FC Edmonton is shaking babies* and kissing hands the next three days as it continues its efforts to let Northern Alberta that it exists. The club is the guest of honour at the annual Polar Cup indoor soccer tournament in Edmonton.
[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
Yes, they will be selling season tickets. They'll be playing a "friendly" against a local Special Olympics all-star team Wednesday as well -- bookmakers have the expansion side installed as slight favourites.
But, seriously...it's good that Edmonton is trying to get itself out there because the visibility of this team is disturbingly low. Yes, it's an expansion side and yes it's hockey season (if that's in fact what the Oilers are playing), but this club is going to need all the buzz it can get heading into the season. Hopefully as the winter continues the club will be doing more and more of these type of outreaches -- and not just at youth soccer events. They should also be at the soccer pubs (pub?) Saturday mornings to reach out to the ex-pat, beer drinking crowd. If you convince those folks that it's worthwhile you are halfway there.
FC Edmonton represents the first real test of the sports' post '07 swagger. Did MLS' arrival to Canada and the success of the 2007 u20s really represent the moment the sport truly became mainstream, or was its success merely a regional phenomena/temporary blip? If it works in Northern Alberta we can safely start to believe the former. If it doesn't...
* Canadian Soccer News in no way supports the shaking of babies. That's, like, really, really stupid.