Futbol

[GoCubsGo]

I blame Mrs. O Really.

[O Really]

That's sad, man. Certainly not how she wanted to finish.

[Vrede too]

[O Really]

Money to burn, I guess.

S.D.’s new MLS team offers fans seating on field of play
Soccer team marketing premium Pitch Boxes starting at $650 per seat
San Diego FC is marketing Pitch Boxes, an on-field premium seating offering. ( San Diego Football Club renderings) An eight-seat Pitch Box will include a cooler drawer, storage area and access to premium clubs. ( )
BY JENNIFER VAN GROVE
San Diego Football Club is putting its own spin on premium seating with an on-field option that places its fans with the deepest pockets within reach of their favorite players.
Wednesday, the Major League Soccer expansion team will begin marketing the unique seat offering, called Pitch Boxes, at a Snapdragon Stadium event for prospective premium season ticket holders.
The seat type, modeled in part after court-side seats at professional basketball games, doesn’t come cheap. Individual seats start at $650 a game, but they will only be sold as a unit in eight-seat boxes. Boxes must be purchased for an entire season, which includes 23 home games. Pitch box prices are also dynamic based on demand and location, meaning the boxes located nearest to the players will cost the most.
“It’s the first time anyone has done a standalone loge box, like a little mini luxury suite, on the pitch from a convertible standpoint,” San Diego FC CEO Tom Penn told the Union-Tribune. “We saw an opportunity to do something different and innovative by creating these eight-seat loge boxes, with amenities, so that you can have your own Pitch Box experience with your feet on the grass.
San Diego FC, which officially became Major League Soccer’s 30th franchise in mid-May, is scheduled to begin playing in February 2025 at Snapdragon Stadium in Mission Valley. The organization, which has its corporate headquarters in Little Italy, is also in the process of constructing a $150 million training facility and youth academy on the Sycuan Reservation, and recently opened a retail store at the Mission Valley mall.
Wednesday’s event at Snapdragon Stadium marks the start of San Diego FC’s premium ticket-selling push, with people who have expressed interest in the team’s higher-end offerings invited to tour the sports venue and its exclusive spaces. Penn said “thousands” of people have expressed interest in the ticket packages. The organization will be hosting two additional stadium tours in the coming days to accommodate demand.
Snapdragon Stadium, which first opened in August 2022, features 20 luxury suites and a handful of premium spaces, including the Cox Business Club on the field and the upstairs Sycuan Founders Club private lounge.
The Pitch Boxes, in contrast, have been developed specifically by San Diego FC in partnership with custom design firm Penwal and are unique to the soccer club.
It’s an entirely new offering that fans likely aren’t expecting, Penn said.
“We’re trying to send a signal that we’re going to be next level in everything we do, including premium,” he said.
The team is planning to put 12 Pitch Boxes on the west side of the stadium, offering direct access to the field-level club. It may opt to add more boxes on the east side, depending on demand. The boxes will be stored on site using a special wall-mounting system, and can be placed on the field using a traditional forklift.
Each box is a two-tiered unit that includes a cooler drawer and a storage area for bags, and patrons also get all-you-can-eat-and-drink perks at the stadium’s business and founders clubs. The boxes aren’t shaded, but nearly all of SDFC’s games will be played in the evening, Penn said.
The mostly barrier-free boxes — the lower tier does not have a floor board and there are no guardrails between fans and the field — will be on both sides of similarly designed boxes for players (aka the players’ bench), putting fans near star athletes and just steps away from the game.
“The purest view of the action traditionally is up higher,” Penn said, noting that the Pitch Box customer may differ from a suite buyer. “But many, many fans, especially here in America, really enjoy being down on the field in the action. There’s something special about having your feet on the grass.”
The $5,200-a-box, per-game price point is, of course, likely out of reach for the average fan. The club will, however, offer more 6,000 seats priced at $40 and below, a spokesperson for the team said. General season tickets will go on sale in 2024.

[Vrede too]

Money to burn, I guess.

S.D.’s new MLS team offers fans seating on field of play
Soccer team marketing premium Pitch Boxes starting at $650 per seat
San Diego FC is marketing Pitch Boxes, an on-field premium seating offering. ( San Diego Football Club renderings) An eight-seat Pitch Box will include a cooler drawer, storage area and access to premium clubs. ( )
BY JENNIFER VAN GROVE
San Diego Football Club is putting its own spin on premium seating with an on-field option that places its fans with the deepest pockets within reach of their favorite players.
Wednesday, the Major League Soccer expansion team will begin marketing the unique seat offering, called Pitch Boxes, at a Snapdragon Stadium event for prospective premium season ticket holders.
The seat type, modeled in part after court-side seats at professional basketball games, doesn’t come cheap. Individual seats start at $650 a game, but they will only be sold as a unit in eight-seat boxes. Boxes must be purchased for an entire season, which includes 23 home games. Pitch box prices are also dynamic based on demand and location, meaning the boxes located nearest to the players will cost the most.
“It’s the first time anyone has done a standalone loge box, like a little mini luxury suite, on the pitch from a convertible standpoint,” San Diego FC CEO Tom Penn told the Union-Tribune. “We saw an opportunity to do something different and innovative by creating these eight-seat loge boxes, with amenities, so that you can have your own Pitch Box experience with your feet on the grass.
San Diego FC, which officially became Major League Soccer’s 30th franchise in mid-May, is scheduled to begin playing in February 2025 at Snapdragon Stadium in Mission Valley. The organization, which has its corporate headquarters in Little Italy, is also in the process of constructing a $150 million training facility and youth academy on the Sycuan Reservation, and recently opened a retail store at the Mission Valley mall.
Wednesday’s event at Snapdragon Stadium marks the start of San Diego FC’s premium ticket-selling push, with people who have expressed interest in the team’s higher-end offerings invited to tour the sports venue and its exclusive spaces. Penn said “thousands” of people have expressed interest in the ticket packages. The organization will be hosting two additional stadium tours in the coming days to accommodate demand.
Snapdragon Stadium, which first opened in August 2022, features 20 luxury suites and a handful of premium spaces, including the Cox Business Club on the field and the upstairs Sycuan Founders Club private lounge.
The Pitch Boxes, in contrast, have been developed specifically by San Diego FC in partnership with custom design firm Penwal and are unique to the soccer club.
It’s an entirely new offering that fans likely aren’t expecting, Penn said.
“We’re trying to send a signal that we’re going to be next level in everything we do, including premium,” he said.
The team is planning to put 12 Pitch Boxes on the west side of the stadium, offering direct access to the field-level club. It may opt to add more boxes on the east side, depending on demand. The boxes will be stored on site using a special wall-mounting system, and can be placed on the field using a traditional forklift.
Each box is a two-tiered unit that includes a cooler drawer and a storage area for bags, and patrons also get all-you-can-eat-and-drink perks at the stadium’s business and founders clubs. The boxes aren’t shaded, but nearly all of SDFC’s games will be played in the evening, Penn said.
The mostly barrier-free boxes — the lower tier does not have a floor board and there are no guardrails between fans and the field — will be on both sides of similarly designed boxes for players (aka the players’ bench), putting fans near star athletes and just steps away from the game.
“The purest view of the action traditionally is up higher,” Penn said, noting that the Pitch Box customer may differ from a suite buyer. “But many, many fans, especially here in America, really enjoy being down on the field in the action. There’s something special about having your feet on the grass.”
The $5,200-a-box, per-game price point is, of course, likely out of reach for the average fan. The club will, however, offer more 6,000 seats priced at $40 and below, a spokesperson for the team said. General season tickets will go on sale in 2024.

"Individual seats start at $650 a game, but they will only be sold as a unit in eight-seat boxes. Boxes must be purchased for an entire season, which includes 23 home games."

$119,600 and up I would prefer the higher vantage point, anyhow. I don't need to see Messi's beads of sweat.

[O Really]

Strangely, it doesn't seem as expensive when you look at it as $120K because that wouldn't be a heavy promotional purchase for a company who likes to wine/dine clients. A bit steeper than taking them out for golf, but may be in line with other sports. I dunno.

[Vrede too]

Strangely, it doesn't seem as expensive when you look at it as $120K because that wouldn't be a heavy promotional purchase for a company who likes to wine/dine clients. A bit steeper than taking them out for golf, but may be in line with other sports. I dunno.

Yeah, I think a large proportion of luxury boxes in any sport are corporate bought. They may even be tax write offs

The hard part is finding 7 other Americans that want to watch a futbol match

[O Really]

Real Salt Lake discovered how to make futbol interesting to the rest of us: