On July 16, FC Cincinnati recorded an attendance of 35,061, a Ohio-soccer match attendance record, to watch their friendly against the English Premier League side, Crystal Palace. After the match, Crystal Palace manager Alan Pardew compared the atmosphere at a sold-out Nippert Stadium to that of a FA Cup Final. Cincinnati, an immensely-proud sports town, has religiously supported their first professional soccer club. With the Reds in a rebuilding stage, FC Cincinnati has truly become the summer "Pride" of Cincinnati.
With the immense support from Cincinnati soccer fans and their surprising success in their inaugural season, FC Cincinnati has placed themselves in the MLS expansion conversation. One qualification for MLS expansion is weekly attendance. In their inaugural season, the USL expansion team has already broken the single-game (23,375) and single-season attendance record; drawing 164,109 fans to Nippert Stadium. Last weekend, FC Cincinnati drew nearly 21,000 more fans to their friendly against Crystal Palace then Vancouver and Philadelphia, the two MLS teams Crystal Palace faced on their US tour. With their average USL match attendance being around 15,000, FC Cincinnati has shown the MLS board of directors that their goal is to be in the big leagues.
Along with outstanding attendance, FC Cincinnati has also seen great success on the field. Currently, they're in third place in the Eastern Conference, which would qualify them for the USL playoffs. Under former USMNT midfielder, John Harkes, FC Cincinnati has developed and played a very attractive style of soccer. Instead of the "kickball" strategy made famous by many MLS teams, FC Cincinnati plays skillful build-up soccer; resulting in beautiful team goals and stellar one-man beauties. FC Cincinnati's success on the field strengthens their argument to be in the MLS.
After the record-setting friendly, MLS Executive Vice President of Communications, Dan Courtemanche told the Cincinnati Enquirer, "We are certainly aware of the incredible crowd last weekend as FC Cincinnati and their supporters made a bold statement to the entire American soccer community." Courtemanche also said that expansion would be discussed at the MLS All-Star Weekend and most likely, FC Cincinnati would be mentioned. Since their first match in April, FC Cincinnati has been on the radar of soccer fans in the US and throughout the world.
The case for FC Cincinnati's expansion to the MLS is very clear. FC Cincinnati's attendance marks are better than some MLS franchises and their style of play is a joy to watch. Cincinnati fans are extremely passionate about their professional sports teams and are hungry for a professional sports championship. With a playoff appearance around the corner, FC Cincinnati has the opportunity to further impress MLS owners. If FC Cincinnati was able to win the USL title in their inaugural season, it would nearly cement their place in MLS expansion.
