As I left Houston after the Hall of Fame Classic this February, I found myself in a nostalgic mood. My contact with this sport goes back to the late seventies. An era which many people think was the greatest time to be playing foosball. More prize money. More players. More exposure. More tournaments. Dare I say better players? HMM. . . that's an argument over a late night post tournament breakfast.
More and better. I hear that quite a bit these days. So I decided that day in Houston to really take a look back in foosball history-from my own experience.
Today I work for a table soccer company. I now have the opportunity to look at the state of the sport from the business perspective, while still competing as a player. Believe me, there are many things which I did not consider as I played the game, and wanted it to grow, many decisions which I did not understand. Today I understand, and maybe after reading this some of you might as well.
I started playing football in high school at the local bowling alley. Every day after school 10 or 11 of us would spend our paper route money (we never stuffed the goals!). For hours I would dream up new shots to try while some guy was telling me about the ancient Greeks. I wonder if they played football?
My first tournament experience came in the "Nut Goodies", a high school only event organized by a local distributor. It was a grand affair-and many of the participants went on to the tour to become superstars. Many did not. Where are they today?
In 1974 there were 2 foosball tables in my high school cafeteria. In 1991, when I began playing after a ten year leave of absence, there were maybe 2 playable tables in the Twin Cities area. What happened?
To begin with, there are a few facts I hope I can bring across. One is that football is alive and well mostly through the effort of a few dedicated individuals. These people have struggled and given their time to making things better than they were. Not the same, better.
We can learn from the mistakes of the past. We know quality with a high return on investment is a necessary part of the whole picture. That has always been Tornado's focus.
We also know that many of those people whose income is earned in the vending/entertainment industry felt ripped off by foosball in the past. Sure it earned money, but the profits went to repair and
replacement. Not with Tornado-but we are telling people who have heard this before. We can and we are proving it-but it takes time.
And it is working. Perhaps the days of foosball tables in every location in every town are past-yet so are the days where a table falls apart the day after it comes out of the crate. I honestly feel, after seeing the sport from every angle, Tornado has solved the number one issue-operator return on investment.
Fortunately or unfortunately, our game is dependent on the coin industry. Knowing this, I am every excited to see the efforts being put forth by Tornado. I am an employee now, yet given the facts it is exciting to be a part of the resurgence of the sport.
Many of you reading this may be frustrated. Perhaps you are in the prime of your playing career. You want more money, more tourneys, more exposure. I don't blame you! So do I! I'm called uncle Kenny by many players-how many playing days do I have left? Quit laughing, Murray, you ain't that far behind, 35 and over is getting pretty crowded! !
So we want more, better, and more again. And we will. I see it happening every day. And now there is a difference. Now we have a foundation. We have built
from the bottom. A strong foundation can support a larger tour, more and better!
IN 1995 our league system is branching out-from California to Florida. Our tables are selling overseas as fast as we can ship them. Our home table sales have doubled. Exposure. More tables on location. More operators convinced and coming on board-and telling their colleagues.
More new players joining the tour. More new players at more new locations. More. Better. More.
Perspective. Where things are. Where they were. Where we would like them to be. The next time you walk into a ballroom filled with tables, filled with people from all over the country, sometimes even the world-as you watch Jim Stevens calling a match. Listen to the pop of the goals, the noise from all over the room-as you greet friends you've made because of foosball.
Remember that behind the scenes-every day-we at Tornado are working on the foundation-every day- to bring you more-better-and more. And it's working!
Se ya on tour!
KA