When it comes to the important numbers in sports, few are as important to franchise owners as the number of fans in attendance.

For the owners in American soccer, a sport still trying to make a dent with TV audiences, the take at the gate is even more important than it would be in one of the other major leagues in the US. That anxiety at the turnstiles is even more pronounced for some of the longest-tenured MLS teams like the Rapids, who helped found the league in 1996 and still struggle to sell every ticket each week, even in a modest 18,000-seat stadium such as Dick’s Sporting Goods Park.

But in the last decade, the newest entrants into Major League Soccer have upped the expectations at the turnstiles for teams around the league. It began with Seattle in 2009, who averaged more than 31,000 in attendance in their very first year, and have topped more than 40,000 fans at CenturyLink Field every year since 2012. Portland’s attendance has been gangbusters as well since joining MLS in 2011. After four straight years of selling out all 21,144 seats at Providence Park, the Timbers expanded their stadium for 2019, which accommodated 25,218 upon its opening last week.

And then, there’s Atlanta United. A brand-spankin’ new team that debuted in 2017, Atlanta United has absolutely shattered any and all previous records for MLS attendance. Since the team’s launch, Atlanta has had the highest average attendance in the league in both its first and second season, averaging 48,200 fans in 2017 and a whopping 53,002 in 2018. At playoff time, the team can draw crowds of more than 70,000 fans — insanely large numbers that are wildly beyond what any experts predicted back when the team was in formation in 2016. The club had originally planned to tarp the top section for soccer matches and make capacity “only” 42,000, but had to scrap those plans due to the excessive popularity of the team. And boy, do those fans make a lot of noise.

Atlanta United supporters section has been loyal and loud from Day 1#MLSCup pic.twitter.com/rgUuWEE1Wt — Zach Klein (@ZachKleinWSB) December 9, 2018

Meanwhile, the Rapids began 2019 struggling to put a respectable number of butts in the seats. The Rapids’ 2018 average attendance of 15,333 put them at 21st out of 23 MLS teams for attendance, and 2017’s numbers were almost identical.

Colorado Rapids attendance figures to date, 2019:

3/2 v POR – 12,717

3/17 v SKC – 11,037

3/30 v HOU – 11,061

4/13 v DC – 15,094

5/3 v VAN – 10,794

5/11 v RSL – 15,487

5/25 v CLB – 16,843

6/1 v CIN- 16,998

…#Rapids96 — Mark Asher Goodman (@soccer_rabbi) June 7, 2019

The Rapids have put up horrendous attendance numbers to start the season, likely due to a one-two punch of cold weather and the culmination of years of mediocre results. For the first five matches of the year, Colorado drew an average of just 12,141. Aside from the uptick in turnout for the game against DC United, which is almost certainly due to interest in seeing former Manchester United star Wayne Rooney, the Rapids filled less than two-thirds of the stadium through the first two months of the season.

But then, suddenly, there was turnabout and the turnstiles. The Rapids sold and distributed nearly 17,000 tickets to the last two matches, likely due to good weather, the excitement around two new players, and a recent improvement in results. That attendance turnabout will also be a huge boost for the optics of the team, as the raucous din of the crowd after Nicolas Mezquida’s go-ahead goal was a stark contradiction from the tomblike quiet that fans heard earlier in the season at the depths of the teams losing streak. Fans want to come out to DSGP to see a party, and not to attend a funeral.

#MLS Reported Attendance w/e 6/2: Atlanta leads the way with 43k midweek and a fully opened-up 67.5k on the weekend; Portland Timbers launch the remodeled and expanded Providence Park to a packed 25,218; SKC and Colorado post season-highs #SportsBiz pic.twitter.com/IyYbId8QYH — Mike Pendleton (@phat7deuce) June 4, 2019

There are a lot of reasons to be optimistic about the season’s attendance going forward. Turnout could be good if the Rapids acquire someone to fire up the fans over the summer transfer window, which opens July 9. A win streak of historic proportions might put the Rapids back in the playoff picture enough to generate buzz around the Denver metro area. There will almost certainly be good attendance for the last month of the season as Tim Howard bids his final goodbye to soccer. There might be an uptick in interest after the Women’s World Cup, especially if the US can win it all once again. And two of the biggest stars in MLS, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Carlos Vela, have yet to visit the Mile High City. Visiting stars like that are sure to boost attendance.

Hypothetically, we shouldn’t care about the attendance figures. The individual fan should have little to no concern for the financial bottom-line at Kroenke Sports and Entertainment. But we have to care; firstly, financial success encourages the team to spend more on better players, which helps contribute to success on the field. And second, American sports owners know that if one city provides underwhelming profitability, there are always a dozen other metropolitan areas that are potentially willing to build you a new stadium. Anthony Precourt’s recent efforts to pry the Crew away from Columbus and Stan Kroenke’s own relocation of the St. Louis Rams are only the two most recent examples in a long list of American teams that decided that the grass was actually greener elsewhere.

It matters that the Rapids do well, both in getting folks out to the stadium and in winning games. The latest run of good form has the club gathering a bit of momentum, and has given hope to a downtrodden fan base where previously there was none.

Quick Hits

The Rapids will have to do without Jonathan Lewis, who was called up to the USMNT for the CONCACAF Gold Cup. The group stage runs until June 26, and in the event that the US makes it all the way to the final, Lewis will be away until July 7. Colorado has four MLS league matches before then, plus their US Open Cup match. The Rapids looked pretty good in the last match with Andre Shinyashiki filling in for Lewis at left midfielder, and Diego Rubio or Cole Bassett might also be useable out on the wing. Colorado could also bring in 18-year-old academy product Matt Hundley, who is on loan with Colorado Springs Switchbacks.

As mentioned in recent articles by my colleagues Mark Kiszla and Matt Doyle, Conor Casey is utilizing different tactics than his predecessor, Anthony Hudson.

This week, Minnesota United comes to town, and right after that, Colorado will face New Mexico United at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park. Both of those teams are expected to sit deep and strike quickly in transition — just like the new Rapids prefer to do. That often makes for exciting soccer, as both teams will try to blow down the wings and use either the talents of individual players or small 3v2, 2v1 advantages to get on the board. However, those types of games can also devolve into dull, defensive affairs where both teams defend in large numbers and wait patiently for an opportunity on a corner kick. Keep an eye on how Colorado will matchup against a team that plays just like they do…

Nana Boateng is still officially on the roster for the Rapids but hasn’t played a single minute for the club in 2019. A source informed The Denver Post that he has recently returned to Norway for family reasons. Whether he returns is anyone’s guess. Nana was a solid prospect, but a back injury in 2017 knocked him off track, and he never really became what everyone hoped he would be. Some have suggested that Boateng should get a loan to the USL, but that assumes that the team believes he can develop into an MLS player with time and effort. It is more likely that the Rapids will let Nana Boateng go in the next few months, and that he will try to reboot his career at a smaller club, possibly back in Scandinavia.

The Rapids are on the hook for his $361,000 annual contract through the 2020 season, which means that if Colorado does cut him, it would be the third time this season the Rapids will have eaten a big contract; Anthony Hudson and Shkelzen Gashi being the other two examples. The Rapids declined to comment on Boateng’s current or possible future status with the club.