Danny O’Connor (Framingham, MA) practices his punches for Sunday’s match after the Revolution game (Photo Credit: Jason Dalrymple)
Revolution soccer tickets may not be in the highest demand this season, or the last few seasons for that matter, but boxing? Really?
The boxing match will take place on August 12th, following the Revolution home game against the Montreal Impact at 7pm. It is evident that many marketing ploys and ticket giveaways occur frequently at Gillette Stadium to boost soccer sales, but adding another sport to the main event is ridiculous. This decision takes away from the soccer match if anything, and it is hard to imagine too many fans will stay late for boxing on a Sunday night. The organization believes bringing a local boxing star in Danny O’Connor will capture some new Revs fans.
Revolution president Brian Bilello said, “This will be a unique event that will add value for our fans. We think we’ll convert some boxing fans to Revolution soccer and vice versa.”
Hosting this boxing event looks more like an act of desperation than a ‘unique event that will add value to our fans’. If the fans need an added value, it sure as hell does not come from other distractions at Gillette Stadium. Like any fan base in any sport, the fans want to be entertained and more importantly, they want their team to win.
The added value should be a new signing, possibly a big name goal scorer or someone who the fans can idolize and cheer on. Trading away captain and fan favorite Shalrie Joseph last week does not help the situation, but it makes the fan wonder ‘Who WILL the Revs sign next?’
Joseph’s absence opens up about $500,000 in cap room, and New England is still holding Diego Fagundez in their back pocket. Despite some speculation, starting Diego with some consistency would not only give the the 17-year-old a shot to prove his starting ability, but it would attract plenty of the younger Revolution fans as well. Ticket and concession sales can only fall more if something is not done by next season. With just 12 games left, the Revolution must make a brash move soon to capture a playoff spot this season, or at least gear up for the next.
-Matt Bloom
Follow Us: @foxborofort
While it’s neat that O’Connor is such a big fan of the team (his rounds in the local media wearing a Revs jersey and supporters’ group gear are the most publicity the team’s gotten on TV all year)- this thing is a bit of a stretch. A typical well-intentioned but poorly-executed stunt from the hapless Revs “marketing” department. The fights start at 9 on a Sunday night. The family crowd, 90% of those who attend games these days, will be long gone by the time O’Connor gets into the ring. Less than a 1,000 people (max) will probably still be around, unless his local draw is bigger than I imagine.
As far as bringing in new fans, this organization clearly has no idea how to go about that. Attendance is worse than last year’s (and last year’s was abysmal). The team has no face, barely any profile in the local sports market, and no face after trading away its captain. Judging from Mike Burns’ comment on The DA Show the other night that any moves would likely occur in the off-season, they’ve shut it down for 2012. They waited too long to make any moves, and now the odds of signing anyone who make an impact are slim. Getting Jerry Bengston back from the Olympics will help, but it’s likely too late to save this season from being playoff-free.