SAN JOSE, Calif. – The San Jose Earthquakes have sold out all four regular-season games at Avaya Stadium. Their brand-new arena has been so well received that it’s on the shortlist for one organization’s Venue of the Year, alongside Camp Nou and Wembley Stadium.
So, is there still a point to playing an annual game at other venues, such as San Jose will do this Sunday when they play host Orlando City SC at Levi’s Stadium (7 pm ET; Fox Sports 1)?
For Quakes president David Kaval, the answer is an emphatic, “yes.”
“There’s still value in these other types of events,” Kaval told MLSsoccer.com this week. “They can still be great showcases of what we’re doing. It doesn’t take away from the 15 home games at Avaya.”
The Levi’s date is one of two regular-season games the Quakes will stage away from their home base; the other comes June 27 with their annual California Clasico against LA Galaxy – followed by a fireworks show – at Stanford Stadium.
While the demographics of the two non-Avaya crowds will differ somewhat – the Stanford game brings in more fans from the Peninsula and San Francisco, for example – there is still a common goal for both matches.
“It serves the same strategic purpose,” Kaval said, “which is to have the bigger events and to showcase us on a bigger stage, allow more fans to get interested in the Earthquakes.”
The Quakes initially sold 11,000 season tickets at 18,000-capacity Avaya, then bumped that number up to 12,000 before capping sales. With a season-ticket wait list already in place, the larger matches help attract potential fans that aren’t otherwise able to easily attend a Quakes home match.
“These bigger matches at Levi’s Stadium, at Stanford Stadium, they create new Quakes fans – which is something as a growing sport and a growing league we really need to do,” Kaval said.
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This is the second game at Levi’s, the home to the NFL’s San Francisco 49ers, in a five-year deal; San Jose beat the Seattle Sounders 1-0 in August last year, serving as the stadium’s soft opening prior to the 2014 NFL season. It will be the first visit for new coach Dominic Kinnear, however.
“I’ve never been there before,” Kinnear told MLSsoccer.com. “But I think no matter where we’re playing, we’ve done OK. … For me, it’s still considered a home game because the fans will be, I’m sure, in blue and red. That part’s good. But obviously, it’s going to be a little bit different, not knowing the locker rooms and the stadium.”
San Jose is 3-1 at Avaya Stadium this year, including a 2-0 win against 10-man Columbus Crew SC last weekend. With consistency seeming to be a key component to home-field advantage, will playing down the road at Levi’s knock the Quakes off-stride?
“I don’t think it breaks the guys’ routine away from the stadium, but yeah, it’s different than what we’re used to walking out into,” Kinnear said. “You’re still going to come out and hear fans yelling for you, which is good. It’s not like when your routine is broken where you’re on a bus, and you come out and the fans hate you.”
