INteresting fact about professional soccer

[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.

[K92]

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?

[bobbyake]

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

The old folks still watch local news.

[bobbyake]

Here's an amazing article that all soccer haters should read http://www.kansascity.com/2012/05/25/36276...orting-kcs.html

“Hopefully they’ll say we’re winners,” he says. “That we’re winners and that we’re local. Those are the two biggest brand personalities we’re trying to push.”

How many Akron soccer fans became fans because of Akron's success. As Akron continues to make National Championship runs, more fans will start to watch it.

[Spin]

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?

The Force averaged over 14,000 fans per game in 1986-87, an all time indoor soccer record, and also set records for single game regular season and playoff attendance of well over 18,000 fans, some SRO. The Caps and the City Stars broke attendance records for D3 soccer (third tier, AA in baseball).

Columbus is a very different market than Cleveland/Akron/Canton and always will be. It is not a pro sports town, it is all about the Buckeyes. That is why they will never get any other pro teams there. Hopefully they can keep the Jackets.

I did not miss the TV coverage of the baseball team, and that does not surprise me. TV news like newspapers are for old people. The typical younger person is not who they target because they know those people are using the internet for much better coverage and many more choices. Now if you want to watch house fires and corruption stories, the evening news is there for you.

[Spin]

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

They still have picture tube tvs in ther commons too. Lol

[Dave in Green]

..... Columbus is a very different market than Cleveland/Akron/Canton and always will be. It is not a pro sports town, it is all about the Buckeyes. That is why they will never get any other pro teams there. Hopefully they can keep the Jackets. .....

I don't have a dog in this fight. I am neither a big fan of soccer in general nor a soccer hater. My only interest in soccer is when it's good for UA.

In most things, I'm primarily interested in factual data as opposed to impressions, feelings, and unsubstantiated data. In this light, I have no earthly idea if Columbus is "not a pro sports town." But the statement above did make me want to search for some kind of verifiable data to get an idea what the real story is on Columbus.

That took me to National Hockey League statistics, as Columbus is certainly not a traditional hotbed for hockey, yet they have a professional hockey team. Sure enough, the Columbus Blue Jackets are 27th out of 30 NHL teams in average attendance, averaging 14,660 for 41 home games

But wait, there's more. The Blue Jackets actually outdraw two other metropolitan areas that are obviously also not traditional hockey areas but do have much larger populations -- Dallas and Phoenix. They also outdraw the New York Islanders, a more established and traditional NHL franchise. I've never seen anyone try to make the case that Dallas, Phoenix and New York City are not pro sports towns. And where it gets even more interesting is that Columbus averages only about 350 fewer spectators per game than Winnipeg in hockey-crazed Canada.

So I'd say there are at least mixed results on whether or not Columbus is so focused on tOSU that professional sports cannot succeed there. I'm open-minded on this and would welcome any additional data, pro or con.

[johnnyzip84]

The Winnipeg Jets play in an arena with a capacity of only 15,004, so they're selling out every game.

And any long-time NHL fan knows NYC has always been about the Rangers, despite even the efforts of Bossy, Potvin and those great Isle teams of the 70's and 80's. That's why the folks in Quebec City think they might be able to snag the Isles into their brand new building in a few years. I hope they can too, because we've gone without the provincial war between the Nords and Habs for long enough!

[skip-zip]

The Force averaged over 14,000 fans per game in 1986-87, an all time indoor soccer record, and also set records for single game regular season and playoff attendance of well over 18,000 fans, some SRO. The Caps and the City Stars broke attendance records for D3 soccer (third tier, AA in baseball).

Columbus is a vry different market than Cleveland/Akron/Canton and always will be. It is not a pro sports town, it is all about the Buckeyes. That is why they will never get any other pro teams there. Hopefully they can keep the Jackets.

I did not miss the TV coverage of te baseball team, and that dos not surprise me. TV news like newspapers are for old people. The typical younger person is not who they target because they know those people are using the internet for much better coverage and many more choices. Now if you want to watch house fires and corruption stories, the evening news is there for you.

The Media covers what people want to see, regardless of who they are. Cleveland news stations sent sportscasters to Omaha Nebraska just because Ken+ MADE the tournament. They opened broadcasts with stories about Ken+ baseball, and that was in addition to what they talked about during the sports segment later in the broadcast.

I've said this many times,but I'll repeat it again. I wish this all wasn't the way it is, because a couple of years ago I would have loved if we would have gotten this kind of attention from winning a soccer title. But, it is what it is. Soccer is not Baseball in this country. Not even close.

[Spin]

The Media covers what people want to see, regardless of who they are. Cleveland news stations sent sportscasters to Omaha Nebraska just because Ken+ MADE the tournament. They opened broadcasts with stories about Ken+ baseball, and that was in addition to what they talked about during the sports segment later in the broadcast.

I've said this many times,but I'll repeat it again. I wish this all wasn't the way it is, because a couple of years ago I would have loved if we would have gotten this kind of attention from winning a soccer title. But, it is what it is. Soccer is not Baseball in this country. Not even close.

A couple things to keep in mind. Akron has "been there" and it's expected that they will be there again. How many times have they been to the NCAA tournament? 20?

Second, cold weather soccer programs do not have the issues that cold weather baseball programs do, and it's rare that a cold weather baseball program can recruit the talent, prepare the team, and make a serious run like Ken+ has. So that was a big part of the story. Having covered the team during it's CWS run, I know this. We just saw Cleveland State shut down its baseball program, it's an uphill battle. You spend the off-season and training camp indoors, you spend the first half of your season riding busses up and down I-77 for hours on end every week. This all adds to the STORY of Ken+ making it to the CWS.

And finally you still have the same people running the sports departments at the same TV stations, with the same aging viewers who take the time to write and call in with every whine they have.

Meanwhile baseball diamonds are disappearing, not maintained, or are not being used. More and more kids are playing soccer instead (for one reason, they don't want to stand around in the field and pay attention, waiting for their (average) three plays and four at-bats a game), MLB ratings and attendance falls. A lot of that is their own fault, but that doesn't change the facts.

From the grassroots level on up, soccer is gaining steam.

[Spin]

I don't have a dog in this fight. I am neither a big fan of soccer in general nor a soccer hater. My only interest in soccer is when it's good for UA.

In most things, I'm primarily interested in factual data as opposed to impressions, feelings, and unsubstantiated data. In this light, I have no earthly idea if Columbus is "not a pro sports town." But the statement above did make me want to search for some kind of verifiable data to get an idea what the real story is on Columbus.

That took me to National Hockey League statistics, as Columbus is certainly not a traditional hotbed for hockey, yet they have a professional hockey team. Sure enough, the Columbus Blue Jackets are 27th out of 30 NHL teams in average attendance, averaging 14,660 for 41 home games

But wait, there's more. The Blue Jackets actually outdraw two other metropolitan areas that are obviously also not traditional hockey areas but do have much larger populations -- Dallas and Phoenix. They also outdraw the New York Islanders, a more established and traditional NHL franchise. I've never seen anyone try to make the case that Dallas, Phoenix and New York City are not pro sports towns. And where it gets even more interesting is that Columbus averages only about 350 fewer spectators per game than Winnipeg in hockey-crazed Canada.

So I'd say there are at least mixed results on whether or not Columbus is so focused on tOSU that professional sports cannot succeed there. I'm open-minded on this and would welcome any additional data, pro or con.

Well if you can't see trends and the like I can't help you much. I know what sports fans in Columbus have told me on another forum, and outsiders have said.

So I believe Columbus is a "college town" as are other major cities, while Cleveland is a "pro town". I believe Cleveland is a "football town" and St.Louis is a "baseball town". I believe northeast Ohio is a soccer hotbed waiting to happen again, and if Bert Wolstein had lived 10 more years we would have an MLS stadium and an MLS team now. I believe a bad NHL team would be more popular than a bad NBA team in Cleveland. None of this can be quantified with stats, of course. But I also know stats can be arranged to prove anything.

[skip-zip]

A couple things to keep in mind. Akron has "been there" and it's expected that they will be there again. How many times have they been to the NCAA tournament? 20?

Second, cold weather soccer programs do not have the issues that cold weather baseball programs do, and it's rare that a cold weather baseball program can recruit the talent, prepare the team, and make a serious run like Ken+ has. So that was a big part of the story. Having covered the team during it's CWS run, I know this. We just saw Cleveland State shut down its baseball program, it's an uphill battle. You spend the off-season and training camp indoors, you spend the first half of your season riding busses up and down I-77 for hours on end every week. This all adds to the STORY of Ken+ making it to the CWS.

And finally you still have the same people running the sports departments at the same TV stations, with the same aging viewers who take the time to write and call in with every whine they have.

Meanwhile baseball diamonds are disappearing, not maintained, or are not being used. More and more kids are playing soccer instead (for one reason, they don't want to stand around in the field and pay attention, waiting for their (average) three plays and four at-bats a game), MLB ratings and attendance falls. A lot of that is their own fault, but that doesn't change the facts.

From the grassroots level on up, soccer is gaining steam.

I expected to see another list of excuses. We all know that KIDS play soccer, and that's been acknowledged by me personally on many occassions.

The media covers what is popular to the public. Plain and simple.

I'll wait for this amazing emergence of soccer in this country that people have been trying to predict for the last 50 years.