Vox and SB Nation will no longer be supporting and monetizing Burgundy Wave. But we might not be going away. You can help make that so.
This morning, leadership at Vox informed SB Nation staff that it will be reducing coverage in certain areas, including most MLS sites. As a result, Burgundy Wave will no longer be supported and monetized by Vox Media, effective March 1, 2023.
This doesn’t necessarily mean Burgundy Wave is shutting down. A range of options will be explored over the next month. I will let you know when a decision has been made and what it means.
I want to thank you the reader for every single time you’ve clicked on a Burgundy Wave link or interacted with us on social media. Your readership and engagement have been the lifeblood of this site since its inception.
To the people above me who made this decision, I’m upset but I get it. I grind for years and finally get an opportunity to cover a club for the premier outlet that has covered it consistently. I finally get paid some actual money for doing so. Then four months in, it’s taken away. This sucks for me and every person who’s losing a platform and (what little) compensation it comes with.
But on some level, I understand. You got a business to run. Ad revenue worked for newspapers in the before times. It’s less viable in 2023. Compared to other sports leagues, MLS doesn’t get drive traffic and engagement. The Rapids don’t get as many clicks as other MLS teams. They have by far the smallest audience of all the pro sports teams in Denver.
I don’t want to stop covering soccer in this state or this club. I will do whatever I can to keep Burgundy Wave alive in some form. I’ve been independent before. I can do so again if the site is shut down entirely.
You can help by vising the website, reading articles, and sharing them with others who will do the same. Support the outlets and content creators that cover the things you care about, sports or otherwise.
Follow me on Twitter @LWOSMattPollard. Check out my podcast Holding The High Line. HTHL has a substack as well. You can subscribe to it if you are so inclined.
Burgundy Wave is an institution in the Rapids Community. I will not let it die so easily. Though the seas are dark and stormy, tomorrow dawn will break bright. Keep Fighting.