Opinion: Relationship Between Club, Fans is a Two Way Street
Mutuality isn't always sexy but it is essential
The other night I was channel surfing and happened upon a midweek USL League One match between Richmond Kickers and Portland Hearts of Pine. I had never heard of either of these legendary teams but, as it turns out, Richmond have 30-plus years of history while Portland Hearts of Pine is in its very first season of competitive soccer.
I tuned in sometime during the first half and wound up watching the whole thing. On a rainy night in Richmond, the marauding Hearts of Pine smashed Kickers 5-2 all over the (established 1929!) City Stadium field. I stumbled upon this game via CBS Sports and the Wednesday night national broadcast featured decent production values and was a modestly entertaining advertisement for lower-league American soccer despite the inclement weather and more empty seats than the club preferred.
On Saturday evening, I had to use my smart TV browser to watch a far inferior FOX 40 broadcast as Sacramento Republic FC fell 1-0 to last-place Monterey Bay FC. Tepid bath water is how I’d describe the atmosphere in Cardinale Stadium, and that’s me being generous. You might remember that Monterey was once Fresno FC, a team that lasted only two seasons before it folded up shop and went off in search of greener pastures, aka a permanent, soccer-specific stadium.
On Wednesday, Republic FC will face Orange County SC on CBS Sports Network, the same weekly showcase spot where I watched Richmond get kicked by Portland Hearts of Pine. A win would clinch a playoff spot for the Quails and, perhaps more importantly, fill the team with confidence heading into Saturday’s USL Jägermeister Cup Final.
This is my fourth season supporting Republic FC at Heart Health Park, and I’ve witnessed the gameday fan experience and overall atmosphere trending in the wrong direction for at least two of those four years. A lot of that is out of the club’s control and can be blamed on bad-landlord overlords Cal Expo. With the new Railyards Stadium construction finally underway, combined with greatly improved second-half form, there’s a chance for this to be a breakthrough moment for the franchise and its fans.
For an underdog league like USL, culture and community spirit are essential ingredients. I rooted for the San Francisco 49ers for 35 years before I ever attended a game in person. During the years of 1989-93, I probably could’ve recited the entire active roster from memory. I didn’t need to have season tickets or experience game day tailgates to feel connected because American football is global. American soccer, however, is as local as local gets.
The lame atmosphere in Monterey was notable to me because I came to the Sacramento area from Fresno. There, the Foxes were embraced by the community. Attendance was decent, and the roster was stacked with players who had personality and passion. According to ownership, the team had to relocate for financial reasons, but, at a glance, I’m not sure the denizens of Monterey are actually buying in. The win over SRFC was attended by 2,747, according to OurSports Central, while Fresno FC averaged 4,871 and 4,117 fans in a baseball stadium by comparison.
Here in Sacramento, there are encouraging signs of life when it comes to growing the team’s fan base and support in advance of the new stadium. Earlier in the season, I feared that the club might focus all of their energy on 2027 and beyond, but recent evidence points towards a good balance between the future and the presence.
Freeway billboards for Noche Latina and the Jägermeister Cup Final are lighting up the commuter landscape, and the team energized fans with a new third kit drop during the cup semifinal. Most notably, SRFC brought in a proven manager and throughout the season have shown a willingness to invest in players. Striker Khori Bennett was bought from Al-Nasr SC (Kuwait) where he had moved for an undisclosed “club-record transfer fee” from Las Vegas. I’m not privy to the details of Bennett’s contract, but, according to transfermarkt.us, he’s a player worth over $200,000.
The bond between a sports franchise and its fans requires a mutual commitment to one another. When either party bails on this responsibility, the results can be disastrous. You don’t have to look further than the Sacramento Athletics across town for a cautionary tale.
It’s not even that complicated. The club invests in the on-field talent, front office, marketing, and in-person fan experience. The fans agree to do more than just watch on TV, they agree to show up and support their community team even though they have a lot of other things they could do with their time.
For Republic FC, a national television audience needs to be a permanent afterthought. Supporting a USL Championship club is an intentional choice to embark on an intimate journey within the boundaries of a local community. Far from the bright lights of the NFL or Premier League but also removed from the conflicted duality of Minor League baseball. The road is long and perilous, marked by frequent disappointments and paved with gravel castoffs from frequent swerving detours. But the road is also, paradoxically, a hopeful path that one travels with others who share the same passionate commitment to something that can only be experienced rather than explained.
Good stuff.
Sad you missed what it was like circa 8-9 years back. The building of Mt Nagle changed everything.
And then the true story of the MLS fiasco. Oh man that wasn’t easy for passionate fan to endure
So in my longer view we are trending up again but there’s a high high ceiling.