« Quakes to sponsor Chivas on June 30 | Main | Good news from the Merc »
June 08, 2007
Happy birthday, SSV!
It's hard to believe that three years can go by so quickly, but that's the story: Today, Soccer Silicon Valley celebrates its third birthday!
Technically, our first signs of life were seen the previous month. On May 3, 2004, several of SSV's founding members attended a meeting of the San Jose Stadium Task Force, a group that had been set up, ironically enough, to lure Lew Wolff's Oakland A's to San Jose. We followed that up with a May 11 meeting with Scott Blackmun and Alexi Lalas of AEG and on May 26, the Mercury News ran an editorial by Don Gagliardi recommending that the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds be used as a site for a soccer stadium rather than a concert hall, as was proposed at the time.
So why are we celebrating on June 8? That was the day that Soccer Silicon Valley got its name, with that moniker winning a 4-2 vote over "Soccer Bay Area." There were other names that we discussed as well: "Soccer by the Bay," and "Bay Area Kicks," among them.
Since then, we've been a busy bunch. We launched our web site that July and it continues to be incredibly popular, receiving 275,000 visits in the past year alone. We hosted a rally on Friday, August 20, 2004 that drew over 1,500 Earthquakes fans to Plaza de Cesar Chavez Park in downtown San Jose, which we understand is still the largest weekday rally in San Jose history. In response to an SSV season ticket pledge drive and heightened interest from local investors, AEG announced on November 9, 2004, that the Earthquakes would remain in San Jose for another year.
2005 was an historic year for the Quakes on the field, as they won the Supporters' Shield and became the first MLS team to go undefeated at home. SSV was busier than ever, working with a consultant who had been hired by the City of Milpitas to determine if a soccer stadium was feasible for property near the Great Mall and providing support to two investment groups who were pursuing ownership of the Earthquakes, Silicon Valley Sports and Entertainment and Ajax America.
It was a crushing blow to all of us when AEG moved the players we had come to know and love to Houston that December, but the emergence of Lew Wolff and the talented staff of Earthquakes Soccer, LLC, has given us renewed belief in our mission. SSV has provided Earthquakes Soccer with input on the strength of the Earthquakes brand, season ticket marketing ideas, a stadium wish-list, and much more. Our Visitor Projection Report, available here, identifies the wide-reaching financial benefits of a new soccer stadium in San Jose and has been distributed to key political, business, and community leaders throughout the area. Last month, SSV spearheaded an effort that led to the renaming of a local public soccer field to commemorate the life of Umberto Abronzino.
Now, as we are entering our fourth year, we see an opportunity to finish the main task we've always focused on, beginning with Tuesday's San Jose City Council meeting. Even after that is achieved, we anticipate a continued role for SSV in serving as advocates for the soccer community.
In any case, our thanks go out to our members and everyone who has supported us on our mission for these first three years. We couldn't have done it without you—and with you, we're hoping to do a whole lot more!
Posted by Jay at June 8, 2007 03:30 PM
Comments
Thanks to you all for everything you have done, you are doing and what you will do and be in the future.
Happy Birthday SSV!
And Many More......
Posted by: Becky G. at June 9, 2007 12:29 AM