The San Antonio Scorpions Call Press Conference for “Major Announcement”
The new Scorpions Stadium is starting to take shape.
Speculation abounds on a press conference that has been called next Tuesday, August 28th, at Morgan’s Wonderland, the theme park owned by Gordon Hartman and created for those with special needs. Hartman has promised to give all profits from his San Antonio Scorpions to Morgan’s Wonderland and recently president Michael Hitchcock has indicated that with the crowds the team has been drawing this year there is a good chance the team could pull that off in its very first season.
The press release states that it will be a “major announcement that will impact Morgan’s Wonderland, Scorpions pro soccer and the entire San Antonio Community.”
There has been speculation for some time that, after Hartman carefully observed this year’s attendance numbers (9,723 average), that he may advance his stadium plan from the 6,169 seats originally planned in the revised Phase I plan to 8,000 which was in the revision for Phase II.
There is also a belief that the team may announce stadium naming rights which head coach Tim Hankinson mentioned in a interview with IMS two weeks ago when his first place Scorpions were in Minnesota to play the Stars.
“There is going to be a major announcement soon about naming rights to the stadium,” said Hankinson. “The sponsorships have been great, companies like Nike have come to the table with endorsements. It’s positioning itself (Scorpions) to be a top franchise in this country.”
In that same interview, Hankinson talked about the future of soccer in San Antonio with the new stadium that is scheduled to be ready for the 2013 kick off of the NASL season.
“Any time you can put ten-thousand in the stands, it becomes more than a soccer game, it becomes an event. People are going to the game three hours before. And this is a high school football stadium. High school football stadiums in Texas our like college stadiums, but you’re not allowed to sell beer there and there are a lot of other things. When the new stadium opens next year it will be like a cathedral for the San Antonio soccer fan. No more football lines, no more artificial turf. It will be a real soccer stadium. They will be able to kick back in one-hundred degree weather and have a cold one and watch their team play. So there is great stuff still to come.”
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Congrats to Hartman and the whole team for having such a great first season. I was one of the doubters, but glad to be proved wrong. I hope their second season is just as good if not better then the first.
@BB: You weren’t alone. I was a doubter, too. I’m thrilled to admit that it looks like I was wrong. What is going on down there is really exciting.0
People follow mission! The mission, purpose and goal of the San Antonio Scorpions is honorable and truly meaningful. Perhaps there will be many such other ideas and great investors across the country.
I also have to say that Hartman seems to have gotten it right, and he has really showed the Spurs organization how to start a grass roots sports team in their own home town.
If he truly is making money that he can now fund Morgans Wonderland with, then all the power to him and congratulations!
Wow Bart! Respect man! Not ur biggest fan, maybe I am understand your angles in ur post in the past
every owner should or new owner from NASL and USL Pro should look to san antonio scorpions for guidance on how to start a soccer club. Hartman did not do it for a MLS expansion shoot he does not even have the money for expansion fee. He did it because he loves the sport
Some say Orlando too. That we should look at them. But they want MLS I say you truly judge a NASL or USL Pro team if they do it for the sport not MLS. So OC is doing well in USL Pro because they have to show they got the resources and talent to compete in MLS
Actually John, not sure he loved the sport. He saw an opportunity with the sport to make money. I think he is learning to love the game but quite honestly, he knew very little about soccer before he opened STAR in order to make money for Morgan’s Wonderland.
Also, every market is different. While I agree that overall you have to look at what they have done down there, that same game plan would not work everywhere or be as successful as it has been down there.
And not to be a pessimist, but the question still abounds, will this continue on in years 3, 4, 5 and beyond, or is this just the honeymoon from the 1st year of operations?
I am hoping Hartman pulls this off, and then maybe he can join USL Pro and make a lot more money with regionalized play and lower travel costs, so that Morgans Wonderland can fully benefit from the Soccer with a Cause mission that he loves so much.
@Bart: Asking if it is sustainable is a very legit question in my book. I hope that it is.
The first season that the Scorpions play in USLPRO, maybe we can coordinate a road trip… You’re first beer is one me (if your disciplinarian wife will grant your request to take leave of her)!
Brian I love your podcast but I was thinking you should partner with NASL and do a video series. Even though their weekly rewind is alright i believe you can do better. Your video series will be like the the Barclay Review or Preview series on Fox Soccer.
The NASL community respect very much. I love this website.
I have heard rumors of an 11k seat stadium.. The key thing here is drawing 9700 fans without beer, and what non San Antonians may not know about SA is that we drink tons of beer. We will fill every game in the new stadium.
So @Kevthegerman, what you are saying is that Texans, or at least San Antonians, are just the same as Wisconsinites but they wear ten gallon hats on their heads instead of cheese and talk even more funny than those lovers of Badgers and all things olive green and gold?
@John, Thanks sir. I just couldn’t imagine myself ever taking money for something I’m can do now for practically free. (Rolling eyes now) I’m pretty sure the NASL see’s it the same way.
Special announcement: We will move forward and MLS is in our sights.
That can’t be. He’s only doing it for the sport. Because no one has ever done it for any other reason and been successful.
What the hell is going on in San Antonio?
At first the rumors on chat were that they were giving away free SAS tickets with each admission to Morgans Wonderland. Now they’re building a huge new soccer-specific stadium? I missed something in between.
Congrats to Gordon and his amazing team. Too bad his fans are asses on chat.
Exciting stuff! To phase 2!