Starting hot and building heat
When the Orlando Pride take the field Saturday for the National Women’s Soccer League’ Championship game, they will be coming in at the number one spot after a historic season, setting the record for the most points scored in a single season at 60.
If the Orlando Pride beat the Washington Spirit in Kansas Saturday, it will be the team’s first NWSL championship.
“They started hot and never looked back -- 24 games without losing a game. It's historic in women's soccer in the United States,” said Jarrod Dillon, President of Business Operations for Orlando City SC, Orlando Pride, and Inter&CO stadium.
While the women’s team started off strong, the men’s team was a slow burn.
“Team started a little slower. And I think it was mid summer, when they really turned it around,” said Dillon. “If you looked at the standings, they were next to last in the east, and they went on an incredible run to finish fourth at home to get home field advantage for the playoffs.”
Orlando City SC will face Atlanta United FC in the Audio MLS Cup Eastern Conference Semifinals in Orlando on Sunday.
A multitude of factors can be attributed to the success of both teams, including club ownership and team leadership, according to Dillon, but he said fans in the crowd play a significant role.
“It makes a difference, and the teams notice that,” he said. “You can hear them on record with the media saying the crowd impacts how we play at home.”
Building on the momentum
Attendance at the Orlando Pride’s games have been low compared to Orlando City, but Dillon said attendance for the women’s games is up over 100% over the last two years.
“We averaged about 8,600 (attendees) this year. That's just off the league average. So we do have some room to grow,” he said. “And we play in the third largest soccer specific venue in North America, (with) 25,000 (seats) so it is a task to fill this thing up for any event. Doesn't matter what it is.”
Dillon said the men ‘s games averaged about 22,500 attendees in 2024.
“(Orlando CIty) have had some more sustained success from an attendance standpoint over the last few years, and so building that up has been, I wouldn't say, easier. It's just a different challenge on the women's side,” he said.
The Orlando Pride’s semifinal game had approximately 15,000 attendees in Orlando on Nov. 17, according to Dillon, which is still lower than Orlando City’s nearly sold out semifinal game Sunday.
He said the club plans to utilize the momentum of this season to fix the Pride’s attendance issue.
“For us with Orlando Pride, it's the entire playoff campaign. You've probably seen it on shirts. It's the mantra, ‘can you see us now?’,” he said. “This team has been here nine years, and I would venture to say, a lot of (people) maybe don't know, Orlando has had a professional women's team for nine years with some big name players.”
Dillon said the club is focusing on brand awareness to continue to carry the momentum of this season into next year.
“That's not just throwing money at advertising. That's getting real in the community and the grassroots level, being at soccer matches for youth on the weekends, being at community events, being active,” he said. “And that's something that in the past, maybe wasn't as done as well, I think, as we are doing now, but it definitely takes time to build upon that.”
Dillon adds that local organizations have stepped up to sponsor the Pride already, which was once a thought of the past.
“A few years ago, there was a feeling that women's professional sports wasn't or shouldn't be commercialized as much as men's professional sports, that's incredibly incorrect,” he said. “It's not a charity. This is a for profit business. These women are out there playing incredible soccer at the highest level in the world, and they deserve the support.”
Is soccer a lucrative business in Orlando?
Jarrod Dillon’s short answer is, “Yes, I think the numbers speak for themselves.”
According to Dillon, corporate sponsorship has increased for both teams.
“On the Orlando pride side, our advertising partners and sponsors are up 150%. On the men's side, we're up 22%,” he said.
In addition to the club seeing more support, Dillon said more elite tournaments are making their way to Orlando, which has a ripple effect into the economy.
Orlando will host two 2025 FIFA Club World Cup Matches in July.
“Every day we talk about how important tourism is to our community. A lot of people may not know a ton of that is driven by sports tourism,” he said. “So we are one piece of that, bigger cog in the community to help bring in tourism dollars related to sports tourism in our case.”
