Soccer in the Stratosphere

"Through the roof" is how TV pundits describe high ratings, but in Baltimore's case it is even more celestial.  The number of viewers tuned in to the recent pulse racer in Pretoria was somewhere in orbit.

According to Sun columnist Z on TV, the Nielson ratings showed Baltimore had the second largest TV audience among the nation's 56 metered markets Wednesday for ESPN's coverage of the US-Algeria match.  Only San Diego, which has led all markets for all matches, exceeded Baltimore's viewership.

Consider who that puts us ahead of -- such major markets as San Francisco, Washington and even such multi-cultural cities as Miami and New York.

We're not sure how they could truly calculate the number of viewers, because the Merry Marketeers were in one of those establishments where the number of fans greatly exceeded the number of television units.  We are also aware there were some places of business (not ours) where computer monitors were surreptitiously tuned in to the action. 

Only the webmasters know for sure how many people in Baltimore had their eyes on the ball.  Like the fire marshalls, they aren't telling Nielson or anyone else.

However, this one measurable statistic tells us (and the world) just how serious Baltimore is about international soccer.  The enthusiasm, the passion, and the commitment are all here.  We hope to demonstrate this again with a full stadium on July 31st when we entertain Manchester City in their friendly with Inter-Milan.