Let’s say a Spanish team called the Barcelona Halcones (that’s Spanish for “Falcons”) decided to hold an “American Night” promotion. And let’s further say that they decided to wear special jerseys for the occasion — jerseys that read, “Like, Halcones, Dude.”
That’s essentially what the NBA did for last night’s Spurs/Suns game, as both teams “honored” the Hispanic community by adding “Los” to their team names. At least the Suns came up with a new jersey for the occasion; the Spurs, by comparison, looked like they just slapped some iron-on patches onto their existing design.
Am I the only one who thinks this approach reeks of American ignorance? It’s like getting drunk on Tequila in Mexico City and then asking, “Where-o is el bathroom-o?” And it’s not like the words Spurs and Suns don’t have Spanish translations — Espuelas and Sols, respectively. Would that have been so hard? Just tossing “Los” on there is a lazy cop-out, especially since NBA jerseys don’t use definite articles to begin with (well, except for this one). And seriously, does the mere addition of “Los” really strike a chord in any Hispanic fan’s heart? If we’ve got any Latinos out there, I’d love to hear your reaction.
The NBA isn’t the only league going this route, of course. The Mets and Rangers have both lo(u)sed up their jerseys in recent years. Only the Giants and Brewers have gone the extra mile to execute the concept properly.
Then, of course, there are also designs like this, this, and this, but we’ll save them for another time. For now, let’s just hope the Angels don’t try a Hispanic Night, or else we’ll have the Los Angeles Los Angels de Anaheim on our hands.
Uni Watch News Ticker: Last week’s New Yorker had a fantastic article about superhero costumes, and how they never translate properly from a comic book to the real world. Highly recommended reading. … The AAFL’s helmet designs are on display here. I kinda like them, cuz I’m in favor of anything involving state shapes (and even more in favor of anything that shows Michigan’s Upper Peninsula). … A lightning strike knocked a tree onto Scott M.X. Turner’s car over the weekend. So what did Scott concern himself with? The firefighters’ cool NOBs, of course (which are even cooler, in fact, cuz they’re reflective). And look, Drew Bledsoe found something to do with his post-NFL life. … Scott also sent along a photo from his recent trip to New Mexico, where he wore a recent eBay score to the White Sands Missile Range. ” My belt was not in support of breast cancer research,” he adds. “It was in favor of rockabilly cool.” … Lowercase letter alert from Jeremy Brahm: ” Harper LeBel was a long snapper with the Falcons during Brett Favre’s time in Atlanta.” … Patrick Taylor reports that this cartoon ran in Friday’s Washington Post. Was it really that hard to get the Packers’ color scheme right? … According to a small item on this page, “Thursday’s [Cavs/Bulls] game was also special to Joe Smith, but not because he was returning to Chicago. Smith paid tribute to his late mother, Letha, on her birthday. On his shoes he wrote ‘R.I.P. Mom, Happy Birthday’” (thanks, Vince). … The Lake Erie Monsters wore godawful tie-dye jerseys the other day. Embarrssing photo gallery here (with thanks to Patrick Lewis and Vince). … Reprinted from Friday’s comments: MLB’s legal team apparently has nothing better to do than harass the Cape Cod League. … “I was searching around some of the local high school web sites and came across this lacrosse uniform for the McLean Highlanders in McLean, Virginia,” writes Josh Holman. “Can’t say that I’m a big fan of the design, but it does achieve that kilt look (if that’s what they are going for).” … The upcoming Uni Watch party in Seattle inspired Emerald City expat MJ Turner to send along some unusual Seattle-related pics: Jim Zorn as a Cowboy, Steve Largent as an Oiler, and Slick Watts in the ‘green rainbow’ Sonics jersey (”very rare — he was traded early in the ’77 season,” writes Turner). … According to a small item at the bottom of this page, the Braves will wear a memorial sleeve patch this season for coach Jim Beauchamp, who passed away last December (with thanks to Jonathon Binet). … Genius find by Matt Englander, who writes: “I had no idea Under Armour had made a foray into the prisoner handling market.” … Oh. My. Fucking. God. (Awesome find by Robert Eden.) … Here’s one of those “best player by uni number” pieces, as applied to soccer (with thanks to Mark Dancer). … Scott Turner found an interesting photo of Willie Mays. Is that a BP jersey-styled suit bag? … Someone on the Chris Creamer board posted a link to this awesome source for hockey socks. … Jeremy Brahm notes that Japanese golfer Momoko Ueda has been using multicolored shoelaces. … The UNC hoops team has added a memorial patch for Eve Carson, plus at least one UNC player added a handwritten sneaker memorial on Friday. … Best photo of the weekend. … Good article here about the Wisconsin hockey team’s uni numbers (with thanks to Geoff Poole). … “Here’s some serious stirrup action from Saturday’s game between my alma mater, Abilene Christian University, and West Texas A&M,” writes Jon Smith. “The teams are Division II and play in the Lone Star Conference. ACU is in white, and yes that’s purple, but come on, it looks really sweet.” … According to the fifth graf, in this story, those titanium necklaces are now MLB-licensed. Now word on whether the Tooth Fairy or Easter Bunny are negotiating their own licensing deals (with thanks to Todd Davis). … Major throwback action last night in Detroit. … Depressing article here about how Nike is now targeting the high school football market (courtesy of Mike Edgerley). … How cool was Tug McGraw? Check out the middle photo here (big thanks to Nina Dubin). … Rutgers and Seton Hall went color-vs.-color yesterday. … “Went to Cubs/Royals on Sunday in Surprise, Arizona,” writes Kenn Tomasch. “Felix Pie went out to center field for the bottom of the 1st wearing No. 74. But by the time he doubled in the top of the 2nd, he was wearing his usual No. 20 again, and he kept it on for the rest of the game. I have no idea why.” … Castro’s resignation must have the Cuban athletes feeling like they can push the envelope a little bit. At the IAAF World Indoor Championships on Friday, triple jumper Yargelis Savigne dressed like this, but the following day she changed he socks to this, creating a spectacularly striped landing that apparently left a bit of sand in some inappropriate places (with thanks to Vince and Bryan, who both know I like a striped sock even more than an exposed butt cheek).
#1 by Shaftman on 03.10.08 8:28 am |
Paul,
The New Yorker article is not working. The link is broken. Thanks.
#2 by Ash on 03.10.08 8:34 am |
Why is Tug McGraw spelled “Tug Msgraaw” in the photo? That’s weird.
#3 by orlandor on 03.10.08 8:39 am |
Paul,
At first I thought the NBA was being lazy, too. But they really aren’t. The wording Los Suns and Los Spurs is what the Mexican sportscasters and sportswriters use. This is the same for MLB. That is why Los Mets was used but Gigantes and Cerveceros were also used.
Check these pages.
Telemundo NBA
MLB (see poll at bottom for examples)
#4 by Rene on 03.10.08 8:44 am |
It looks like the first pair of sox the cuban triple jumper is wearing sport the Real Madrid soccer team logo (spanish division)…could be wrong though…
#5 by Steve on 03.10.08 8:45 am |
About 5 of the links aren’t working in the ticker.
#6 by Justin on 03.10.08 8:47 am |
When referring to a sports team or any branded identity, it is standard that you do not translate that name. If you were to look at any publication in any language, those names would remain in their english spelling, that is how they are identified and that is how they are preferred to stay.
#7 by DJ on 03.10.08 8:49 am |
If you switch the Angels web site to Spanish, they refer to the team as “Los Angelinos.”
#8 by Steve on 03.10.08 8:50 am |
Rutgers and Seton Hall went color-vs.-color yesterday
Interesting occurrence yesterday in the Seton Hall game. With less than a minute left, a player on Seton Hall made a bad pass towards the Seton Hall bench, and the Seton Hall coach ended up catching the pass. The announcers joked that the player mistakenly thought the coach was a player because the coach was wearing a bright blue blazer, just like Seton Hall’s uniforms……
#9 by Paul Lukas on 03.10.08 8:55 am |
I believe all the bad links are now fixed.
#10 by JoeS on 03.10.08 8:57 am |
Woohoo Paul! I’m glad some people still know that Michigan has an Upper Peninsula!
#11 by Steve on 03.10.08 9:01 am |
Tayshaun Prince got blood on his retro Detroit Pistons jersey, and he gave the fans a show by taking off his jersey at center court and switching into another jersey, which was also his #22 and name on the back…….
http://awfulannounci...
#12 by steve on 03.10.08 9:02 am |
Look at the news in spanish on Dallas Cowboys site. They are referred to as “los Vaqueros”
http://www.dallascow...
#13 by Jeremiah on 03.10.08 9:05 am |
I don’t have a pic, but when I see Spanish-themed MLB merchandise in stores I see Angels shirts emblazoned with “Los Sarafines.” It’s not a literal translation (obviously) but I think it sounds cool. I don’t know what the Angels’ Spanish-language broadcasters use though.
#14 by Bernie on 03.10.08 9:05 am |
Does Cuba have an exclusivity deal with Adidas?
#15 by Anthony Verna on 03.10.08 9:11 am |
I have a friend from Quebec and it’s always fun to write in French, because there is no translation. So, we’d be talking about “Les Flyers” and “Les Rangers” in our letters and - later - e-mails.
#16 by CraigD on 03.10.08 9:16 am |
I would think that when referring to the teams in a news/sports context, they would naturally leave the names in English. That’s the “brand name”. However, these teams are honoring a segment of the population. If they are going that far, they should just go all the way and use the Spanish version of the team name…not just the article “the”.
#17 by Paul Lukas on 03.10.08 9:19 am |
Exactly. A newspaper, of any language, isn’t going to change the name of the team — the team’s name is its name. But if you’re looking to make an outreach to an ethnic community, you’d think you’d wanna do more than just add “the” in the community’s native language.
#18 by Dane on 03.10.08 9:19 am |
One of our maintenance workers just walked by my office window wearing his brand new, bright blue… ugh… 3930… Mets cap.
#19 by Adam on 03.10.08 9:19 am |
Lots of teams that haven’t worn “hispanic night” uniforms do the “stick los in front of it” thing on their Spanish websites. See, for example, www.loswhitesox.com. If you go to the teams list at the top you’ll see that there are 14 MLB teams with “los” websites, of them only the Giants are translated.
#20 by Joey Guns on 03.10.08 9:24 am |
Article about Jerry Rice saying that Isaac Bruce can wear the #80 jersey in San Fran, if he likes:
http://www.mercextra...
#21 by Joey Guns on 03.10.08 9:26 am |
Awful…
#22 by LI Phil on 03.10.08 9:29 am |
as long as it’s los yanquis and not los jhankees…
#23 by ART on 03.10.08 9:31 am |
Does anybody know the rule for college basketball teams going “Color on color”. Does one of the teams have to have a third jersey ( like Minnesota, Iowa, Michigan, etc)? How about the NBA where Indiana has a yellow jersey which they use at home and on the road?
#24 by orlandor on 03.10.08 9:32 am |
But for beisbol, many are translated and a few aren’t. How do they make the distinction?
BTW, I am Mexican-American and a HS teacher. I do believe that my Spanish language speaking students like the NBA and MLB efforts because that is how they identify the teams. They wouldn’t have appreciated “Los Brewers” because they know them as the “Cerveceros,” but they accept Los Suns because that is what they have always been. It could be seen as trying to hard if the jerseys had read “Los Sols.”
#25 by GoTerriers on 03.10.08 9:37 am |
I’m not a big fan of unretiring a number for someone, but at least Jerry Rice is consistent and “paying it forward”. IIRC, didn’t Steve Largent do the same thing for Rice during Rice’s Seattle stint?
#26 by Joey Guns on 03.10.08 9:38 am |
A Rangers outdoor game at Yankee Stadium is looking better and better. It doesn’t look like they’ll play the Devils or Islanders though…..
http://www.nydailyne...
#27 by Mike on 03.10.08 9:39 am |
As a long time Firefighter, I have always been against having my NOB becuase it is easier to get called out while on the fireground…not always for the best.
#28 by Joey Guns on 03.10.08 9:39 am |
Yes he did.
#29 by douglas on 03.10.08 9:44 am |
Why do they even feel the need to add “los” on the jersey? It’s like writing “the” on every team uniform, which sounds stupid. The only difference I see in spanish is when they use “el”(singular for “los”) in front of every teamname even for those who don’t have a nickname. For example they would say “El Madrid se enfrentarà al Porto mañana” = THE Madrid will face THE Porto tomorrow, even if both Madrid and Porto are citynames, not nicknames. But if you translate “tonight the Spurs lost to the Suns” in spanish there’s no difference. Suns vs Spurs, Suns @ Spurs, maybe…
#30 by Mike on 03.10.08 9:52 am |
Apparently manny has found his more “lived in” helmet:
link it
#31 by Colin on 03.10.08 9:56 am |
Not sports, but seeing the superhero refernece I thought this might be of interest.
Heres a great superhero costume reference site. It chronicles all major and minor costume tweaks of hundreds of characters.
http://jerome.galica...
#32 by Saru on 03.10.08 9:58 am |
You may think that adding a “Los” to a team name “reeks of American ignorance” but one could easily turn that argument around that say that is ignorant to say that Spanish speakers need to have the name changed. In Argentina they do just fine with many English-language (soccer) team names like River Plate and Newell’s Old Boys.
Latinos have a strong enough voice that if they thought this was ignorant or offensive they could voice it. It might be good to be broaden one’s cultural and global perspectives and not just assert some group’s identity for them.
Besides, the whole concept of “honoring” things has pretty much lost meaning in the world of sports–when is something not being honored? Or, in the case of the color pink or the number 21 in football, just utterly overdone?
#33 by Joey Guns on 03.10.08 10:00 am |
Not sure if this was mentioned a few months ago when it was a topic, but NHL player Dale McCourt appears on a (photoshopped) hockey card for the L. A. Kings, but he never played a game for them!
http://www.puckjunk....
http://www.puckjunk....
That might be even more rare than players holding up jerseys for teams that they never played for, like Eli Manning and the Chargers:
http://farm1.static....
#34 by Kenny on 03.10.08 10:01 am |
Don’t have a pic, but Sunday on Sportscenter, they had a story on Oil Can Boyd and how he is starting a new baseball league in the south. They did an interview with him and he had his hat on which, if you noticed, had 25 and “CAN” on the underbrim. It barley showed during the interview so I could’nt tell if he had “OIL” to or just “CAN”.
#35 by BrianJ on 03.10.08 10:12 am |
Paul,
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it’s looking like you might never see those AAFL helmets on the field. Apparently the league is having some financial troubles even before camp opens. They’re scrambling to find investors in order to salvage the season. They’re also going to need a TV deal to stay afloat, and few think it will come about.
linky
#36 by Keen Shoes » Los Gringos Masivos on 03.10.08 10:28 am |
[…] Esme Raji CodellnHUni Watch News Ticker: Last week’s New Yorker had a fantastic article most superhero costumes, and how they never edit correct from a queer assemblage to the actualised world. Highly best reading. … The AAFL’s helmet designs are on … […]
#37 by jere on 03.10.08 10:36 am |
Espuelas and Sols, respectively. Would that have been so hard? Just tossing “Los” on there is a lazy cop-out
Yeah, but isn’t tossing an “s” on “sol” just a lazy cop-out, since it should be soles?
(Honestly, I don’t know since the plural of sun in English is still sun, unless you’re talking about multiple actual suns, which is rare unless you’re on Tatooine. So when you’re talking about ” getting a lot of sun” in Spanish, it might still be just sol. But I’m pretty sure you can’t just add an “s” to a Spanish word ending in a consonant. As in mes/dos meses, etc. You lazy American:) )
#38 by Stephen on 03.10.08 10:44 am |
I’ve been to enough Habs games to know that you never try to translate the visiting team’s name into its french equivalent. Although the NBA’s uniform switch did seem like pandering, that’s probably the best way to do it since if you asked about how Les Feuilles were doing this year I’d have no idea what the heck you were talking about.
(Bad example, I know, as the original team name isn’t a real one.)
Sort of how it’s “AC Milan” and not “Milan AC” whenever you say the name in english, even if the latter’s more “correct.” And why “FC Dallas” is pretty dumb, but “Toronto FC” reads right*.
#39 by Marc M. on 03.10.08 10:50 am |
I thought numbers were retired by the “team” not the “player”, so how can the player control who wears his number. Another case of the inmates running the asylum.
#40 by Kevin from Ohio in Virginia on 03.10.08 10:52 am |
Am I the only one who thinks this approach reeks of American ignorance?
The answer: probably not.
A better question: how can you possibly consider this to be an example American ignorance?
You said that a “team’s name is its name. But if you’re looking to make an outreach to an ethnic community, you’d think you’d wanna do more than just add “the” in the community’s native language.” So an NBA team who doesn’t reach out to an ethnic community in the exact way that YOU would is an example of American ignorance? These teams are reaching out to hispanic communities. Why is that ignorant? It sounds fairly enlightened to me. They held a special night to honor the community! Ignorance would be to treat their hispanic customers worse than their other customers, not better. Have they held any African-American/Asian-American/Caucasian/Pacific Islander nights? Probably not.
The “American ignorance” card is played way too often. What it really speaks to is that our unique American culture is different from other cultures, and that’s OK. It’s not ignorance, it’s just different, just as French culture is different from Japanese culture. It’s just different.
I agree that from a uni standpoint I like what the Brewers and Giants did better, but to label it as “American ignorance” is, in my opinion, ignorant - ironically enough.
Now, where are all the “All you guys just blindly agree with Paul” trolls? I hope they’re reading.
#41 by Kevin from Ohio in Virginia on 03.10.08 10:53 am |
Much love though, Paul. I just disagree.
#42 by DJ on 03.10.08 10:54 am |
I don’t have a pic, but when I see Spanish-themed MLB merchandise in stores I see Angels shirts emblazoned with “Los Sarafines.” It’s not a literal translation (obviously) but I think it sounds cool.
It’s the Spanish for “seraphim”. Per the Oxford English Dictionary:
1. In Biblical use: The living creatures with six wings, hands, and feet, and a (presumably) human voice, seen in Isaiah’s vision as hovering above the throne of God.
2. By Christian interpreters the seraphim were from an early period supposed to be a class of angels, and the name, associated with that of the cherubim, was introduced in the Eucharistic preface and subsequently in the Te Deum, and thus became extensively known.”
#43 by KT on 03.10.08 10:56 am |
All come from somewhere.
To live in sunshine.
Their funky exile.
#44 by Jay on 03.10.08 11:00 am |
I think the point is that simply adding “Los” to a team name is an ingrnorant way of reaching out to a ethnic group. The Giants and Brewers did it in a much more “enlightened” way…
#45 by AL on 03.10.08 11:01 am |
It appears that Yargelis’ first socks (the white ones) are REal Madrid’s white kit socks.
Maybe she’s a Robinho fan?
#46 by chance on 03.10.08 11:01 am |
They are, but teams would be foolish to un-retire the number of a beloved player, especially one who’s still around to take umbrage.
Rice is just getting ahead of them, giving his blessing before anybody can get upset about it. Far from “the inmates running the asylum”, this is about a former player showing a lot of class, putting his old team first.
Good on him.
#47 by Jay on 03.10.08 11:02 am |
As is mis-spelling ingnorant.
#48 by KT on 03.10.08 11:03 am |
That would be symmetrical.
Yes, the teams retire numbers. I would think it would be a nice touch if a player asks for a number that’s retired that you ask the player for whom it was retired if you’re actually going to consider un-retiring it (some teams might not even consider it) if it’s okay with them.
I fear (fear is probably too strong a word) we’re in danger of a bad precedent here where “retired number” doesn’t mean “retired number” anymore.
If Jerry Rice had a son who ended up with the 49ers, I think that would be a nice touch to let him wear it if he wanted. Or a Trent Dilfer/John Brodie situation. But, I’m sorry, I think I’d tell Isaac Bruce “I watched Jerry Rice. You’re no Jerry Rice.”
#49 by El Gigante on 03.10.08 11:03 am |
Paul,
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it’s looking like you might never see those AAFL helmets on the field. Apparently the league is having some financial troubles even before camp opens. They’re scrambling to find investors in order to salvage the season. They’re also going to need a TV deal to stay afloat, and few think it will come about.
linky
FWIW
I have a friend who is the player personnel director for the Arkansas team in the AAFL. I talked to him last night about the financial problems of the league and he says that all is well and the season will go on as planned. Some of the teams are in worse shape than others, but the heads of the league have recently received some outside contributions to keep the league afloat for at least this year.
#50 by Joey Guns on 03.10.08 11:04 am |
It’s sad when John Daly in a baseball uniform looks better than Bartolo Colon and David Wells do…..
http://www.bugsandcr...
#51 by KT on 03.10.08 11:05 am |
I thought I closed the italics.
#52 by Justin B on 03.10.08 11:10 am |
I hope they made some prototypes at least.
#53 by Rick White in Cedar Park, TX on 03.10.08 11:15 am |
Attempting to close italicsso … are they closed?
#54 by Rick White in Cedar Park, TX on 03.10.08 11:16 am |
Another attempt to close italics.
#55 by KT on 03.10.08 11:17 am |
Yeah, they had them at the draft. Uniforms, too.
I hope they can get it to work, but it’s expensive to start up a football league.
#56 by KT on 03.10.08 11:28 am |
I don’t think anyone’s saying that the outreach attempt is ignorant. I think it’s enlightened, too.
(Of course, I also happen to think that it’s borderline patronization when you do it once a year and say “Ooooh, look, see, we’re good, now, right?” But that’s another discussion.)
I think Paul’s objection is to the semi-cheesy way they went about it.
Or, as some might say, making a hamhanded effort at it.
I mean, easy for me to say as a Caucasian of European descent whose people have basically had the run of the place for the last several hundred years. But I think sometimes it smacks of “Let’s give the minorities their day so they leave us alone.” I am not saying that’s what the Suns’ thought processes were or anything - just that sometimes these things come off more as patronizing than tributes, at least to me.
In a perfect world, we wouldn’t need to put ourselves into these little compartments when it came to sports (it’s still going to take a while when it comes to life in general) - we’d all just be Suns fans or Kings fans or Giants fans or whatever, and that would be good enough.
I want to see those jerseys. Those would rock.
I agree. Differences are good. They’re cool. The thing about America is that we’re not homogeneous. And that’s a very cool thing.
They’re having “Los Trolls” jerseys made up.
#57 by Brendan on 03.10.08 11:29 am |
I think it’s interesting that McLean went for the kilt look for their mens lacrosse team, as the kilt is the traditional uniform element for womens lacrosse.
#58 by Justin B on 03.10.08 11:31 am |
Are there photos?
#59 by Kerry P on 03.10.08 11:33 am |
Definitely. I really hope they find a TV contract with someone. I would love to catch a few games on the tube to see what it’s like. The league has me very intrigued by its structure. Put the teams in big-time college towns or areas where college football is king, stock the team with LOTS of local talent that they potential fanbase can already identify, and play the games during the lull after spring football.
I think it’s a very good idea. The problem is that many people around the country view anything other than the NFL and NCAA FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) football as “inferior”, so they don’t give new leagues a chance.
#60 by Kerry P on 03.10.08 11:34 am |
I LOVE the look they have. It works GREAT with the school name and the athletic nickname.
#61 by Duckstyle on 03.10.08 11:36 am |
I think Paul’s right. Why? Because I asked my Mexican father-in-law and he said it was a little offensive in his opinion. He thought it sounded/lokked like a pretty half-assed attempt to “connect” with their Hispanic fanbase. If you don’t change a brand, which a professional basketball team’s name is, then don’t, just have a night where Hispanic culture is celebrated; serving different consessions, playing different music etc. But if you go to the trouble to change the jersey name, why not go all the way, and translate it to the best of their ability. Just my 2 cents. So yes, to me it seems pretty lazy.
#62 by KT on 03.10.08 11:38 am |
Yeah:
Alabama
Michigan
Tennessee
Texas
Not great. Captures from the webcast of the draft a while back.
Here’s a better one of the Team Florida jersey.
#63 by Kerry P on 03.10.08 11:43 am |
Please restore my last post, the spam filter got it.
#64 by KT on 03.10.08 11:44 am |
And, as much as I love alternative leagues, I don’t think those are particularly good ideas, and have said so for a while.
Here’s why:
1 - They’re way overpaying the schools involved for use of their facilities. Millions of dollars, dollars you’d be crazy to think you could recoup.
2 - That lull after spring football (which, let’s be honest, isn’t a big draw - the spring game is, but they don’t keep score during spring practice) also happens to run into and across two things: final exams and the end of most schools’ spring semesters. I know students are going to be out of school for the final games of at least a couple of those teams, and good luck getting alumni to travel to campus and tailgate like they do in the fall.
3 - Perhaps the biggest problem: Left Tackle Joe Doaks is a big man on campus while he’s on campus. While he’s protecting Peyton Manning’s blind side, you love him. You go to see the college team he’s on because of your emotional attachment to the school and anyone who’s wearing the colors while they’re at the school and helping the team win. If you put Peyton Manning on a Tennessee team, yeah, people are going to go see him - but they put Jeff George on his hometown team, and how’d that work out? People will go see skill position players - and, I’m sorry, but Eric Crouch ain’t putting butts in seats. Nor is left tackle Joe Doaks, just because he played at Tennessee.
The connection to players post-college is greatly exaggerated in the AAFL’s mind, I fear.
#65 by Pollution on 03.10.08 11:48 am |
Does such obvious, crude pandering actually win people over? I’m pretty sure that Spanish speaking nations and people are aware of the NBA and basketball in general. At least they got the font right on the Spurs jersey, doesn’t look quite right for the Suns.
-Runoff
#66 by Graham on 03.10.08 11:50 am |
its nice to see TJ Hensick (#17 Lake Erie Monsters) go from such great unis to those horrible things
#67 by El Gigante on 03.10.08 11:52 am |
For what it’s worth; I have a friend who is the Player Personnel Director for the Arkansas team in teh AAFL. I talked to him last night and asked about the reported financial problems of the league. He assures me that while some of the teams are in worse shape than others, the league founders are very committed to get this first season off the ground. They have apparently received some undisclosed money from outside sources and this is expected to trickle down to the individual teams to keep them afloat for at least this first year. I will share any other information that I can get out of him.
#68 by Joey Guns on 03.10.08 11:53 am |
http://www.youtube.c...
I just saw a commercial on tv for the video game Major League Baseball 2K8. (This game was mentioned a few days ago on here)
At 00:30, Denis Leary goes “I wanna have the most fun you can have with those funny baseball socks on” and then a team (older Red Sox?) is shown with stirrups………
#69 by Rob B on 03.10.08 11:54 am |
Article on picking names and colors for the new MLS team in Philly.
#70 by Kerry P on 03.10.08 11:55 am |
I have to disagree with that statement. I know most people down here follow the local college talent once they move up, whether it’s baseball, basketball or football. MOST of the people I know root for teams that have players from their local colleges, and only for that reason. Additionally, I think most people put way too much into the fact that a game may be played during finals week. The people I know that are die-hards aren’t spending those last few weeks studying for exams. I know that’s not what most parents want to hear, but it’s a fact.
I think that if you’re going to set up a league, the AAFL is going about it the right way. What else is there to do in Arkansas? Birmingham? Knoxville?
I really don’t know the details about the financial compensation for the use of facilities, so you may be right on. I’m not saying that the league will thrive, but I wouldn’t mind seeing it become a healthy league. Stay away from the big cities and focus more on the college towns.
#71 by Joe on 03.10.08 11:58 am |
During yesterdays AFL game between PHI & CHI, the Umpire was wearing a Helemet instead of his cap. It looked horrible and stuck out really bad. It had a High Gloss finish, and they added a white line horizontially around the helmet about 3 inches from the bottom. Looked like shit, but i quess they thought they needed somewhere for the piping on the helmet to terminate. Don’t know how you could make it look good, no matter what you do. Officials do not need helmets! …..oh and I am a football Official, in case your wondering.
#72 by Mike on 03.10.08 11:58 am |
in an unrelated question….I need to upgrade my game system. Should I go, Wii, PS3, or XBox 360?
#73 by Joey Guns on 03.10.08 12:09 pm |
I agree. The umpire had a hat on last Sunday also……
#74 by Joe from WV on 03.10.08 12:09 pm |
I can proudly say that my favorite team has been getting the jersey en espanol right since 1969.
#75 by Kerry P on 03.10.08 12:10 pm |
Tough decision. I just bought a 360 and love it. But I did so because several guys in my office have them and they play online all of the time. So I’ll be using it for that mostly.
My brother-in-law has a PS3 and it’s a solid system that gives you a blu-ray player. Plus, Sony doesn’t “nickel and dime” you like Microsoft on the hardware.
The Wii is incredibly fun and the cheapest.
It’s really a case-by-case decision, depending on what kind of games you like, how much you’re looking to spend initially as well as the over the longer term and what system you may already have.
I have a PS2, PSP and 360. Now my wife wants to get a Wii, it’s that much fun.
Hope this helps.
….now back to your regularly scheduled uni talk.
#76 by The Ol Goaler on 03.10.08 12:11 pm |
Since I don’t live in San Antonio, I don’t really know; but I suspect the Spanish-speaking hoop fans in the area refer to their favorite team as “Los Spurs”, anyway.
Admittedly, “Gigantes” and “Cerveceros” jerseys are pretty cool (although I dunno how widespread Milwaukee’s Latino population is…)
And if’n yer gonna honor the largest existing ethnic groups in your city, lemme know when the St. Louis Cardinals break out their “Das Kardinäles” shirts (with the Birds On the Bat, of course!)
And yes, I know “Das Brauers” and “Das Rottönes” could join in…
#77 by Wade Harder on 03.10.08 12:13 pm |
It depends on what you’re looking for in a game system. If you want a toy that all your friends can enjoy while they’re over having drinks, get a Wii. If you’re into serious gaming with HD visuals and sound, go with a PS3 or 360.
#78 by Stephen on 03.10.08 12:21 pm |
Mike:
- If you have a lot of friends over, go for a Wii. Wii Sports is the most fun sports game since the NES days and is reason enough to own the system… just be prepared to shell out for four controllers and move some furniture to create room for the inevitable wild swings in Wii Sports Tennis.
- If you plan to play more by yourself, then it comes down to which of the options on the PS3 or 360 you go for. Since I was getting an HDTV anyway, I went for the PS3 largely for the Blu-Ray player on the assumption they’d eventually fill in the gaps in the game lineup, and I’d be able to play PS2 games while I waited for that to happen.
The *catch* is that the model of the PS3 that I bought - the one with the 60GB hard drive - isn’t sold in stores anymore and is getting pretty expensive on eBay, and that’s the only one that is perfect with old PS2 games. The 40GB model doesn’t play them at all, while the 80GB model is hit-or-miss with older games. So if you’ve got a Madden franchise lying around that you don’t want to lose when you change systems, that plays into it.
- The 360 has the all-around best game lineup and the best online experience *now.* The concern is whether the system’s already hit its peak, as it’s going to be very hard to top the year it had in 2007.
But, as noted, Blu-Ray was too big a temptation for me.
#79 by KT on 03.10.08 12:21 pm |
But will they buy tickets to see them? Consistently?
That’s the crux, isn’t it? MOST of the people you know pay attention to where the left tackle from State U. plays in the NFL and roots for that team because of it? I’m sure there are Colts fans in Knoxville. I’m sure there are Saints fans in San Diego because of Reggie Bush.
But if you’re going to tell me that MOST of the people you know give enough of a rat’s ass about the tackles and linebackers to go cheer for them when they have zero emotional attachment to the team that happens to play on their campus, I’d have to say you live in a different world than I do.
The concept isn’t exactly something that the market has run right out and embraced, if you believe reports like this one:
http://www.gainesvil...
(I tried to make it a link, my favorite software didn’t like it.)
“Player salaries originally were going to be $100,000 per player for the season, but that figure was recently reduced to $50,000 a player.
And ticket sales across the board have been so disappointing that the league and the franchises have refused to reveal the number of season tickets sold.
One source told The Sun that ticket sales around the league have been “abysmal.” Another source said last week that Team Florida led the league in sales and that the franchise had sold close to $100,000 worth of tickets, which would be between 2,000 and 3,000 season tickets sold.
When the league was being established, the concept was to have teams tied in with major college football programs, with the bulk of the players coming from that particular school.
The league seemed to drift from that standard as rosters were being put together over the past six months. Other than Team Florida, which has 18 former UF players on its roster, the league’s other teams strayed from the tie-in theme.
The Tennessee team, for example, has only four former UT players on its roster. The Alabama team has only 10 players on the roster from Alabama and Auburn.
While Florida has scheduled three games in The Swamp, the Michigan and Alabama teams did not have stadium agreements with their respective universities.
That sound promising? That sound like the concept is working?
We have AAFL die-hards already?
I have no doubt that there are college students who don’t study 24/7 during finals. But, unlike games of The Actual School (during the fall) where you draw a significant number of students who go because that’s just what you do (and the alumni travel in on Saturdays as well), these are just some games that happen to be played on (or near) your campus. They’re one of many options for you on a weekend. And it’s been a while since I was a college student, but it’s not necessarily the best option.
Let’s see…do I want to watch Shane Matthews coach the Fun & Gun Lite when I saw Steve Spurrier coach the actual Fun & Gun? Do I need to see this?
And if you’re Tennessee, you’ve got four former Vols. Four. That’s it. That’s the list. You want to tell me spring in Knoxville doesn’t offer anything else to do? I would submit to you that while they’re trying to tell us that football is uber-popular in Knoxville, what’s really the case is that University of Tennessee football is uber-popular in Knoxville.
This ain’t U of T football. You can put them in orange jerseys. You can have a few guys who played at UT on the team (when Tee Martin, who, unlike Mr. Manning, actually did win a national championship, announced he wasn’t going to play for Team Tennessee, did they take a huge hit?), but those aren’t the Volunteers out there.
There’s no connection. There’s not going to be a connection. You can’t force a connection.
And you may not study for finals. Your friends may not study for finals. But there are 20,000+ undergrads at UT. Somebody’s studying for finals. And even if all of them go to the game, that’s still going to look like hell in a 100,000-seat stadium and it’s only halfway to the team genius’ hope that they’re going to get 40,000 a game.
Lots of things, apparently. You think they’re going about it the right way. The market seems to think otherwise. Quod erat demonstrata.
I wouldn’t mind it, either. I just don’t see it happening. The numbers don’t add up.
Could you name for me, please, the professional sports entities with multi-million dollar budgets who have survived and thrived long-term in college towns? There’s a reason you put bigger-budget things in larger population centers.
#80 by Minna H. on 03.10.08 12:22 pm |
As someone of Taiwanese descent, I think it is patronizing and lazy just to slap a ‘los’ on a jersey and be done with it. What’s more, it seems like a money-grabbing venture to boot (if they sell the jerseys, which they probably will).
There are more and more Asians in baseball, but I would not want Japanese or Chines characters to be put on a jersey, especially just the articles of the names as a way to ‘reach out’ to the Asian community (as if there were such a monolith). It’s thoughtless and easy and doesn’t really invite any kind of real change. It’s giving lip service to diversity while merrily continuing down the old path. It would make me less likely to be interested in sports–not more. Sponsor a hundred Hmong kids to go to a game (in MN), and I will be impressed. Or, for the Twins, actively try to put together a good team, maybe including an Asian player, and I will feel ‘reached out to’. Those are things that make a difference–a ‘los’ on a jersey doesn’t.
Signed, Paul’s bitch and troll.
P.S. I agree that it’s even worse not to translate the whole name. Do it all, or do nothing at all.
#81 by steve on 03.10.08 12:33 pm |
If you want Rockband, it’s not made for the Wii yet.
#82 by Steve on 03.10.08 12:33 pm |
Under Armour just recently (within the past year or so) come out with a “tactical” line of products. UA Tactical Much of it is underwear and t-shirts, but they have an interesting selection of outerwear, polos and pants. Can’t seem to find those specific gloves on their website, but maybe I’m just not looking hard enough.
#83 by Dave on 03.10.08 12:33 pm |
I agree that Spanish-speaking communities and sportcasters refer to the team as “Los Spurs”, just like English-speaking people call them “The Spurs”. But the “The” is not on the uniform, which makes the addition of the “Los” dumb.
They should have put the translation for the word spurs on the jersey. True, the Spurs are the Spurs no matter what language you speak. But doing the translation is a way to honor Hispanics. Kind of like saying, if the U.S. was a predominantly Spanish-speaking country, this is the name we would have chosen.
#84 by Dave on 03.10.08 12:35 pm |
I agree that Spanish-speaking communities and sportcasters refer to the team as “Los Spurs”, just like English-speaking people call them “The Spurs”. But the “The” is not on the uniform, which makes the addition of the “Los” dumb.
They should have put the translation for the word spurs on the jersey. True, the Spurs are the Spurs no matter what language you speak. But doing the translation is a way to honor Hispanics. Kind of like saying, if the U.S. was a predominantly Spanish-speaking country, this is the name we would have chosen.
I’ve disagreed with Paul’s views many times. But this time, he is right on.
#85 by LI Phil on 03.10.08 12:38 pm |
other than just ’style,’ anyone know why the us women are sporting red, white, blue and gold in their kits? im pretty sure we’ve had gold in our kits before, but i thought it was more an accent than a dominate color
anyone?
#86 by jere on 03.10.08 12:51 pm |
Cardinals, not Red Sox. I’d say it’s the Cards clinching the ‘67 WS. Game 7 ended on a strikeout, and they appear to be going to the mound. From the third base dugout, which is the road dugout at Fenway. No player wore 35 for them that year, but it could’ve been a coach coming from the dugout, as the bat boy is already out there. I could be wrong.
#87 by tBone on 03.10.08 1:00 pm |
When I was watching the game on TV, I was thrown by the fact that the Spurs were wearing their whites on the road. I didn’t even see the “los” additions. But that’s probably why the Spurs’ jerseys look like half an effort and the Suns’ look at least a little new. Why would the visiting team go crazy to make new unis for another team’s promotion?
#88 by Duckstyle on 03.10.08 1:06 pm |
I assume the cliché, “going for the gold” or some such nonsense. They look pretty ridiculous, and presumptuous to me.
#89 by HT on 03.10.08 1:07 pm |
Anyone post this nugget from Yankee Stadium yet? A little easier to swallow than that vendor outfit from last week.
Any thoughs what year its from?
#90 by John T on 03.10.08 1:08 pm |
Speaking of Variations, see what the Stocai Dearga do for St. Patrick’s day. Now that I would like to see on their jersey on the day
#91 by derek on 03.10.08 1:12 pm |
Check out these gorgeous Edmonton Oilers concept jerseys
http://bp0.blogge