On the eve of the opening of the new soccer stadium in Columbus, it’s only appropriate that we get Lamar Hunt’s take on the pro soccer scene (see Soccer Talk and From the Field in the May 17 issue of SA). Hunt has been a constant on the soccer scene for more than 30 years as an owner (Dallas Tornado, Tampa Bay Rowdies, Kansas City Wizards and Crew), parent (son Clark captained SMU’s ’86 NCAA quarterfinal team) and fan (he’s attended every World Cup since 1970 except Argentina ’78, for security reasons). Lamar is not your typical soccer fanatic. He has also been involved in other sports such as tennis (founder of the ill-fated World Team Tennis) and basketball (part-owner of the Chicago Bulls), but football is his point of reference. The son of Texas oil baron H.L. Hunt, Lamar played football at The Hill School, a Pennsylvania prep school, yet just a decade later helped found the American Football League. The Crew stadium may turn out to be his biggest contribution to soccer, but his impact on football — and the American sports culture — is bigger than that. He coined the phrase Super Bowl, the old NFL-AFL championship, after watching his daughter play with a super ball. Hunt takes the long-term view that soccer will surely succeed. When? He can’t say. If he has one concern — and it was a big concern of his during his NASL days — it’s lagging season-ticket sales. Season tickets are the backbone of the NFL. Heck, some teams probably have as many people on waiting lists as MLS has season-ticket holders. MLS must increase its season-ticket base dramatically. It will be a challenging task: If you throw out the bump in Columbus, because of Hunt’s new stadium, ’99 season ticket sales have basically been a wash. FANS: LET’S HEAR YOUR VIEW Click here to log onto (Soccer) American Graffiti. Then click on the topic titled “YOUR VIEW: The Long-Term View” and respond to Paul Kennedy in 200 words or less. Best responses may be reprinted in Soccer America Magazine. If YOUR View is selected, we’ll send you a cool T-shirt and pin… Because You’re FANATIC.