The Hall of Fame and Awards Presentation Out of my hotel room, beach pictures tomorrow (see notes) Keynote speaker Alan Rothenberg

After having spent most of the last 10 hours in USL meetings or events of one type or another, and writing purely from a fan's perspective, I can honestly say the AOM is exactly what I expected it to be, but it's also surprised me in many ways. For most people attending the AOM, the first event is the Opening General Session, which is a rather informal event where lunch is served, and people catch up with those they haven't seen in a year in small groups around the room before the session. It was rather a pleasant surprise for this A-League.com reporter to discover that a flyer that was every seat in the room, advertising four seminars that will be offered in the next two days, featured a large photo of the Timbers Army, one that I took at the San Jose US Open Cup game in Portland earlier this year, and it immediately made me feel more comfortable. Later in the session, Tim Holt had me stand up as one of the "special guests" of the event, and therefore I've had several people introduce themselves to me throughout the day, and where I felt like very much an outsider this morning looking for someone to talk to, I now feel more welcome here, even if all they remember is that I am part of the Timbers Army (after Timbers GM Jim Taylor gave a presentation about this very subject to a group from across all of the leagues in the USL). Francisco Marcos addressed the session of course, once again more fully involved with the USL after a few years off, focusing on the importance of building a club from the youth clubs up to the professional club, and keynote speaker Alan Rothenberg (former president of the US Soccer Federation) also spoke of the growth of soccer in North America, and throughout the world, and what that means for the future of the USL.

I also attended the A-League meeting this afternoon, and for those of you who have ever wondered what goes on at one of these meetings, I must first tell you that most of what goes on would be considered very mundane, at least from a fan's point of view. There's an awful lot that goes on behind the scenes for a soccer club that we never even think of from a fan's perspective, but issues such as rule changes (even if minor), the disciplinary system, insurance, committee memberships, etc, do take up a large part a large part of the meetings. But while watching the process take place, I was struck by the interaction of the representatives of the teams, which for the most part were the GM's and the coaches. Since many of them have been involved with their clubs for several years, it's not surprising since they know each other from previous meetings, and of course many of them face each other several times a year on the field. But I must say I was impressed at seeing how they work together for the benefit of the league as a whole, and though it's to be expected to see that at a league meeting, it was gratifying to see the commitment that everyone in that room has for the league as a whole.

I would also like to back off a minute and say a few things about the fans throughout the A-League and the rest of the USL? Why would I bring that up, you might ask? Well, I probably would not have except that I must mention that in the day and a half since I arrived here in Clearwater Beach, not only did I attend a seminar which addressed the success of the Timbers Army, I have also overheard (intentionally or unintentionally) many of the conversations that have gone on around me, whether in one of the meetings, or in the lobby, or in the hotel pub last night. And one topic that comes up frequently is the support of the fans in each city, whether they are talking about their home fans, or complimenting another team on the fan support they saw when they were on the road. For those of you who may think that the fans may be a bit of an afterthought in an environment like this, I will assure you that the teams do notice and appreciate the support that they see in the stands every week, and it was nice to hear how often the subject comes up. Keep it up, fans.. the teams do notice, and they do appreciate it.

The last event of the first day of the meetings is the Hall of Fame and Awards Presentation, and I was able to meet some great people for the first time, especially several people from the W-League who were at my table. But the one word that is stuck in my mind right now, an hour after the presentation has ended, is "passion". Many of the people who spoke tonight, or who were presented with various awards, have been involved with soccer in the United States for 10, 20, 30 years or more, and to hear them talk about the game, about the passion for the game that their lives revolve around, it really makes you understand why this game is so special to so many of us. At one point during the evening, Marcie Laumann of the Hampton Roads Piranhas spoke about her ten years with the organization, and she was barely able to contain her emotions as she talked about how she and her husband founded the team ten years ago, and about what the W-League and the USL means to soccer in North America. To say that there were many people around me (including myself) trying to hold back tears ourselves would not be overstating it. It was a pretty amazing experience.

For those of us, as fans, who do give a lot of our time to supporting the USL and the teams within it, it's a great experience when you can surround yourselves with people who love the beautiful game as much as you do. But when you are surrounded with so many people who literally give their lives for the good of the game, and have done so for decades, that's when you find that it's not only good for the psyche, but it's also good for the soul.

Tomorrow: the frenzy begins, it's scheduling day.