Photo courtesy of Pete Romano Jr.

If you want a lesson in rebranding, look no further than Sporting Kansas City.

A move from CommunityAmerica Ballpark to the beautiful soccer-specific Children’s Mercy Park (then Livestrong Sporting Park) coupled with a rebrand from Kansas City Wizards to Sporting KC resulted in a 73% jump in attendance from 2010 to 2011.

.@KCCauldron still call their team the Wizards and I love it — The Soccer Tour (@TheSoccerTour) June 4, 2017

Since the change, the club has been able to shed the “MLS 1.0” image that still plagues such clubs as the New England Revolution and D.C. United. Instead, the club is raved about — and rightly so. The branding is sleek and professional. The stadium is among the best in Major League Soccer and the atmosphere created by The Cauldron fuels the team to success on the field.

What a game. Thanks @KCCauldron for the reception and @SportingKC for the spectacle pic.twitter.com/0Z8XG6fZdU — The Soccer Tour (@TheSoccerTour) June 3, 2017

I was fortunate enough to witness a 3-0 win for the good guys during my visit. And after seeing it on TV so many times, finally shower in blue confetti following each goal Sporting scored in The Blue Hell goal.

Check out photos and video from my experience in the supporters section here

Big thanks to Zach Cobb and the rest of The Cauldron for the hospitality.