Some DC United news today.
[Before I start, DC United has an Open Cup game against the Chicago Fire tomorrow (Tuesday) at 7:30pm at the Maryland Soccerplex. No TV, but it will be on the radio WFED (1050 AM) and WACA (1540 AM, Spanish)]
Paul Tenorio, guest blogging on Steve Goff’s Soccer Insider, says that Ben Olsen had YET ANOTHER ankle surgery today. I know a lot of people (including Benny himself, I’m sure) were hoping he’d be able to play again this season. I think this kinda puts a stop to that idea. He played last week against the LA Galaxy, after training for a week and just wanted to see if the ankle could hold up without too much pain. Looks like it couldn’t, therefore the surgery today. The “Will he retire?” cloud still hovers overhead…
Will Chang (Owner of DC United), had an interview last week (I think?) on GolTV’s Soccer America. Among some of the topics is DC United’s FRUSTRATING attempts at getting a stadium built in DC. Behind the Badge has links to the video from youtube.
Dan Steinberg (DC Sports Bog) comments on the Nationals’ TV ratings and how it compares to DC United’s TV ratings. Apparently, the Nats get a 0.39 rating while United gets a 0.5 rating. For those of you who have trouble counting decimals, United averages MORE viewers than the Nats. He then points out a few keys at the end of the post:
Still, is it fair to ask whether D.C. United has a larger group of passionately invested core supporters than do the Nats? And, regardless of the realities in other markets, whether the term “Big Four professional sports leagues” should be permanently retired in D.C.? And whether the D.C. politicians who found a way to make a baseball stadium work shouldn’t be at least curious about the fact that more people are watching the local MLS team than the local MLB team?
Frankly, I don’t know anybody, not a single person, who is a “Nats Fan”. I know a lot of people who have gone to the games here and there (or at least once). But no one who actually follows the sport here in DC. On the other hand, I know one Capitals fan, a handful of DC United fans, a few Wizards fans, and a TON of Redskins fans. I don’t mean to bash the Nats, not at all, since that could be more a function of who I know than any kind of statistical item of interest. I just find it ironic that the Nats were pretty much handed a shiny new stadium, and here is DC United getting all of this flak for trying to get their own stadium built.