[Spin]

We had a thread about the growing popularity of soccer and how it is overtaking other sports. And I came across this interesting stat while debating something else on another forum.

The MLS averages more fans per game 18541 than the Cleveland Indians 18,408.

Looking further, Seattle 38607 outdraws 24 major league teams. It would rank 7th in a combined MLB/MLS summer pro sports attendance chart.

I admit I was skeptical about the amount of growth in the thread, but I am changing my mind.

A few more. MLS stadiums are 89% full, the Progressive Field is 42% full. Imagine if all MLS stadiums held at least 43,000...

sources http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/2012/6/4/30...nce-record-pace
http://espn.go.com/mlb/attendance

[Dr Z]

Between June 12, 1995 and April 4, 2001, the Indians sold out 455 consecutive home games, drawing a total of 19,324,248 fans to Jacobs Field. The demand for tickets was so great that all 81 home games were sold out before Opening Day on at least three separate occasions. The sellout streak set a Major League Baseball record at the time. I don't think any soccer team in the area has that potential.

[Captain Kangaroo]

Looking further, Seattle 38607 outdraws 24 major league teams. It would rank 7th in a combined MLB/MLS summer pro sports attendance chart.

I think soccer is a good fit for Seattle, who is smaller-market, and hungry for professional sports entertainment. Especially since they lost the Sonics. Large Asian-American population is a big help too.

[skip-zip]

Baseball has about 4-5 times more home games than soccer.

[Spin]

Between June 12, 1995 and April 4, 2001, the Indians sold out 455 consecutive home games, drawing a total of 19,324,248 fans to Jacobs Field. The demand for tickets was so great that all 81 home games were sold out before Opening Day on at least three separate occasions. The sellout streak set a Major League Baseball record at the time.

You bolded the wrong part. That was 10 years ago, we're talking about now.

I don't think any soccer team in the area has that potential.

We don't have a professional team to compare that to. Considering the records the D3 teams broke (before the league destroyed them) and the Force records tells me it is quite possible an MLS team could outdraw the Dolan Indians. The second place .500 Indians.

[Keener'92]

Sometimes attendance numbers can be a little misleading as well. NASCAR claims to have 17 of the top 20 best attended sporting events for 2011. (Couldn't find the list) Spouted numbers look strong, but NASCAR is a shell of its former self.

[Dr Z]

NASCAR claims to have 17 of the top 20 best attended sporting events for 2011. (Couldn't find the list)

America’s most-attended sports events

1. Indianapolis 500, @ 300,000. In 2004, the Indianapolis Star finally undertook a monstrous effort to count exactly how many seats are at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Their count? 257,325. And while hundreds of thousands of people could fit into the infield, observation by trained analysts has indicated that far fewer than that actually did. So we're looking at about 300,000 people in attendance at every 500.

2. Brickyard 400, @ 300,000. Sort of a cheat, because like the Indy 500, this NASCAR race is held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. All of the above stats apply, of course.

3. Daytona 500, @ 250,000. NASCAR attendance figures are notably slippery. The tracks themselves don't release figures, so attendance estimation is often left to a media member who stands in the press box, surveys the stands, and estimates attendance at "about X." Now, that guess could be right on the money, or it could be off by 50,000. Still, combining the grandstands and the infield at Daytona gets you a figure of about a quarter-million. And only five of them aren't Dale Earnhardt fans.

4. Texas Motor Speedway races, @ 171,000. Everything's bigger in Texas, especially attendance figures, and Texas's two NASCAR races usually draw about 171,000 fans apiece. And this won't be the last time Texas shows up on this list.

5. Kentucky Derby, @ 164,858. As with the NASCAR races, it's difficult to estimate exactly how many people pile into the infield at Churchill Downs, though the 2011 Derby apparently set a record this year for attendance. The number who remain sober through the entire Derby afternoon remains pegged at a steady 0.

6. Tie, Bristol races, Talladega races, @ 160,000. 2010 marked the first time a Bristol race hadn't sold out in decades. Prior to that, hundreds of thousands of race fans descended on this tiny hamlet in the Tennessee hills, created the largest city for a hundred miles in any direction, and then vanished as quick as they arrived. And although Talladega's attendance has dipped sharply in recent years, the stadium and the infield can handle in excess of 160,000 fans -- plus a few thousand more in the surrounding campgrounds who couldn't make their way through the gates.

7. Baseball, 115,300. This figure's a bit of a stretch, since the average baseball game is in the 30,000 range. But in 2008, the Dodgers and the Red Sox held an exhibition game in the L.A. Coliseum, and the result was the most widely attended game in baseball history.

8. Michigan football, 112,000. The universities of Michigan and Tennessee leapfrog one another in attendance, adding on bleachers atop bleachers in some bizarre arms race. The Wolverines currently hold the edge, but it won't be long until the Volunteers step up.

Tie 9. Tennessee-Penn State football @ 109,000. Both stadiums (Neyland at Tennessee and Beaver at Penn State) have undergone numerous expansions in their history. Tennesee set an attendance record in 2004 against -- who else? -- Florida. (Side note: in 2005, a promoter tried to schedule a Virginia Tech-Tennessee game in Bristol, which would have broken all team sport records for attendance. Tech was willing, but Tennessee was not.) A crowd of 110,753 watched Penn State destroy Nebraska 40-7 back in 2002.

10. NBA, 108,713. In 2010, the NBA All-Star game's attendance demolished the old record of attendance for an NBA game, previously set at the Georgia Dome. And where was this mammoth All-Star exhibition played? Funny you should ask ... a little old place in Texas that shows up again, next on the list.

10. NFL, 105,121. A legit regular-season game by the Dallas Cowboys when opening their new stadium in a game against the Giants a couple years back. Sure, tens of thousands watched from a standing-room plaza, and many others couldn't even see the field, but so what?

Other landmarks: As noted above, the best-attended NBA regular-season game came in, of all cities, Atlanta, where 62,046 fans showed up at the Georgia Dome to watch the Hawks play the Chicago Bulls in what was supposed to be Michael Jordan's farewell appearance. And the NHL's best-attended game was the 2008 Winter Classic, where 71,217 fans watched Buffalo and Pittsburgh at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Buffalo. The top-ranked NCAA basketball game was 2009's NCAA Championship, where 72,922 fans watched North Carolina demolish Michigan State in Detroit's Ford Field.

Source: Yahoo Sports

BTW MLB Far exceeds any league in the world in attendance in 2011 with a total of 73,451,522.
The next closest...ANOTHER baseball league, the Nippon league in Japan at 21,679,596.

[TheTank123]

America’s most-attended sports events

1. Indianapolis 500, @ 300,000. In 2004, the Indianapolis Star finally undertook a monstrous effort to count exactly how many seats are at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Their count? 257,325. And while hundreds of thousands of people could fit into the infield, observation by trained analysts has indicated that far fewer than that actually did. So we're looking at about 300,000 people in attendance at every 500.

2. Brickyard 400, @ 300,000. Sort of a cheat, because like the Indy 500, this NASCAR race is held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. All of the above stats apply, of course.

3. Daytona 500, @ 250,000. NASCAR attendance figures are notably slippery. The tracks themselves don't release figures, so attendance estimation is often left to a media member who stands in the press box, surveys the stands, and estimates attendance at "about X." Now, that guess could be right on the money, or it could be off by 50,000. Still, combining the grandstands and the infield at Daytona gets you a figure of about a quarter-million. And only five of them aren't Dale Earnhardt fans.

4. Texas Motor Speedway races, @ 171,000. Everything's bigger in Texas, especially attendance figures, and Texas's two NASCAR races usually draw about 171,000 fans apiece. And this won't be the last time Texas shows up on this list.

5. Kentucky Derby, @ 164,858. As with the NASCAR races, it's difficult to estimate exactly how many people pile into the infield at Churchill Downs, though the 2011 Derby apparently set a record this year for attendance. The number who remain sober through the entire Derby afternoon remains pegged at a steady 0.

6. Tie, Bristol races, Talladega races, @ 160,000. 2010 marked the first time a Bristol race hadn't sold out in decades. Prior to that, hundreds of thousands of race fans descended on this tiny hamlet in the Tennessee hills, created the largest city for a hundred miles in any direction, and then vanished as quick as they arrived. And although Talladega's attendance has dipped sharply in recent years, the stadium and the infield can handle in excess of 160,000 fans -- plus a few thousand more in the surrounding campgrounds who couldn't make their way through the gates.

7. Baseball, 115,300. This figure's a bit of a stretch, since the average baseball game is in the 30,000 range. But in 2008, the Dodgers and the Red Sox held an exhibition game in the L.A. Coliseum, and the result was the most widely attended game in baseball history.

8. Michigan football, 112,000. The universities of Michigan and Tennessee leapfrog one another in attendance, adding on bleachers atop bleachers in some bizarre arms race. The Wolverines currently hold the edge, but it won't be long until the Volunteers step up.

Tie 9. Tennessee-Penn State football @ 109,000. Both stadiums (Neyland at Tennessee and Beaver at Penn State) have undergone numerous expansions in their history. Tennesee set an attendance record in 2004 against -- who else? -- Florida. (Side note: in 2005, a promoter tried to schedule a Virginia Tech-Tennessee game in Bristol, which would have broken all team sport records for attendance. Tech was willing, but Tennessee was not.) A crowd of 110,753 watched Penn State destroy Nebraska 40-7 back in 2002.

10. NBA, 108,713. In 2010, the NBA All-Star game's attendance demolished the old record of attendance for an NBA game, previously set at the Georgia Dome. And where was this mammoth All-Star exhibition played? Funny you should ask ... a little old place in Texas that shows up again, next on the list.

10. NFL, 105,121. A legit regular-season game by the Dallas Cowboys when opening their new stadium in a game against the Giants a couple years back. Sure, tens of thousands watched from a standing-room plaza, and many others couldn't even see the field, but so what?

Other landmarks: As noted above, the best-attended NBA regular-season game came in, of all cities, Atlanta, where 62,046 fans showed up at the Georgia Dome to watch the Hawks play the Chicago Bulls in what was supposed to be Michael Jordan's farewell appearance. And the NHL's best-attended game was the 2008 Winter Classic, where 71,217 fans watched Buffalo and Pittsburgh at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Buffalo. The top-ranked NCAA basketball game was 2009's NCAA Championship, where 72,922 fans watched North Carolina demolish Michigan State in Detroit's Ford Field.

Source: Yahoo Sports

BTW MLB Far exceeds any league in the world in attendance in 2011 with a total of 73,451,522.
The next closest...ANOTHER baseball league, the Nippon league in Japan at 21,679,596.

How many times do you have to be told that baseball plays a 162 game season. It is TWICE as long as the next longest season (NBA). No one could possibly hope to catch MLB in total attendance. I understand that you really like the Indians/baseball and really don't like soccer, but sticking your head in the sand and saying "LALALALALALALALALALA" doesn't change the fact that the popularity of soccer and baseball are going in completely different directions.

[bobbyake]

soccer is extremely popular among the Asian and Hispanic population. Both of these groups are going to experience strong population growth in the United States.


MLB plays over 3 times the games as MLS and also makes a lot more revenue from TV games.

The MLS has a bright future that could someday overcome MLB, but not for the next 5 years.

[bobbyake]

How many times do you have to be told that baseball plays a 162 game season. It is TWICE as long as the next longest season (NBA). No one could possibly hope to catch MLB in total attendance. I understand that you really like the Indians/baseball and really don't like soccer, but sticking your head in the sand and saying "LALALALALALALALALALA" doesn't change the fact that the popularity of soccer and baseball are going in completely different directions.

There are a few posters that deny soccer's relevance and still think Lebron James and Adrian Peterson would be the best soccer players ever had they applied their athletic ability towards it. Dr. Z is not one of them and has been supportive of soccer on Zipsnation.

[TheTank123]

There are a few posters that deny soccer's relevance and still think Lebron James and Adrian Peterson would be the best soccer players ever had they applied their athletic ability towards it. Dr. Z is not one of them and has been supportive of soccer on Zipsnation.

My apologies then. Must have Dr. Z confused with someone else who brought up the baseball argument.

[bobbyake]

I believe the main challenge for the MLS is not competing with other sports, but competing with the EPL and 2teams from La Liga for soccer fans in the US

[skip-zip]

You bolded the wrong part. That was 10 years ago, we're talking about now.
We don't have a professional team to compare that to. Considering the records the D3 teams broke (before the league destroyed them) and the Force records tells me it is quite possible an MLS team could outdraw the Dolan Indians. The second place .500 Indians.

Care to share those awesome numbers with us?

Ok, so lets look at this amazing growth of pro soccer, and Ohio's love affair with the sport.

There is a pro soccer team two hours down the road, in a high growth, progressive Ohio city, without any other pro team except a hockey team in winter.

According to information on line, their highest average attendance number was accomplished way back in 1996, with an astounding 18,000 per game. WOW. Their attendance looks to have slowly dwindled since then, reaching an all-time low of 12,000 last year.

If this is an indication that this area is primed and anxiously waiting to jump on the bandwagon of a pro soccer team, I'd say that you are choosing to ignore the best indicator we have available to us. Not to mention the long history of an "I don't care" attitude towards the sport.

Did you miss the TV coverage that Ken+ State just recieved from just being IN the ncaa baseball tournament? Care to compare it to the level of press coverage we got for WINNING a soccer national championship?

[bobbyake]

An NASL team could do very well in Akron. I expect the Zips to exceed the 6,000 attendance mark this year in soccer for the WVU game which is scheduled to play a few hours after the Western Michigan home football game. Expecting people to attend both games.

In 2011, Soccer was the most attended sport by average in Akron whether you want to believe it or not, Akron basketball is second. The football team had less than 1,000 people 3 times last year (inside info). I expect the Bowden hype to draw a couple decent football crowds this year so it's possible football will retake the top spot.

The Summit Assault's failure was caused by the lack of awareness the program existed. The name was also awful. With proper management and a deep pocket investor, maybe we'll get that NASL team.

[fknbuflobo]

Care to share those awesome numbers with us?

Ok, so lets look at this amazing growth of pro soccer, and Ohio's love affair with the sport.

There is a pro soccer team two hours down the road, in a high growth, progressive Ohio city, without any other pro team except a hockey team in winter.

According to information on line, their highest average attendance number was accomplished way back in 1996, with an astounding 18,000 per game. WOW. Their attendance looks to have slowly dwindled since then, reaching an all-time low of 12,000 last year.

If this is an indication that this area is primed and anxiously waiting to jump on the bandwagon of a pro soccer team, I'd say that you are choosing to ignore the best indicator we have available to us. Not to mention the long history of an "I don't care" attitude towards the sport.

Did you miss the TV coverage that Ken+ State just recieved from just being IN the ncaa baseball tournament? Care to compare it to the level of press coverage we got for WINNING a soccer national championship?

Do you mean to insinuate that Can't State has a men’s baseball team? When did that happen?