MLS attendances boosted, falsified

[Daniel]

Thread: http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=415933

Original article: http://www.signonsandiego.com/sports/soccer/20060927-9999-lz1s27goal.html

"In one early-season FC Dallas match against Colorado, 1,259 tickets were sold and 7,347 were comps."


From BS:

-On average 22% of regular-season match tickets last season was complimentary

-The average paid attendance for the 2005 season was 10,746 per match, or 29 percent less than the 15,108 “official attendance” reported by the league.

-Average paid attendance with international doubleheaders taken out was less than 10,000 for 2005 season.

-Galaxy leads in paid attendance by a lot: 19,940. Second is RSL with 12,689. FC Dallas is last with 6,634. Half of the teams are below 10,000.

-League-wide paid attendance for midweek matches is 6,477.

-Often, announced attendance is higher than even the total tickets distributed number. Columbus had a conspicuous difference of exactly 1000 people between announced attendance and distributed tickets for 9 games in a row last season. Columbus spokesman said the difference is due to vouchers and credentialed personnel.

-2006 media guide claims that 2.9 million fans attended MLS regular season games in 2005. The Game Attendance Summary reports only 2.65 million total tickets were distributed, and of those just over 2 million were paid tickets.

[Richard]

Your point being?

[DoyleG]

MLS padding attendance to gain new sponsors.

[RJB]

This doesn't concern me.

With many pro-clubs in Europe playing with similarly low attendance numbers, particularly in the SPL, and EPL, I don't see this as a big concern for MLS.

[Richard]

Sponsors and others are concerned with the number of seats occupied, not whether or not the tickets for them were bought or complimentary.

[Daniel]

Seeing a team like Dallas only selling 1,259 tickets for a game or a team having 1.5x more comp tickets than sold means that these teams are not healthy enterprises.

[Calgary Boomer]

And the USL doesn't do the exact same thing? Have you been to a Lynx game? Same with Charleston.

[DoyleG]

quote:Originally posted by Calgary Boomer

And the USL doesn't do the exact same thing? Have you been to a Lynx game? Same with Charleston.


But MLS is a professional league with professional conduct. They shouldn't have to be resorting to such things.

[Daniel]

Yeah, I'll hold MLS to a different standard than the Lynx...

[amacpher]

quote:Originally posted by RJB

This doesn't concern me.

With many pro-clubs in Europe playing with similarly low attendance numbers, particularly in the SPL, and EPL, I don't see this as a big concern for MLS.


EPL? Really?

Nonsense.

[speedmonk42]

Well I don't think is much doubt in many peopls minds that the lower end markets for MLS would do much better in Van and Montreal. MLS in Montreal with CCR would do much better than many, and they are getting a new Stad.


A more interesting attendance investigation might compare facilities. Not sure exactly what it would reveal, but look at the attendance of quality facilites against some pretty crappy ones... aka Dallas(I am pretty sure it was Dallas I saw on TV and it looked like a dogs breakfast)

[Daniel]

Dallas has had a new SSS in the boondocks since last August. It's pretty sweet if appalingly empty.

[RJB]

quote:Originally posted by amacpher


quote:Originally posted by RJB

This doesn't concern me.

With many pro-clubs in Europe playing with similarly low attendance numbers, particularly in the SPL, and EPL, I don't see this as a big concern for MLS.


EPL? Really?

Nonsense.



Nonsense is right. Lower division English clubs is what I meant to say.

[BringBackTheBlizzard]

quote:Originally posted by Daniel

Dallas has had a new SSS in the boondocks since last August. It's pretty sweet if appalingly empty.


The figures quoted in the San Diego paper primarily includes games at the Cotton Bowl then. The new SSS has looked reasonably full to me the few times this season I have been paying attention although that isn't immediately obvious because the camera angle used tends to be away from where most of the crowd sits.

[Daniel]

quote:Originally posted by BringBackTheBlizzard


quote:Originally posted by Daniel

Dallas has had a new SSS in the boondocks since last August. It's pretty sweet if appalingly empty.


The figures quoted in the San Diego paper primarily includes games at the Cotton Bowl then. The new SSS has looked reasonably full to me the few times this season I have been paying attention although that isn't immediately obvious because the camera angle used tends to be away from where most of the crowd sits.


Dude, we have *not* been watching the same highlights. That place always looks empty.

And yes most of the 2005 season was at the Cotton Bowl.

[BringBackTheBlizzard]

quote:Originally posted by Daniel

Dude, we have *not* been watching the same highlights. That place always looks empty.

And yes most of the 2005 season was at the Cotton Bowl.


There was a Bigsoccer thread on this at one point with pictures to prove the point I made. I'll try to locate it.

[Free kick]

Aside from the Dallas numbers, I don't really see the big crisis. I never quite understood the facination with planting soccer in Dallas or Texas for that matter. When I think of Dallas or Texas, I don't think of soccer but rather football, oil companies, steak houses, and gas guzzling vehicles.

Its not as if every club overseas plays their matches in front of packed houses in 80K seat stadia. Besides, even if there are many comps, it doesn't mean that they dont contribute to the bottom line. The guy who pays for the board ad is only concerned with how many people will see that ad and not how many people paid to see that board.

On the other hand, I think that the numbers in New York/ New jersey are low. Especially when you consider the packed houses that the Cosmos were able to achieve in the days of the NASL. It's got to improve in NYC if the game is really going to establish a foothold in the US. For the league to thrive, New York and by extention the North east, is key from a sponsorship and marketing standpoint.

[SeanKeay]

Daniel has penis envy.....

[Daniel]

But my wiener is so small!

[TOareaFan]

quote:Originally posted by RJB


quote:Originally posted by amacpher


quote:Originally posted by RJB

This doesn't concern me.

With many pro-clubs in Europe playing with similarly low attendance numbers, particularly in the SPL, and EPL, I don't see this as a big concern for MLS.


EPL? Really?

Nonsense.



Nonsense is right. Lower division English clubs is what I meant to say.


So far this year, the lowest average attendance in the EPL is Wigan with 15,497. On average, this year, Wigan has filled 61.99% of their seats.

The median averages for all EPL teams this year is an average attendance of 27,433 and 86.11% of their seats filled.