Pretend for a moment that you're a fan of a Major League Soccer franchise that is without a proper and team-controlled soccer stadium (obviously if you are a DC, New England, or San Jose fan, this will require no effort). Now pretend your club announces plans, and concrete ones, for a new stadium.
What if the details leave you cold? How would you feel if the stadium was set to be placed in the "middle of nowhere" or the capacity was less than you hoped for or the roof design only covered a portion of the seats or got progressively smaller as time passed and revised designs were released? Can fans look the gift horse of funds being set forth for construction of a soccer stadium, not easy to come by in this country and with this economy, in the mouth?
Kansas City, after years and courtship with the state of Missouri on a new stadium project, has finally settled on a Wyandotte County, Kansas site. That's good news, especially for the Wizards die hards that have been forced to watch their club play on a baseball field over the past few seasons. Just getting the deal settled, even if it's not in a prime location, is a victory. The Wizards will, for the time being, be safe from the relocation talk that has swirled around them for years.
As details emerge from the deal with Wyandotte County, some are concerned about an apparent reduction in planned capacity; it has to be troubling for Wizards fans (as it is for Down the Byline) to see the number go down further and further.
I have no doubts that if you had asked a Wizards fan only a few years ago if they would mind a stadium with a total capacity of 16,500, they would have said "Of course not." But because 20,000 has been "promised" at some point by team officials, the smaller numbers now are troubling and disappointing. I'm not going to tell the Kansas City faithful to suck it up and be happy with what they'll get, because I'm sure if faced with the same situation I would react in the same way.
It's easy to say before something is given that you'll take anything; it's much more difficult to still feel that way when changes are made to the original plans.
Shrinking roofs (which, according to the image above, hasn't happened to the KC plan yet), reduced capacities, artificial turf, and outlying locations have all presented themselves during the push to put MLS clubs in their own soccer-specific stadiums. In most cases, the fans have taken it in stride, accepting what they've been given because they appreciate the degree of difficulty. Until every MLS franchise is in it's own stadium, fans of teams like Kansas City can always point to another team and say, "At least we're not X".
Wizards fans: Are you bothered by the capacity falling?
Note: The first pdf file linked by Down the Byline doesn't appear to work anymore, so I'm taking their word that it indicates a 16,500 seating capacity.
