This is a sad day for soccer fans. The US Soccer Hall is closing. Of course that the hall is in Oneonta, New York did not help matters.
Reading about the closing I began to wonder why isn't it in a place associated with soccer like, oh I don't know, Portland, Or. (Disclaimer I lived there for 11 years). Portland is billed as Soccer City, USA. If the Hall didn't want to go that route, why not locate in a major city. It is bad enough-at least to those of us who played and are fans-that soccer gets the short shift as a fan favorite here in the States. Being in Oneonta, I am sure it is a fine city with fine people, does not contribute to the development of soccer or a fan base in the US. That they spent millions on new buildings and fields is a shame. The money would have better spend hiring moving vans.
The sad thing is the Hall knew that being in Oneonta wasn't the best place for it. How else to explain the Why Oneonta? link on the About Us page.
The story about fan exuberance leading to someone asking about the location of the US Soccer Hall of Fame after Oneonta State University won the 1977 NCAA Division I National Championship, is emblamatic of soccer's place in America. A big game is won and much excitment surrounds the celebration. Big talk about how great the game was, and how it will lead to great things for US soccer, or Oneonta, as the case may be, begins. Soon plans are under way and yet, the great things never materialize. Sure a grand musuem was built and is surrounded by pitches, or fields, but how many people showed up? Obvisiously not enough people showed up.
It is a shame that the Hall is being closed. But until I read the news of its closing, I wasn't even aware of the existance of the Hall. The sad part of that is I am a fan of soccer. While I am not a super fan like my cousin, I am not a band-wagonner, either. I played for years and played some in high school and junior college. I watch matches all the time. And yet I was unaware of the US Soccer Hall of Fame. Perhaps instead of a grand building in an out of the way place, a little PR would have been in order. That and locating in a more soccer friendly place could have done wonders for attendence.
Reading about the closing I began to wonder why isn't it in a place associated with soccer like, oh I don't know, Portland, Or. (Disclaimer I lived there for 11 years). Portland is billed as Soccer City, USA. If the Hall didn't want to go that route, why not locate in a major city. It is bad enough-at least to those of us who played and are fans-that soccer gets the short shift as a fan favorite here in the States. Being in Oneonta, I am sure it is a fine city with fine people, does not contribute to the development of soccer or a fan base in the US. That they spent millions on new buildings and fields is a shame. The money would have better spend hiring moving vans.
The sad thing is the Hall knew that being in Oneonta wasn't the best place for it. How else to explain the Why Oneonta? link on the About Us page.
The story about fan exuberance leading to someone asking about the location of the US Soccer Hall of Fame after Oneonta State University won the 1977 NCAA Division I National Championship, is emblamatic of soccer's place in America. A big game is won and much excitment surrounds the celebration. Big talk about how great the game was, and how it will lead to great things for US soccer, or Oneonta, as the case may be, begins. Soon plans are under way and yet, the great things never materialize. Sure a grand musuem was built and is surrounded by pitches, or fields, but how many people showed up? Obvisiously not enough people showed up.
It is a shame that the Hall is being closed. But until I read the news of its closing, I wasn't even aware of the existance of the Hall. The sad part of that is I am a fan of soccer. While I am not a super fan like my cousin, I am not a band-wagonner, either. I played for years and played some in high school and junior college. I watch matches all the time. And yet I was unaware of the US Soccer Hall of Fame. Perhaps instead of a grand building in an out of the way place, a little PR would have been in order. That and locating in a more soccer friendly place could have done wonders for attendence.
Powered by ScribeFire.
No comments:
Post a Comment