THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013
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CAMDEN BENDER editor@kansan.com
When soccer fan RJ Keitchen entered Arrowhead Stadium to see the Wizards play, a massive yet empty stadium met him.
Sporting Kansas City, then known as the Kansas City Wizards, played within the unwilling confines of Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo. Keitchen watched the game in an atmosphere that carried little character or excitement. The low attendance only seemed magnified against the background of a stadium designed for nearly 80,000 spectators.
Keitchen's next experience with the club took place after the rebranding of the Wizards to Sporting Kansas City and during the club's second home game at Sporting Park in 2011. Keitchen said the difference in atmospheres between
visits was apparent from kick off.
"From that moment on, I was hooked, and the following season, I became a season ticket holder for the first time in my life for any sports team," Keitchen said.
Experiences such as Keitchen's are among the leading reasons for the recent success for teams throughout Major League Soccer. New fans become acclimated to the game in an environment that encourages people's interest in soccer, and further extends the brand in the form of supporter groups throughout the league's clubs.
Following the 2012 regular season, MLS set a record for game attendance for the second consecutive year. According to worldfootball.net, between the 2011 and 2012 seasons, the Portland Timbers and the Sporting Kansas City franchises both saw an average fan attendance increase of more than 8 percent.
Both franchises rely on locally-founded groups for fan support throughout the season.
Garrett Dittfurth, a co-founder of Portland franchise and supporter group Timbers Army, thinks a loud, fun atmosphere during games as well as familiarity with soccer at a young age has increased the game's popularity in younger generations.
"There was a massive energy in the air: the clapping, the cheering, the singing."
RJ KEITCHEN Soccer fan, about his first game at the new Sporting Kansas City Park
"For the most part, people grow up playing the game and like it," Dittfurth said. "As far as the Timbers go, we throw the biggest party
in forport for 90 minutes. Who wouldn't want to be a part of that?"
The Atlantic Wire states MLS recently surpassed both the NBA and the NHL in terms of average attendance per game after the 2012 season. Supporters of Sporting Kansas City say they think the increasing number of supporter groups as well as the completion of a new soccer-specific stadium helped the increase in average attendance for Sporting Kansas City home games.
"During my first game at the new Sporting Park, there was a massive energy in the air; the clapping, the cheering, the singing," Keitchen said, who now is a lead organizer of the Northland Noise supporters group. "It felt like a real sports event being attended by people who really cared and were passionate about the team and the game."
According to ESPN, professional soccer is the second-most popular
sport among Americans aged 12 to 24, trailing only professional football. Ditfurth said he believes recent changes in the increase of soccer popularity with young people in the United States are because of MLS marketing campaigns.
"There is less of a focus on soccer moms and their kids who have virtually no disposable income," Ditturth said. "There is a much larger focus on supporters groups that appeal to younger people with much more disposable income."
The atmosphere of soccer-specific stadiums has attracted younger fans to a newer sport as younger generations begin to choose soccer over more traditional American sports.
Edited by Paige Lytle
NATIONAL
High school student shoots himself in class
ASSOCIATED PRESS
CINCINNATI — A student at an all-male parochial high school pulled out a gun in a classroom Monday morning and shot himself in an apparent suicide attempt, police said.
The youth was taken to a hospital with a self-inflicted wound, police said. There apparently was no threat to other students at La Salle High School, a private school west of Cincinnati that was put on lockdown as a precaution, police said.
At around 8 a.m., "a student produced a gun inside one of the classrooms and shot himself, and we're dealing with that now." Green Township Police Chief Bart West told reporters.
West said the student apparently was trying to kill himself, but he
had no other information on why he fired the shot. He said authorities weren't aware of any threats made concerning the school. Authorities said all other students were safe.
Students were gathered in the school gym, and school officials said parents could take their children home if they wanted to.
A school official said counselors were meeting with students, and officials were talking to students to try to learn what had happened.
"We just ask that you pray for him and his family," said Greg Tankersley, La Salle's director of community development. "It's a tragic situation for this young man."
He said he wouldn't release other information about the student at this point.
Students and family console each other outside La Salle High School yesterday in Cincinnati where a student pulled out a gun and shot himself in a classroom. La Salle High School, west of Cincinnati, was locked down until after police arrived and determined there was no threat to other students or staff.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
The actor who played the father on Leave it to Beaver was born in Lawrence. His name was Hugh Beaumont, born here in 1909 and died in 1982. He was still a boy when his family
moved to Tennessee.
POLICE REPORTS
Information based on the Douglas County Sheriff's Office booking recap.
- A 20-year-old male was arrested yesterday on the 4300 block of 24th Place on suspicion of operating a vehicle under the influence. A $500 bond was paid.
- A 24-year-old male was arrested yesterday on the 1100 block of Iowa Street on suspicion of driving while intoxicated and no driver's license. A $275 bond was paid.
- A 25-year-old female was arrested yesterday on the 700 block of Michigan Street on suspicion of operating a vehicle under the influence and transporting an open container. A $600 bond was paid.
- A 19-year-old male was arrested yesterday on the 500 block of Maine Street on suspicion of operating under the influence. A $500 bond was paid.
A 19-year-old female was arrested yesterday on the 1500 block of Crestline Drive on suspicion of kidnapping and battery. No bond was posted.
Emily Donovan