"Major" Sports Announcement

[blizz01]

The TU indicated that the crowd was ~8k - that's a good showing for preseason & 2 teams that few knew anything about.  They also said that a comparable game in Orlando drew ~1k last week....

Couple that with the 2 National Team games & there's really nothing left to prove - right?  When do we get our new expansion team?

[comncense]

I'm not a soccer fan at all BUT if Jax was able to get an MLS team and the ticket prices weren't too bad, I'd by season tickets to support the team. It would be at least something to do while waiting for the Jags season to start up again.

[duvaldude08]

The TU indicated that the crowd was ~8k - that's a good showing for preseason & 2 teams that few knew anything about.  They also said that a comparable game in Orlando drew ~1k last week....

Couple that with the 2 National Team games & there's really nothing left to prove - right?  When do we get our new expansion team?

I know right! Orlando, kick rocks!!! 

[Ocklawaha]

Next to getting off our collective arse's and actually building 'THE NATIONAL BIRTHPLACE OF THE NEGRO LEAGUES MUSEUM' there are still a few areas where Jacksonville could lay a claim to fame.

I was hoping for a 'Jacksonville Grand Prix' auto race announcement, or maybe our very own NASCAR track.... At the very least maybe we could talk 'Wild Adventures' into a satellite park and they could sponsor a sporting event, 'The Running of the Lions in Jacksonville!'.  We could lay claim to being the 'International Home Of Competitive XPOGO' stunt pogo stick teams. Futbol actually called FUTBOL might be a way to get someones attention. Could we talk the NBA into accepting the Giants as the newest expansion franchise? How about just tell the MLS that we'll create the national home for the sport? Maybe we could pioneer a totally new sport like 'Drag racing -in- Drag!' or host the 'International Redneck Olympics.' How about a world KART rally? We could close off some downtown streets on a Sunday and fire up some real intercontinental Go-Kart competition, becoming the 'Le Mans Grand Prix d'Endurance,' of the little race circuit. Probably our best chance at interstellar fame and fortune is to adopt Gilli-danda, a game that was called 'Pee-Wee' in the United States and is all but lost to history. We could build the Gilli-danda/Pee-Wee hall of fame, have our own completive Gilli-danda/Pee-Wee leagues, and hold the Gilli-danda/Pee-Wee 'Super-World Series-Cup-Bowl'. Hell we might even have to expand our stadiums just to contain the crowds. Then of course there is the almost lost sport of 'Soap-Box-Derby', and that lovely hill from Beaver Street down to Water Street... a natural race course.

Any of the 'above' would be a 'MAJOR SPORTS ANNOUNCEMENT' but just another exhibition game in a sport that struggles for attention in this country doesn't excite me.

[Adam W]

Sorry you feel that way, Ock. Luckily your opinion is a minority one.

I'm just surprised you haven't yet figured out a way to turn this into a thread about trains or streetcars. But I guess there's still time 

[Ocklawaha]

Sorry you feel that way, Ock. Luckily your opinion is a minority one.

I'm just surprised you haven't yet figured out a way to turn this into a thread about trains or streetcars. But I guess there's still time 

I'll try harder next time Adam!  Actually it would be pretty cool if it were an announcement that we are going to get a team, or even a regular season game... but really, a meaningless exhibition game? Pee-Wee is more exciting to me then that.

Maybe you missed these lines? 

Futbol actually called FUTBOL might be a way to get someones attention. How about just tell the MLS that we'll create the national home for the sport?

For the record (so as not to disappoint you) there WERE some races held by the Cincinnati and Lake Erie Interurban Railway and some early aircraft in June of 1930, the interurban won at just under 100 MPH. Later the cars would top 100, I believe it was near Dayton.

[Adam W]

Sorry you feel that way, Ock. Luckily your opinion is a minority one.

I'm just surprised you haven't yet figured out a way to turn this into a thread about trains or streetcars. But I guess there's still time 

I'll try harder next time Adam!  Actually it would be pretty cool if it were an announcement that we are going to get a team, or even a regular season game... but really, a meaningless exhibition game? Pee-Wee is more exciting to me then that.

Maybe you missed these lines? 

Futbol actually called FUTBOL might be a way to get someones attention. How about just tell the MLS that we'll create the national home for the sport?

For the record (so as not to disappoint you) there WERE some races held by the Cincinnati and Lake Erie Interurban Railway and some early aircraft in June of 1930, the interurban won at just under 100 MPH. Later the cars would top 100, I believe it was near Dayton.

Thanks, Ock. I knew you wouldn't continue to disappoint!

Maybe they are just exhibition games, but they're baby steps. And I think the great turnout (well-above-average, to say the least) is something to get pretty excited about. Maybe Orlando will get a team before Jax - but I think the level of interest shown for these two international matches should raise some eyebrows. And the MLS exhibition games will be the real test.

[Adam W]

What are our best sports locally?

Well we produce some of the best skaters, golfers and surfers in the world.

We also seem to do fairly will in minor league baseball, and a couple of football stars.

Wouldnt it be nice to see Marty Ramos get as much funding for Kona from the City of Jacksonville as Baseball does?

Golf is pretty well funded.  Millions of dollars via the tourism group.

I don't believe that our surfing community has ever been recognized or funded in any way.

Im with Ock a bit on this.

Its nice to see events coming, especially for all the fans, but why not start in the places that we excel?

Well, Florida is one of the best states for football as a general rule. But I would also say soccer is one of the sports that Jax does quite well. We actually have two teams that have competed successfully on the national stage:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynch%27s_Irish_Pub_F.C.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacksonville_United

[jerry cornwell]

What are our best sports locally?

Well we produce some of the best skaters, golfers and surfers in the world.

We also seem to do fairly will in minor league baseball, and a couple of football stars.

Wouldnt it be nice to see Marty Ramos get as much funding for Kona from the City of Jacksonville as Baseball does?

Golf is pretty well funded.  Millions of dollars via the tourism group.

I don't believe that our surfing community has ever been recognized or funded in any way.

Im with Ock a bit on this.

Its nice to see events coming, especially for all the fans, but why not start in the places that we excel?

Surfing is at the top of Jacksonvilles great sports stars.
An artificial wave, surf park would do very well DT, particularly since the North Florida area contains probably the largest amount of
surfers on the Atlantic east coast. And one of the highest in the world.
That park could accommodate other water activities too.

[Bridges]

The TU indicated that the crowd was ~8k - that's a good showing for preseason & 2 teams that few knew anything about.  They also said that a comparable game in Orlando drew ~1k last week....

Couple that with the 2 National Team games & there's really nothing left to prove - right?  When do we get our new expansion team?

I was there last night.  I don't believe the 8k number at all.  It was cold, and turned out to be a fun thing to do on a night with not much else going on.  Not sure I would go back next year.

[BridgeTroll]

Didnt it end in a 0-0 tie?  sorry but.... yawwwwwn...

[JaxByDefault]

It wasn't all a yawn. It seemed neither team (or their reserves, as was the case with L'Impact) was quite over their large brawl during regular season play. There was some dodgy refing, but it was overall a good event. I'll be glad to go next year, too.

I hope turnout increases over the next few years. I do wonder if the some fans (especially those taking families) had to decide between last week's USWNT match and the MLS exhibition--that and the "cold" could have negatively affected attendance a bit.

[tufsu1]

if you want more scoring, coem to the stadium tomorrow for America's oldest sport....lacrosse!

[fsquid]

hell, I can't stand to really watch MLS regular season, couldn't imagine watching a friendly

[Tacachale]

It wasn't all a yawn. It seemed neither team (or their reserves, as was the case with L'Impact) was quite over their large brawl during regular season play. There was some dodgy refing, but it was overall a good event. I'll be glad to go next year, too.

I hope turnout increases over the next few years. I do wonder if the some fans (especially those taking families) had to decide between last week's USWNT match and the MLS exhibition--that and the "cold" could have negatively affected attendance a bit.

I was one of the ones who chose the national team game over the friendly (though I didn't get to go). Friday I was at the UNF baseball home opener, and the JU-UNF basketball game was at the same time; I expect those attracted a lot of college-age sports fans who might otherwise have been interested in soccer.

I think if the word "Major" wasn't in the title of this topic thread some of these comments would be different. If they'd said just "the national team and MLS have noticed the obvious demand for soccer in Jacksonville and have scheduled more games here for the enjoyment of local fans, and these have all turned out to be wildly successful for their level", this would be seen as pretty impressive.

It's looking increasingly like soccer is one of the things we do well.  Two record-setting national games and a  successful MLS exhibition in the space of eight months is really cool. To put the friendly in context, Philadelphia draws about 18,000 at home for games that count; their previous friendly in Orlando, against Orlando's own team, drew 1,000. We should expect to see more soccer here and it will probably continue to do well.