Lubbock has untapped potential in the sports market. This was the main thing I took away after speaking to Mayor Pope about the Lubbock S.C Matadors. I'm new to Lubbock, but one thing I picked up quickly is Lubbock is a great sports town. Most of the outside world may not see it, but the love for the local sports team is palpable when you're in the city. Lubbock's passion and sports history lead Mayor Pope to believe the Matadors will be a smash hit this summer.

Mayor Pope has abundant experience with the expansion team in Lubbock with the Cotton Kings, a minor league hockey team (WPHL), and the Lubbock Hubbers, a minor league baseball team. Now both these teams have ceased to exist. The big question on my mind was, what makes the Lubbock Matadors different? Mayor Pope had a quick answer "Lubbock has three major sports throughout the year. In the fall and football in the winter, we have basketball, and in spring, we have baseball, all provided by Texas Tech. Our other pro teams in the past had to compete with Texas Tech. Lubbock Matadors will be playing in the summer when there's nothing else going on. Not having to compete with Texas Tech is a massive plus."Even though soccer hasn't reached the level of popularity of football and basketball, the sport is growing at a rapid rate. Pope seems to think right now is the perfect time to have a team with the game growing at its pace. 

The game of soccer is growing, but many Americans still haven't wholly doven into the die-hard soccer fandom. Mayor Pope was not a soccer fan; the only soccer knowledge he had on the sport was based on Ted Lasso's show. Although just a show (a fantastic show), it does a great job of explaining how soccer leagues work. It helped lead us to a great conversation about the relegation system. If the U.S adopted this system like the rest of the world, could Lubbock be a big enough club to support this venture? Mayor Pope firmly believes the Matadors could be an even bigger market team. He thinks Lubbock S.C could be the biggest soccer team in all of West Texas, attracting people from Amarillo, Abilene, and Midland. Even if the U.S doesn't adopt the relegation system, Pope seems to think the Lubbock S.C market will be big enough to grow past the NPSL. The sky's the limit with the Matadors. It's exciting to see how far they will grow.

When you have the leader of your community vouch for you, it can only help, and having mayor Pope's seal of approval will only boost the Matador brand. One thing for sure is Mayor Pope is a soccer guy now, and he looks forward to cheering on the Matadors all season long.