2009-2010 Arsenal America Membership
July 1, 2009
Arsenal America Premium Membership applications for the 2009-2010 season are now being accepted.
Please join with fellow American Gooners and participate in the many activities of the official supporters club in the USA of the world’s greatest football club!
For a new membership, please click “Register” in the widget on the right of this page and follow the directions for Premier membership. Renewals, please click “Login” or “Membership Details.”
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177 Responses to “2009-2010 Arsenal America Membership”
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July 2nd, 2009 at 1:24 pm
As an Arsenal America Premium member, what is the process for
applying for tickets to a match. Fixtures were out on June 17th, as it says under “TICKETS” above… just wanted to know how it will work this year.
First come, first serve… etc?
July 2nd, 2009 at 3:07 pm
Yes, first-come, first-served, number of tickets available contingent upon how many AFC gives us on a fixture-by-fixture basis, in addition to the pool of season tickets we have. We’re expecting the new format for ticket orders to be ready hopefully tomorrow. The new changes will be an effort to stream-line the process a bit from what it was last year. Keep checking back daily; we’ll post the info asap!
July 2nd, 2009 at 4:40 pm
Will do.
July 3rd, 2009 at 1:51 pm
All Done!
July 3rd, 2009 at 9:00 pm
What’s all done?
There isn’t a procedure to procure tickets?!
July 3rd, 2009 at 9:40 pm
so…i’m dying to catch some matches this season – are there any ArseAm trips being scheduled yet? If so, do I really have to pay for a membership just for one ticket? how does this work?
July 4th, 2009 at 10:01 am
I believe you do. Otherwise you’re on your own getting tickets!
July 4th, 2009 at 12:02 pm
Only paid members are eligible for the club’s tickets. There’s been early discussions of a trip but nothing definitive yet.
July 4th, 2009 at 1:53 pm
I just renewed my membership – that’s all. Just making sure to pay my dues! No tickets – just dues. I’ll worry about tickets when I know if I get a bonus at the end of the year to make a trip
July 7th, 2009 at 5:51 am
Dave, I once tried to become a subscribed member of Arsenal America a few years ago when I lived in Europe but I wasn’t smart with paypal and didn’t trust it, so I never paid.
The reality is I’d love to financially support Arsenal America. I’ll be spending most of the upcoming season in some remote place supporting the country’s contingency operations (formerly known as the global war or terror) and won’t be in need of any tickets. However, I would like assurances that the discussion component of the website would remain intact.
Contrary to your belief, the discussions here are not the same as everywhere else and people from all over the world come to Arsenal America to receive insight and even ideas to post on their own websites. Hate it or love it, the discussion is the cream of this site. We have a real gem here and it would be a shame to see the interest in this site go away in an attempt to establish a forum with lesser ambition.
July 7th, 2009 at 10:15 am
If you support Arenal and you are American, you really should support Arsenal america by paying your dues even if you don’t plan to attend a match. The money is used to keep the website up, keep our relationship and correspondance with the club up and does a lot of good to ensure that there will be tickets for those of us who do travel over.
So don’t think of it as paying $25 to get nothing, you are helping the greater cause of the organization and helping keep things running. A lot of folks put a lot of volunteer time in each year, but there’s still a need to cover cost.
So fork over the $25 to help support a good thing.
July 7th, 2009 at 11:48 am
Gee, that’s a convincing arguement Dave P?
Seriously?
July 7th, 2009 at 12:34 pm
so…does paying the $25 mean that when it comes down to it and there’s a trip across the pond, I’ll be gauranteed the opportunity to buy a ticket to a match?
July 7th, 2009 at 1:48 pm
No – you need to plan ahead and get your request in – there’s only so many tickets available. Arsenal America have a lot of resources to other tickets as well through silver memberships and other group relationships, so with advance notice, I’m sure tickets can be had. Chelsea, ManU and Spurs are probably the hardest to get.
July 7th, 2009 at 1:49 pm
I’m just stating that if you post out here and are a fan even if you don’t go over for a match – help the group out.
Have you?
July 7th, 2009 at 2:49 pm
Yes.
I have.
But in these economic times, $25 to post on a website, is ridiculous.
July 7th, 2009 at 2:51 pm
Nothing is guaranteed.
But I have always been able to get a ticket to the match… but that liason
was Rick Breese… not sure who the liason is now.
July 7th, 2009 at 3:32 pm
Rick’s friend Simon was last year – assuming still the same.
July 7th, 2009 at 3:34 pm
Cool! I agree – it’s tough times, but it provides everyone a chance to potentially see a match. I’m not getting over this year, but like to know we still have a supporters club that will be able to get me tickets as they have many times in the past.
July 7th, 2009 at 8:08 pm
Dave, my concern isn’t about paying as I’ve already indicated I’d be more than happy to. My concern is the direction in which the site is moving. It seems as if the site is trying to eliminate the discussion component. If that’s the case, then it’s not worth my wild to pay.
In order for his proposed endeavor to succeed, David is going to need a bunch of writers and they’ll have to be very talented. I don’t think he has that but the truth is I don’t know what he has in store. Like I always say, time will tell.
July 7th, 2009 at 9:06 pm
It is a membership not a subscription.
If you hate something you won’t find it the “cream” or a “gem.”
July 7th, 2009 at 9:08 pm
Yes and M.
July 7th, 2009 at 9:38 pm
and it would be nice to know what “they” have in store for the site, before you start accepting $25 memberships!
July 7th, 2009 at 11:02 pm
as an aside, who here went to the recent arseamerica thing in nyc? i know dave f because his user name is such…but who else on this board may i have met there? i’m dave, by the way, mike k’s cousin. i was at the game at chelsea piers, and the pub afterward, but was only at nevada smith’s for about an hour.
anyway, getting back to topic, i don’t have any reservations about paying $25 for this website if i thought it provided more than just a forum to wine about wenger’s bad managerial decisions and the athletic ineptness of certain players, lol…so, that said, are there ANY concrete plans yet for a trip to the emirates? Also, I’m sure at least some people have gotten arsenal tickets directly through the company – is it recommendable? Easy? Thanks in advance…
July 7th, 2009 at 11:07 pm
oops, i meant to say that i know dave kilpatrick because of his username. by the way, what’s up man? i couldn’t remember what your email was, but i want to talk to you about better organizing any and all nyc gooners. i know a whole bunch of brooklyn supporters one of whom is even trying to open an arsenal pub in kings county.
July 7th, 2009 at 11:14 pm
it’s me again – so…what about a trip to see chelsea away on 2/6 and liverpool at home on 2/9?
July 7th, 2009 at 11:55 pm
Dave, I didn’t make the connection! You can email me at president@arsenalamerica.com
July 7th, 2009 at 11:56 pm
Extremely hard tix to secure. We’ll have a very limited number.
July 8th, 2009 at 12:16 am
directly thru what company?
do you mean from the Arsenal Football Club?
Would be very difficult from overseas!
July 8th, 2009 at 12:46 am
Not if you have a red level membership in the Arsenal. You just need to act quickly when the tix are released to members at that level.
July 9th, 2009 at 5:22 am
Subscribed memeber, paid member, upgraded member, whatever. I still called it a membership.
If you really hate the discussion component of the site that much then, by all means, move forward with your good ideas to making the site more successful. Proceed with caution and do beware the good idea fairy. Fairies aren’t real. Good luck.
July 9th, 2009 at 7:12 am
Red membership not only gives you an opportunity to buy when tickets go on sale to Red Members, but also the opportunity, at any time, to enter the Arsenal ticket exchange and ‘buy’ a ticket off of a Gold (Season ticket) member who is not going to be able to make the game.
Last year there were 200 red members or so who used the ticket exchange and attended EVERY SINGLE MATCH just as if they were season ticket holders.
July 9th, 2009 at 8:04 am
And you get a box of goodies!
July 9th, 2009 at 10:50 am
does anyone know anything about how the epl is handling games being broadcast in the states? fsc will still be airing some but what about setanta? espn?
July 9th, 2009 at 4:00 pm
How about a new thread?!
July 10th, 2009 at 5:27 pm
Just payed up. As a paying member, i feel you should delete the ability to comment for nonpaying members. I feel the ability to comment on posts and discuss the club’s activities is crucial, but why should people who aren’t members of the supporters club get a voice?
July 10th, 2009 at 7:59 pm
Go back to BigSoccer.
Plain and simple.
You don’t participate on this site, and you only paid up because it enables you to get tickets.
People have a voice if they don’t pay… because its AMERICA.
You know, Freedom of Speech??!
July 10th, 2009 at 8:00 pm
and… MANY of the people on the site, are not from America, so they can’t
“pay up”… they aren’t allowed to be “members”.
July 10th, 2009 at 10:08 pm
Antifan is a “moderator” on Big Soccer.
July 11th, 2009 at 12:12 am
So far, I have been extremely unimpressed with the ATTITUDE of this new AAm board.
I have NEVER been in a site where it CHARGE for posting comments.
I have NEVER been in a site where the regulars seem to be so UNWELCOMED by the webmasters.
I have NEVER been in a site where the subject of member fees being so reguarly mentioned.
Just… Who do they think they are? Facebook? With millions of users log on everyday so with or without these few regulars here won’t make much a difference?
To hell with you lot. If I am not wanted here simply because I am not a paid member (due to the fact I am not living in US, so what’s the membership for ppl like me?), I am off to somewhere else, as AAm wish.
I will come back here once for a while in the future and just to see how this new CHANGE take ArsenalAmerica to.
ONe quote from Samuel Butler to sum up how i feel about the NEW AAm (’s new change of direction) – “I am an idealist, I don’t know where I am heading, but I am on my way.”
hope you guys know where you are heading to. good luck.
July 11th, 2009 at 1:26 am
Pretty sad commentary Andez, as you’ve been here from very early on…
but that is EXACTLY what they want.
They do not want anyone posting on this site.
They won’t say it exactly… but why would you want to be on the board, to basically shut the site down with what its been about since its inception?
Its a means to get tickets. OK.
I’m on board.
But the schedule was out almost a month ago, and we still don’t have the process… who decides who gets the tickets?
That’s THE big question… is it TRULY first come first serve?
or is that going to be a popularity contest?
July 11th, 2009 at 2:35 pm
No i don’t participate in the discussions on this site, because it isn’t a discussion board. But i do participate in ArsenalAmerica, and have been to many of the “podunk” meetups that you deride. In my opinion, those are the real reason for ArsenalAmerica, to help fans meet each other in person. At the last in NYC i saw Mike K and Ryan, who i first met at a meetup in Chicago. And i saw Jeff L and Steph, who i met during an ArsenalAmerica roadtrip in London. Also met David Kilpatrick for the first time. I think he’s doing a great job, and i look forward to seeing him at future meetups. Like i said, this site is supposed to be the voice of the supporters club, not a chat room for a bunch of saddos.
July 11th, 2009 at 2:43 pm
Setting up the ticket process takes time and money. And money is one thing that Arsenal America is lacking. Last season they couldn’t even pay for tickets for the first two games. A few Arsenal America members have payed big money out of their own pockets to finance the purchase of tickets. But you won’t even pay your dues unless your sure your gonna go to a game.
July 12th, 2009 at 10:18 am
It’ll be tough though Andez to go on to a different board and post. I wonder though if we could all stay together somehow. Tough the way things are going.
I understand a bit where the new AA is coming from. Yes, it costs money etc etc etc and its not my money which is paying it considering I’m never going to sign up. I do wonder though – How much does it take to keep a server up and a thread a week? Considering the infrastructure that’s needed (which is in place already) I’m guessing its not much at all. All the same its not my money so I can relate to what the board says.
Having said that I do wish that something as simple as posting messages was really free. Its really not something fancy , surely you could keep both going simultaenously? AA got a lot of its popularity due to the quality of the posters and its posts IMO. So this seems to be something like “Killing the goose which laid the golden eggs..”. Oh well..I guess it’ll be all over in a month. Kinda sad..it’ll take a little bit away from the new season.
July 12th, 2009 at 10:01 pm
This site was set up to allow the people who regularly post on the ArseAm supporters club site to continue their conversations:
http://youaremyarsenal.com/blog/
There’s loads of others, too…
Not seeing any “golden eggs.” How, exactly, does it benefit a supporters club to host conversations among non-members? No, please, I ask this rhetorically…
July 12th, 2009 at 10:50 pm
so perhaps Big Soccer should be the site for the “official Arsenal Americans”.
how much does it cost to be a member?
Again, there are people here that have been here for YEARS, and they can’t pay dues, they are not from the US…
In your demented world, they shouldn’t even be able to post on the site!
Yes, paying $25 for dues… and getting nothing in return, other than being able to say… “I’m a member of Arsenal America”… is ridiculous.
July 12th, 2009 at 10:52 pm
David.
Please… why not make the statement about exactly what you plan to do… before you start collecting dues?
And… please… when will there be information about the procedure on getting match tickets?
Why not just disable the ability to post to non-members… that way you get what you want.
July 13th, 2009 at 1:55 am
David – If AA was supposed to be a business then its goals werent clear for a long time now. I joined this site in 2004 somewhere or early 2005. Why was it allowed to run for so long with all these “unwanted” discussions then? Obviously its to build it up a little bit before going commercial. And all those “free” discussions helped. And whether you like it or not, whether you believe it or not – my opinion is that this is(was) up there in the top few Arsenal forums on the web. This was possible because of intelligent discussion among its members. Maybe last year it tapered off a little bit..but by and large its still ok i guess.
I don’t have a problem with you going commercial at all. I understand its a “free” service you are offering. I’m just saying, isn’t it possible to keep both going side by side. If no..lets just say that and be done with it, I’ll understand – it isn’t my money. I agree with Stag though..lets just disable the feature and be done with it. You wont have to put up with “rebel” posts like these.
July 13th, 2009 at 2:21 am
My point is – when planning for a change of direction, somehow the new AA board forgot about what the primary purpose of founding a supporter club, and the basic meaning of a supporter club is all about -
Wasn’t it all about to let the fellow Arsenal supporters to have a chance gathering together to support Arsenal? to chat about the club?
Here on AA, you got a place for the Arsenal fans to meet up in the cyber space in a regular basis chating about Arsenal for the past few years, isn’t it this the whole thing is all about?
let’s face it, America is a hugh country. Even if i were staying in US now, the chance for me to meet up with fellow Arsenal supporters would not be as likely, or as frequently as I have been here in AA, the cyber space.
by planning all those changes, they seem to forget about why they wanted to found a supporters club and creating a website at the first place?
July 13th, 2009 at 10:22 am
I’ve not been here for a very very long time as I now frequent another Arsenal site that I’m now a member of. I’m also a paying Red member as I have been for many years and for my dues I get nice little gifties as well as tickets.
In the time I became familiar with AA I met up with Rick several times, most recently in Boston and Mike a few times. The fun and banter that went on back in the old days seems to be long gone.
Whether this is the official club supporters club site or not, I agree that for $25 you should get something, and you should know what this is in advance. Many of you have been or long to go the THOF and this place is supposed to be a means to get there.
What is sad in my opinion is that it seems this has become a very draconian place where you have to sign over pretty much everything and conform to all set in black in white just to go and watch a game. Having access to tickets is great, dont get me wrong, but do it in a manner which is friendly and doesnt feel like you are applying for a mortgage. (The process is my mind needs to be revisited, but people do need to pay there dues for the tickets)
As for a having a place that Arsenal fans can congregate and chat about all sorts of matters related to Arsenal, our fans in this country and globally need this. Why send them to bigsoccer or any one of the numerous blogs in the UK? Surely you would prefer that American Arsenal fans stay here? But that said, in the age of the digital world please dont tell me that $25 gets me access to something I can get for free elsewhere.
July 13th, 2009 at 12:18 pm
Andez.
The site has been taken over by people who do not care a damn about
the original intent of the site. It is being used and changed to do something
they want.
Not sure how the board members are voted in or whether they are… or what say the club has in that… these are the key questions going forward.
July 13th, 2009 at 12:20 pm
With this “administration”… it’s a different kettle of fish.
July 13th, 2009 at 1:11 pm
Just curious.
All this while, things were running fine. Paid members got (a chance to get) tickets. Others could only post.
What changed? Apart from the administration.
July 13th, 2009 at 3:58 pm
The new administration of the supporters club inherited a number of issues that need to be addressed.
July 13th, 2009 at 4:00 pm
We had a great bit of live banter, including Rick & Mike, just a couple of weeks ago.
We’re trying to streamline the ticketing process and that’s why there’s a delay in disseminating info on this season’s tickets.
July 13th, 2009 at 4:04 pm
stag133, the irony of your statement gives me a bit of a chuckle. Yes, indeed, the supporters club site has been “taken over by people who do not care a damn about the original intent of the site,” that is, the supporters club. If the site had been intended to discuss daily rumours, etc., it would have been set up as such and we wouldn’t display a widget for the discussion boards run in association with ArseAm hosted on bigsoccer.com
July 13th, 2009 at 5:11 pm
I don’t know what you mean about making a statement before we start collecting dues. I really don’t understand what on Earth you’re on about that.
I’m hoping the ticketing info will be in place by the end of this week but it isn’t something I can control.
So you want us to preserve discussion but then you criticize me for not disabling the ability to post here???
July 13th, 2009 at 5:59 pm
This has nothing to do with money. If David had money problems, he’s smart enough to just say “hey boys, I could do with some donations to keep the site we all love up and running”. That would have been too easy and he would have gotten more than $25; certainly from myself. The problem with that is discussion would still be the dominating part of the forum.
Last week I asked David something along the lines of whether he appreciated how special the discussion component of Arsenal America was. His reply was something along the lines of, it’s impossible to appreciate something that you hate. That sounds personal to me. Not only that but most Presidents at least try and appear to serve the majority of the people.
I’ll be the first to admit I was disappointed to read some of the filth that was posted here during the last season. If that’s what David means when compares comments posted here to other websites then I’ll have to agree with him. However, that behavior is far from typical on this site. Another truth is that it’s an easy problem to deal with as there were only a few posters typing the vile we all read. Simply warn them that their poor comments could result in their membership being revoked and they either clean it up or their off.
Lastly, I find it difficult to believe that many were in favor of removing the discussion facet from the site. It wouldn’t surprised me at all if the paying members David said were interested in changing the site could be counted on one hand. Who in their right mind would think it a good idea to actually stand up and maintain an Arsenal Football Club website where you were not allowed to discuss Arsenal or football?
July 13th, 2009 at 6:03 pm
I’ve asked which direction the site is going in before I become a paying member but I’ve gotten no reply. Is there even a plan? Who’s going to write all of these great magazine-style articles?
July 13th, 2009 at 6:34 pm
It figures.
July 13th, 2009 at 6:42 pm
…which was woefully communicated to the “masses”.
Instead you come out of no where and tell fans who have been commenting on this site solely for the over 5 years straight to f$”k off……afterall our country is solely about the money
Then you get some bigsoccer idiots who never even visited this site coming and rubbing salt in the wounds.
July 13th, 2009 at 6:44 pm
Am still waiting for those answers before I “donate” my cash to the site.
July 13th, 2009 at 6:49 pm
You seem to lack a basic understanding of why people would visit a website for several years in the first place. Ah well. At least this isnt the board’s day job.
July 13th, 2009 at 7:29 pm
This site was never designed for discussion or to at least give that impression to the passing observer?
Strange. For the last five years the administrators used to put up previews, reports, and various other editorials, with the word ‘discuss’ at the bottom of each. I also think that’s why this site has had managed to build up a tidy bunch of posters over the years.
It would be more accurate to say this adminstration doesn’t intend for this site to be a discussion forum, as the previous adminstration quite clearly were in favour of it to some extent.
Anyway, I understand where your coming from but it all seems very ‘cold’ and attempts to feign compromise are pretty transparent.
July 13th, 2009 at 7:40 pm
Bigsoccer is american based and has long been the preferred discussion board for American Arsenal fans. The vast majority of fellow fans across the country who i’ve met at meetups and games post on the Arsenal board at big soccer. Almost none post here.
July 13th, 2009 at 8:00 pm
How would you know since you never visit here other than to get your tickets?
Surely your ego is not so big as to assume you know the preference of the majority of American Arsenal fans.
July 13th, 2009 at 8:02 pm
For five years? Try EIGHT!
The idea that there should be “no commets” is a sudden decision by the new board.
July 13th, 2009 at 8:02 pm
Anyway, hope Man City are really serious about offering 20 million for Adebayor.
July 13th, 2009 at 8:24 pm
All i know are the dozens of fans from BigSoccer that i’ve met in person. How many of your fellow posters here have you shook hands or had a drink with?
July 13th, 2009 at 11:44 pm
DK.
It is pretty damned obvious you have a plan in place.
I highly doubt you will “preserve discussion”, it is not something you are remotely interested in, as you don’t discuss here, and never have… and you are a Big Soccer person.
So… as your buddy Antifan said… non-paying members should not be able to post! If you just do what you want to… and disable the ability to post to non-paying / non=American members, you’ll have exactly what you wanted in
the first place.
So … if that’s the plan, whats the delay?
“JUST DO IT”.
or
Outline what you are going to do with the site.
Bearing in mind, I doubt the “board”… is eternal, so at some point, there will be a new President, and new board members…
July 13th, 2009 at 11:46 pm
That sir… is strictly your opinion. We all have one.
Very happy I gave you a bit of chuckle… hope you’ll be able to
reciprocate someday with something witty/positive or even funny.
July 13th, 2009 at 11:50 pm
It’s a website Antifan.
It’s a new world, where you can chat and give opinion and discussion on the world wide web.
It’s the way of the world. I’ve met fellow Arsenal Americans too… that’s wonderful, but it doesn’t make Big Soccer any better (or worse) than Arsenal America or other sites.
Again, your OPINION that it is the “preferred” anything… it is just opinion, not fact.
July 13th, 2009 at 11:51 pm
and I “rarely” agree with Fred, but that about sums it up…
July 13th, 2009 at 11:54 pm
Fred, you should really go over to Big Soccer to discuss that!
This board isn’t for discussion, even though it has been exactly what the site has been about for the previous 8 years.
July 14th, 2009 at 1:34 am
there’s also another question -
BEFORE AA turned official, this was NOTHING BUT a DISCUSSION board. When i said “nothing”, it’s literally NOTHING here apart from our daily discussions between the regulars.
Now imagine this scenrio – that WITHOUT the daily visiting of the regulars here, would AA have the chance to turned OFFICIAL (website) at the first place?
surely Arsenal FC wouldn’t want to link themselves to a website which had nobody there would they?
now congrats, you have your OFFICIAL website, and the rest of us who were here BEFORE that happened can f*ck off elsewhere?
The most funny thing so far is – alll a sudden we saw many NEW NAMES whom (those of us who visited here year in year out) had rarely seen before popped up and telling us what to do with this site?!
like i said before, you can’t FOOL any regular here who’s the regulars of this site and who’s not. And we were here EVERYDAY, and we KNOW.
July 14th, 2009 at 2:03 am
Antifan,
So your meeting of Arsenal fans from bigsoccer is supposed to be proof that bigsoccer is where the majority of American Arsenal fans visit???
There is a big jump in logic there pal.
I met 7 Arsenal fans at a bar in Hamburg, Germany in 2005 …. am sure that bar is the most popular bar in Europe for Arsenal fans
July 14th, 2009 at 2:47 am
antifan Replied:
July 13th, 2009 at 7:40 pm
Bigsoccer is american based and has long been the preferred discussion board for American Arsenal fans. The vast majority of fellow fans across the country who i’ve met at meetups and games post on the Arsenal board at big soccer. Almost none post here.
——————————————————————————————
That’s not something to be proud of. It probably shows one harsh fact – few people probably have even heard that there’s a ArsenalAmerica supporters club website called “ArsenalAmerica”.
If i were the one in charge of this site, my first task would be – focusing on drawing more people to come here. Instead of making all those meaningless changes.
cos let’s FACE IT – it doesn’t matter what the new features you got over here, it would be totally pointless if no one ever come here to see it.
July 14th, 2009 at 3:00 am
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/robertpeston/2009/07/ive_obtained_a_copy_of.html
Very interesting read.
July 14th, 2009 at 4:59 am
I’ve personally met at least two dozen Arsenal fans that regularly post on BigSoccer. I think that’s more regulars that post here. Care to answer my question, Fred? Or can i safely assume you’ve never met another member of ArsenalAmerica?
July 14th, 2009 at 5:03 am
Weird, because many of us have paid our dues, as well as participating in ArsenalAmerica activities. But commenting on blogs is more important than meeting other fans and going to games, right?
July 14th, 2009 at 5:12 am
I feel sorry for the people whose main outlet to talk about Arsenal is this website. I really do…
July 14th, 2009 at 10:05 am
Hi Guys,
I see I have returned to a hotbet of controversy. Well, so be it.
Here is my solution. Leave AA to its ticket priorities, which is fine. And move all the venting, bickering and “making it personal” heated debate – which I love – to the You are My Arsenal site, the rodeo clown of Gooner forum.
I’ve already signed up at YAMA and posted an Ade exits comment to get the ball rolling. (What a traitor I am! I dared to suggest Bendtner alone might not do the job.)
See all you haters over here -
http://youaremyarsenal.com/blog/
July 14th, 2009 at 10:16 am
Antifan… its OK, we understand that Arsenal America is the vehicle for Big Soccer members to get tickets to matches. It is pretty easy to see that this is the reason, so that a certain group can control the tickets the club gives to its American fans…
As far as the people that actually use the site… to hell with them.
July 14th, 2009 at 11:07 am
Don’t be so lazy as to mis-paraphrase me out of context when that context is above. You used the phrase “love it or hate it” and I responded to the way you phrased something. If this site was designed for discussion it would be easier to track those kinds of responses but you can find it and see what I really said.
No, nothing posted here and none of the interaction with regular posters on this, the club’s site, has fostered any feelings of endearment. And no, I see and have not seen – for a few years now – anything “special” about the discussion on this site and I’m not alone in that sentiment. Indeed, I’m serving the majority of ArseAm members in shifting this site in a direction that better serves the aims and needs of the supporters club. None of the many friends I’ve made through ArseAm disagree with me on this.
July 14th, 2009 at 11:09 am
Who said we’re going to have “all of these great magazine-style articles”? We’re not selling or producing a magazine. Magazine-format is the term used by our web-designer for what will be the new look.
July 14th, 2009 at 11:11 am
We haven’t made a decision to delete the ability to comment.
When this website first started it was interesting. That was long ago. Reading twelve guys kvetching about Wenger isn’t.
July 14th, 2009 at 11:15 am
Andes, that’s not true and is a grossly inaccurate account of the history of the club, its site and its discussion boards.
Daily visiting regulars on the website had NOTHING to do with the supporters club turning official. Your post here betrays the flaw in your thoughts on this: we’re talking about a supporters club but you keep talking about a site. AFC didn’t “link themselves to a website.” Oi!
New names? Well, yes, in my case I modified it to my personal name for accountability’s sake. But no, I haven’t cared to chime in on the “banter.”
So what if you were here everyday. So what. If you aren’t a member of the supporters club why should we care?
July 14th, 2009 at 11:19 am
You really don’t get it, Andes. The discussions you’re so proud of have TURNED PEOPLE AWAY from the website. The core group of posters aren’t engaging in such intelligent discourse that it would in any way appeal to a broader readership/membership. FACE that.
The “harsh fact” that I’ve learned is that the core group of posters to this site have no interest in the aims and activities of Arsenal America.
July 14th, 2009 at 12:01 pm
You are still repeating the rather ridiculous logic that meeting a few fans makes BigSoccer the most popular American site.
I have been on this website for almost 6 years now. And visited almost EVERY day of those years. When I first joined I was working in Germany. And I have met tons of American fans there.
But no, I have been unable to meet Mazza in the UK or LDE in India. Sorry.
And now that I am back in Upstate NY, I have absolutely no intention of joining you at Bigsoccer. You are a very poor advert for the site you moderate pal.
July 14th, 2009 at 12:27 pm
I’m in and have already posted. Hope to see the rest of you there soon
July 14th, 2009 at 1:30 pm
ENOUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
To quote Grand Moff Tarkin, “This bickering is pointless!”
The changes to this website will affect the “discussion” portion in the following ways:
Only paid MEMBERS of the supporters club can submit new articles.
ANYONE with a website account can comment on existing articles.
That’s it. Those are the only changes.
Everyone needs to calm the hell down.
July 14th, 2009 at 1:42 pm
Thanks Mike.
July 14th, 2009 at 2:00 pm
ArsenalAmerica is a supporters club, it’s more than just a website. But i’m curious, you’ve gone to games how did you order your tickets? Using ArsenalAmerica.com? Or by contacting Rick on BigSoccer?
July 14th, 2009 at 2:05 pm
I’ve dropped by this site before and saw nothing but rehashed “previews” and match reviews cobbled together from other sites. I found very little in the way of information on tickets, membership, planned meetups, events. They seemed to get lost in the mire of Wenger bashing and sell Adebayor articles. I believe this is the issue the new board is trying to rectify.
July 14th, 2009 at 2:09 pm
Woooooaaah, Mike. Hold on just a second there. Wait a minute. Let’s get something straight here. Are you trying to tell me…that Grand Tarkin’s first name was Moff? Wow, he was more badass than I thought.
July 14th, 2009 at 2:22 pm
Actually, Grand Moff was his title. I have no idea what his first name was.
July 14th, 2009 at 2:44 pm
Thanks for the clarification MikeK. I think some enjoyed leaving the fortunes of the site shrouded in ambiguity and the resulting ‘bickering’ that ensued from it.
July 14th, 2009 at 2:51 pm
From what I understand, the bulk of the discussions will take place away from the main page. The main page will be instead be used to communicate the key messages the supporters club wants to convey – local gatherings, regional gatherings, national gatherings, roadtrips to London, obtaining tickets, etc, etc, etc.
July 14th, 2009 at 5:12 pm
Wow. You deleted my response to this? Quite interesting.
July 14th, 2009 at 6:04 pm
Guys whatever you do please don’t sell you soul to the men in black. Reading between the lines Arsenal FC not happy with the content so they what you to toll the line. Hmm remember what Arsenal FC used to stand for. I don’t even think Chelsea will do that – Force it supportors to support a manager and the club regardless of what we all know is wrong with the club
When this website first started it was interesting. That was long ago. Reading twelve guys kvetching about Wenger isn’t.
That statement Dave says alot about what is wrong with the new crop of Arsenal fans. In wenger we trust whether he f*kup it up or not. Wenger is some sort of God. Those days Arsenal had the back 5 and leadershipna d experience so Wenger’s life very simple now we all know the real Wenger
As an old AA member I still visit this site every week or so to read what Andez, Stagg, Fred, Mazza etc etc all chatting about. I believe in change but this kind of change will kill off this site. Back in 2001 to 2005 this site had alots of traffic due to the content and the people and thanks to AA I met few guys in London and Paris with the AA flag.
If the issue is money why don’t you asked the guys to contribute in the way
July 14th, 2009 at 6:21 pm
Hmm.. Damn what happened to my user name.. True there are some changes going on here!
July 14th, 2009 at 6:22 pm
Please advise the new expected date that this season’s ticket policy will be initiated. Thanks
July 14th, 2009 at 7:01 pm
But what, exactly, is a grand moff?
July 14th, 2009 at 8:43 pm
Not a very regular poster, but a very regular reader. Really sad for the plight of the site now.
Here is a plan:
There are groups that can be started – like blogspot/ orkut/ yahoo etc..
So we can create a group of moderators, put up regular posts and comment away to glory – absolutley free of cost. Better still they come with good collaboration features like, email support when post happen, attach pictures, socialize etc.
Holler if you are interested and I can set you up – FOR FREE..
July 14th, 2009 at 8:45 pm
any one can post and moderators can be chosen by vox populi…
only down side is that we wont have our own web dns. Now I dont think we are too worried about that are we? We just need a place for our banter…
July 14th, 2009 at 8:51 pm
No “men in black” are telling us what to do.
July 14th, 2009 at 8:53 pm
http://youaremyarsenal.com/blog/
July 14th, 2009 at 8:57 pm
Kangaroo, we’re hoping to have the new process confirmed and made public by the end of the week.
July 14th, 2009 at 9:13 pm
Didnt like the layout of that blog much. Its at least 5 years behind in terms of user experience…
blogspot etc has better features and user experience
July 14th, 2009 at 9:14 pm
and who are the web admins of youaremyarsenal.com? What is the guarantee that it wont be AA – II
July 14th, 2009 at 9:30 pm
DK, I should have read the “about” section of the site you posted before i commented; My bad.
My point is that you are already paying for the server, or borrowing it and then getting volunteers to write/maintain the codebase for us right? We dont have to do that if we use a more widely used platform. They have already invented/solved most of what it takes to host a blog. Also if we need new features the likelyhood of someone having solved that is higher as the sheer volume of the community using that is much higher.
For example: here is a dude who has solved the “nested” comments section. http://shamsmi.blogspot.com/2008/07/threaded-comments-in-blogger.html
Let me know your thoughts…
July 14th, 2009 at 9:47 pm
Hari,
I appreciate your recommendation and will pass along the solution to “nested” comments to our web designer but I would also suggest that you pass along your views to the person who has designed You Are My Arsenal. We are paying a designer; no volunteers are handling the codebase, if I understand you correctly.
The big thing is that we don’t want to be hosting someone’s blog and there’s already a plethora of other discussion board sites that are designed to foster the kinds of discussion you find here and that, in most reader’s minds, aren’t that special or distinct from other discussions.
Clearly the site drifted away from serving its primary purpose of promoting the supporters club and its activities or fostering a sense of community among the membership. The discussions allowed by the reply feature have turned more people away from the site than atttracted regular readers and posters and certainly haven’t helped improve our membership numbers.
July 14th, 2009 at 10:29 pm
AA isn’t a “business” but a supporters club run by volunteers. Why was it allowed to run so long like in that fashion? Benign neglect…? No, there hasn’t been some long-term move to commercialize the site and cash-in on discussions, not at all.
July 14th, 2009 at 10:36 pm
Where upstate Fred? We now have a branch in Rochester and I’m hoping one will soon be set up at the relatively new footie pub in Albany (I live downstate but own land in the Mohawk Valley so go up as often as possible).
Antifan’s point, I believe, is that he’s met several Arsenal America members through bigsoccer.com. Just as it was interesting to learn how few regular posters on this site are members of the supporters club it would be interesting to learn if any or how many regular posters on this site have actually met.
July 14th, 2009 at 10:38 pm
You say I’ve “come out of no where” but you obviously have no idea how frequently you’ve seen photos of me on your regular visits here over the years.
July 14th, 2009 at 10:41 pm
I honestly don’t know if I deleted it or if someone else did. This nastiness is dragging on pointlessly, though, and doesn’t do anybody any good.
Do you think, though, that a supporters club should host comments bashing the supporters club from non-members?
July 14th, 2009 at 10:41 pm
I wouldn’t mind at all if he goes but the Vieira rumour has me in a panic.
July 14th, 2009 at 10:50 pm
I have been to games for about a 10 year period. I got tickets through Arsenal America ONE TIME. Not thru Big Soccer. Rick Breese was the liason for Arsenal America at the time.
I know a few folks with season tickets, and thru them, I either bought their tickets, or … they took me places near Highbury that other Arsenal supporters are known to sell their tickets if they aren’t going to the match.
Unlike this recent “wonderful” vibe I get here from the board and Big Soccer members on Arsenal America, I’ve met amazing Arsenal fans from all over the world… and especially in the UK.
July 14th, 2009 at 10:55 pm
Not true, we just haven’t got a clue why you’d want to disable our ability to discuss the Arsenal Football Club on the site, like we have for many years.
It seems to be your goal, along with controlling the ticket distribution for Big Soccer members. Could be wrong, but that seems like what’s going on.
You can still have meet-ups, you can still post threads and stories that you
think are interesting, but you do NOT want to allow the regular posters on here, who have been with the site from the beginning, to do something they enjoy almost daily.
Is this so hard to understand?
Activities of Arsenal America?
If I have the chance to travel… in this economy, I’d be saving my pennies for a trip to see the club play in person… so right now, NO… I am not interested in meet-ups in other cities.
The beauty of the internet allows us to MEET HERE!!! On line, in real time… pre-match, during the match, and after the match.
July 14th, 2009 at 11:07 pm
David, again… it is your opinion that the sites discussion are not distinct from others, those opinions are mainly coming from Big Soccer members. There’s a bit of bias there, isn’t there? But then again, that’s where you post.
How you can determine that the discussions have turned away more readers than they have atttacted… I would love to know. Do you have some sort of statistics on this? I highly doubt it.
Want to improve membership numbers? Try and be a bit more reasonable, and recognize that some folks are not from the US, so they aren’t able to be members, but they might contribute or donate if they are able to still have a say in the sites content.
MikeK.
Thank you for your feedback and information. If that info was given to us, like we have been asking for… then we would all be a bit less pissed off with the commentary, heresay, rhetoric, hyperbole and biased opinion.
July 14th, 2009 at 11:12 pm
Funny, isn’t it? He was putting down Andez grammar, made worse grammatical mistakes himself, than THOSE, off all those here, are the comments that magically disappear.
Seems like the ‘nastiness’ stopped doing good at the exact moment it was embarrassing to him.
July 14th, 2009 at 11:14 pm
Oh right… back in the recent past, we’d actually be discussing Arsenal related items… transfer activity, and / or lack of it.
But we can’t even get a new thread posted… and you wonder why there is tension amongst the regular members? Seriously?
Adebayor possibly going to City… ALL for IT… if we plan on spending the cash on incoming players. If we are not going to spend it, why sell Ade?
Vieira to Spurs?
Please NO!
I don’t want to see Vieira in a Spurs kit. He should be playing for Arsenal… give him a spot as a role player, much like Bergkamp in his last year… just don’t let him go to Spurs. I don’t think Paddy would do it. He loves the club. But its a mad mad mad world.
We still need a defensive midfield presence… and without it, we’ll be in the same situation we where last year, in a dogfight to the end for a 4th place spot.
July 15th, 2009 at 12:12 am
You’re a Bigsoccer member. Do you want some statistics, the last Transfer thread on the Arsenal board had over 80 participants, 8 of whom i’ve met in person. I can’t vouch for the quality of the posts, but people go there to discuss Arsenal because unlike ArsenalAmerica.com, it’s set up as a discussion board.
And i’d like to make one thing clear. I didn’t pay my dues so i can get tickets, i don’t really need ArsenalAmerica or BigSoccer to get tickets anymore. I didn’t pay so i could post my thoughts on this website. I didn’t pay so i could get a bumpersticker or T-shirt. I payed so i could support the organization that made it possible for me to see Arsenal play in person, and to meet fellow fans and make friends across the country and the world. I don’t really need ArsenalAmerica anymore, but i feel i owe it to other fans to help give them the same opportunities that ArsenalAmerica gave me.
July 15th, 2009 at 12:26 am
Webster, just outside the Rochester suburbs.
Yeah, heard about the new branch….still about a 45 minutes drive, so didnt go this last season. That combined with a sick 80 inch high def. my wife shockingly got me, made coming that early quite hard lol. Even when to the PC and streaming, the quality is utterly incredible.
Will probably come out more this season as the new TV smell wears off. Not for the big games though …. I want to see every single pore, every single howler LOL.
July 15th, 2009 at 12:28 am
They feel sad for you too, pal.
July 15th, 2009 at 4:32 am
Vieira to Spurs wouldn’t help them much. Hate to say that, but despite being only one year older than Titi, Paddy is looking very old. Probably had something to do with their different playing style of early years. Henry is a clever man who always save himself in order to make his explosive run. While Paddy was all action box to box who covered every inch of the grass, and threw himself on where it hurt. As a result, I feel that Vieira is well burnt out right now. Also, Spurs would be lucky if Paddy manages to play half of a season for them. His knees had very much gone one or two years ago.
Still, it’s a sin for him to move to Spurs. He should have known better. Man, he’s an Arsenal legend. It would trash his untouchable status with the Arsenal fans overnight.
George Graham was an Arsenal hero. Yet as soon as he moved to Spurs, he became Judas in the eyes of many Gooners.
July 15th, 2009 at 5:10 am
I think your tinfoil hat might be a bit too tight.
July 15th, 2009 at 10:14 am
yes, I find the whole thing a bit amusing. The first time I saw a comment deleted!
yet the original comment from antifan regarding of how he felt “sorry” for us posting here is substained. And I was merely “responding” to antifan’s comment which I found it very DISRESPECTFUL. if they found the subject inappropriate to talk about it here, they should have deleted BOTH instead of just mine.
I now understand how Vieira felt when he was sent off while van Nistelrooy the one who provoked him stayed on the pitch.
Personally, I never went to the BigSoccer board and told ppl there that I feel sorry for them posting there.
“Cos I respect everyone has the right to make his own choice. It’s like golf against football. I personally find the golf the most boring sports in the planet world, but I wouldn’t tell my golf-lover friends that I feel sorry for them having to golf as the sports they love.
July 15th, 2009 at 10:17 am
P.S: before anyone tries to point out my “typo” error again, just wanna say – i know i know. but the “edit” button is gone.
July 15th, 2009 at 11:04 am
Personal attacks like this have no place on this site.
July 15th, 2009 at 11:09 am
Welcome to the world of moderated discussion.
July 15th, 2009 at 11:13 am
MikeK was repeating what’s been said over and over yet you keep insulting us and making demands repeatedly. You haven’t been making a good case for the quality of discussion here…
July 15th, 2009 at 11:16 am
You’re a paid member so why don’t you write an article so you can discuss?
July 15th, 2009 at 11:56 am
Oh, I see… you are just a philanthropist, trying to make the world a better place.
July 15th, 2009 at 11:57 am
Because you’d prefer I discussed it on YANNI or whatever its called!
July 15th, 2009 at 11:59 am
Somehow you feel that ” I feel sorry for the folks that post here” is not an insult?
Of course you don’t.
July 15th, 2009 at 12:00 pm
Just delete it.
And replace it with BigSoccer members insults.
July 15th, 2009 at 12:28 pm
Then what are you doing? What are you trying to do other than annoy?
You’re a paid member now so you are entitled to submit an article. If appropriate, it will be posted. But AGAIN, we’re not looking to be anyone’s blog and we’re not looking to host daily discussion of transfer rumours, match previews and reviews, etc. The quality of “articles” went downhill over some period of time and we’re not going to host that kind of content anymore.
IF Vieira accepts a transfer to Tottnumb (and dear God I hope that won’t happen!) I would think an article from a member expressing what PV4 means to the club and what this move would mean would be interesting.
July 15th, 2009 at 12:30 pm
That’s not what antifan said nor did he make any personal attacks.
July 15th, 2009 at 12:34 pm
I’ll add that to the fascist/communist/tyrant to-do list, thanks. Btw, I tend to avoid a lot of the daily gossip on bigsoccer because the way the discussion forums are threaded and moderated it is easy to do so. This site isn’t constructed that way.
July 15th, 2009 at 1:18 pm
It is very funny. And now it’s become a matter of our behavior being ’stooped down’ to. As opposed to someone with poor ’sentence skills’ condescending to a non-native speaker about his use of grammar. Maybe they should change the name to ArsenalUglyAmerican?
What’s happening is less of a shame than the way it’s happened. It sounds like our insignificant group of 12 (ahem) will find someplace else. I’ve registered at MP’s site, for starters. Hope to see u there. To tell you how wrong you are!!
July 15th, 2009 at 1:33 pm
You mean like Antifan telling Love_G that his tinfoil helmet is on too tight?
July 15th, 2009 at 1:49 pm
I find “I think your tinfoil hat might be a bit too tight” a far cry from being called a fascist, etc. As MikeK said yesterday, quoting Grand Moff Tarkin, “This bickering is pointless!”
July 15th, 2009 at 2:25 pm
I think many of the fans here would also enjoy the discussions on the Steve Gleiber forum.
http://forum.stevegleiber.com/
July 15th, 2009 at 2:32 pm
i have bookmarked the site, will join later. wait until i finished telling AA how wrong they are haha!!
July 15th, 2009 at 2:40 pm
Ha. As Kiwi quite rightly observed, no one’s listening. But vent away, hermano! We’re in the Silly Season, after all.
July 15th, 2009 at 6:11 pm
We may have met, have you been to any Arsenal games or Arsenal America meetups in the last few years?
July 15th, 2009 at 7:00 pm
I think I’ve only ever posted once on this site and it was (ironically) about my first trip to Highbury. But I am a frequent visitor to see the discussions and hear the opinions. The “Special One” might call me a voyeur… ;o)
Based on the heated discussion going around here I thought I’d add my $.02.
I don’t visit other blogs or discussion boards to keep up on Arsenal related topics, maybe I should…I feel like there is something to be said for talking Arsenal on a dedicated Arsenal site, the fact that it is for “Americans” by “Americans” (yet has posters from all over the world) adds to the sites cache. Sometimes the discussions and topics are really interesting and very insightful, other times the constant bickering between “regulars” leaves a little something to be desired. I guess this is what one should expect on discussion board. If the signal to noise ratio gets to low you go some place else, so far I haven’t.
I don’t remember who posted most of the match previews, but they were usually thoughtful and well put together and served as a springboard for discussion. It would be shame to not have those anymore…
I can appreciate that as an official supporters club there are some unique advantages to being a paid member, especially access to tickets. Not to project my own economic circumstances, but I suspect that many of the users of this site would prefer to be in a financial situation that would allow them to take advantage of this service, but cannot. I was a paid member for one year, well before we could get access to tickets. I didn’t get much in return other than feeling like I was contributing to a website/cause that I enjoyed and was happy to support, a show of support for the club if you will. I’d probably do it again if I was asked.
I’m not an IT professional, but it really seems like it shouldn’t be too hard to accomodate everyone; discussions, articles, meet-ups, ticket info, etc. It’s a shame that it sounds like that can’t/won’t happen and I suspect that means that eventually I will have to find another venue to pursue my Arsenal discussion voyeurism should the discussions dry up…
Thanks everyone who contributes to the site!
July 15th, 2009 at 7:44 pm
I knew it was too good to be true
http://goal.com/en/news/9/england/2009/07/16/1384955/arsenals-adebayor-having-doubts-over-manchester-city-move
July 15th, 2009 at 7:48 pm
All I’m saying is that they are all childish insults and rather pointless regardless of which point of view they are coming from..
July 15th, 2009 at 11:52 pm
David, what site are you reading?
Are you intentionality denying what was typed?
Here is the copy of it:
“I feel sorry for the people whose main outlet to talk about Arsenal is this website. I really do…”
Is that not the same thing… is that not an insult?
Get your head out of the sand, please.
It’s a two way street… don’t complain about insulting comments from folks
you don’t know …. and say that those made by Big Soccer people are NOT insulting.
That is ridiculous.
July 15th, 2009 at 11:55 pm
Very well said… and 100% AGREE with your thoughts on the match previews posted on this site… it takes research, and insight… and is thankless I imagine, but they are very good.
It would definitely be a SHAME not to have that any more.
July 16th, 2009 at 12:23 am
Is that the same Rick B who is a moderator on BigSoccer’s Arsenal forum?
I know him pretty well, and have heard firsthand how poorly our supporters club has been run at times, and how many issues need to be addressed. Now we have a new president who is trying to sort out those issues, and you’re causing a headache for him because of the format of the website? I realize it’s a major issue for you, but for the rest of us, it’s small potatoes.
July 16th, 2009 at 9:17 am
Looks like the good old days will be over soon. I would like to thank those guys who started this whole discussion thing on AA. I popped in once in a while to comment but most of the time (daily) come here to see what Mazza, Andez/Andes/ Stagg, Sheed, Sachin, Vibe, LDE, Fred, and so on have to say (too long to list). Credit to those guys who did the match previews. Very well thought and time took place. I enjoyed it.
I enjoyed the bickering we had in here in regards to our performances throughout the years. I joined in back in 06 or is it 05, and have been a regular since. Loved the layout. This place was not set up as a forum, but functioned very2 well as one. Bigsoccer and other guys are set up for forum with the links here and there, so not that “homie” in my opinion. Here feels like one. I am pretty sure they are other guys like me who visits AA regularly to check out the discussion more than anything.
2 main sites that I personally go for Arsenal/ football stuff in general; soccernet and AA.I guess I will need to fine an alternative to AA. I just hope that the group (names i mentioned and not mentioned) stays together to discuss more about Arsenal whether here or other place. I think we make a good group.
Aight fellas, back to work.
July 16th, 2009 at 9:18 am
fine = find.
July 17th, 2009 at 12:44 pm
The biggest problem with all of this is everyone has been asking the same question with no reply. That question has been “what is the direction the site is going?”. Sure, we may hear a line or rumor posted by this guy or that guy but I think many would take solace in hearing the President of Arsenal America boldly proclaim his intent and stop hiding. What kind of leader allows his followers to wander in the abyss?
Just because some members may not be paying members, does that mean they’re no longer members? If not, then our president has an obligation to stand up, be a man, and address the desires of all of Arsenal America’s members. What David is doing is like a US President only persuing the desires of those who financially supported his campaign but blowing off the rest of the country.
David, the big problem with all of this is you’ve failed to be compeletely honest. You’ve failed to face concerns head-on. It seems you are supporting only a very small contingent of the Arsenal America members. You’re a president who has failed to be a good leader. You’re a president who has failed to be “Presidential”. It’s why you’ve had so many problems.
If you wish to convince otherwise you only need do two things; don’t delete this post and answer the continual question of the true direction of the organizations website and how your decisions are in the best intrest of the majority of the Arsenal America members. Please be Presidential.
July 17th, 2009 at 12:55 pm
I bet it was something like Clarence…or Rusty.
July 17th, 2009 at 11:24 pm
He told you what direction the site was going, but you didn’t like what he said, so you didn’t listen. And this isn’t a country, it’s a club. David’s job isn’t to represent every Arsenal fan in America, his duty is to represent the members of the supporters club. But you do raise a good point, if people don’t pay, are they really members? I would tend to say no, but i guess you could say they are members, but they certainly aren’t active members. I would describe active members as those that pay their dues and participate in the clubs activities, not those that merely comment on the website. But i do feel their should be greater transparency in the running of the club, especially with elections. I’d like to see a greater emphasis be placed on getting members involved and spreading the load among the members. The running of the club is a big job for a small number of volunteers, maybe the board should be expanded to deal with the workload.
July 18th, 2009 at 8:44 pm
No reply??? Are you kidding???? We’ve given HOURS of time here giving replies, joshuad, telling you and anyone else who asked what direction we plan to take with the club and its site.
One more time re. the direction of the site, joshuad, so you won’t have to read through and find all the numerous replies: we don’t intend to serve as someone’s blog, certainly not someone who isn’t a paid member and certainly not someone who isn’t writing well. Nor do we intend to host discussions on daily rumours, match previews or reviews. We will accept well-written articles from paid members and will continue to allow replies to articles. We’ve said this repeatedly but clearly it needs to be said for your benefit once more. I’ve hardly been hiding nor have I been lying.
As to what leader would allow his followers to wander, Moses comes to mind, but I’m certainly not begging any such Biblical comparison as we’ve no Promised Land that we seek, just to ensure a sustainable future for this supporters club.
Thanks for the insults but you really haven’t a clue as to what we’ve had to do as a board since taking on our new roles. The website is a very small piece of a much larger puzzle.
That said, should I keep your posts up insulting me, calling me dishonest and unpresidential? Personally, I really don’t care, your character assassination attempts here are just silly.
But what does bother me is that you’re now using the Arsenal America site to insult Arsenal America. Demonize me and personalize it as all about me as much as you want, this is really about what’s best for the supporters club.
Why would someone considering joining the supporters club do so after reading these attacks on the club’s leadership? My organisational logic tells me the best thing to do would be to delete these posts as they aren’t in the best interest of the supporters club. And you’re not concerned with the club at all, just its website. Please do correct me if I’m wrong on that count.
love_G, I would tell my good friend from Tehran what you’ve said but I think its absurdity would hurt him. “Get yourself in jail”? Are you for real???
I deleted some posts that were personal attacks. Other people, I believe, deleted posts that were personal attacks – though I don’t have a sense much less a list of who deleted what. Fyi, when you delete a post it seems that any replies to the post disappear as well. Equating that with what’s going on in Iran is beyond insulting but again makes the point that the standard of discourse here is … lacking.
“The end is near like any wicked thing”? I’m sorry, but we’re talking about a website here, that’s all, so spare us the metaphysics.
And no one has been banned from the site, though I would imagine such personal attacks would result in that consequence on almost any moderated discussion site on the Internet.
Yes, JP, I know everyone on the board would love to see more activity from more members.
July 19th, 2009 at 9:48 am
David, understand that my comment wasn’t a personal attack on you. I don’t know you and, in fairness, I don‘t know what you do. I was merely expressing the way that I’ve perceived your leadership. If you’re offended by my perception, which seems to be shared by many here, then you can either try and change it or not. That is your presidential prerogative.
For the record, I can read. However, it seems that others are better at expressing your intent than you are. It could be that I’m not smart enough to comprehend what you’re trying to say. There have been numerous times where others have been thanked for stating your intent more definitively. But it is just always better to hear it from the president instead of another board member so we know it’s legitimate.
When I initially asked about joining Arsenal America, a membership was $3.65 a year (a penny a day) and was told that it was for people who wanted to be eligible for road trips with AA to AFC matches. Now it’s $25 a year and I need to pay that to post. Things seem to have changed.
Since joining Arsenal America, I’ve enquired about road trips and link-ups if I came to matches from Germany. I‘ve linked up with other members in Holland and Germany to watch matches. I’ve invited other members to my home. We’ve played CL games against Bremen and FC Bayern over the past few years. We played a pre-season game against Stuttgart less than a year ago. There was a World Cup three years ago. Do you think any members made the trip? Guess who lived twenty minutes away from one of the stadiums? Dude, I’m only one member.
I’ve questioned the direction of this site because it seems to defy logic. This site is bigger than you know and it’s because of the banter. I’ve met the members I have because of the AA banter. It’s ALWAYS been the main focus here. For some reason, you’re trying to water it down. I’m not a retard. I’ve read your proposed changes. I’ve also noticed only a few very unfamiliar members are publicly supporting your “revolutionary” idea while the apparent majority of the Arsenal America members are opposed. That’s what makes your leadership look bad. Like I said earlier, you can do something about it or not.
July 19th, 2009 at 7:18 pm
You said that I was “hiding” and that I’ve “failed to be compeletely honest.” You’re wrong on both counts and I consider that a personal attack. “Be a man,” you challenge. Are you joking???
Who called the changes we intend “revolutionary”? It is rather commonplace for an organisation to modify content on its website.
For what feels like the hundredth time: you won’t have to pay to post.
You aren’t talking about an “apparent majority of the Arsenal America members” but a (rather small) group of people who have registered to post on this site. Big difference. My constituents are paid members of the supporters club.
So now I wasn’t hiding but was instead obscure? Oi vey. I paraphrased myself when I re-stated our intentions for the site but I’ve had to repeat myself because people are posting pot-shots as some kind of entertainment.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:48 pm
Joshuad,
Arsenal America has a fantastic group of supporters, both “paid” and “non-paid.” I too am not a regular poster on the site, but I read it every day. I figured that I would reply to a few of your comments. My hope is to answer your questions, along with giving you some insight (along with many others) as to the direction that Arsenal America is taking.
But before I get into that, I feel that David has unfairly taken the brunt of the comments on the site. This is not some type of tyrannical rule. There is a President, Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary, along with a leadership board. Everyone votes on issues ranging from events to site content. Feedback is taken very seriously by the group, which I why I wanted to make sure that I replied to your post.
1. AA Membership Fees – Yes, the fees used to be $3.65 a year (sadly, that could not last forever). AA pays for site enhancements, software, and the associated IT time necessary to run a site. AA does not have any advertisements on the site, which is why we are allowed to be an official supporters club of Arsenal. If you advertise you are no longer a supporters club. Running a site in today’s market is not cheap.
2. Arsenal America Events – We are diligently working on a road trip in conjunction with a number of local events. David Kilpatrick has spearheaded this movement, and has already put together one event in New York City.
3. AA Site Enhancements – AA is moving to a new site soon. The site will have a fresh look, and will allow for more content to be posted. Over the years the AA site has developed into a blog. We have been operating at some levels as a “rogue” group, under the Arsenal supporter’s group rules, by keeping the blog functionality on our site. If you go to the Arsenal Supporters tab, you can see many of the international supporter’s sites. Most, if not all, are information based. No blogging. David has been actively working on a resolution that will meet the needs of Arsenal along with the needs of the AA supporters.
Joshuad, I appreciate that change is difficult. I appreciate your passion, along with others who have voiced their concerns over the site changes/enhancements. In the end, we serve both the supporters and the club. David is not to blame. It isn’t fair to single him out. In order to keep our credentials as an official supporters group we have to comply with Arsenal’s requests. It is that simple.
We have some fantastic enhancements that are coming through in the coming weeks. We will be providing a new ticket request format that is streamlined and easy to use. We will be making a site migration to a new layout that is both functional and enjoyable to view. Each and every change that we make is for the betterment of the supporters.
Please feel free to contact me if you have any additional questions. Arsenal v. Everton on August 15th!
COME ON YOU GUNNERS.
Best regards,
Josh
Josh Templeton
Vice President
Arsenal America
josh@arsenalamerica.com
July 20th, 2009 at 12:21 am
That was too easy. People can understand that you have bills to pay and that, being official, you have certain rules to abide by. I don’t recall that being communicated to us. In fact, we were told that the club had nothing to do with the changes David was implementing. It was obvious that either there was some violation of rules or David had an agenda. Since he made no mention of a violation of rules, we assumed the latter option and have been throwing rocks and bottles at him ever since.
All I’ve ever wanted to know was the direction Arsenal America was headed with these changes and why. I believe every member, though they may not like it, will now understand these changes and appreciate your predicament as a board.
July 20th, 2009 at 1:58 am
Want to know where that 25 bucks a year goes? I’m sure alot of it goes to pay for no shows who order tickets then never bother to show up, or tell anyone that they aren’t going to make the game. This is another issue that needs to be taken care of.
July 20th, 2009 at 9:14 am
It’s good to know where you guys are coming from. It make us understand more about the changes. Thanks.
July 20th, 2009 at 10:26 pm
Why wouldn’t the money be paid UP FRONT… as in before hand?
If Arsenal America can take $25 for membership via PayPal, then they can certainly take payment for tickets.
No pay in say 7 days, then the tickets go to the next person in the queue.
July 20th, 2009 at 10:29 pm
Now that wasn’t so hard to explain after all, was it?!
Thanks Josh for clarifying issues some, I really appreciate it. I bet if your reply had been posted as an article a few weeks back David wont have received so many knocks and wont be nursing so many grudges (or wounds). He just came across as … (well lets not get into that again)
This site filled a void in my life since moving to the states and so I respect your explanation (David that’s all my cheap ass I wanted… a plausible explanation) and can only wish AA the best as it moves along, hopefully, to new heights…. Thanks for all the fish!
July 20th, 2009 at 10:37 pm
So we do sell Adebayor…
and now Mr.Wenger says…
we are strong enough not to replace Ade or bring anyone in!
Oh f**king JOY, Arsene still is on that same idiotic kick…
lets hope and pray that he’s playing games …
because we all know that we ain’t winning shit… AGAIN… if we don’t bring
in a defensive midfielder, which we should have got last Summer…
you wanna go with the strikers we have now? OK, I could possibly buy
that one Arsene, but if we go with the team as is… then once again, we
have managed to get weaker… lost our most productive (yet lazy) striker,
collected 25 Mill. GBP for the club and board to put in the bank, and not
addressed weaknesses that we had last year, causing the Arsenal to
be out of the title race in November?
ManU hasn’t spent much of the money they got for Ronaldo… and I THRILLED!
They wanna hold that cash, that’s cool with me… I think signing Owen is a shrewd piece of business, but I don’t think they are as good without Ronaldo and Tevez. But they are still strong defensively.
ManCity… you can hate all you want… but they have all that cash, and they better bring in better players, if they wanna play with the big boys. They are definitely getting better… and if they get John Terry, WATCH OUT.
Barry… Santa Cruz, Tevez… Adebayor… Robinho… Bellamy… Benjani…
They have a better strike force than any team in the league, with various styles of play! But how the feck do you play 6 strikers? 3 – 1 – 6?
If we could simply get a few key players in a few key positions… defensive midfield being most important… a PROPER player… not a 17 year old… then I’d say we have a fighting shot … barring injury to key players.
Then we have Arsene. With his usual waiting game in the Summer. Same shit every f’n year… in the last?? 3 … 4?
If he put all his eggs in the “Melo” basket, and misses (missed)… he’s a fool.
There has to be plan A, plan B, and plan C.
So… less than a month to opening day… and we all watch… and wait.
And the board and club are throwing the 25 Million up in the air in their offices, dancing on it… we might win the profit league yet again!
But frankly, who gives a shit?
July 20th, 2009 at 11:44 pm
That is exactly the kind of crap i will no longer be forced to read on ArsenalAmerica’s front page. Thanks David.
July 21st, 2009 at 8:35 am
Stag, you gotta understand it better how this game works.
Man City and Real Madrid have inflated the market this summer. Fact.
That’s one reason even Ferguson is not willing to dig deep into the market at this moment. cos clubs are not asking for more. and it’s not worth it. not with the current globe economic climate.
Wenger’s statement, as far as i m concerned – has sent out two messages:
(1) We are not DESPERATED to buy a striker replacement. So (to the selling club) don’t try to price (whoever we are interested to buy) the players out of market. We are not the fools.
(2) a dose of confidence injection to the players we already have – that believe in yourself, you are good enough.
As for Man City, i think they are stupid to buy so many strikers. bottom line – you can only play TWO upfront.
One thing with striker is – you need a RUN of game to get yourself into full flow. Any player needs that, but it applies more on strikers. as rhythm and confidence are so vital to the strikers.
therefore top sides like Man U, Arsenal, Chelsea rarely have more than 4 strikers in their squad.
if Man City are planning to ROTATE their collection of strikers, none of their strikers would be benefited. Playing one game than sit out for the next will be difficult for ANY striker to find his form and rhythm.
furthermore, inevitably one or two of their star strikers will be unhappy as season progress. I can almost sure to see this coming. None of them are youngster who’s waiting to bid his time on the bench.
To sum it up, i m almost glad that this is the direction Man City is heading. They spent, but they spent without a DIRECTION. That’s a good news for the rest of the teams.
July 21st, 2009 at 8:36 am
EDIT: cos clubs are NOW asking for more MONEY.
July 21st, 2009 at 9:15 am
Nasri out for 3 month + another 3 month. Half a season there. Rosicky in the making ( Sorry Rosicky). Not surprise though.
July 21st, 2009 at 11:14 am
Andez, we don’t necessarily need a striker. But we certainly have not addressed the problems in the middle.
We all know it, we all saw it last season… Sorry, the “Wenger Knows”
refrain does not hold weight any longer… too many years without a trophy
for him to have carte blanche.
July 21st, 2009 at 11:38 am
Oh wait, here you go.
Here’s one for the front page…and the rump swabs.
We are a wonderful team. We can win it just like we are.
Arsene knows. He’s a saint and a genius. Even if we don’t win
anything again or get top 4, that’s OK, because we play nice football.
YaaaaaY.
Arsenal are going to win the Quad.
July 22nd, 2009 at 6:18 am
I am not saying we don’t need to buy. In fact, I think we do need a new striker, a targetman to fill the void left behind by Adebayor’s departure.
I am confident AW is feeling the same way and he’s trying his hardest to look for a new striker.
What I want to point out is – don’t expect AW goes and tells the world who and who he wants to buy. He has always kept a LOW PROFILE when comes to buying a player, and this is the way should be, if you don’t want to pay the over the odd price for a player.
Every club now knows we have that 25 mil generated from the sales of Adebayor, if you are the manager of a club and have a striker AW is interested, wouldn’t u want to hold him for ransom, if knowing that AW is DESPERATE for a new striker?
By telling the world we may not go for a new striker at all would give Arsenal more bargain power when comes to negotiation.
It’s like walking into a car shop, when u see a car you love it dearly, would you want to keep a poker face? or would you want to show your excitement in front of the car salesman?
July 22nd, 2009 at 7:35 am
RoxburyReed, too bad you waited until AA’s change of direction to join. Coulda been a good addition to the discussion. Now it’s a bit late.
July 26th, 2009 at 11:11 pm
Did anyone see how Vela’s entry into the Gold Cup final today completely changed the game? As soon as he came in Mexico looked livelier, more dangerous, and much more clinical. He scored 1 goal and set up 2 others. On the other side, the USA’s decision to use largely youth players in a lesser tournament that they did not/could not commit their big-name players to ended in a catastrophic failure… sounds familiar…