Two years ago a bunch of soccer-loving guys who mostly only knew one another through Facebook decided to come together behind one cause: bringing professional soccer back to Indianapolis. If you would have told me then that only two years later we would not only have a team, but also one of the most knowledgeable Presidents in the the American soccer world leading the team, I would have looked at you funny. If you would have then told me that the Brickyard Battalion would be one of the largest supporters groups in the US or Canada, regardless of division, I would have been surprised and elated. But these indeed are the facts—and frankly none of it could have happened without you, our fellow Brickers. It has been your efforts, voice, support, and passion for soccer that have made Indy Eleven possible and real, and the Brickyard Battalion a success.

BYB Numbers and Affiliates

If you haven’t heard the news, Battalion membership is over 1,500! That’s larger than a real army battalion. That’s larger than almost every supporters group in Major League Soccer–all before a ball has even been kicked. If growth numbers continue at the same rate, total membership should grow well beyond 2,000 by our first kick-off in 2014. Current BYB Affiliate Chapters now span the state, from South Bend, to the bridge across the Ohio River.

Thirteen affiliates have been officially recognized and five more are nearing approval in the coming months. In short, support for Indy Eleven has grown far beyond the borders of Indianapolis and into every corner of the state. Affiliate leaders and their members have been the “boots on the ground,” spreading the word to soccer fans in towns and cities all over Indiana. We want to thank all of them for the passion and drive to make pro soccer in our great state a success.

Ticket Sales

Season ticket sales for Indy Eleven games has been a huge success thanks to your support and passion. Over 5,000 season tickets have been reserved for Indy Eleven matches. I don’t have to tell you that this is new territory for an NASL team that has yet to play a game and dwarfs a number of MLS teams season ticket sales. Thank you for your contributions in raising awareness and getting so many others “on board” to support the team.

Member Sponsors

You’ve probably noticed that business sponsorship for members continues to grow. From great places to eat, haircuts and even security alarm systems, local businesses have reached out to the Battalion leadership to offer their support for the team and membership. Beyond their emotional support, local companies, pubs, and eateries have offered substantial discounts to Brickers. Members can expect more such sponsorships moving forward, including developing partnerships with both the Indiana Pacers and Indianapolis Motor Speedway. If you have ideas for sponsorship, or you own a business that would like to become a sponsor, please contact us!

Events

There have been so many successful events in 2013. From the team announcement in January, right down to the watch-parties, all of us on the board have had a great time meeting many of you over the past 6 months. We look forward to more opportunities to do so. We will, of course, continue to hold gatherings, bus trips to games, and watch parties as we move forward.

The Inter Milan v Chelsea match at Lucas Oil marks the first time such a large international soccer event has been held in Indianapolis. Thanks to the Indy Eleven staff, BYB members had first access to tickets for this event. We also hope everyone enjoyed the BYB Tailgate before the game.

For the winter-soccer-off-season each year we are currently developing what will be the first Brickyard Battalion Conference in Indianapolis in 2014, where members from across the state will get together to share ideas, plan for the future, and have fun.

There are even more ideas and events brewing. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us and share your suggestions and thoughts.

The Website and Merchandise

Recently, the BYB technical team developed our new website that includes our blog and the BYB forum. We hope more and more of you will use that forum to organize, discuss the team, and just share ideas. We also want to thank all of you who wrote us requesting various items be added to the merchandise inventory. We’ll keep listening to those requests, so keep them coming. From simple t-shirts, to the now famous “Barkyard Battalion” dog leashes, we’re looking forward to seeing more and more of you representing the BYB around town and in your city. Your BYB gear announces to others that you support the team and support the movement to make Indianapolis soccer a huge success. And that’s right, even your dog is a Bricker!

The Team

As things developed earlier this year, we were happy to hear the announcement from team owner Ersal Ozdemir that Peter Wilt had been hired as team President of Indy Eleven. We were just as satisfied when long time Section 8 veteran, Tom Dunmore was brought on board to run the day to day operations. We couldn’t have been more excited when the team announced Juergen Sommer as the coach of Indy Eleven. Juergen is not only the right man for the job, but a first class human being who understands the importance of grassroots support for the team and building a home-field atmosphere where the team feels supported and unbeatable.

Like you, we look forward to hearing about the results of the tryouts, tracking the signings and watching our team being built.

I would also like to extend a big thank-you to Peter Wilt, Tom Dunmore, John Koluder and the rest of the Indy Eleven staff who have been open to suggestions, thoughtful partners, and unapologetic supporters of the Brickyard Battalion. To some, this may sound natural. Shouldn’t a team embrace it’s own supporters group? But across the soccer world this type of interaction is not the norm. Teams are typically thankful but suspicious of supporters groups. The way in which the Indy Eleven team has dedicated itself to working with the BYB is mostly unprecedented in American professional soccer history. Never before has a supporters group been so regularly informed and included in a teams progression and development. Moreover, I challenge anyone to cite an example of a team President being so willing to shake hands, mingle at a pub, attend gatherings regardless of size, and work from the grassroots, side by side with flyer-distributing Brickers, to assure the success of returning professional soccer to Indianapolis.

Priorities

As we head into 2014 a few priorities are close to our hearts and are essential to the Battalion’s continued growth and success:

Create the kind of game atmosphere that other teams will be jealous of. Affiliates and members are already actively discussing chants and TIFO to make Indy Eleven match days an “experience” that won’t soon be forgotten and be the envy of our opponents. Expand the diversity of the BYB. We will continue to do outreach to communities across Indianapolis and Indiana. We want to make sure that it is implicit and clear that we embrace all fans of soccer and Indy Eleven regardless of background or ethnicity. Whether you grew up supporting a Mexican pro soccer team in a mostly Hispanic neighborhood, or you’re a new fan of the sport and play in a women’s rec league, we want your support and are honored to have you as members of BYB and supporters of Indy Eleven. Spreading the word: we need you to continue to tell everyone you know about the team and the BYB. We want your feedback and support. If there is anything we can do to make your efforts to “spread the word” easier, please contact us and let us know! We have flyers and posters available that you can simply print out and use in your community. Serving our members: we want you and your friends and family to have the best game experience, and we also want you to benefit from being a BYB member. Beyond having first access to special events like the Inter Milan v Chelsea match and member discounts, we will continue to find ways to improve your experience and expand the benefits of membership. This includes the development of our “Gold Member” package for the 2014 season which will include special access to team events and opportunities to meet players. There will be more details on this as things develop.

The Board

As you may be aware, in 2013 the Brickyard Battalion became a recognized not-for-profit. As such, our board meetings will be public record and in time be posted on the website so you can get an inside view of what the board is discussing and what our plans are. We will also be providing a place for members to chime in and provide feedback.

The all-volunteer board is made up of 9 members, with a president, vice-president, secretary, and treasurer. As president of the board, I want to thank all of the other board members for their efforts and successes in 2012 and 2013. There is a lot of hard work that has gone on behind the scenes to make our journey (thus far) a success. It has been my honor to serve with these gentlemen as the first president of the Brickyard Battalion.

I have also been humbled to serve the members of the BYB. I have been grateful for the opportunities I have had to meet so many of you this year at both the team announcement, gatherings, and through email and social media. Please know that I am always available to members via email—and never hesitate to reach me.

‘Mon The Brickers,

-Derek Richey, President, Brickyard Battalion