I know a lot of you all are going to roll your eyes, yes this is another thread on the atmosphere at the KFC Yum! Center for UofL games. One thing that came up on another UofL board was a Purdue fan talking about how easy of a road atmosphere the Yum Center was. Sadly while I wish I could disagree with him I really can't, I think we all know outside of the really big games like UK, Duke, UNC, Syracuse and Pitt the Yum Center can be very quiet.
Now I don't mean this to get into a "I have a right to stand, I have a right to sit" argument that we've had on here so many times. Both sides have that right just for buying the tickets, and I respect that. The problem we have is that we have a fan base that are there for two different reasons, we have the fans who are there to really cheer hard for the team, and we have the corporate/social fans who are more there to socialize, have a nice evening and drink. With that said, my theory is why not take some guidance from soccer and create official Supporters sections at the Yum Center?
Think about it, you could have the Supporters section on the end opposite of the student section. The two sections could even potentially play off the energy of the other. This would also allow the wealthy donors to have their seats on the sidelines like they currently do and have a more relaxed environment. With the Supporters section standing would be encouraged, it would be well stated that arena officials will not ask other fans to sit down at the request of a fan. The Supporters section could even create some new chants within the section, and while no violence would be tolerated, language that would normally get you kicked out of other sections could be tolerated in the Supporters section.
I say all this because I live in Orlando and have gone to Orlando City MLS games where it works really well. The Supporters have their section where the fans stand the whole game, do their chants and set off smoke and confetti after scores. The rest of the stadium is for the more casual social fans as well as for families. It's well known the Supporters section is not for children as they will hear a lot of yelling and some profanities, but again it's all part of supporting the team.
I really think this concept could work well for UofL basketball and would allow the best of both worlds. It would give the really diehard fans their outlet for supporting the team while allowing the more social fans their already existing areas to enjoy the game in a more casual atmosphere.
Now I don't mean this to get into a "I have a right to stand, I have a right to sit" argument that we've had on here so many times. Both sides have that right just for buying the tickets, and I respect that. The problem we have is that we have a fan base that are there for two different reasons, we have the fans who are there to really cheer hard for the team, and we have the corporate/social fans who are more there to socialize, have a nice evening and drink. With that said, my theory is why not take some guidance from soccer and create official Supporters sections at the Yum Center?
Think about it, you could have the Supporters section on the end opposite of the student section. The two sections could even potentially play off the energy of the other. This would also allow the wealthy donors to have their seats on the sidelines like they currently do and have a more relaxed environment. With the Supporters section standing would be encouraged, it would be well stated that arena officials will not ask other fans to sit down at the request of a fan. The Supporters section could even create some new chants within the section, and while no violence would be tolerated, language that would normally get you kicked out of other sections could be tolerated in the Supporters section.
I say all this because I live in Orlando and have gone to Orlando City MLS games where it works really well. The Supporters have their section where the fans stand the whole game, do their chants and set off smoke and confetti after scores. The rest of the stadium is for the more casual social fans as well as for families. It's well known the Supporters section is not for children as they will hear a lot of yelling and some profanities, but again it's all part of supporting the team.
I really think this concept could work well for UofL basketball and would allow the best of both worlds. It would give the really diehard fans their outlet for supporting the team while allowing the more social fans their already existing areas to enjoy the game in a more casual atmosphere.
