Tag Archives: US Soccer

Getting from Niche to National

So what’s U.S. Soccer got to do to get Joe Fan interested in the Open Cup?

That remains the question as the tournament begins its second hundred years tonight with the Philadelphia-Seattle final at PPL Park. It seems that despite significant changes in the format this historic knockout competition is plagued by apathy and a general lack of appreciation, awareness and, consequently, attendance.

USOClogoIt seems that if the Lamar Hunt Open Cup is to survive the next century, it must aspire to do more than just slog along. There must be an intentional effort to reinvigorate this event. Failing that, it will remain just a niche attraction, valued by pockets here and there who respect it for either history’s sake or the least path of resistance to a CCL berth.

SoundersThreePeat
When Seattle pulled 31,311 in 2010, the 1929 Open Cup final attendance record was shattered. The next year’s crowd was 35,615

As it is, only about 60,000 folks are interested in tonight’s outcome. Thirty-five thousand of them live in the Puget Sound region. Another 15,000 will venture to Chester. Judging from the obscure broadcast provider, GolTV, the rest are scattered about in soccer pubs around the country, or wherever else that elusive signal rebounds to earth.

Continue reading Getting from Niche to National