#2 Carolina RailHawks vs #7 Vancouver Whitecaps
Sept 24 at Vancouver – 10:30 pm ET :: Sept 27 at Carolina – 5:00 pm ET
#3 Puerto Rico Islanders vs #6 Rochester Rhinos
Sept 24 at Rochester – 7:05 pm ET :: Sept 27 at Puerto Rico – 6:00 pm ET
#4 Charleston Battery vs #5 Montreal Impact
Sept 24 at Montreal – 7:45 pm ET :: Sept 27 at Charleston – 7:00 pm ET
The Portland Timbers have secured the first seed in the playoffs.
Carolina RailHawks, Puerto Rico Islanders, Charleston Battery will battle in the last round of matches for 2nd thru 4th.
Montreal Impact, Rochester Rhinos, Vancouver Whitecaps will fight for 5th thru 7th place during the final round of regular season matches.
Thanks to Ed Serrano from Football in Miami and Beyond for the heads up on this story...
From the Sun-Sentinal:
The five USL-1 clubs and three other organizations, including 2010 expansion club Tampa Bay, are aligned with the Team Ownership Association (TOA), which wants the clubs to run the league, rather than a management entity such as NuRock.
"We will have an owner-controlled league by next year," Miami FC President Aaron Davidson said. "I'm not sure what it will be named and how it will be structured, but it will start with these eight teams."
David Fellerath from the Triangle Offense, and independent Carolina RailHawks blog, spoke with RailHawks majority owner Selby Wellman about recent selling of USL and the "chilled" response by various team owners.
He (Selby Wellman) noted that the USL-1 clubs make single-year commitments to participate in the league, and that in a month or so, the league will approach the owners about committing for next season. But, “If they don’t come to the table with us having the ability to control our league, we won’t play with them,” Wellman says.
The TBR Mailbag is a bi-weekly feature brought to you by the TBR front office to allow you, the fans, to write in and ask questions about the team, organization, and the return of professional soccer to Tampa Bay. If you have any questions you would like answered, please email us at mailbag@tbrowdies.com.
Q: I was wondering will the Rowdies do an extensive advertising campaign like billboards, sports radio, etc... and will the Rowdies have big sponsorships like, Publix, IKEA, Beef O’Bradys?
A: The Rowdies will have a presence everywhere in the community and will look to develop an effective mix of placement and creativity. From your favorite store or local pub, to print and traditional media advertising, to (if we have our way) our gorilla friends Pickemup & Suckemup in front of State Vacuum in South Tampa. Perry Van Der Beck, TBR Technical Director, will be on ESPN Radio this week doing spots for an upcoming United Way auction the Rowdies are involved with. As we get closer to kick off for next season, you’ll be seeing more of the Rowdies in print and in broadcast, but for now our focus will be on grassroots initiatives, new media applications, and getting out in the community in person to meet with fans face-to-face and prepare for the return of pro soccer to Tampa Bay.
Sponsorships are a big part of any sports team’s business model and essential for the team to build relationships within the community. The Rowdies will certainly have meaningful corporate partners and have already started that process. For the Rowdies though, sponsorship is about legacy and a substantial mutual partnership with the rebirth of Tampa’s first pro sports franchise. We are looking for fewer but more impactful partnerships so that both the team and the sponsor benefit short and long term from the unique reach and history pro soccer maintains. We will work with large national businesses, but welcome more intimate relationships with local / regional businesses and local charities as well. If anyone representing an organization would like to speak with the Rowdies about corporate sponsorships, please contact us at sponsorships@tbrowdies.com.
Q: Can you please advise us about the litigation and what effect, if any, that will have on the team and the name?
A: We are currently unable to discuss specifics until the suit is resolved. To be clear though, the trademark dispute only involves the wordmark and the right to sell merchandise. We feel confident our group did everything needed to secure those rights. Our organization owns the rights to play games and operate a soccer team as the Tampa Bay Rowdies. We may consider different options, but the case will have no effect on the team’s return and operations in 2010.
Q: What kind of fan base are the Rowdies going to be catering to? Are you going to be going after the soccer family crowd, or the “Rowdie” supporters groups?
A: In short, both. Since day one, we have been involved in community programs working with youth soccer programs, local community groups and schools. We have also made sure to have a presence at soccer pubs and interact with various supporter groups during viewing parties, soccer events and other gathering. We are developing strong partnerships with adult sports leagues. It’s our goal that all sports fans in the area feel a sense of ownership in the team and support the Rowdies.
We’re conscious of the unique diversity that exists in the soccer community and will do our best to embrace that diversity so that all fans of the game and even just passive sports fans feel pride in our team and can enjoy the match day experience. Our stadium experience will revolve around fans being up close to the action and enjoying a high standard of attractive soccer. We’ll also focus on the entertainment value of our games and secondary programming, making the games a social event, not just a sporting event. That can include music programming, fan fest and on-field experiences, seating areas for the soccer die-hards (“Rowdie Zone”), family sections, etc. It’s important to deliver a match day experience fans of all ages and backgrounds can enjoy,making Rowdies games the place to be in Tampa once again.
