Why Is There A Women's Professional Soccer Team In Columbia?

Alright...It seems like a great idea. I think that it's fantastic that we are going to have a professional women's team in our "local" area. They will probably fill the stands with fans and attract local sponsors that have a vested interest in seeing the sport grow. That's what they need if they are going to last. With the Fifa Women's World Cup 2011 just around the corner, one would and should expect a great response and heavy following to the start of a women's professional team in South Carolina. So the timing seems to be perfect and well-planned. From the looks of the Central SC Cobra's website, the groups seems extremely well organized for the start of their 2011 campaign in the Atlantic Division of the USL's W-League. Please take a look and become a supporter.  And if you add your email to the mailing list, fair  warning...just hit the go button once. It will capture your address. I hit it like 7 times thinking it wasn't working.

So why do I ask the question? Why Columbia? Well....my confusion, or ignorance, or disappointment, or well...umm...I'm not sure exactly, but I definitely feel something about the above announcement that just leaves me scratching my head. Just a few months back, I found myself super excited about the prospect of a totally different women's team in the Lowcountry dubbed the Charleston Heat.

 I heard a little bit here and overheard a little more over there.  And then one afternoon in between drills, one of my young ladies on a team I coach asked me about the new pro women's team in Charleston...so I thought that there most certainly must be something to this buzz. So I googled it. Didn't find a thing. Eventually, on Facebook, I find out that there is a team developing in Charleston. YES!!!! It's the Charleston Heat!! But not really. It is more of an idea. A concept that hasn't taken complete hold yet.  If you look at it's last Twitter Updates...they were posted in August '10.  If I seem like I have a negative tone to my writing here...please be advised...it is only my frustration with the lack of available information.  I believe that if you get the word out there and really start to promote the program, you would find out that the market for a women's team would quite possibly explode in Charleston!

Explode, you say? Yes, Explode. And here is how it would work. Partner up with the Battery! If you take a look at the WPSL teams, you see that we have absolutely no representation in this area. Now, take a look again at the W-League, which is part of the USL. Our area already has a strong tie to the USL-Pro league...in the relationship with the Charleston Battery.  What we have here with the Battery is most importantly, Blackbaud Stadium. More commonly known as Battery Park, it was the first soccer specific stadium built in the USA. Over the past 11 years there have been many other stadiums built throughout the country. However, unlike most of the bigger stadiums in MLS, the Battery's fans get to sit right on top of the action and experience the game as it was intended. The organization and stadium have garnered well earned national publicity and accolades for its beautiful pitch, leadership in environmental stewardship, and devoted supporters. 

 Okay...getting back on track now...  Back to the Exploding! 

Some ideas to help maximize the incredible potential of hosting a pro women's team (and the further exposure of the men's program and therefore more asses-in-seats for the Battery): 

1. Play the women's games during the daylight! Play the games before the men's team. This could save on energy costs due to the use of the Sun's glorious rays. How much would it really take to get the staff there a couple of hours earlier? How do we pay them?  My answer = Interns and volunteers!

2. Get involved in the community! Make sure that our players are out there in the offseason and in-season to gain more positive exposure for the club.  Take a look at how its done elsewhere. I get tweets and read about many pro teams everyday. It seems as though there is no offseason at all for the higher level clubs. Yes I understand that some of our players go off to keep fresh by playing in other leagues, but the ones that are in town should be doing appearances and keeping their profile very high. Viral marketing and Flash-Mob style events would be a lot of fun and would gain more publicity for the organization. Weave the organization into the fabric of our community. Let's get on the news for more than a total of 1min 30sec a season. Maybe a pickup game with a few stars in Marion Square on a random offseason/in-season afternoon. GET CREATIVE!  The key is to attract the casual soccer fan and suck them into our world. If only just for a minute, or 90, or every home game for the next season. I'm not necessarily a marketing  professional, but I am a thinker...

3.  Attract the finest women's college players out there! We are blessed to live in Charleston. The weather is amazing all summer and the beaches, shopping, night life, etc. has got to be very alluring to young women soccer players that are looking to keep fresh during the summer. Utilize our local attributes to bring in the really golden talent and it will pay off by filling the golden seats at the "Baud"! Thus turning the idea into a golden experience. We are already on the radar for USWNT, having seen them a few times here over the years. So maybe this can lead to a US Women's camp....dunno...what do you need to host a camp? Or at least a maybe we could host another sort of event like a W-League combine.  Just thinking here...

I would love to see the Charleston Battery franchise grow far beyond the success we already share currently.  Adding a women's program to the organisation may or may not work. Won't know until you try. Put the right people with a great amount of passion in charge of it and it may be a blessing to us soccer fans and a boost to the coffers in the front office.

Regardless if the Battery are interested in a women's W-league team or not, the Charleston Heat need to get the word out there a lot more and really drive the interest if they want to find success. We, the fans are here and we will support you. We just need to know what we can do and how we can support you.

To quote the great robot actor "Johnny 5" - "Need More Input..."

 (yes, i just quoted a 1986 Steve Guttenberg movie)

OK, If I am unaware of any current or recent news releases or insider info that ether supports, contradicts, or blows my ramblings out of the water...please feel free to comment. And to acknowledge my lack of knowledge is quite alright with me.  Always learning, we are. Like a sponge, I am.