On Wednesday night, fans were invited out to the Zions Bank Training Center in Herriman for the annual Real Salt Lake Meet the Team event. It’s a chance for the RSL family – from players and coaching staff to the fans, new and old – to come together and interact with one another. The event saw Head Coach Mike Petke and every player on the roster come out to interact with the fans for autographs and photos. Shoot out and training exercise games were also available for fans to try in the indoor stadium.
The event has become something that the RSL family looks forward to every year and is one of the most important events for the players who get to meet those who support them through thick and thin but also for fans who come to see and meet their team and be personable with them.
“It shows us fans that the players really care for the fanbase and they aren’t just doing for the money or anything,” Sierra, a life long soccer fan and five-time season ticket holder said about meeting the team and interacting with them.
Four-time season ticket holder Bryce Quigley agreed saying, “I think that players need to see that the fans are here supporting them so they know what’s behind them when they are out on the field. There is a reason behind it.”
For other fans, meeting the players means more. For the Oldroyd family, it’s an opportunity for fans that live further away.
“For us it’s a chance to be close to the players. We drove two and half hours to come,” said first-time season ticket holder, Canela Oldroyd. “We’re not really local, so for us our season tickets are awesome. It’s nice to be able to come and meet the players and see what kind of people they are.”
James Harris, a fan from the beginning who has held on to his ticket to the first game at Rice Eccles Stadium, feels it’s not only meaningful to him but to his son as well.
“For grown-ups like myself, it’s just fun and cool. For the younger ones, it’s inspirational – it gives them a vision,” he said. “When I was little we didn’t have anything like that. There was nothing to look up to or a place to shoot up for and this gives them that.”
This was the first year fans came to Zions Bank Training Center to meet the team, as previously the team has held the meeting at their home of Rio Tinto Stadium. This change of venue gave many fans their first real look at the new world-class facility.
“It’s gorgeous,” Oldroyd remarked while looking around the indoor facilities. “I love it. I wish they had all this when my kids were smaller and starting out (with soccer). We would have been here a lot more.”
Bryce, whose son attends the Academy, is still amazed the facility that RSL has created in Herriman.
“This is amazing to be in here,” he said. “I’ve never seen the fields on the outside, just to see how many are out there, the space it takes, it’s impressive.”
The RSL Meet the Team event means more than just signatures and photographs. It’s a chance to showcase how much the fans and team support and care for one another. It’s an opportunity to bring everyone together as one, as the RSL Family.
