All Together Now, Click: MLS Soccer Fans in Cyberspace

Reboot: Major League Soccer’s 2018 Relaunch of Chivas USA as the Los Angeles Football Club

“…Referred to as a "potential gold mine" and often referenced as the largest MLS fan base, the Hispanic market is a priority for MLS and one that needs obvious attention and outreach (Jensen & Sosa, 2008). MLS recognizes the economic spending power of its Hispanic/Latino fans and this support as a key for financial solvency (Wilson, 2007). According to a study conducted by Univision, Hispanic sports fans are fanaticos compared with their non-Hispanic counterparts (Ruiz, 2014).…”

“…Spanish-speaking soccer fans, whose soccer fandom is certainly not homogeneous, may also consider themselves Hispanic, Latino, Chicano, or _________-American (Jensen & Sosa, 2008;Pellerano, 2014;Wilson, 2007). Due to a strong attachment to the country of their birth, individuals may favor a team in their native country over a U.S. franchise and have also been known to prefer watching their favorite on TV as opposed to attending an MLS game, which they may consider an inferior product lacking the artistry of the "beautiful game" (Jensen & Sosa, 2008;Lee, Shin, & Shinchi, 2010;Stodolska & Tainsky, 2015;Valeriano, 2014).…”

“…Sport marketers face an uphill battle when faced with individuals whose preferred method is watching sporting events on TV and who "have a low loyalty for attending sporting events" (Lee et al, 2010, p. 91). An initial concern regarding the introduction of Chivas USA and its focus on the Hispanic/Latino population of Los Angeles was whether these fans would be willing to accept the new franchise as a replacement for their current favorite team (Wilson, 2007). For Hispanic individuals who identify as soccer fans, the sport is an integral part of the Latino community, yet this "passion has not translated to on-site consumption of the MLS" (Argeris & Nagel, 2013, p. 73).…”

Coming to America: Historical Ontologies and United States Soccer

“…Given the diversity of Latinos as an ethnic group and their divided soccer (and hence brand) loyalties, the Latino's role in United States soccer is complex (Wilson 2007). Matches in Mexico and other Latin American countries hold more significance for millions of Latinos than do MLS games (ibid.).…”

Is St George Enough? Considering the importance of displaying local identity while supporting the England national soccer team

“…Social science research on sports fans is now well established (see Jones, 1997Jones, , 2000. It is also known that sports fans throughout the world use the Internet (Wilson, 2007), yet little attention has been paid to online forums for sports fans as a source for gathering data on perceptions and opinions of fans themselves, especially in the UK. One of the few studies is by Davies et al (2005) who used rugby related chat rooms as part of a project to assess social identities among fans of Welsh rugby clubs before and after a regional restructuring process.…”