Soccer in Nashville

[Mike G]

Did the issue with the clause about the 10 acres reverting back to Metro if NSC didn't play for 24 months already get resolved? I seemed to recall the was causing NSC some issues with financing. If it's not been figured out, seems like that must be another lever of influence Cooper is using.

[smeagolsfree]

NASCAR viewership numbers have been falling for the past several year with the exception of last year when they remained relatively steady. I think even attendance at the races was down considerably. I think they closed entire sections of the 146,000 seat stadium in Bristol for last years race due to poor ticket sales. 

If Cooper is betting on NASCAR, then it is most likely a losing hand. The new track if built, could be closed within ten years if not sooner because of dropping numbers of NASCAR races.

Soccer is the new sport for a new century in the good ole US of A. White Men are running scared because they will be a minority within the next few decades and they are trying to stop something that will happen no matter what they do. Trying not to stray into politics too much here, but I need to  show context and that is Trump is only going to temporarily close the border. It will eventually open back up when there is a change in administration for the simple reason we will be in negative population growth. Many of the European nations are already in negative population growth. Negative population growth happens when the economy improves and the cost of raising a family is much higher. Those new families will be non white and soccer fans.

Immigration is the only way this country can have enough workers to fill the job market. The current birth rate will not do it. That is why there will be more soccer fans in the coming decades.

Please dont get into a political discussion here. I did this for context to show how NASCAR on the decline and why and how soccer will be on the rise and why.

 

[MLBrumby]

I just can't see NASCAR being successful at the Fairground these days, especially if it didn't succeed at the Superspeedway in Lebanon. It's popularity peaked about 20 years ago. I know a lot of 'former NASCAR fans'.  Some of that is a recurring cycle of popularity. My brother used to follow it (I don't even remember his favorite driver) but he's moved on to F1. Even among racing sports, NASCAR is the lowest tier of them all. I don't mind the redneck image, but the cars are anything but 'stock'.  IMHO, not nearly as exciting as open wheel and the oval is boring.  I remember a guy from Michigan a year behind me at Duke. He wore a leather NASCAR jacket everywhere. Looked like a dork, but he knew it would spark a conversation with anyone who might consider themselves to be a fan. When he caught one, he got really loud and excited. It was a device he used. Sort of nutty, but I've noticed that's the type of people NASCAR attracts.

[markhollin]

Nashville SC CEO Ia Ayer weighs in on the stadium delays, impact on team in this story behind the paywall at NBJ.

“We’re damaging our opportunities in a lot of areas by not having it,” Ayre said. “Of course, some [fans] will want to commit early [to tickets] because they feel it buys their place in line for the new stadium, but some people might be cautious with things being held up. In the overall numbers, we’re seeing great energy and commitment, which is a testament to the people in Nashville, but that won’t last forever. Anything you do that works against you is disruptive, and ultimately will harm you. Is it a problem? Absolutely, but we just have to work through it until we solve it.”

“What we’re hoping for is that [Metro Council] and Mayor Cooper do the right things and live up to the promises that were made to Nashville Soccer Club,” Ayre said. “If that doesn’t happen, who knows. There are many different routes it could take. But I would just refer back to statements the mayor has made: one further back is, ‘Soccer is finished business,’ which means we’re building a stadium; the other was his most recent statement about not trying to stop soccer. This is more about agreeing to what’s been agreed to and getting on with it. The timing of that will be more about the city. It’s clear to everyone that John Ingram and Nashville SC have made huge concessions. The ball is in the city’s court, and not in the soccer team’s court. Right now, I’d say he has the ball and we’re waiting for him to pass it back.”

https://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/news/2020/02/05/nashville-sc-ceo-weighs-in-on-stadium-delays.html?iana=hpmvp_nsh_news_headline

[MLBrumby]

Colby Sledge wants Metro Legal to give opinions on Cooper's stall tactics. 

https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/politics/2020/02/04/mls-stadium-deal-mayor-cooper-colby-sledge-metro-legal/4661326002/

[ThreatLevelMidnight]

Dumb question. Is there something WE can do to help? I’ve been following this blog for a long time and this stuff with the mayor is making me sad enough to comment. Let me know how me and a bunch of people who feel like me can get involved. Thanks!

[downtownresident]

9 minutes ago, ThreatLevelMidnight said:

Dumb question. Is there something WE can do to help? I’ve been following this blog for a long time and this stuff with the mayor is making me sad enough to comment. Let me know how me and a bunch of people who feel like me can get involved. Thanks!

If you’re in Davidson County, write your council member/at large members, write to the Mayors office, register to vote(and vote!), talk to your neighbors about why he isn’t a good fit for mayor, and if a recall petition gets filed, sign it, and get as many registered voters/neighbors registered in Davidson county to sign it. 
 

Edit: If you’re not living in Davidson County, tell all of your friends and coworkers that are to do the above. Buying tickets to Nashville SC games also helps. 

Edited February 5, 2020 by downtownresident

[MLBrumby]

I'd suggest writing your Council member... make yourself clear... and let them know you're (you'll be) an active voter next election. 

2 minutes ago, downtownresident said:

If you’re in Davidson County, write your council member/at large members, write to the Mayors office, register to vote(and vote!), talk to your neighbors about why he isn’t a good fit for mayor, and if a recall petition gets filed, sign it, and get as many registered voters/neighbors registered in Davidson county to sign it. 
 

Edit: If you’re not living in Davidson County, tell all of your friends and coworkers that are to do the above. Buying tickets to Nashville SC games also helps. 

I'll even raise the bar a little more... I'm telling all my friends and associates in Nashville to vote against the mayor's brother in his race for Congress. I'm sure most of them have not voted in any recent election.  That's part of the problem. 

[smeagolsfree]

12 minutes ago, ThreatLevelMidnight said:

Dumb question. Is there something WE can do to help? I’ve been following this blog for a long time and this stuff with the mayor is making me sad enough to comment. Let me know how me and a bunch of people who feel like me can get involved. Thanks!

Welcome to the forum. Hopefully you will be able to learn from this motely bunch too. I hope the rest of the topics are of interest as well. I echo the advice of the above posters.

[nashvylle]

2 hours ago, smeagolsfree said:

NASCAR viewership numbers have been falling for the past several year with the exception of last year when they remained relatively steady. I think even attendance at the races was down considerably. I think they closed entire sections of the 146,000 seat stadium in Bristol for last years race due to poor ticket sales. 

If Cooper is betting on NASCAR, then it is most likely a losing hand. The new track if built, could be closed within ten years if not sooner because of dropping numbers of NASCAR races.

Soccer is the new sport for a new century in the good ole US of A. White Men are running scared because they will be a minority within the next few decades and they are trying to stop something that will happen no matter what they do. Trying not to stray into politics too much here, but I need to  show context and that is Trump is only going to temporarily close the border. It will eventually open back up when there is a change in administration for the simple reason we will be in negative population growth. Many of the European nations are already in negative population growth. Negative population growth happens when the economy improves and the cost of raising a family is much higher. Those new families will be non white and soccer fans.

Immigration is the only way this country can have enough workers to fill the job market. The current birth rate will not do it. That is why there will be more soccer fans in the coming decades.

Please dont get into a political discussion here. I did this for context to show how NASCAR on the decline and why and how soccer will be on the rise and why.

 

I think Nascar's problems are somewhat similar to MLS's problems, and even some NFL teams. 

MLS got started in 1996 and all but one of the teams played in huge NFL stadiums. As Ian Ayre points out, soccer is best when it is viewed up close on steep seating, as if you are on top of the game. The drive to smaller, soccer specific stadiums is what MLS wants, and now NASCAR is looking to go back to smaller tracks (not in the middle of nowhere) where fans can be view the race up close. TVs make watching a sport in a huge stadium or track in the middle of nowhere not as fun. 

That being said, I think Nashville Fairgrounds, with the right investment, would crush it for a race. 

Edited February 5, 2020 by nashvylle

[Mr_Bond]

Welcome to the forum, @ThreatLevelMidnight.

[e-dub]

34 minutes ago, MLBrumby said:

I'll even raise the bar a little more... I'm telling all my friends and associates in Nashville to vote against the mayor's brother in his race for Congress. I'm sure most of them have not voted in any recent election.  That's part of the problem. 

Funny you mention that.  I saw the mayor at Proper Bagel one Saturday morning and not a single person knew who he was, that made me think to myself that's likely one of the biggest reasons why there's a Mayor Cooper to begin with.

[PruneTracy]

25 minutes ago, nashvylle said:

That being said, I think Nashville Fairgrounds, with the right investment, would crush it for a race. 

The Fairgrounds Speedway is best suited for the mid-week races that have been proposed for the top NASCAR circuits. Nashville is a highly central and accessible location for the NASCAR fanbase, and is located close enough to Charlotte to make mid-week races on the way back from, say, Texas or (ugh) Kansas to make them financially viable for teams.

SMI knows what they are doing with the proposal, but they also expected Metro to pony up in the same way as (if not more than) Nashville SC. If Cooper is favoring one over the other, then he needs to explain why one deal works when the other doesn't, setting aside the pre-existing arrangements when he entered office (and this is part and parcel of dealing with any government entity, agreements be damned).

All that being said, the speedway was there first, and has history that the soccer club does not have. If it's not possible to have both viably co-exist at the Fairgrounds, then Metro needs to make sure the speedway is taken care of before siting a soccer stadium there.

I stand by my proposal for a NASCAR weekend on a downtown Nashville street circuit, though.

[Skyscrapergeek]

[PaulChinetti]

18 minutes ago, PruneTracy said:

All that being said, the speedway was there first, and has history that the soccer club does not have. If it's not possible to have both viably co-exist at the Fairgrounds, then Metro needs to make sure the speedway is taken care of before siting a soccer stadium there.

Considering there is no racing going on there now. I don't know why it should be preserved. The previous occupants couldn't abide by the curfew and couldn't pay their bills. So currently there is no racing and no MLS going on at the Fairgrounds. 

*Also just to be clear I have no problem with racing. They just can't seem to do anything right. Will SMI pony up and pay for everything (bond payments) like Ingram/MLS is?

Edited February 5, 2020 by PaulChinetti

[titanhog]

1 hour ago, nashvylle said:

I think Nascar's problems are somewhat similar to MLS's problems, and even some NFL teams. 

MLS got started in 1996 and all but one of the teams played in huge NFL stadiums. As Ian Ayre points out, soccer is best when it is viewed up close on steep seating, as if you are on top of the game. The drive to smaller, soccer specific stadiums is what MLS wants, and now NASCAR is looking to go back to smaller tracks (not in the middle of nowhere) where fans can be view the race up close. TVs make watching a sport in a huge stadium or track in the middle of nowhere not as fun. 

That being said, I think Nashville Fairgrounds, with the right investment, would crush it for a race. 

NASCAR's mistake was that they decided they would take an almost purely southern sport and grow it across the country...and not focus so much on the south.  But...once the kitsch of this sport wears off outside of the south...they're going to realize even the southerners don't support it like they did pre-90's.

[Hushpuppy321]

Is there an actual credible threat that Nashville SC could make as far as a move to Raleigh, NC?  Raleigh desperately wanted a team (but lost to Charlotte) and a threat of that could potentially move city leaders.

Edited February 5, 2020 by Hushpuppy321

[nashvylle]

13 minutes ago, Hushpuppy321 said:

Is there an actual credible threat that Nashville SC could make as far as a move to Raleigh, NC?  Raleigh desperately wanted a team (but lost to Charlotte) and a threat of that could potentially move city leaders.

From my understanding, Raleigh does not have a finalized stadium plan. 

[Hushpuppy321]

1 minute ago, nashvylle said:

From my understanding, Raleigh does not have a finalized stadium plan. 

I think they were/are very close - also with government buy in (land, etc.) but things were abruptly halted due to the Charlotte announcement in December.  

 

[MidTenn1]

Probably, Las Vegas would be next on the list. But Nashville will not lose the team.

[MLBrumby]

29 minutes ago, Hushpuppy321 said:

I think they were/are very close - also with government buy in (land, etc.) but things were abruptly halted due to the Charlotte announcement in December.  

 

That's too bad. I think Raleigh would have made a much better market for soccer than Charlotte. But having a stadium to play in is SORT OF important. Plus, the Richardsons are like the Ingrams... they have their checkbooks ready. 

[nashvylle]

7 minutes ago, MLBrumby said:

That's too bad. I think Raleigh would have made a much better market for soccer than Charlotte. But having a stadium to play in is SORT OF important. Plus, the Richardsons are like the Ingrams... they have their checkbooks ready. 

Charlotte has the richest owner in NFL and MLS. 

[Hushpuppy321]

10 minutes ago, MLBrumby said:

That's too bad. I think Raleigh would have made a much better market for soccer than Charlotte. But having a stadium to play in is SORT OF important. Plus, the Richardsons are like the Ingrams... they have their checkbooks ready. 

I think Raleigh initially has/had the soccer advantage due to its grassroots there is much stronger than Charlotte but over the long run (5+ years) the Charlotte Market is/will be much better due to the tendency to be able to market the team as a true Carolina team touching on markets in both states.  Raleigh teams tend to cater more to in-state constituencies.  

Edited February 5, 2020 by Hushpuppy321

[PruneTracy]

2 hours ago, PaulChinetti said:

Considering there is no racing going on there now. I don't know why it should be preserved. The previous occupants couldn't abide by the curfew and couldn't pay their bills. So currently there is no racing and no MLS going on at the Fairgrounds.

It's actually the second-oldest continuously-operating track in the country (assuming it's still considered to be "continuously-operating") after the Milwaukee Mile (1903 there vs. 1904 here). It's also one of the oldest extant NASCAR venues and the oldest in Tennessee. Given its history, the increasing lack of racing venues of any type in the area/state, and the fact that racetracks are generally low-maintenance, versatile venues, I think it's worth keeping around.

If it were up to me, I'd renovate/expand the grandstand, update the infield to allow for stages (music festivals) and other event space, add dedicated garage space, and install noise barriers. This isn't too different than SMI's proposal. (I might also Bristolize it by jacking the turn banking up to the previous 35 degrees. Or go full D I R T.) The point is that the facility can be versatile enough to remain viable even if there isn't full-time racing, or, say, one NASCAR weekend a year. The infield alone is larger than the space used for the fair.

 

[DDIG]

I'm not against racing getting a big upgrade there, I think it would be kind of neat for them to co-exist. The big problem is it wasn't considered on the front end. Megan Barry is too much of an elitist to give two craps about racing and probably part of her Fairgrounds vision was to run it out. Cooper obviously now wants it. The problem is I have no faith in Cooper to negotiate in good faith and think he is a bitter dude who wants to stick it to Ingram - so Cooper's fine with racing being a road block that kills soccer there.

Edited February 5, 2020 by DDIG