Minnesota Stars Turn Tables on Unsuspecting Fans

Minnesota Stars prove once again their special relationship with fanbase.

The team that dedicated their 2012 away uniform to their fans and just days ago announced that the players themselves would buy a ticket for any Minnesota Stars supporter who travels to St. Petersburg, Florida for the 2nd leg of the NASL Championship, have once again proven why they have such a special relationship with their fans.

One of the special things about Division 1 and 2 pro soccer in the U.S. and Canada is the “up close and personal” relationship supporters and players have. The access to players is unprecedented in pro sports and this writer has been saying for years it’s exactly how leagues like the NASL and USL PRO need to be marketing their teams. It seems the Minnesota Stars, under the management of Djorn Buchholz, has empowered people like player/assistant coach/marketer Kevin Friedland who have cultivated that relationship and shown time and again why the organization has the best player-fan relationship in lower level soccer in the US.

On Sunday, the day after the Minnesota Stars defeated the Tampa Bay Rowdies 2-0 in the first leg of the NASL Championship match in Blaine, Minn., a group of the Stars players decided to turn the table on some unsuspecting fans who were there supporting the team on Saturday night and celebrating with them afterwards at the post match party at Bricks in Blaine. It seems this group of supporters told the Stars that they were playing in their own championship match on Sunday, albeit a rec-league final. In this video, the Stars’ Kevin Friedland tells the rest of this fantastic story.