Uncategorized

Orlando City President of Business Operations Jarrod Dillon Responds to Fan Concerns

Published

4 years ago

February 3, 2022

[Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to correct some information that wasn’t presented as accurately as it should have been. The number of Orlando City license plate sales needed to initiate production was presented as the approximate number of OCSC season ticket members. I apologize for not catching it during the editing process before it went live. — TML Managing Editor Michael Citro].

Two weeks ago, I wrote an article outlining a lack of transparency from the Orlando City organization. Later that night, I received an invitation from Orlando City SC President of Business Operations Jarrod Dillon to come discuss the topics I raised in the article. I, along with my wife, took the opportunity to travel to Exploria Stadium to talk with Dillon and two of his staff to see what plans the club has for addressing the concerns of those who support Orlando City, the Orlando Pride, and OCB.

It should be said that Dillon has only been on the job for about one month at this point. He has been figuring out what resources are available, what has been done previously, and where the opportunities for improvement are to be found. One could be forgiven for suspecting he was annoyed with the issues I brought up, but it was quite the opposite. He saw an opportunity to get more information to help him do his job better, and in return communicate to me some of the ways he intends to make improvements. He was generous with his time given his position in the organization. Indeed, he delayed a meeting with an executive vice president for about 10 minutes near the end of our time to make sure we finished our discussion.

He was joined by Senior Vice President of Marketing & Brand Pedro Araujo and Senior Director of Ticket Operations & Analytics Mike Yannuzzi. Both gentlemen were incredibly welcoming and engaging as well. Honestly, I came away from the meeting with a feeling that Dillon and his staff are genuinely interested in hearing both the good and the bad regarding the organization’s performance to this point. Given the timing of the meeting, some of what we spoke about has already been announced. Let’s delve into what was covered.

Perhaps the biggest complaint I had in my article was that the preseason matches and practices were closed to the public and mostly closed to the press. Initially, we were given no reason for this, which can be a source of frustration. The reasons given for keeping the matches closed included the following:

The opponents wanted the match closed.
The matches aren’t like normal matches, more like practices or scrimmages.
The matches are often at odd times during the day.

I’m certain you’re already aware that the match against the Colorado Rapids on Feb. 11 is now open to the public. The club is using it as a charity event for the Parramore community as well. It’s a good step and should be applauded, and more importantly, attended. Those in the supporters groups and the season ticket members (STMs) will also have the opportunity to attend the preseason matches against FC Dallas and Miami FC.

“They are opportunities for us to connect with our fans,” Dillon said.

These moves, along with greater press access, show the club is listening to feedback and responding.

Of course, those of us who support the club wish all of the matches and practices were open, but that simply isn’t going to happen. Case in point: the preseason match against the Tampa Bay Rowdies. It’s the last preseason match and both teams will be playing more of their younger players, rather than the starters. It is expected to be much more of a practice-style than match-style affair. As such, OCSC did not want it open to the public. It’s a no go for this year, but points I made about what it could be in the future didn’t go unheard. As it is so often in sports, there is always next year.

Another topic that came up in our conversation was the differences between the various types of supporters and how to meet the different needs of each group. There are the corporate sponsors, civic leaders, community leaders, suite holders, supporters groups, STMs, passionate non-STMs, casual fans, and those who are attending their first match ever.

“We acknowledge the need to do a better job of listening and acting upon feedback,” Dillon said. “We offer regular surveys and we do study the results, and now we need to look to add other avenues to hear what these groups want, and how we can improve their match day experience and relationship with the club.”

Sharing feedback I’d received privately, I made sure that Dillon and his staff understood the need to treat these groups in different but equitable ways. Talking to Iron Lion Firm, The Ruckus, and the Black Swans is not the same as talking to other STMs. Corporate sponsors are looking for different things than casual fans. This was a point of emphasis in our conversation, and I think people will start seeing the more individualized communications going forward. To be clear, this is something I think they already knew, but was made clearer during our conversation.

Regardless of which group you fall into, Dillon’s mission is to ensure each person attending a match has a world class experience.

“Everyone has different wants and needs,” he said. “We realize and respect that each of these groups, and others, have strong feelings about their match day experience, ticket locations and value propositions. It is important to treat each group’s needs separately, and not try to create a catch all to cover everyone the same. We will get better, and we will do it quickly.”

That means each point of contact needs to be as positive as possible, from security, the ticket takers, and the concession workers, to the people at the top. To that goal, Dillon said he will implement a new training program for staff across the organization, addressing the customer experience. All full-time staff will learn other parts of the business, shadowing someone else and seeing what their job is during a match. And he emphasized that he means all full time-staff, including himself.

“I’m a firm believer that the better job we take care of our employees, the better they’re going to take care of our fans,” he said.

The other big news is the creation of a new guest relations position. This new position will report directly to Araujo, and thus will be watched closely by Dillon as well. Previously, all the different areas of guest relations from the STM representatives to the janitorial staff were in separate areas of the company structure. Now, there will be someone who will integrate all of it so that there is consistency throughout the organization when it comes to guest relations.

“Guest Experience will be a major focus for us,” Dillon said. “In fact, we are hiring and dedicating a full-time leadership position to get this started the right way. We will work to implement customer service and guest experience training across all staff, part-time, full-time, and include our service partners in security, food/beverage, etc.”

In response to my article, I heard a lot of people bemoan the lack of tailgating experience since the move to Exploria Stadium. There are many valid reasons for this, including acquiring land or property, dealing with zoning issues, and frankly just having the desire and means to do all of it.

I was assured that the Wilf family wants to create a better tailgating experience, but that is going to take time. Just think about how long it takes an individual to buy property and build a house. Now expand that to the area surrounding the stadium. Patience is the word of the day for a better stadium tailgating situation.

“We have data suggesting our fans would like more tailgating options, so yes we are highly engaged around what that could look like,” Dillon said. “We will be exploring several options to be able to offer this, but (it’s) most likely not a 2022 season project.”

For those readers who are STMs or are interested in becoming one, there is good news on that front. As I mentioned in the previous article, the welcome kit has improved since the lows it hit from 2016-2018. In fact, if you look at the current website, you’ll notice it mentions an Orlando City specialty license plate. I have confirmation that the club will be effectively reimbursing the cost of the state-issued Orlando City license plate.

The threshold needed for the state of Florida to produce the plate is 3,000, so due to there being more than 3,000 season ticket members, this is great news for those of us who have put in our pre-order for the plate — whether an STM or not. It also puts the Orlando City brand on more than 3,000 cars. To quote Ted Lasso, “Yeah, that’s when sports and art combine, as far as I’m concerned.”

[UPDATE: All STMs will receive instructions on the process of getting the specialty plate, as well as a mini version of the plate in their STM box. STM boxes may run late due to supply chain issues that are plaguing many industries during this time.]

This is not the only change coming for those who invest their money to become a STM. It will take time, but the club is in the process of meeting with focus groups consisting of STMs and the supporters groups to determine how the club can be better. The reason that Dillon calls these people season ticket members rather than season ticket holders is that membership means more.

“STM benefits are under review and we will look to build upon the great benefits we offer now to continue to enhance the STM experience,” Dillon said. “We know our STMs get access to the best seats, with a great discount and very flexible payment plan. They also have access to other benefits but we need to grow that list and make the benefits more impactful.”

That will most likely include greater frequency and quality of events throughout the year. The supporters groups have already built a community, now the club wants to help STMs who are not in one of those groups to do the same. He said he wants the STMs to have a sense of community with each other and with the club.

There will almost certainly be more benefits coming. According to Dillon, the club is looking to increase the return on investment that the STMs make with their money. That includes looking at discounts on concessions, what items come in the welcome packet, and other things that come up in the focus groups.

As you can tell, there is a lot the general public hasn’t yet been made aware of going on behind the scenes, but change is coming. As Dillon put it, if a windmill has been spinning one direction, it will take quite a bit of effort to get it spinning the other way. The important thing is that the club is listening. It’s only been a month since Dillon arrived and he’s already having meetings with those who support the club on an individual ticket level.

“We will approach the clubs as if we are running public trusts,” he said. “Our mindset will be these clubs belong to the supporter groups, the STMs, our corporate partners and suite holders, and the community as a whole. We need to acknowledge each of these groups are different in what they want, value and find important to them. We need to be better listeners to address their needs. We are blessed to have the best supporter groups in our leagues, and we need to magnify that, it creates such a home field advantage for our players.

“Some of this will take time. You will see consistent change, innovation, and progress, but it will take time and will not all happen overnight. I am a true believer that people don’t care what you know, until they know you care. We need to double down and reinvest our time, energy, and resources into making sure all of our supporters, fans, partners all know we care.”

I’m by no means saying everything is solved or that we shouldn’t continue to hold the club accountable. Of course we should, but the signs of good things to come are there.

Uncategorized

A Few Words About the Future of The Mane Land

TML needs help to continue bringing you coverage of Orlando City, the Orlando Pride, OCB, and all things soccer related in the City Beautiful.

Published

4 days ago

December 9, 2025

Michael Citro

Stock image courtesy of GoDaddy.com Managed WordPress

For the last 11 years, The Mane Land has worked hard to provide daily content telling the story of Orlando City SC, the Orlando Pride, OCB, and any other soccer-related events we can get to in the Central Florida area. We love doing that, but we’re at a critical stage in being able to do so. Staff has been difficult to replace in recent years, and we’ve come to a point where some of us have not only been stretched to an unsustainable limit, but we’ve been going at that rate for multiple years without a break.

To that point, TML is now at a critical juncture where we must have more contributors who can cover live events in order to survive in our current format (and possibly at all). For the past few years, we have had only two primary game night writers covering three teams, and we are unable to continue at that pace, regardless of how much we enjoy doing it.

To continue as an entity, we’re going to need anywhere from two to four new contributors who can pitch in with game-night coverage of Orlando City/Orlando Pride matches. Additionally, another copy editor is essential, while two more would be preferred.

We’d like to continue into 2026, but if we can’t get the additional help we need, the current plan is to shut down at the end of the 2025 calendar year. The minimum we need to carry on would be two new live event writers and a copy editor.

What does this mean? Well, if you’ve ever thought it would be cool to cover soccer matches (it is) or thought about joining us, now is the time to volunteer. If you enjoy soccer and talking about this club with your friends, you might be perfect for our team, because if you can talk about soccer, you can probably write about it as well. Writing is just talking on a screen with your fingers, after all.

To get started, please write to us at themaneland@gmail.com and let us know how you’d like to contribute — writing, editing, etc.

It is important to note that we do this out of a love for the beautiful game and these positions are on a voluntary basis. However, if freed from the shackles of such an overwhelming schedule, my goal is to spend more time creating strategic partnerships and promoting our membership platform that could combine to bring in revenue that would go toward compensating staff writers. Additionally, some of our staff members have gone on to more financially rewarding opportunities as a result of their time with us. You never know what this experience will lead to. Like anything else in life, you’re likely to get out of it what you put in.

The good news is that we have already reached out to our Founders and our Buy Me a Coffee subscribers about this subject, and several have shown an interest in helping, so we are in the process of exploring those potential contributors at the moment.

We Are Currently Seeking:

Match writers – You don’t need a degree in journalism or English to write for us. If you like to talk about soccer, you can probably write about it as well. Staff writers contribute regularly to our game coverage, which could be in the form of recaps, player grades pieces, five takeaways posts, etc. We have a need for this on both the Orlando City and Pride sides, and you can do both if you want. If you’re not local to the Orlando area, you can cover road matches via the broadcast/stream.
Editors – Can you spot a subject/verb disagreement from a mile away? An editor position may be for you! How often do you get to correct people without anyone shaming you for it? This position will edit copy for submitted stories, make headlines punchier and more SEO-friendly, and ensure the story has a properly cropped/centered photo that helps tell the story. Typically you’ll only be on “desk duty” one or two evenings per week when it fits your schedule. You may also write stories if you wish!

About TML

Our little blog became an idea and then an independent WordPress site in late September of 2014, and went live on SBNation in December of that year. When SBNation stopped funding nearly all of its MLS blogs a few years ago, we went independent again, and we’ve long been the only outlet providing daily coverage of Orlando City’s teams. Even the club doesn’t post new content to its website every day!

FAQ

Why shutter the site at the end of December? Why do you need help now when the season doesn’t start for a couple of months?

Preparing to cover three teams requires advance planning. Each year, we put together a publication schedule to ensure all our bases are covered. This includes what will run (a placeholder or sometimes the specific piece) on every day of the year, which obviously doesn’t take into account breaking news or extra features that people want to do. Setting up this publication schedule also includes noting when major soccer events are coming, known USMNT/USWNT scheduled matches, MLS and NWSL deadlines, player birthdays, important milestones and anniversaries, and more. We also put together volunteer sign-up sheets for grades and takeaways posts. That setup work is all for naught if we don’t have the bodies to physically cover the team when the season starts. Also, it’s easier to pull the plug on our LLC at the end of a calendar year. None of us want to stop, but we have to be realistic about being able to continue covering the team as we have.

Why not just scale back and cover what you can? Do you have to cover every game?

I don’t have a good answer for this other than I would not feel right about putting my name on a product I don’t believe in. I don’t ever want our audience to have to guess whether or not they’re getting a game recap or any follow-up analysis from a given match. In my opinion, we have never had the personnel to fully provide what I envision. For example, I want to add more video content, player grades and recaps for the Pride games, and to bring back weekend Lion Links and OCB match previews. And we should have a lot more features and analysis pieces! In short, we’re already doing the bare minimum that I’m comfortable with. And, I have to be honest: if there was a game coming up with no one to cover it, knowing me, I’d probably just do it myself, and I already know I can’t continue the pace of the past few years. I have to save me from myself sometimes.

Could The Mane Land continue in a different form?

I have toyed with the idea of turning TML into a newsletter. This might be a daily that includes a Lion Links-type section and opinion/analysis of club news. It would not include match coverage or any kind of regular news. I almost pivoted to that when SBNation stopped funding us, but we decided to make a go of it as an independent outlet. The problem with the newsletter style is that I can’t do it daily every single day or it would be no different than the situation I’m in, so some help would still be needed. Some of that could come from the current TML staff, but I’m not sure all of it could, and the newsletter format is not for everyone, so we’d be leaving part of our audience behind. I’m not sure it’s the way to go.

Is new management or investment needed?

Possibly. I am willing to sell the name and logo and turn over all our passwords for someone else to take over the operations, which would free up a considerable amount of my time. I’m even willing to continue on as a writing and editing contributor, because I love covering the club. Some of the other staff might as well. But I would not be interested in covering every single match. I’m not a kid anymore, and I have a regular job, a family, and other side gigs that require my attention.

Will you still do the podcasts if the site shuts down?

No. I think if we decide to shut down, it will be across the board. I much prefer our written content, and that’s the reason I started our outlet to begin with. I feel the podcasts complement our coverage and give us more of an opinion platform and a way to discuss matches in a deeper, richer way, but I’m not interested in doing only the podcasts. That said, others on our staff might want to continue and I’m OK with that.

Podcasts

PawedCast Episode 506: Cincinnati Rewind, OCB-Carolina Core, Columbus Preview, and More

The Lions claimed a late draw at Cincy and now host Columbus while OCB’s playoff hopes hang by a thread.

Published

2 months ago

September 30, 2025

Michael Citro

Image of Alex Freeman celebrating after scoring the tying goal at Cincinnati.

Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Jeremy Reper

Orlando City left it late again. Tyrese Spicer reprised his role from the Nashville game by providing the assist for a goal late in stoppage time, but this time it was a different goal scorer and a road draw instead of a home win. Alex Freeman played great against FC Cincinnati, so it was fitting that he literally pulled a point out of thin air on a Sunday night that saw the Lions squander numerous good opportunities to score while allowing the hosts only one Kevin Denkey strike.

We look back at the key moments, players, and plays of a critical road match, check our score predictions, and make our selections for Man of the Match, splitting the vote

This week’s mailbagbox asked us a pair of trivia questions and added an individual question for each host. Remember, if there’s anything — and we do mean anything — you want us to address on the show, just ask us by tweeting it to us at @TheManeLand with the hashtag #AskTMLPC, or hitting us up on Bluesky Social with that same hashtag.

OCB got two points at Carolina Core FC when it needed three, but it did enough to stay alive in the postseason race but there is no margin for error. The Young Lions fell behind by two goals, battled back to get level, conceded again, and once again equalized on the road. Carlos Mercado then helped his team win the penalty shootout on his birthday to claim the extra point. OCB must beat FC Cincinnati 2 on Sunday at home and get help to reach the postseason.

Finally, Orlando City returns home with another game against a good team from the Buckeye State, as the Columbus Crew visits Inter&Co Stadium on Saturday. Whether Diego Rossi plays or not, the Crew are always a difficult opponent. We break down the series history, look at the battle ahead, provide our key matchups, and make our predictions for the final score.

Be sure to rate and review our show wherever you get your podcasts. Remember, we’ll read any five-star reviews we get on Apple Podcasts on the next show.

If you’d like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we’d love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.

Here’s how No. 506 went down:

0:15 – Orlando City didn’t seem to want to put the ball in the net, but maybe that’s because it wasn’t yet the death of stoppage time. Earlier goals are OK too, guys!

27:55 – The mailbagbox offers trivia, but no prizes if we get them right.

39:11 – OCB was listening to Meat Loaf and thinking two out of three ain’t bad, and the senior Lions prepare for Columbus.

Podcasts

PawedCast Episode 502: Galaxy Rewind, Ramiro Enrique Transfer News, OCB Defeats Crown Legacy, and More

Lions leave Leagues Cup empty handed, Ramiro Enrique could be on the move soon, OCB gets a vital win, and more

Published

3 months ago

September 2, 2025

Michael Citro

Image of Oscar Pareja giving his team directions.

Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

I couldn’t tell you why this show is nearly an hour other than the fact that we are verbose. Orlando City crashed out of Leagues Cup with back-to-back losses in games that had a Concacaf Champions Cup berth on the line. The Lions did almost nothing in the first half against the LA Galaxy on the road, and threw Martin Ojeda’s second-half equalizer away just seven minutes after he scored it with a horrendous turnover in their defensive third.

We discuss Orlando City’s 2-1 road loss, which featured one of Pedro Gallese’s best-ever saves as a Lion, although it ultimately didn’t matter much, looked back at our score predictions, and made our selections for Man of the Match.

We also discussed Seattle’s 3-0 win over Inter Miami in the final and the shenanigans that the Herons pulled after losing.

Ramiro Enrique was not in uniform Sunday night in the wake of reports that he’s about to be sold for a reported $3 million to a Saudi team. Although the timing isn’t perfect, it would be a good return for the Argentine striker.

This week’s mailbagbox asked about ice cream, donuts, Carlos Mercado vs. Javier Otero, and more. Remember, if there’s anything — and we do mean anything — you want us to address on the show, just ask us by tweeting it to us at @TheManeLand with the hashtag #AskTMLPC, or hitting us up on Bluesky Social with that same hashtag.

OCB picked up a much-needed three points with a home win over Crown Legacy at the death that nearly immediately became a draw at the even more death. Mercado was sensational in the match for the Young Lions and Thalles scored the timely goal to push the club over the playoff line for the time being. I nearly started to preview an OCB game that is more than a week ago, but the important thing is I stopped myself, otherwise the show would have been even longer.

The senior Lions are also off this week, so we’ll see you next week!

Be sure to rate and review our show wherever you get your podcasts. Remember, we’ll read any five-star reviews we get on Apple Podcasts on the next show.

If you’d like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we’d love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.

Here’s how No. 502 went down:

0:15 – Orlando City looked to be following the same script as in the win at LA back in March, but then coughed up the ball in a dangerous spot to one of the Galaxy’s best scorers.

29:36 – The mailbagbox is trying to make us fat(ter).

46:38 – OCB has put together two consecutive late wins as the Young Lions try to get back into playoff contention after several rough weeks.