It probably started in, what you would call,
sixth grade. I had been asked to write an assignment on “whatever I wanted”. I
choose soccer in the US.
These were the latter years of the NASL. New
York Cosmos, Tampa Bay Rowdies, Minnesota Kicks and Philadelphia Fury. Pele,
Cruyff, Beckenbauer and Best. Information was sparse, but I cribbed enough from
a couple of magazines to achieve the pass mark with something to spare.
It seemed a world away from the drab
environment of English football in the early 80s. Remember the key agents of
progress - the formation of the Premier League, Italia 90, Euro 96 – were more
than a decade away.
I continued bashing out assignments through
college, then turned them into a job by writing for local and national
newspapers in England, and then pivoted into running the content at Arsenal for
more than a decade. However, on visits to the US, I regularly checked in with
the Rapids. EPL football was now a juggernaut but MLS was cool, different and
new.
Taking a job as Senior Director of
Communications and Digital Media in January 2015 was a risk – personally and
professionally. But, like many of us in the UK, America was a life-long
fascination and a latter-day ambition. Major League Soccer was football, but
not as I knew it.
Supporters in the US are different to the UK.
The “tribalism” of the English game helps create an ultra-passionate spectacle,
but it does not always make for pleasant bar conversations with supporters.
However, in my two years, the Rapids’ fans
were - without exception - welcoming, respectful and knowledgeable. Remember,
my first games were in the midst of the team’s record-breaking winless run.
Their ability to see progress in the performance, if not the results, was
admirable.
And that is the thing about US Soccer fans,
and Rapids fans in particular. They are a cause as much as a club. A gang of
like-minded individuals who are almost counter-cultural and looking to grow
something for the love of the sport not just the love of their own interests.
It was a refreshing change.
Soccer in Europe is too mature for that and
everyone’s utter entrenchment can be infuriating sometimes.
That is one reason it was so gratifying to see
the Rapids’ turnaround in 2016. The supporters had had little to shout about
for a few years but, at last, they had a team of which to be proud.
Now fans are fans, so blogs and social media
are full of knee-jerk reaction. That is what they are for. No team takes defeat
well, anywhere, criticism is part of working in sports. However, as a former
soccer fanzine writer, I’d love to see the Rapids with more supporter-driven
content in the future. I read the vast majority of articles on View from the
Couch, Burgundy Wave and on C38’s site during my time in Colorado.
It was heartening to see the last of these
develop in many facets during 2016. The podcast at the tailgate, the incredible
tifo, the electric atmosphere created by the move to the South Stand – these
were all big ticks in my opinion.
Travelling in the EPL can be a drudge because
of boring annoyances like road quality, parking and the lack of space you have
in England. But, following Rapids away from home is akin to a Champions League
game every other week. It is not necessarily harder, but it is certainly a huge
commitment of time and money. You have to respect fans who do that and there
were more Rapids fans on the road in 2016.
Pablo’s instinctive heart-thumping reaction to
being asked to clap the gang of travelling supporters after the 5-1 hammering
at New York City was illuminating. It was a body blow of a result, but his
response to a pocket of burgundy in the rafters of Yankee Stadium was an
indication of a real kinship between the fans and the team, something the EPL
is struggling to retain right now.
The C38 tailgates were telling too; visibly
bigger in attendance, atmosphere, and positivity last year. Meanwhile, the
Playoff victory over LA Galaxy will remain a highlight for the emotion and
involvement of the supporters as much as Gashi’s goal or Howard’s save.
If you want a yardstick, it felt like
old-style FA Cup tie in noise, crowd, anticipation and emotion. And that is
high praise.
With games like that still fresh in the
memory, it was painful to leave as only a fraction of the club’s potential has
been fulfilled. However, I truly believe I witnessed a step-change in my two
years at the Rapids. The young front office staff are enthusiastic, the
decision-makers are soccer-savvy while the team now have quality to add to
their determination and organization.
Players will come and go while success will
ebb and flow, however the right infrastructure will make you contenders
year-in, year-out. That is present on the pitch and in the club offices. If
they can utilize and develop the confidence imbued in 2016 then Rapids can be
in final stages of the Playoff bracket more off than not.
So, as I sit writing this in London with my
C38 hat on*, I feel there is an unparalleled opportunity in the history of the
Rapids. And, unshackled by club employee status, I can say it.
Come together and build for the future in
2017.
The club will start the campaign with more
season tickets holders than they ended 2016 with. It will be a record number. I
won’t bore you with commercial metrics, but they are up. Meanwhile the team
will be pretty similar, barring a couple of exceptions.
It has taken a number of seasons to become an
overnight success in 2016. The front office and technical team can take credit
for that. They have been patiently placing pieces in the jigsaw for some time
now and, as with every puzzle, the overall picture is not always properly
visible.
It has not been a perfect plan, sports will
never allow that, and we took a heap of criticism over the last few years. A
lot of it was fair, some was not. A lot of it informed, some of it not.
The one cast-iron fact is that no response is
truly acceptable while team performance is poor.
Of course, even when the team improved, it
seems that praise was grudging from the wider media. That is annoying but, then
again, it does not really matter and I commend the Rapids fans who turned it
into a positive.
And, hopefully, that is the result of 2016.
Colorado Rapids did not win a trophy last year,
but perhaps they galvanized their identity.
Fans now have a slogan, a hashtag, a few more
songs and stack of positive memories. Hopefully, the club's digital and social
content give it a new type of narrative too. This culture should keep the
flames of fandom alight during any tough times to come.
Of course, success brings standards along with
it. Rapids fans will expect more of the same in 2017 and why not?
But, then again, it is far easier to destroy
than construct, more straightforward to splinter than to stay united.
Many English people expressed jealousy of my
position in the last two years and asked me how I got to work in MLS**. The
chance to truly, properly build a club is almost impossible in Europe. You can
only nudge the needle a little here or there.
We all changed this club in 2016, all of us
together, and thank you Colorado Rapids for letting me play a small part.
But now it is the time to kick-on and built on
the firmest of foundations.
Let’s go Rapids.
* This is not a metaphor. I have a “We Are
C38” beanie on, right now. Thanks, Dave.
** I averaged three emails a month asking this
question
Regards
Richard Clarke
Glad to have gotten to know RC.
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