AAF Update Thread

[MikeSherman]

They selected stadiums that were far too big. In some cities, smaller stadiums aren't really an option* -- you can't go to high school stadiums or minor league baseball parks without looking low rent. But the MLS stadiums are a perfect size and are major league quality. So in Orlando, for example, why not pursue Orlando City Stadium? 20,191 in a 25,500 seat stadium would have looked rock solid. Not to mention that the stadium is closer to downtown and the purple seats would have match their uniforms. Terrible mistake, and one that was obvious in foresight.

*Although I would argue that just means that the city isn't a viable market for your league, not that you should proceed to play in a one-third full stadium.

[MikeMitchell]

I'd love to see a side-by-side comparison, but the Iron's attendance definitely looked smaller to me this week.

The Iron got 17,319 yesterday. The Express game got only 11,980.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_AAF_ ... Attendance

Not good at all to have 2 teams get under 12k in weeks 1 and 2...

I know that the weather is going to get better but if a team is doing 11k for their home opener. Imagine what happens if they are 2 and 6 hosting a game.

Birmingham and Memphis have never done well in alternate pro leagues.

[MikeMitchell]

They selected stadiums that were far too big. In some cities, smaller stadiums aren't really an option* -- you can't go to high school stadiums or minor league baseball parks without looking low rent. But the MLS stadiums are a perfect size and are major league quality. So in Orlando, for example, why not pursue Orlando City Stadium? 20,191 in a 25,500 seat stadium would have looked rock solid. Not to mention that the stadium is closer to downtown and the purple seats would have match their uniforms. Terrible mistake, and one that was obvious in foresight.

*Although I would argue that just means that the city isn't a viable market for your league, not that you should proceed to play in a one-third full stadium.

The disadvantages to rushing into league play with poor marketing/advertising. Birmingham and Memphis have a history of this in alternate pro leagues, but The XFL teams drew better than this in the early part of their season.

I agree with you about the MLS stadiums. I like the mid sized stadiums that are in that 40 to 50k range. You have a realistic shot of coming close to selling out those games. Like Dallas and Houston in the XFL. Even still, You can get away with 20k and make it look good in a 40k stadium. Once you are in that 70k plus range, you have to block out the end zones, tarp the upper decks and put all the fans on the camera/home team side.

The San Antonio opener in the AAF had reportedly 27k in what is I believe a 64k stadium. You can make that look halfway decent and respectable if you come close to filling half of the stadium. This is where Vince McMahon and the WWE’s marketing team comes in. They got to hype the crap out of these teams and have affordable ticket pricing. Having Dallas, Houston and even Oklahoma fans travel to see Stoops coach at Globe Life Park should help. If they handle things right, they could come close to selling out that opener.

[XFL_FAN]

San Antonio getting great attendance like they did last week:

DzpGo2nX0AAprRy.jpeg (54.89 KiB) Viewed 6990 times

[XFL_FAN]

The announced attendance at the Commanders game is 29,176. That's amazing! I also think San Diego will get good attendance tonight too.

Problem is for the AAF, only two teams with great attendance won't cut it. No on a TV deal won't cut it either. 2020 can't come soon enough...

[XFL_FAN]

The Fleet game is looking pretty empty:

https://mobile.twitter.com/RealFRam ... 99305729

So 1 team with strong attendance (Commanders). 2 teams have their opener next week. Salt Lake and Atlanta.

[Andibald]

Good luck watching the SD vs ATL game if you're color blind. Dark on dark looks like a high school scrimmage.

[MikeMitchell]

The Fleet game is looking pretty empty:

https://mobile.twitter.com/RealFRam ... 99305729

So 1 team with strong attendance (Commanders). 2 teams have their opener next week. Salt Lake and Atlanta.

That’s a shame with The San Diego market. It looks like one of the worst crowds of the early season.

[XFL_FAN]

Good luck watching the SD vs ATL game if you're color blind. Dark on dark looks like a high school scrimmage.

Even not being color blind it's hard to differentiate which people are on which team. The XFL needs home and road jerseys. The AAF is so cheap by having just 1 jersey per team.

[MikeMitchell]

The announced attendance at the Commanders game is 29,176. That's amazing!

That was their best game thus far. San Antonio is a hit in the AAF. Not shocked because Texas is money. Orlando might do ok too. They weren’t that bad in the XFL. The Rage was good and attendance was ok. It helps having a good team and Spurrier.

Arizona, Memphis, Birmingham and San Diego are not off to good starts attendance wise. The Hotshots attendance might improve if they keep winning.

The jury is still out on Atlanta and Salt Lake. Atlanta has the ideal sized stadium. Smallest in the AAF. Salt Lake is 0 and 2 and haven’t been home yet. We will see what their weather is like in their home opener. That market is an unknown.