How does an adult who never watched soccer before all of a sudden become addicted to it? In part III of “Women in Soccer”, Kristi Colvin shares her story of becoming a full fledged supporter of Sporting Kansas City in 2011 and a year later led her to cofounding Women United FC. Professionally, Colvin is the CEO of Fresh ID, but can be found tweeting about soccer throughout a majority of the day. Follow her on twitter: @KrisColvin
Soccer Banter: A late bloomer as a fan of soccer, how did it come about and what is it that you love about the game?
Kristi Colvin: I met Kyle Rogers and James Flexman, then in PR/Marketing for Sporting Kansas City, right after they rebranded from the Wizards at the end of 2010. They wanted to discuss our Intefy product and see what my company, Fresh ID, could do in context of digital and social media-related design and development. A random opportunity came up when Kei Kamara wanted to have a snowball fight with fans in January 2011 and we jumped in and offered to produce a live online event so fans snowed in at home could watch the fun (http://freshid.com/portfolio/sporting-kc-snowday has images of it). This led to Sporting Club becoming a client in 2011 and Fresh ID buying seats in the Shield Club, which I personally wanted to use more than anyone as I became a soccer addict swiftly. This year my husband bought seats there for us as he didn't want to share...he has become a bona fide soccer addict as well and our lives revolve around it during the season (meaning, we never see a movie, attend family functions that interfere with games or do anything else in regular season!)
SB: Why Sporting Kansas City?
KC: They're my town's team! They also introduced me to the game entirely. I of course was aware pro soccer existed in the world before meeting them, but not a fan or educated about it. I will always be grateful for SKC introducing me to the game, some beloved players I've met, and the stadium-building experience. I always joke there's a piece of my heart beneath the pitch at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park and I love going there to watch the team play.
Soccer Banter: A late bloomer as a fan of soccer, how did it come about and what is it that you love about the game?
Kristi Colvin: I met Kyle Rogers and James Flexman, then in PR/Marketing for Sporting Kansas City, right after they rebranded from the Wizards at the end of 2010. They wanted to discuss our Intefy product and see what my company, Fresh ID, could do in context of digital and social media-related design and development. A random opportunity came up when Kei Kamara wanted to have a snowball fight with fans in January 2011 and we jumped in and offered to produce a live online event so fans snowed in at home could watch the fun (http://freshid.com/portfolio/sporting-kc-snowday has images of it). This led to Sporting Club becoming a client in 2011 and Fresh ID buying seats in the Shield Club, which I personally wanted to use more than anyone as I became a soccer addict swiftly. This year my husband bought seats there for us as he didn't want to share...he has become a bona fide soccer addict as well and our lives revolve around it during the season (meaning, we never see a movie, attend family functions that interfere with games or do anything else in regular season!)
SB: Why Sporting Kansas City?
KC: They're my town's team! They also introduced me to the game entirely. I of course was aware pro soccer existed in the world before meeting them, but not a fan or educated about it. I will always be grateful for SKC introducing me to the game, some beloved players I've met, and the stadium-building experience. I always joke there's a piece of my heart beneath the pitch at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park and I love going there to watch the team play.
SB: What is Women United FC and what is its mission?
KC: WUFC is a supporters group, not for a single team, but for all teams in MLS. We have a website open to women-only at http://womenunitedfc.com where members can create groups about anything soccer-related that they love, so you will see a group for all MLS teams and many US Soccer and international groups as well. We have an active social media presence on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest, where we interact with soccer fans, players, and journalists who love the sport of both genders. We maintain our main account @wunitedfc and 19 team accounts for every MLS team, managed by volunteer team reps. Our goal with the Twitter accounts is to ensure women voices are heard amongst the primarily male-dominant fan and especially reporting population.
SB: Nearly five months into the launch of Women United FC, how is it being received? Any new plans in the works for the group in the future?
KC: We were blessed to be invited to meet with MLS at the All Star game in Philadelphia last week, and our inspiration is off the charts. We have plans in the area of content and reporting that will take some time to get in place. That is probably our focus for the immediate future as well as establishing some educational outlets to help new fans (like myself) or curious people who could become fans. We will be reaching out to the teams to work on physical events at stadiums to help educate people and on-site content that can serve as a learning tool at any time. You could sum up our current mission in three words: education, connection and insights.
SB: Describe the game day experience for one of the newest soccer stadiums in the country, Livestrong Sporting Park?
KC: I have to admit, until I'd visited PPL in Philadelphia, I'd only ever been to LSP so I don't have a lot to compare the experience to. I lived in Dallas years ago when the Frisco stadium for FC Dallas went up, but have never been there. LSP, from Day 1, offers a loud, energetic, classy live soccer experience that I hope will someday be a reality for every single MLS team. I've heard many stories from Wizards fans about going to games at venues that were too large (so hard to feel energy) or not appropriate (a baseball field), and the sheer emotion from these long-time supporters at being gifted with a home of their own was easy to empathize with. There were grown men crying opening day, they were so awe-struck by how far the team had come. Though I'm a new fan I can relate to what it took for them to get here.
KC: WUFC is a supporters group, not for a single team, but for all teams in MLS. We have a website open to women-only at http://womenunitedfc.com where members can create groups about anything soccer-related that they love, so you will see a group for all MLS teams and many US Soccer and international groups as well. We have an active social media presence on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest, where we interact with soccer fans, players, and journalists who love the sport of both genders. We maintain our main account @wunitedfc and 19 team accounts for every MLS team, managed by volunteer team reps. Our goal with the Twitter accounts is to ensure women voices are heard amongst the primarily male-dominant fan and especially reporting population.
SB: Nearly five months into the launch of Women United FC, how is it being received? Any new plans in the works for the group in the future?
KC: We were blessed to be invited to meet with MLS at the All Star game in Philadelphia last week, and our inspiration is off the charts. We have plans in the area of content and reporting that will take some time to get in place. That is probably our focus for the immediate future as well as establishing some educational outlets to help new fans (like myself) or curious people who could become fans. We will be reaching out to the teams to work on physical events at stadiums to help educate people and on-site content that can serve as a learning tool at any time. You could sum up our current mission in three words: education, connection and insights.
SB: Describe the game day experience for one of the newest soccer stadiums in the country, Livestrong Sporting Park?
KC: I have to admit, until I'd visited PPL in Philadelphia, I'd only ever been to LSP so I don't have a lot to compare the experience to. I lived in Dallas years ago when the Frisco stadium for FC Dallas went up, but have never been there. LSP, from Day 1, offers a loud, energetic, classy live soccer experience that I hope will someday be a reality for every single MLS team. I've heard many stories from Wizards fans about going to games at venues that were too large (so hard to feel energy) or not appropriate (a baseball field), and the sheer emotion from these long-time supporters at being gifted with a home of their own was easy to empathize with. There were grown men crying opening day, they were so awe-struck by how far the team had come. Though I'm a new fan I can relate to what it took for them to get here.
The Members Club at LSP is a marvelous innovation...our Cauldron season ticket holders or anyone with a Cauldron section ticket have access to what is essentially their own sports bar. In hot or rainy games, they can duck in and watch it on TV. We don't even go to the restroom anywhere in the stadium without TV access to keep up with every moment of action on the field. That OnGoal (the ownership group) dedicated so many dollars to making the game day experience phenomenal is a direct correlation to seeing so many sold out games (or nearly sold out) the 1 1/2 years the stadium has existed. This town has never seen anything like this for soccer before, and they've responded.
SB: What are your thoughts on the up down season for Sporting KC?
KC: Ahh, the real experience of being a soccer fan/addict is something I've felt last year and this year. I will never, ever forget the sinking feeling of losing to Houston and knocking ourselves out of the Cup competition last year, after scores of wins. This year we began strong and now are really struggling, with a number of injuries, new people attempting to fit in, and a key player in the Olympics (Roger Espinoza for Honduras.) I love them, will always love them, feel sad for the guys when they lose, but wish we could find that magic sweet spot again we seem to have hit when in a winning streak.
SB: Fun question, who is your favorite player with Sporting KC and why?
KC: Last year, I was incredibly attached to CJ Sapong, who I called the #lilrookie, and was extremely focused on him and his success. In fact, we made a dedication page when he won MLS Rookie of the Year at http://mlsrookieoftheyear.com so fans could contribute a tweet or video message congratulating him. This year I of course still love CJ, but so many of our guys make a major contribution and play their hearts out each game that I have many favorites.
I also have some favorites on other teams. As a leader of WUFC, I feel like I've adopted 19 teams and eventually I will know and love all the players in the league. These guys inspire women like me on many levels. Their athleticism, their sacrifices in diet and working out to be in top form, the ups and downs of doing really well or really badly, the criticism they endure in public forums, the grace and gentlemanliness so many of them exhibit with fans, the indignities they suffer at times when traded or waived... all of these things give us reasons to love them - and the beautiful game!
More "Women in Soccer" Interviews
Lesle Gallimore - University of Washington Head Coach
Meabh De Burca - Republic of Ireland International
Kim Tate - Owner of Kim Tate Sports
SB: What are your thoughts on the up down season for Sporting KC?
KC: Ahh, the real experience of being a soccer fan/addict is something I've felt last year and this year. I will never, ever forget the sinking feeling of losing to Houston and knocking ourselves out of the Cup competition last year, after scores of wins. This year we began strong and now are really struggling, with a number of injuries, new people attempting to fit in, and a key player in the Olympics (Roger Espinoza for Honduras.) I love them, will always love them, feel sad for the guys when they lose, but wish we could find that magic sweet spot again we seem to have hit when in a winning streak.
SB: Fun question, who is your favorite player with Sporting KC and why?
KC: Last year, I was incredibly attached to CJ Sapong, who I called the #lilrookie, and was extremely focused on him and his success. In fact, we made a dedication page when he won MLS Rookie of the Year at http://mlsrookieoftheyear.com so fans could contribute a tweet or video message congratulating him. This year I of course still love CJ, but so many of our guys make a major contribution and play their hearts out each game that I have many favorites.
I also have some favorites on other teams. As a leader of WUFC, I feel like I've adopted 19 teams and eventually I will know and love all the players in the league. These guys inspire women like me on many levels. Their athleticism, their sacrifices in diet and working out to be in top form, the ups and downs of doing really well or really badly, the criticism they endure in public forums, the grace and gentlemanliness so many of them exhibit with fans, the indignities they suffer at times when traded or waived... all of these things give us reasons to love them - and the beautiful game!
More "Women in Soccer" Interviews
Lesle Gallimore - University of Washington Head Coach
Meabh De Burca - Republic of Ireland International
Kim Tate - Owner of Kim Tate Sports
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