Getty Image / Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times
- The Los Angeles Rams seem aware that their fanbase is small compared to other LA pro sports teams but they’re hoping to change that
- Comments from the Rams’ COO express how the team is really, really hoping this Super Bowl adds some new fans in the stands for the Rams
- Read more articles on BroBible right here
After the Tampa Bay Buccaneers became the first team in NFL history to host AND play in the Super Bowl at the same time, the Los Angeles Rams are doing the same thing in back-to-back years. It’s incredible, really, that it has never happened until last year and now it’s happening two years in a row.
The Super Bowl is sold out every year no matter what. It doesn’t matter which teams are playing, the tickets are still thousands and thousands of dollars. That’s primarily because only about 10-15% of tickets go to each team’s fan bases.
Interestingly, this might play into the hands of the Los Angeles Rams who are hosting but haven’t really developed a big fan base yet since moving to the City of Angels. The Rams were immensely popular in St. Louis but after moving to Los Angeles the fan base is considerably smaller than the Lakers, Dodgers, and Clippers who have all had decades of success to build the fanbase.
Los Angeles Rams chief operating officer Kevin Demoff tells ESPN’s Brady Henderson that they are hoping to use this Super Bowl as an opportunity to jumpstart their tiny fanbase. I wouldn’t characterize the comments as desperate but there’s definitely a sense of urgency here.
The LA Rams Are Hope The Super Bowl Brings Them Some New Fans
“I think it’s an unprecedented opportunity for the Los Angeles Rams. When you get a chance to play in the Super Bowl, that always helps win fans’ hearts and minds. When you get a chance to host a Super Bowl, that obviously helps elevate your brand, the SoFi Stadium brand, the NFL in Los Angeles as a whole. When you combine those two, it’s an unbelievably powerful mix to develop that next generation of fandom.”
He added that the team hopes to be on the level of the Lakers and Dodgers in the future with fans filling the stadium and cheering so loud they lose their voices. During a Zoom session with reporters, Demoff said
“I absolutely believe that we can be at the level the Dodgers and Lakers have been and continue to be, but those teams have [had] decades of success and championships and building a fan base and building a deep, multicultural fan base. Stars, legends, Hall of Famers and building on consistency. … The next two weeks are important, but so is 2022, and so is 2023.
“You cannot get to be at the pinnacle of this market by having one great season. You get to the pinnacle of this market by having great season after great season after great decade after great decade — and building fans and generations of fans with that. That only comes with sustained success and sustained investment in the market, in the community, in schools. Building relationships. That’s not overnight.”
The Los Angeles Rams will always be fighting an uphill battle because there were existing NFL teams in California who have seen enormous success over the span of generations. They aren’t going to convert many children of lifelong 49ers or Chargers fans. But this Super Bowl is certainly an opportunity to get the city partying and celebrating the team. If they win it all they’ll be able to throw a championship parade for the city which will certainly win over some fans.
Right now, the talk on social media is of the ‘Rams Bandwagon’ but that could change in the coming days as they convert bandwagon fans into real, long-term fans.
How many celebrities in LA just discovered they have a local football team in town called the Rams and they better get on the bandwagon … ?
— Eddie Trunk (@EddieTrunk) January 31, 2022
Rob Lowe has jumped off the NFL and onto the Rams bandwagon.#NFLPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/XBv0ANX0gb
— Sportsbet.com.au (@sportsbetcomau) January 31, 2022
I’ll be rooting for Joe Burrow in this game. It’s hard not to, but it’ll still be fun if the Rams win.