio, and media attention prove it.

Red Sox have zero personalities. They're boring.

no. they arent. national media doesnt apply here.

here in NE, the Sox are still #1 in media coverage, sports talk, etc. The Pats get more attention during the season, but fade from the storylines once its over. The Sox are a story 24/7/365.

but what do i know? i just actually live here......

 

[ziggyjoe212]

no. they arent. national media doesnt apply here.

here in NE, the Sox are still #1 in media coverage, sports talk, etc. The Pats get more attention during the season, but fade from the storylines once its over. The Sox are a story 24/7/365.

but what do i know? i just actually live here......

I've never lived in New England (I'm from Pittsburgh) but it seems like hockey is the #1/2 sport up there and the Bruins are the 3rd most popular sports team.

Pittsburgh is kind of the opposite. Hockey is 3rd popular but the Pens are firmly #2.

 

[Hockeyholic]

no. they arent. national media doesnt apply here.

here in NE, the Sox are still #1 in media coverage, sports talk, etc. The Pats get more attention during the season, but fade from the storylines once its over. The Sox are a story 24/7/365.

but what do i know? i just actually live here......

The Red Sox aren't a story 24/7/365 anymore. The Patriots are by far more popular. Local radio is still talking about free agency for the team.

 

[chizzler]

Boston, by and large is a baseball city. Bruins have a huge following. It’s just the media doesn’t give them air time. Things will change when the Patriots die down.

 

[Melrose Munch]

Bruins are firmly 3rd in Boston, and yes ahead of the Celtics. Case in point:

game 1 of 2010 Finals between Celtics and Lakers did a 19.1 rating in Boston.
game 1 of 2011 Cup Finals between Bruins and Van did a 25.5 rating in Boston.

in Boston/New England, the Red Sox are religion.

The region is also completely hockey crazy from midgets all the way up to the Bruins. HS hockey is huge, its the home of elite NCAA hockey, the AHL thrives in multiple cities and the Bruins are the Bruins. If you are talking about all age and skill levels, hockey is the #1 sport in New England, easily.

Up until 2001 it was always Sox 1, Bruins 2...the lone exception being the 80s Celtics with Bird. They ruled the roost.

The emergence of the Patriots Dynasty has put the Pats in 2nd (time will tell if it lasts beyond Brady and Bill).

but current rankings are:

Sox
Pats
Bs
Cs

no. they arent. national media doesnt apply here.

here in NE, the Sox are still #1 in media coverage, sports talk, etc. The Pats get more attention during the season, but fade from the storylines once its over. The Sox are a story 24/7/365.

but what do i know? i just actually live here......

Football as a whole was never that popular in New England. The patriots were number 4 before Brady and will be after.

 

[member 157595]

I am not native to Boston but I have lived in or around RT 128 for the better part of a decade now.

My assessment is that once Brady and Belichick are gone, the Patriots will go back to #2 in this city. Hell, I've met more than a few old-timer locals that are die-hard New York Giant fans since they started watching pro football before the AFL's Boston Patriots came into existence.

All things being equal, the Red Sox always have and always will own this city. The Patriots are successful. The Red Sox are forever.

 

[member 157595]

Boston, by and large is a baseball city. Bruins have a huge following. It’s just the media doesn’t give them air time. Things will change when the Patriots die down.

Hockey is a popular sport here, and disposable income is definitely part of it. I work (but certainly not live) in a town where the average single family home goes for approximately $1,000,000 US. There's a LOT of money in Middlesex County and hockey's been part of the culture for decades.

 

[DowntownBooster]

Honestly, the "Hockeytown" thing was always BS. The average fan in Detroit is a "sports fan" IE, they are into the Tigers and Lions always, and the Red Wings and Pistons when they are good. As both of those teams suck this year (and will do for the foreseeable future) it is going to be rough. On top of that, ticket prices for the Red Wings are out of control, as are concession and parking prices. Additionally, as Detroit has been improving, there are other choices for people with disposable income. There are more bars and nightlife than ever before downtown, and it's much safer.

On the topic of the Detroit Red Wings, I sure wish they would get rid of the "HOCKEYTOWN" script inside the logo at center ice. The Red Wings have one of the best looking logos in hockey and the whole "Hockeytown" thing diminishes the appearance of the logo at center ice. The fans in Detroit don't need to be reminded that they're in Hockeytown if they already know it. Just have the classic Red Wings logo on the ice without any script ruining it.

 

[CHRDANHUTCH]

On the topic of the Detroit Red Wings, I sure wish they would get rid of the "HOCKEYTOWN" script inside the logo at center ice. The Red Wings have one of the best looking logos in hockey and the whole "Hockeytown" thing diminishes the appearance of the logo at center ice. The fans in Detroit don't need to be reminded that they're in Hockeytown if they already know it. Just have the classic Red Wings logo on the ice without any script ruining it.

UH, IT'S likely due to common ownership, DB.... THE Lions are a different ownership family, the Red Wings have registered that title...it's a trademark, nothing more

 

[DowntownBooster]

UH, IT'S likely due to common ownership, DB.... THE Lions are a different ownership family, the Red Wings have registered that title...it's a trademark, nothing more

I'm not against them having the title registered or trademarked or even having the script somewhere on the ice. I just think that with such an iconic logo they shouldn't take away from it by having script run through it.

 

[BigT2002]

To get it back on topic:

There is a big reason you didn't see the Thrashers flourish, but another one that rarely gets discussed is broadcasting rights. Remember this was during a time when VS, not NBCSN, had the broadcasting rights and they only showed games on like Mondays and Tuesdays. The sport in general was relegated to regional fox sports affiliates to broadcast.

Now what else is going on in the Southeast that is probably going to be more important to everyday GA/SC/TN/FL/AL/MS fan? SEC. College sports pretty much reign supreme down in that area of the world. So while the Thrashers would have an intense rivalry game against the Florida panthers, the Tennessee Volunteers v. Kentucky Wildcats was being broadcasted at the same time. So who do you think fans wanted to watch? College. They had no desire to watch players skate around an ice rink in Atlanta with names they had no idea how to pronounce.

So what game are you expecting fans to watch?

 

[ADTH89]

P.O.C. don't watch hockey, it's mostly a white sport. It was embarrassingly cringe-worthy what hockey fan did with Tony X. People want inclusion and not to be treated like unicorns.

 

[NSHPreds1835]

To get it back on topic:

There is a big reason you didn't see the Thrashers flourish, but another one that rarely gets discussed is broadcasting rights. Remember this was during a time when VS, not NBCSN, had the broadcasting rights and they only showed games on like Mondays and Tuesdays. The sport in general was relegated to regional fox sports affiliates to broadcast.

Now what else is going on in the Southeast that is probably going to be more important to everyday GA/SC/TN/FL/AL/MS fan? SEC. College sports pretty much reign supreme down in that area of the world. So while the Thrashers would have an intense rivalry game against the Florida panthers, the Tennessee Volunteers v. Kentucky Wildcats was being broadcasted at the same time. So who do you think fans wanted to watch? College. They had no desire to watch players skate around an ice rink in Atlanta with names they had no idea how to pronounce.

So what game are you expecting fans to watch?

In a lot of ways it still is unless it's one of the big market teams.

 

[cutchemist42]

P.O.C. don't watch hockey, it's mostly a white sport. It was embarrassingly cringe-worthy what hockey fan did with Tony X. People want inclusion and not to be treated like unicorns.

Not sure if a troll account but the hockey #likemysport crowd gets really cringe sometimes. Lots of hockey fans have 0 self awareness.

 

[NSHPreds1835]

Watched my first ATL United game today on tv after not watching any last year. Yeah I still don't see the appeal of soccer, I found myself getting bored and falling asleep in the 2nd half of the game.

 

[Deleted member 93465]

Watched my first ATL United game today on tv after not watching any last year. Yeah I still don't see the appeal of soccer, I found myself getting bored and falling asleep in the 2nd half of the game.

The old 'i dont see the appeal so others wont either' self consolation argument.

72,000 at the Atlanta Utd opener for what it's worth.

 

[NSHPreds1835]

The old 'i dont see the appeal so others wont either' self consolation argument.

72,000 at the Atlanta Utd opener for what it's worth.

Good for them, I happen to think hockey is a better and definitely more exciting sport to watch.

 

[Deleted member 93465]

Good for them, I happen to think hockey is a better and definitely more exciting sport to watch.

Crazy thing about opinions, eh? Seems like everyone has a different one. Considering most of the world thinks otherwise, it's fairly obvious then that 'excitement' and something being 'better' have no basis in reality. And will make no difference in building new fans.

Ultimately, what you're familiar with is what you love.

As long as soccer does a better job exposing kids to the sport through things like FIFA video games and being much more accessible to play, hockey will fall behind in popularity in much of the southern US.

If we take into account leagues other than MLS, hockey is already well behind soccer in most of the southern US. But since people gauge soccer interest solely through MLS for some reason, that'll become more obvious too in time.

 

[NSHPreds1835]

Crazy thing about opinions, eh? Seems like everyone has a different one. Considering most of the world thinks otherwise, it's fairly obvious then that 'excitement' and something being 'better' have no basis in reality. And will make no difference in building new fans.

Ultimately, what you're familiar with is what you love.

As long as soccer does a better job exposing kids to the sport through things like FIFA video games and being much more accessible to play, hockey will fall behind in popularity in much of the southern US.

If we take into account leagues other than MLS, hockey is already well behind soccer in most of the southern US. But since people gauge soccer interest solely through MLS for some reason, that'll become more obvious too in time.

EA does make a hockey video game too you know, it's just that soccer is more accessible because all you really need is a ball, an open field and some shoes.

 

[Dolemite]

Different Demographics and cheaper entry price hurt the NHL there.

The Thrashers hired incompetent people in in their Hockey operations department.

Any new team in the league (like Seattle) should look at how they were run and don’t do any of what they did. And me being from Seattle they should look at the Wally ‘Incompetence Defined’ Walker years of the Sonics and don’t do anything that he did.

 

[varsaku]

Watched my first ATL United game today on tv after not watching any last year. Yeah I still don't see the appeal of soccer, I found myself getting bored and falling asleep in the 2nd half of the game.

2.5 million people watched the Chivas vs America Superclasico on Univision which is about the same as a Stanley Cup game. Clearly soccer has a bigger appeal than hockey even in the US. If hockey fans and NHL management fail to see that and take action, hockey will be left behind. At one point baseball rained supreme but now NFL has overtaken them. The same will happen to the NHL if people continue to ignore the issues facing hockey.

Univision delivers mammoth 2.5 million viewers for Chivas vs. América Superclásico - World Soccer Talk

 

[NSHPreds1835]

2.5 million people watched the Chivas vs America Superclasico on Univision which is about the same as a Stanley Cup game. Clearly soccer has a bigger appeal than hockey even in the US. If hockey fans and NHL management fail to see that and take action, hockey will be left behind. At one point baseball rained supreme but now NFL has overtaken them. The same will happen to the NHL if people continue to ignore the issues facing hockey.

Univision delivers mammoth 2.5 million viewers for Chivas vs. América Superclásico - World Soccer Talk

I don't know what you're expecting fans or NHL management to do, certainly not hockey fans fault that more people don't appreciate the sport and MLB is doing just fine. Sure they lost some people right after the 1994 players strike but baseball has been doing well as of late.

 

[AtlantaWhaler]

Another record attendance yesterday.

D.C. United falls to Atlanta United, 3-1, before a crowd of more than 72,000