The quest to find fans and convert disinterested people to true believers is the key to survival in grassroots soccer. Soccer fans are a subset of sports fandom in this country and the field is full of rival clubs, both foreign and domestic. Every supporter group member and player is an ambassador for your club and how they represent themselves can ensure the long-term stability of the organization. And last weekend, Laura Horah became a fan of Detroit City FC.

The story popped up on twitter and was too good to not follow. Laura posted a response to a Detroit City FC post about meeting the club in the hotel they were both staying at. We reached out for more of the background.

Laura was travelling on business and happened to share the hotel with the Detroit City players who were in town for their match with LA Force. Laura isn’t exactly a soccer fan. When we asked if she followed soccer or DCFC prior to this weekend, she was blunt. “I do not and did not know anything about them prior to this hotel stay.” She happened to spot all the young men wearing Detroit City jackets and her interest was piqued.

I am staying in your hotel and have chatted with a few of you in the elevator and breakfast area. You are all such polite and friendly young men. Your parents should be super proud! Congrats on your win too!
— Laura Jane (@LJHorah) February 29, 2020

“One of the players was in the coffee area trying to determine the various types of coffee being served. I pointed out the Hazelnut, regular and decaffeinated. He asked me what decaffeinated meant and I explained it was coffee without caffeine. I then said ‘I don't know why anyone would even bother drinking coffee without caffeine’ and he said the same thing. He was looking for real coffee like I was. I wished him a nice day and he did the same and thanked me.”

The next day, as Laura and her husband were trying to make the elevator, “Several players were in that left elevator and yelled out to us, holding the door for us and telling us there was room. I believe George Chomakov and Matt Lewis were two of those players. I think there were 3 or 4 total? I thanked them for holding the door open. We were dressed for exercising and one of them (George I think) asked us if we were headed to work out. I said yes and that we needed to do something to help with the breakfasts they had been serving. He agreed. I asked him when their game was (I said game but I think it's called match, as I now know!) and he said it had been the prior night and that they had won. I told them congratulations. They seemed very excited about the win.”

When she got back to her room, she decided to do some investigating. “Out of curiosity I looked up the team online when I got back to the hotel later that morning. I wanted to reach out because we rarely get anything positive news-wise. Athletes, as well as others in the public eye, are often described as rude and entitled. I have heard all kinds of horror studies. My interactions with this team were so positive I thought it might be nice for them to be recognized in some fashion.”

And now, Laura, who seems like the nicest person on twitter (you can see how cute her dog is), is a fan of the club. “I definitely will. I now know their games are streaming and I plan to check them out. I am a big sports fan so I will add this to my list and will always consider Detroit City FC my favorite soccer team!”

You never know who you are holding the elevator for, maybe it’s your next biggest fan!

- Dan Vaughn