Max from the Association Football blog just finished his search for America's equivalent to Wembley Stadium, and his number one choice ended up being.... Pittsburgh!
The choice shouldn't come as much of a surprise, for two main reasons:
1. We have the right stadium in the right place. Heinz Field is still a new stadium and relatively large at 65,000 seats. It is located right along the Allegheny River across from downtown, soon to be connected by the city's light rail system. Most importantly, the stadium can truly rock, as anyone who has ever been to a Steelers game at Heinz Field can attest to.
2. We give the US a home-crowd advantage. Ideally, World Cup Qualifiers are played in cities away from the Hispanic population, so that American fans aren't outnumbered by opposing fans living in the States. (If you Pittsburghers haven't seen this crowd disparity in home qualifiers, think of it as how Steelers fans invade games in nearby cities such as D.C.) Only 1.3% of Pittsburgh's population are Hispanic or Latino, and less than one-percent of Allegheny County is Hispanic.
The only real concern that remains is if Pittsburghers would turn out to support the Men's National Team. US Soccer has not played a qualifier in Pittsburgh, and the city's only pro soccer team, the Riverhounds, have been marred by poor marketing, ownership changes, and multiple home venue changes since their inception in 1999.
The following cities have recently played host to CONCACAF World Cup Qualifiers for the United States: Los Angeles, Denver, Chicago, D.C., Columbus, Nashville, and Salt Lake City. We see no reason why Heinz Field shouldn't host a friendly match leading up to 2010 Cup to evaluate interest in the Men's National Team. Pittsburgh could provide a great advantage for 2014 World Cup Qualification
I think soccer is the number one growing sport in America. If Pittsburgh plans on being the city of growth then it must show the world its not just a city of yinzers but a city of culture and progress.
ReplyDeleteI agree that turnout might be an issue. I was at Heinz Field a few years back when AS Rome played Chelsea as part of the World League here in Pitt. Turns out the this was the only game in the whole series throughout the US that was NOT sold out. In fact, there were soo many empty seats that the yellow seats were almost blinding in the Sun light.
ReplyDeleteThe AS Roma vs. Chelsea match was what... 5 years ago? Considering that Pittsburgh has a lot of US pride, and that soccer is really growing, I think a US MNT game would be well-attended.
ReplyDeleteOne key might be scheduling -- if it's during the university school year, inexpensive student tickets could really raise attendance and interest. I know here at Pitt, there was interest in the World Cup qualifying matches.
This would be pretty cool, as Pittsburgh is definitely a city with a lot of potential. However it is worth noting that the field quality at Heinz Field has always been in question. They have recently made some changes and it seems better, but I'm also not sure that there is enough room to make a wide field which is always a problem for stadiums that are designed for American football. Nearby Columbus has a modest, but efficient stadium with a nice field, so I'm not sure I see Pittsburgh catching on anytime soon.
ReplyDeleteIt is a great stadium!
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