I don't know about anyone else, but lately I get the feeling RSL is becoming an afterthought in the Utah sports landscape.
There was a time, back when I was a fan of soccer and RSL, that I felt like RSL held a high rank in Utah sports. That was before all the college football crap, the PAC 10, PAC 12, Big 12, NIL, Cam Rising hullabaloo.
Recently they announced the season schedule for the Utah Royals and honestly I have to think 99.999% of Utahans asked themselves, "Who are they?"
Now they are pushing to get a NHL and/or a MLB team to come to Utah.
I remember when Larry H. Miller tried to get the Minnesota Twins to relocate to Utah right around the time RSL started (2005) but famously said in an interview that "we'll have to wait and see how the soccer team does."
That little quote added a lot of meat on the bone when Dave Checketts blamed Larry H. Miller for trying to sabotage the stadium funding deal for RSL. Miller didn't think there would be enough sports fans in Utah to support two major league teams that play the majority of their games in the summer.
Now, Utah's population has doubled since then so that may not be a concern anymore but still.
I had to chuckle a little when I saw this recent KSL.com article. RSL is mentioned but kind of like an afterthought at the very end.
Millions requested to attract MLB, NHL, Olympics to Utah
The Utah Sports Commission has requested $4 million from the state to attract and host national and international sporting events.
Utah is currently courting Major League Baseball and National Hockey League franchises and the 2034 Olympics.
As Jeff Robbins, president and CEO of the Utah Sports Commission said, "A lot has happened in a year."
Robbins went before the Business, Economic Development and Labor Appropriations Subcommittee Friday morning.
"Have 735 events that were summer events. That's unheard of. The IOC has never seen a legacy program like we have all created here," Robbins said.
He asked for a one-time payment in 2025 for $4 million with more money to follow.
Robbins said Utah is in a coveted position locally, statewide, nationally and globally in sports.
He said the 735 summer events outside of the Olympics are largely unheard of, which sets Utah apart.
Since October, he said, more than 70 events the commission has worked on have made an economic impact of about $600 million and global media value ringing in almost a billion dollars.
Robbins said money now puts Utah at the forefront of attracting the Olympics and other sporting events.
"We're moving in a direction that I think is unprecedented in the history of Utah and sports. And sports has become such a huge economic driver — such a huge image builder — statewide for us," Robbins said. "Positions us in the global marketplace in a way that you almost can't put the dollars on it."
Robbins said this is all about vision.
He mentioned the commission is talking to representatives from FIFA next week about bringing training centers for the World Cup to partner with Real Salt Lake and the University of Utah.
https://www.ksl.com/article/50865685/millions-requested-to-attract-mlb-nhl-olympics-to-utah
Poor RSL, what will become of them?
