Soccer
Excitement grows for FC Series Chelsea vs. Wrexham game
Aaron Nelson with the Chapel Hill Chamber of Commerce joined WRAL's Ashley Rowe to discuss the importance of the game to the local economy and soccer scene.
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Aaron Nelson with the Chapel Hill Chamber of Commerce joined WRAL's Ashley Rowe to discuss the importance of the game to the local economy and soccer scene.
COMPANIONSHIP AND SOCIAL INTERACTION, FRIENDS, OUR KEY TO BETTER OUTCOMES IT IS A BIG WEEK FOR SOCCER FANS IN THE TRIANGLE TO ENGLISH LEAGUE SOCCER TEAMS, INCLUDING ONE OWNED BY RYAN. REYNOLDS WILL FACE OFF IN CHAPEL HILL. >> THE CHELSEA WREXHAM FC SERIES EXHIBITION DRAWS THE 2 SQUADS TOGETHER FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 1984. THEY'LL PLAY AT KENAN STADIUM ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT. YOU KNOW, WE WANTED TO TALK A LITTLE MORE ABOUT EXACTLY WHAT THIS MEANS FOR THE TRIANGLE. SO JOINING US NOW IS THE PRESIDENT AND CEO OF THE CHAPEL HILL CARRBORO CHAMBER OF COMMERCE. AARON NELSON. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US TONIGHT. >> IT'S WONDERFUL TO BE WITH YOU. AND WE ARE SUPER EXCITED. WELL, I IMAGINE YOU ARE EXCITED AND EXHAUST. YOU CAN IMAGINE. IMAGINE HOW BUSY YOU'VE BEEN TICKETS FOR THIS EVENT SOLD OUT IN DAYS. I KNOW SOME TICKETS HAVE SINCE BEEN RELEASED, BUT >> IS ITS CHAPEL HILL JUST FULL OF INTERNATIONAL SOCCER FANS OR ARE WE SEEING A HUGE INFLUX OF OUT OF TOWNERS WHO WANT TO SEE THIS FRIENDLY? >> THERE ARE PEOPLE COMING FROM EVERYWHERE. TICKETS WERE SOLD IN ALL 50 U.S. WE'RE EXPECTING FOLKS TO BE FLYING IN. MAYBE 2 THIRDS OF THE FOLKS COMING FROM HIM SOMEWHERE ELSE AND AS WELL AS LOCALS REALLY ENJOYING IT AND SOUTH, THERE ARE ALREADY PEOPLE WE'RE SOLD OUT AND ALL OF OUR HOTELS THIS MOST FOLKS WITH A 2 NIGHT STAY. SO WE'RE EXPECTING IT TO BE BUSY ON TUESDAY NIGHT WEDNESDAY NIGHT FOR THE GAME AS WELL AS THURSDAY. A WONDERFUL WREXHAM I UNDERSTAND HAS ALREADY ARRIVED. CHELSEA SHOULD BE TOUCHING DOWN SOON. >> WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR THE AREA YOU TOUCHED ON ALL THE HOTELS THAT ARE ALREADY SOLD OUT. THIS IS GOT TO BE A HUGE ECONOMIC BOOM. >> INDIANS THEIR CALCULATORS TO HELP ESTIMATE. HOW CAN WE SEE THE ECONOMIC IMPACT NORTH OF 15 MILLION DOLLARS ON THIS SINGLE GAME? AND THAT'S GOING TO COME IN THE FORM OF FOLKS VISITING OUR THE RETAILERS AND RESTAURANTS AND HOTELS. ALSO THE FLIGHTS IN THE GAS THAT THEY PURCHASED BEFORE THEY HEAD OUT OF THE ECONOMIC IMPACTS THEM TO BE SUBSTANTIAL. >> HOW MUCH WORK HAS GONE INTO PUTTING THIS EVENT? >> WHY IT IS A INCREDIBLE AMOUNT OF WORK DONE BY THE ORGANIZERS AND THE PROMOTERS. THE FOLKS OF FLORIDA CITRUS, THE PLAYERS FOR ALL OF THE PRACTICE TIME THEY PUT INTO IT, THE FOLKS CAROLYN CAN STADIUM IS AN AMAZING FACILITY AND TO BE ABLE TO HOST IT THERE. THE PEOPLE ROLLED OUT THIS ON AND PUT GRASS DOWN ON WHAT IS TRADITIONALLY AN ARTIFICIAL SURFACE AND THEN THE PARTNERSHIPS RIGHT NOW BETWEEN THE ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT UNIVERSITY, THE COUNTY, THE TOWN'S CHAPEL HILL CARRBORO ARE FOLKS IN PUBLIC SAFETY HAVING REGULAR EVERYBODY IS WORKING REALLY WELL TOGETHER. THE COOPERATION HAS BEEN EXCELLENT. >> SO THE MATCH STARTS AT 07:30PM. IF I UNDERSTAND CORRECTLY, ABOUT 50,000 PEOPLE CAN FIT IN THAT STADIUM. SO FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE GOING TO THE GAME AND WATCHING YOU RIGHT NOW, WHAT IS THE ONE PIECE OF PARKING ADVICE YOU CAN GIVE? >> PLAN AHEAD AND CHECK OUT A WEBSITE CALLED HILL DOT COM AND WE'LL SHOW YOU ALL THE PARKING LOCATIONS VISIT CAROLINA'S WEBSITE VISIT VISITORS BUREAU'S WEBSITE. THE TOWN'S WEBSITE CHAPEL HILL. ALL OF THEM WILL HAVE SPECIAL LINKS TO RESOURCES WHERE YOU CAN SEE WHAT PARTIES FOR SALE OF PARKING MIGHT BE. 3 BUT COME EARLY BUT SETTLED IN CHAPEL SPEND A LITTLE BIT OF MONEY AND ENJOY A GREAT GAME. >> LISTEN, I GOT TO TELL YOU, I WATCHED THE WELCOME TO WREXHAM SERIES. SO I KNOW THAT WREXHAM IS PROBABLY MORE POPULAR IN THE U.S. THAN CHELSEA CERTAINLY MORE POPULAR IN THE U.S. AND IT IS IN EUROPE. SO ON BEHALF OF EVERYBODY WHO IS VERY CURIOUS ABOUT THIS, I'VE GOT TO ASK YOU, WILL WE EXPECT TO SEE RYAN, REYNOLDS OR ROB MCELHENNEY ON WEDNESDAY? I'M TOLD THAT I'M TOLD THE OWNERS ARE WILL BE PRESENT AND ENJOYING THEMSELVES OUT AND ENJOYING THE CASE. A CELEBRITY SIGHTINGS ARE POSSIBLE IN CHAPEL HILL. >> WELL, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US TONIGHT. WE REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR TIME. YOU CAN LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS WEEK'S