Does professional soccer have a future in Tulsa?

[Laramie]

https://twitter.com/BradLundokc/status/1008530653737050117

Top five markets for Thursday's WC opener:

1. Tulsa - 3.0
2. Austin - 2.6
3. Birmingham - 2.4
4. San Francisco - 2.4
5. New Orleans - 2.3

5:46 PM - 16 Jun 2018

Great viewership!  Certainly proud of Tulsa being atop the 3 smaller markets among the top five:

    58.  Tulsa 531,230    0.463
    39.  Austin   771,210    0.672
    45.  Birmingham  696,380    0.607
    06.  San Francisco  2,488,090   2.169
    50.  New Orleans  641,620    0.559

Viewership reveals a lot about the sophistication of a market.

Here a breakdown of the most recent Nielsen DMA TV households rankings:  https://www.lyonspr.com/latest-nielsen-dma-rankings/

[TulsaRufnex]

 From World Cup ratings to youth participation, soccer is huge in Tulsa, but does that mean the city should get an MLS team? It's a complicated issue.
  By Alec McChesney Tulsa World Jul 14, 201

https://www.tulsaworld.com/sportsextra/soccer/from-world-cup-ratings-to-youth-participation-soccer-is-huge/article_0c9ee994-e34a-5328-bc9b-1a6b38534704.html

[TulsaRufnex]

Great viewership!  Certainly proud of Tulsa being atop the 3 smaller markets among the top five:

    58.  Tulsa 531,230    0.463
    39.  Austin   771,210    0.672
    45.  Birmingham  696,380    0.607
    06.  San Francisco  2,488,090   2.169
    50.  New Orleans  641,620    0.559

Viewership reveals a lot about the sophistication of a market.

Here a breakdown of the most recent Nielsen DMA TV households rankings:  https://www.lyonspr.com/latest-nielsen-dma-rankings/

Curious why you wanted to make sure we all knew that Tulsa is the smallest Nielsen TV market in the Top 5. Why is that?  
Is it because you and your OKC boosters want to use Tulsa so you can get an MLS team and we can all drive down to OKC for MLS the same way we do for the OKC Thunder?
I'm surprised you were subtle enough to just provide a link for TV market size rather than cut-and-paste with the size and ranking of OKC's Nielsen TV market.

[Laramie]

Just impressed with the interests Tulsa has in soccer for its market size.  The TV Households combined factored into the NBA relocation in OKC--Professional Basketball Club LLC sold the NBA on the impact of nearby Tulsa, just 91 mile Turner Turnpike travel to OKC--they didn't factor Wichita which has a strong Thunder season ticket base.  

Seeing a lot of positives as Tulsa moves past our recent drop in oil prices which has negatively impacted all of Oklahoma.  Price of Oil will continue to have its ups & downs.

Tulsa has brighter days ahead. The Gathering Place will revive the Arkansas River and provide a boost in tourism dollars spent in your area.  Your downtown will see more economic investments as your city continues to make improvements.   The competition between OKC-TUL benefits all of Oklahoma.

Doubt if you'll see MLS in Tulsa or Oklahoma City anytime soon.   MLS will first fill the 2 million MSA population markets like Austin-San Antonio,  Indianapolis, San Diego, Sacramento, Nashville & several others.

Personally, IMO MLS is better suited for Tulsa.  True, you don't meet MLS requirements; however if MLS were to expand into Oklahoma, you would see a repeat and revival of the Tulsa Roughnecks' 1978–84 hype & heyday.   Combined, the TUL-OKC market exceeds 1.2 million TV households. MLS wouldn't ignore those figures or an interest group willing to bring a franchise to Tulsa.

Tulsa, IMO deserves better than USL minor league soccer--you don't need USL fan support numbers to gauge Tulsa's potential . You have 1 million MSA with more pop., urban density than OKC.   Yes, OKC  fans would drive to T-town to support MLS; I'd be the first in line for tickets.  

The NBA Thunder has dominated OKC & its corporate support--Thunder wouldn't benefit from MLS in OKC; a major soccer franchise would be a big risk in central Oklahoma.