ATTENDANCE STILL LAGGING
FIRE LONG WAY FROM REACHING 25,000-PER-GAME GOAL, BUT BRASS SAYS FANS WILL RETURN IF THEY COME ONCE
When the Fire moved to Soldier Field after the 2019 season, owner Joe Mansueto set a target of 25,000 fans per game at the lakefront venue.
Since pandemic-related capacity restrictions were lifted in July, the Fire haven’t come close to reaching that mark.
In seven home games without limits, the Fire’s best draw was 14,898 on July 3 against Atlanta. They’re averaging 10,966 and have welcomed three announced crowds of less than 9,000 to home matches, and Mansueto wants to see faster progress on that front.
‘‘Work to do there, too,’’ Mansueto said in August. ‘‘I think we should be having much higher attendance numbers. It’s probably top of mind for [president] Ishwara Glassman Chrein and I when we talk. We need more people in Soldier Field.’’
Mansueto said Glassman Chrein is working on plans to do that. During an interview with the Sun-Times, Glassman Chrein said that increased marketing and winning would help drive attendance and that she is looking to link the franchise’s work in the community to fandom and ticketing.
Winning, however, is not guaranteed, and the Fire have to find ways to build their numbers even if the on-field results aren’t good — a point Mansueto made forcefully in August, when he referred to FC Cincinnati’s strong attendance despite its lowly record.
Glassman Chrein said the team must construct a resilient front office that can withstand the ebbs and flows of the sporting side.
‘‘Joe and I talk a lot about this concept of sampling,’’ Glassman Chrein said. ‘‘We have this belief that if people will just come to the stadium once, they’ll have a great experience. Soldier Field’s a beautiful place. There’s transit, we have this Burnham Downs [fan tailgate] experience where you eat and drink and play little games. If we get people to the stadium, they’ll have a great experience.’’
Getting people to the stadium was a challenge for the Fire in Bridgeview, and it hasn’t been much easier at Soldier Field, even with a more centralized location that figured to offset a glut of midweek matches this season. In 2019, their last season at SeatGeek Stadium, the Fire averaged 12,324 fans, the fewest in the league.
Mansueto’s target of 25,000 fans seemed like a lofty objective, and early results have borne that out. But he still thinks 25,000 is attainable in an area with this many people. He’s convinced people will be hooked if they experience a game and is confident the Fire’s fan base will grow significantly if someone attends a match or tunes in on Ch. 9.
‘‘These things take time, but I think we’re doing the right things,’’ Mansueto said. ‘‘I think we’ll start to see the results over the coming year. Things never happen fast enough for my taste. I’d love to see bigger crowds, but we’re pushing on it. I have no doubt we’ll get there.
‘‘It hasn’t diminished my confidence one iota on the potential for filling the stadium with Fire fans.’’