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The intersection of Opdyke Road and South Boulevard is about 30 miles from downtown Detroit.
Detroit is a world famous city, although it is far from world-class in many respects. It’s a safe bet that everyone you know has an opinion on Detroit, or an impression of the place, no matter how well-informed they actually are. One thing most can agree on: Detroit has created more American culture than many cities twice its size. Think Black Nationalism, the union movement, “Hockeytown,” Motown, punk rock, techno, garage rock revival. It’s the birthplace of automation, poster child for deindustrialization and urban re-imagination, and spiritual home of a sprawling car-centered nation. For soccer fans, the important thing to know is that Detroit is the largest metro area in America without a Major League Soccer team or planned expansion.
US Open Cup Recap : Two Visions for Detroit Soccer
Though Detroit is a cultural hotbed, the intersection of Opdyke and South Boulevard is not contributing to this status. There are gas stations and a few chain restaurants on Opdyke. Looking north, down a slight hill, there is some cookie cutter architecture that fades into trees. On the northeast corner sits a concrete and brick sign, reminiscent of the entrance to a homeowners’ association. It reads “Welcome to Auburn Hills”. This is the only clue to where in America’s vast geography you are. The architecture could be located in any state, in any suburb. Just behind the newly rebuilt (again) Taco Bell are a set of large connected warehouses with pitched roofs, flanked by rows of flags. This is Ultimate Soccer Arenas, home of the PDL’s Michigan Bucks, and one of the most bizarre venues in American soccer. As you enter the giant building, a sign above the door declares “We don’t play indoor soccer…we play soccer indoors”.
Ultimate Soccer Arenas was the site of the U.S. Open Cup first round match Wednesday night between the Michigan Bucks and Detroit City FC, an NPSL squad who have taken the city proper by storm over the past few years. These two teams are the most well known local squads in Metro Detroit but their off the field strategies couldn’t be more different.
The Michigan Bucks often play to crowds of fewer than 400 people in their suburban facility, mostly drawing families and young soccer players. However, they are one of the most successful teams in PDL history, and have a rich history in the Open Cup.
Founded in 1995, the Bucks are currently affiliated with the Columbus Crew. They have won the PDL championship twice, and won their division 11 times. They are defending National Champions. They were the first PDL team to upset an MLS side in the Open Cup’s professional era, beating the New England Revolution 1-0 on the road in 2000. They nearly made a run of it when they drew the Miami Fusion 3-3 in the next round, but lost on penalties. In 2012 the Bucks upset the Chicago Fire 3-2 in extra time at Ultimate, in a match that saw Frank Klopas criticize the facility, turf, and tournament for allowing a match to be played indoors. The Bucks’ owner, Dan Duggan, has repeatedly stated that his goal is to bring MLS to Detroit. Still, despite the team’s impressive winning culture, most metro residents would be hard pressed to name the PDL team playing up the road, and despite all the Bucks’ success, they are practically unknown outside of the soccer community in the city.
By contrast, Detroit City FC has already made a habit of selling out the 3,000 seats at their downtown home, Cass Tech High School, outdrawing many NASL teams. Their supporters are legendary in the National Premier Soccer League, and have been the subject of articles in all the major media outlets in Detroit, as well as MLSSoccer.com and Howler Magazine. The team was founded by friends who played in the city’s popular beer league, and many of the original supporters are local players who had already made a habit of socializing after competing on the field.
With a central location, the club can also attract fans from all over the region. City’s management have actively courted and enabled their grassroots support by encouraging boisterous fans, flags, and even smoke bombs. Half of the stadium is reserved for standing sections. Players and coaches sometimes meet the supporters in the bar after games and at meet and greets. DCFC’s reward has been a vocal hardcore fan base that travels to most away matches and provides far and away the best support in the NPSL, which is in the fourth level of the American soccer pyramid. Season tickets, capped at 1,600, sold out weeks ago, and the regular season hasn’t kicked off yet. There is talk of the team moving to a larger stadium in Hamtramck, where they can hold up to 6,000 fans and court investors to move up to USL or NASL. This season, City is streaming all of its home matches online, and is sponsored by Chevrolet. Even with a short season and college players, the NPSL outfit is well known all over town due to its great support and its location. In their first appearance in the Open Cup last season, City lost in penalties to RWB Adria of Chicago in heartbreaking fashion.
Which brings us to last night’s match. A capacity crowd of nearly 2,000 fans crammed into the seats at USA. The entire away section was full with the Northern Guard DCFC supporters, in fine form. It was always going to be difficult for City to get a result against a PDL opponent, and the Bucks came out flying. They applied a high press from the opening whistle, and did not allow DCFC any breathing room. This immediately led to a long ball approach for the visitors, which did not pay dividends on the very fast turf. In the 7th minute of play, with their first shot on the season, the home team was in the lead on a David Goldsmith goal. The Bucks found success on the left flank, where Cyrus Saydee spent the first 25 minutes tucked in, leaving City exposed out wide.
In the 9th minute, former Chicago Fire Premier, FC Dallas, Toronto FC, and New York Cosmos player Peri Marosevic stormed down the left side to steal the ball from City’s defense, who struggled to play it out of the back. He easily slotted the ball home to give the hosts a 2-0 dream start to the match. From this point on, City was outclassed in the first half. Bucks had the majority of the possession, and the gulf between the squads in both technical ability and fitness was apparent.
The visitors had one golden opportunity in the 19th minute, when a good counterattack led to an open look for James Murphy. His left footed blast rattled off the left post, leaving the City supporters stunned but still singing.
When Brad Ruhaak got an open look for the Bucks from outside the box ten minutes later, his strike hit the upper 90 and gave the hosts a big cushion. DCFC enjoyed much better possession in the second half, but couldn’t break through a confident Bucks defense. The match ended 3-0.
The big question on everyone’s mind in the building was what shape pro soccer will take in Detroit in the next 5 years. DCFC supporters have claimed that they will never support a team owned by the Bucks’ ownership (even singing their message to the tune of Pink Floyd: “Hey! Duggan! Leave Detroit alone!”), but both ownership groups have met to discuss their conflicting plans. The Bucks’ front office now states that they want to keep the PDL team in the suburbs and start a new pro team downtown. Would the fans of “Le Rouge” support a new owner if the team was still called Detroit City FC? And with talks of Don Garber heading to St Louis recently, is this city even an option for MLS anymore? For now, DCFC and the Bucks are both pursuing plans for downtown stadiums, with no truce in sight. It’s unclear if that will ever change.
One thing is for sure; soccer is alive and well in Detroit, and no matter what leagues the teams are playing in, or how important the games are, the support is there. Sitting next to me in the stands were lots of families: soccer moms, if you will. But many of those families were wearing DCFC gear. And many of the families whose parents were rooting for the Bucks had children with DCFC scarves. Some of the kids laughed together at the vulgar song sheets handed out by the Northern Guard. To my right, at one point, a young boy said to his friend what every soccer fan in Detroit has thought at one point in their life: “I can’t wait until we get an MLS team.”
Photo Credit: Detroit City FC/Jon DeBoer
