I wondered about that too, Mikey. But keep in mind, these are not pro athletes. Obviously, they had to get the crowds back somehow and I think this is a good move.

They may not be pro athletes, but I am sure the coach company who carry them to away games, and the hotels they stay in are pros and want paying.

The expenses in running a PDL outfit are there for all to see, I am guessing that the news that the WV Chaos were back in our division was met with a groan by some clubs, not for the skills of the Chaos, but the long travel etc involved.

It is even worse in the W-league, teams have to travel from Va to Florida for games ( and visa versa of course )

I'm just glad to see the fans are coming back out to watch the Kings and I do hope there is some profit for the Kings in the process.

I think that it's too bad any time a team has to resort to FREE tickets because it means that the "supposed" soccer fans of the area don't see any value in attending their event!

Do people go to the movies for free? Do they get their groceries for free?...why then, do they think that they should get game tickets for free? I'm not talking about $30-$40 tickets either! We're looking at $5-$10 (or less) for a PDL game! Even at the PDL level, organizations have costs including facilities, staff, equipment, travel, various insurance, daily operational costs, etc.

(and I don't like the idea of kids over 6 getting in free and parents pay because - wait for it - the parents don't come! You get a coach/assistant who bring their team of 12-15 kids = few ticket sales. I've seen this happen repeatedly!)

What happens next year or whenever in the future when they ask for fans to pay for tickets? The numbers will dry up faster than a beer glass at your local pub!

I'm not saying that it may not work as a one-off promotion but if teams can't draw people with for even small ticket prices of $5 for youth tickets then we have to ask if there is a real market for pro/pdl soccer teams if fans of the game won't support them without free tickets?!

Well, Kings did have crowds over 2,000 when they were in the D2. I would hope that the freebees help to remind their fans that they still have a team.

they had REPORTED crowds of over 2000 for a game or 2.. But #1 how many people were actually there #2 how many of the people that were actually there PAID to get in and #3 (probably the most important one) How many of those that were there actually returned?

If the "fans" need a whole season worth of free games to remind them that they still have a team, how quickly are they going to forget once the free tickets no longer exist?

That said, from things I have read, I don't really believe that Cincy has any plans to go any higher than PDL. Just because certain fans might wish for them to return to pro status doesn't mean that's what the team itself wishes to happen. So if they can support/run what they do have with whatever money source they have coming in, so be it. After all, it's Cincinnati folks; except for a select few who really cares?

Overall, the players and fans must enjoy the atmosphere and hopefully the club will offer a competitive level of play to keep the community involved and gladly paying in the future.

But for now, Kings tickets are priceless!