Putnam replaces Fidelity

It was announced recently that Putnam Investments replaced Fidelity Investments as a major sponsor for Gillette Stadium. I went to the NE Revolution game Wednesday night to see the new signs for the first time.



Given the way the Revolution are playing (do you call that soccer?), it is probably a good thing for Fidelity to break their association.

World-Record Kite Event

World-Record Kite Event: "'The New England Children’s Foundation (NE Children’s Foundation), bringing the technology community together to raise funds for grassroots charities benefiting the children of New England, today announced an officially-sanctioned attempt at breaking the Guinness world record for most kites flown simultaneously. The goal of the fundraising event is to simultaneously fly 1,000 kites, to break the current Guinness World Record of 967, established in Germany during August 2008.The family-friendly event will be held on October 11, 2009 and hosted by Patriot Place.'

http://www.patriot-place.com/article.aspx?id=2042

Canned goods for Greater Boston Food Bank

For those of you coming to next Saturday's match against Colorado, please consider bringing a canned good with you to help out the Greater Boston Food Bank.

Donate at the gates and receive a coupon

Time: May 16, 2009 from 6:30pm to 8:15pm
Location: Gillette Stadium gates
Organized By: The Revolution

Event Description:
The New England Revolution has announced plans to collect canned goods on behalf of the Greater Boston Food Bank, extending a partnership with the City of Boston and Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino’s Mayor’s Food & Fuel Campaign that began earlier this spring.

Each fan who makes a donation of a canned good at the Revolution match against the Colorado Rapids at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 16, will receive a coupon for a free 12 oz. soda at that night’s match. Donations will be accepted at the stadium gates, beginning one hour before kickoff until halftime.

Thank you Sony!

thank you Sony!

You can find an additional picture and recap of my good experience at this logistic marvel of a recycling event can be found here

Mobile post sent by shersteve using Utterz. Replies.

9/11 at Gillette

9/11 at Gillette for the Revs game

Mobile post sent by shersteve using Utterz. Replies.

Recycle electronics at Gillette - Saturday, 9/13/08

On Saturday, Sept. 13, Sony Electronics Inc. and Waste Management Recycle America are planning some interceptions of their own with a recycling event to collect old electronic devices and keep them from the waste stream.

The drive-through event, which will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the stadium, is part of Sony's Take Back Recycling program, which provides free recycling for its products. On Saturday, however, all brands of electronics will be accepted, including everything from cell phones, computers and monitors, to televisions, radios, DVD and MP3 players, pagers, personal digital assistants and other devices.

"It's all brands of household electronics," said Wes Muir, director of corporate communications for Waste Management. The event does not include white goods, microwaves, power tools, or the like, he said.

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here

Gillette Stadium transforms magically

Gillette Stadium transforms magically, originally uploaded by shersteve.

This photo mosaic attempts to convey some of what the transformation felt like on Friday night at Gillette Stadium. The New England Revolution played the first game of a double header. They beat FC Dallas 2-1 in the first game which was decently attended, approx 11,000 or so.

It was hard to calculate as the stadium from the second half of the Rev's game until 9:00 PM continued to get filled with a steady flow of fans mostly wearing the gold and green of Brazil.

Final attendence was reported at 54,000 plus.

The place was rocking!

This YouTube clip captures some of that rocking feeling!

This YouTube clip captures the entrance of the Brazilian and Venezuelan national teams.

After Venezuela jumped to a 2-0 lead, the place seemed to quite down somewhat. The Brazilian team got booed as they headed to the locker room at the half. They made a spirited effort to comeback during the second half but the scored remained 2-0.

We were fortunate to see all five goals for the evening scored in front of us. The Revs scored twice in the first half and surrendered a late goal to FC Dallas as that game finished 2-1. Both Venezuelan goals were in front of us. The first was an officiating mistake. The line judge was out of position to call an offside on Venezuela and the player ended up one-on-one with the goalie. The second Venezuelan goal was a good move on their part assisted by a break down on the Brazilian defense.

My seat neighbor, a Brazilian native now living in Clinton, MA was happy to have such a community feeling in the stadium. He was a little upset that his team did not play good defence like the Boston Celtics.

Patriots Place Traffic

I do hope the Patriots have a plan for the traffic. Going to the New England Revolution soccer games has been more challenging than usual with the construction underway in areas that used to be stadium parking. With so many more folks going to the Patriots' games, I can just image what a mess it could be.

Team officials plan to enforce parking restrictions in the lots around the Patriot Place stores. Shoppers will get tickets that allow vehicles to be parked for free in lots next to the stores, but there will be time restrictions to keep out tailgaters and people attending the game.

So I guess that also means that you shouldn't plan on stopping at one of the stores to do any shopping before the game.

Read what the Boston Globe says about it here.

NE Revolution - Beckham Game

NE Revolution - Beckham Game, originally uploaded by shersteve.

Yes, a great crowd (35,402) showed up for the "Beckham game". The MLS write-up for the game can be found here.

Just as the National Anthem finished we had a pair of Air Force F15 fighter jets fly over Gillette Stadium.

The End Zone Militia had reason to celebrate when Taylor Twellman scored in the 55th minute to give the Revs a 1-0 lead which held up for the final score.

Nice game. Beckham sat on the bench and did not play.

Good experience: Beckham's goal

In case you might have missed some of the hoopla, David Beckham has joined the LA Galaxy MLS soccer team and travels to play our own New England Revolution this afternoon.

The media is making a big deal of Beckham's arrival. ESPN is absolutely gaga over it.

I love what David has to say:

"I've said this so often, people back home don't want to hear it anymore," he begins. "America is the most sports-loving country in the world. I know all about baseball, basketball, football, and ice hockey, and all the great athletes there. I know that soccer will never be in that category in this country. I wish it could be, because it is so exciting.

"But it can achieve a higher place. I know about the traditions the other sports have. That can't change, and it shouldn't change. But I do think we can raise the level of interest in soccer."

For all the hype, David is indeed a quality ball player and worthy icon. He has been consistent in his approach and I like that. Read the full Globe sports article here.

Whether he gets to bend a ball later today at Gillette is up to his health status. While this is the first time he is here, it won't be the last. No matter whether the crowd will be like this or a full stadium (picture to be inserted here later), there will still be 11 players on two sides facing each other over one ball to play the game.

May the best game be played and may the best team win.

Go Revs!

NERevs_Harrisburg_US Open Cup

NERevs_Harrisburg_US Open
Originally uploaded by shersteve

Hold this picture in your memory for a bit.

Sunday, the LA Galaxy arrive at Gillette Stadium with David Beckham and the stadium will be considerably more populated than it was on Wednesday night. The NE Revolution played the Harrisburg City Islanders (a USL Division 2 club) in the fourth round of the US Open Cup and won 2-1.

Harrisburg played well, surprising the Revs with a goal in the 78th minute to make the closing of the game exciting.

While about 2,000 appeared to see this good soccer game Wednesday, a "sell out" crowd of 32,000 is expected for Sunday's game. It looks like David Beckham may play... here's to hoping we get to see a classic bending ball.