Sacramento’s support of Republic FC shows what soccer can be in California’s capital
“Second tier” might be the way to delineate what the USL is when it comes to its standing as a soccer league in the United States. But the support for the USL’s Sacramento Republic FC has been anything but second tier since the team started play in 2014.
Take Wednesday’s U.S. Open Cup semifinal match against Sporting K.C. It was a rousing victory for the Republic as they won on penalty kicks after 120 minutes of scoreless football. Franchise pillar Rodrigo Lopez banged home the game-winner on the final penalty kick of the night, moments after keeper Danny Vitiello made a stellar save against former U.S. National Team member Graham Zusi.
The sellout crowd at Heart Health Park, which provided a college-football like atmosphere throughout, lost its collective mind. The roughly 12,000 in attendance, many of whom purchased tickets within hours of their release after Sacramento beat MLS stalwart L.A. Galaxy in the round prior, was larger than the announced 11,612 crowd to see the other semifinal game in Orlando between two MLS teams, Orlando City and New York Red Bulls.
“This city’s amazing,” Lopez said afterward. “We needed their energy, we feed off them and hopefully this keeps coming every game. Not just in the (US Open) Cup right now, but we need them in the league, we want to win another championship in the league, we want to the Open Cup, and we have the team to do it, so we need the support and we need everyone to come out.”
According to SeatGeek, the get-it rate for tickets on the day of the semifinal ranged from $92 to $117. The match in Orlando: $32 to $41.
Of course, Sacramento remains in planning stages for a new stadium in the Railyards just north of downtown, which would provide a substantial upgrade over Heart Health Park, originally built for $3 million as a temporary venue. A new stadium close to downtown would have a transformative effect on the club and the city that’s lacked a state-of-the-art, centrally located venue.
The sticker price for the stadium project, which has been endorsed by the mayor’s office and city council, would cost up to $150 million.
The fan support has been obvious and the civic endorsement for the stadium project would be key whenever shovels go into the ground. But furthering Republics long-term viability has been their attraction of corporate sponsorships. The team has 20 new corporate partners this season, including Red Hawk Casino and SMUD, greater Sacramento’s energy provider.
What all this support means is there’s momentum toward a next step, but what that next step is remains to be seen. There was a similar feeling in 2019, before billionaire investor Ron Burkle backed out of a deal that would have brought an MLS expansion team to Sacramento. MLS has been working to expand the number of teams in recent years, with Las Vegas entering a negotiating agreement with the league to consider adding a 30th team.
Would the MLS be willing to expand to 32 and revisit Sacramento, as it did before the Burkle debacle? That’s a question worth asking. Because all signs are pointing to a professional soccer team in Sacramento having all the local support it would need.
This story was originally published August 1, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
