Fragmentation In Niche Sports Proves To Be A Killer…

July 3, 2009 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

Speaking with one voice, whether it is to a business partner, the media, or to fans is always important, especially in the alphabet soup of niche or second tier sports. With the limited dollars and eyeballs available for the casual fan, splitting the marketplace with alphabet soup of organizations usually leads to confusion and can ultimately drive partners on to a platform which is much more simple to understand. The latest example of split markets being a killer is in indoor soccer, which despite the huge success the outdoor game is seeing in the US, just fell further off the roadmap this week. Last year the Indoor game split into two “leagues,” both of which struggled for any kind of existence in far-off marketplaces, and despite the local success of teams like the Milwaukee Wave and the New Jersey Ironmen (who were in two different leagues by the way) the sport is on the verge of extinction. Another sport teetering but doing better with some unity is lacrosse, where the National Lacrosse League extended commissioner George Daniel this week, sending a positive message to all involved. Still, lacrosse, indoor and outdoor, needs to be presented as one platform to be an effective tool, but at least in their case the sport has a platform of success to build on. Indoor soccer has hurt itself with divergent forces for the indoor game, forces which told the sports world they were too fragmented to present a unified front, and in the end, all suffered. Would having one unified league have worked? Perhaps. But with the alphabet soup presented last winter to fans, media partners and business partners there was no chance of survival in an already tight marketplace. Hopefully the indoor game can be resurrected and lifted by the continued success of the outdoor product, but with too many cooks it will be next to impossible to deliver.

Ironmen Make An Extreme Effort In A Tough Environment…

March 5, 2009 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

Newark isn’t nicknamed “Brick City” because of its soft and cuddly reputation. However it is hard by one of the most fertile areas for youth and high school soccer in North America, and its Prudential Center is one of the Northeast’s best kept secrets in terms of arenas. So into the fold comes the New Jersey Ironment, who with a limited budget made a go of it for the last year of the Major Indoor Soccer League. The team never went to the extreme to capture buzz in the marketplace, and there were not many who thought that when the MISL disbanded that indoor soccer was dead. However two groups emerged and one the Xtreme Soccer League, pulled together some decent markets, including New Jersey, to make a go of it. The problem of course is confusion in a limited niche marketplace, and with precious few dates for the season, the Ironmen have struggled at the gate and to build mainstream brand in the crowded marketplace. However they are trying to do all the right things to identify with the core and casual soccer fan in the area, and if they can build any financial and strategic marketing base, the team may be able to compliment in the winter what the Red Bulls and MLS may be able to do in the outdoor season. Big Apple Soccer had a look at the Ironmen and their community outreach , which along with tieing to former Cosmos legends, theme nights, a growing offseason camp business, and an affordable ticket price all give the team hope to build brand. Using this minor league success approach, along with some nice digital work to give fans a destination in lieu of any television exposure this season, is all a good first step. Next comes the hard part…establishing stars, finding excitement amongst mainstream media and getting on TV and radio somewhere, which is really the only way to get partners ROI they will need for a marketing spend. However in the NY marketplace, the Ironmen are trying on a very limited budget, and in a time when niche sports are quickly falling by the wayside, they may be able to find some ways to stay alive, grow their base at the grassroots, and be an affordable alternative the way minor league baseball is in the summer.