The Carolina Railhawks are in the second tier of American soccer. That's kind of like being in the…read moreEnglish League Championship, except without promotion/relegation. So they're like Nottingham Forest, which is an actual team, and not the place Robin Hood lives (for the purposes of soccer). They play against teams like the Atlanta Silverbacks, FC Edmonton, and the new New York Cosmos (starting in the fall season). That being said, Carolina Railhawks games are a great time. Beer is relatively cheap ($5 for a giant can of Bud Light/Landshark/Stella/Red Hook), and there are no bad seats (though there are cramped seats). That being said, you can easily buy less cramped seats in the 300 sections (though 309 is for the ultimate faithful fans, so if you're a big fan, hang out there and sing all the songs and whatnot). The Railhawks themselves are a good product on the pitch. I saw them play in the US Open Cup, the national tournament for all US Soccer teams (though usually won by the MLS team that cares the most... usually Salt Lake, Kansas City, or one of the two Northwest teams). The Railhawks beat two MLS teams in a 3 week period (the LA Galaxy AND Chivas USA, thereby conquering the city of Los Angeles for the Triangle). They may have eventually lost to Real Salt Lake, but they went out as the last team in the 2nd tier. So go see a game. The games are good fun.

The Durham Bulls are so 2000 and late; the Railhawks and hot soccer players are in this year! As…read moreevidenced by the horde of faithful fans who waited through quite a rainstorm and many false starts (You may now be seated. Nope, we've just received word that lightening is still within three miles of the stadium; please exit the bleachers!). The game that should have begun at 7pm was delayed till 8:30. But then we played ball! (Is that slogan only used with baseball?) It was a vs Miami game and I was pretty impressed by the speed and skill demonstrated by both teams. With a dad who still plays the sport at age 54 and a brother who left the womb in cleats, I've seen my fair share of games. Though I ended up leaving at halftime (I'd spent 4 hours at the field!), I would have no trouble watching a full game here and not getting bored. I might leave a separate review for the facility; but for those reading this one, note that parking is $5; beers (mostly bud and miller) are $4. There are individual seats on the bleachers that cradle your bum. And there's a grill offering cheesy nachos and basic ballpark food.

Not sure why this is showing up as closed on Yelp. We were just there the other week and boy were…read morewe glad we discovered it! My son has been playing soccer for years. We used to get his cleats from Omega but they closed. We went to the big box stores but his feet are 11.5 and most of their models ended at size 10 or 11! Frustrated, we located Soccer Post online. How had we never heard of it before!? You could tell the employees, though young, are probably soccer players themselves and were very helpful. They had a much wider selection of shoes than the big box stores ranging in price from very reasonable to top tier expensive. There was even a space in the middle of the store where you could kick around a ball to try the shoes out. My son is very happy with the shoes we purchased and says he wants to buy all his future cleats at Soccer Post.

Not a bad selection, but shockingly bad customer support. I was fully ready to spend a few hundred…read moredollars but was ignored for a while. I then asked someone if they worked there, was provided with decent help, and then just went back to being ignored. The store wasn't crowded, and another employee was going out of his was not to help me. Do I have like repulsive body odor or something? I don't think so -- I generally get excellent service when I go out to stores. Anyway, nice products but a seeming desire to not want you to spend money on any of them!

Triangle Adult Soccer League (TASL) is great asset to the triangle. Games and teams are…read moreprofessionally organized. Referees are typically fair and keep the game competitive yet safe. I've played in other outdoor and indoor leagues (XL Soccer World, Carolina Sportsplex, Rainbow) and, by far, TASL is the best. With a Spring, Summer Heat, and Fall season you can play outdoor soccer nearly year round. During the winter, take a break or find an indoor league elsewhere. Andy and Donna play a big role in keeping the league organized and they do a fantastic job. There are many divisions (mens, womens, coed, and various age groups and skill levels within those categories). The league can accommodate almost any skill level but finding a team can be difficult. You can register as a pool player but you might not be picked up. If you're a goalkeeper or female then your odds are much better. Also, finding a team might get easier because Andy and Donna are expanding the league by finding new fields and they're also working to build their own soccer park via a partnership with Triangle Soccer Development. I've organized several teams and have found it very rewarding. It can be a bit time consuming and frustrating collecting money but generally I've had great success and it gets easier with experience. As a player and team captain, I find TASL to be a lot of fun.

I agree with everything Phil said in his excellent review from 2010. TASL are even bigger and…read morebetter three years later. In addition to their formal competitve leagues in the Spring and Fall seasons, they offer organized but informal rec games (8v8, one ref, no one keeps score, plenty of touches), training opportunities, and even opportunities for pickup games. Andy has moved on to other opportunties but his replacement in the office, Kirsten Nicholas, has a corporate training background and is helping the organization to ensure all players, captains, and refs are well educated about both the letter and spirit--which is to say, good sportsmanship--of the game. And the admin tech is much-improved from 2010 (for example, captains no longer have to collect money as they did when Phil wrote his review as the League takes care of that online). They have also partnered closely with the Railhawks to the benefit of both organizations. And the refs are much better managed and improved in quality compared to three years ago. TASL provide a great way to get some exercise, enable you to meet people you otherwise might not have, promote an atmosphere of comeraderie, and, in their modest way, consistently do more than you would expect to enhance the experience of life in the Triangle.

Couldn't go below one star, alas... Attempted to call before tonight's game to see if they were…read morestill going to play in monsoon rain conditions. An hour before the game, with sheets of rain creating a virtual whiteout, a call to check on the game was answered by... no one. Even after selecting "Speak to the Communications Department" from the voicemail menu, it resulted in ZERO communications! Not a complicated procedure to program the VM to say, "Yes, the game is on" or "Tonight's game is postponed." Quite simple, actually... some companies mastered this effort in the 1980s. Pity that NCFC isn't up to this simple task. Hope the score better than they "communicate."

I am dedicating review number 800 to something that I love, that's right soccer I'm dedicating this…read morereview to you. The Carolina Railhawks are gone and have rebranded as NCFC in the hopes of the bringing the 919 to the MLS. How awesome would it be to get a team in the MLS? Over the past few years soccer has boomed around the area. If you had not had the opportunity to attend a game yet, there is still time as the season runs through October! Can't wait to see what becomes of this in the future. #NCRaiseUp #919toMLS

We are all entitled to our own opinions, right? Well here's mine:…read more Parking: 5 Location: 3 Decor/ambiance: 3 Customer Service: 5 YOOOOO!!!! Stop what you are doing and listen up! If you're in the triangle area and you are seeking some fun, don't head to a skating rink, drive pass the movie theater and head towards KnockerBall! This was so much fun! KnockerBall is so much fun. You get inside of these huge plastic balls that are filled with air. You are well surrounded by loads of padding. Imagine holding up a shield that covers your whole body. Its clear so you can see straight through it. There is these cool seat belt straps that hold you in place. They have different size balls for kids and adults. The workers that oversaw our game time were good. They did a good job making sure everyone was safe and sound. They played music for us as well and they even gave us bottled waters during our break. Here is a few tips: Wear workout cloths if you can. You will work up a good sweat inside of the ball as it gets warm. Also you want to be able to run and move freely so don't wear your skinny jeans that all tight and form fitted lol. I would also advise you to go with a group of your friends. I can imagine doing that with just two people and it being redundant hitting the same person. We went with a group of 10 and had a blast. 5 STARS KnockerBall - Triangle

Knockerball review I…read moreexperienced a major injury (ruptured Achilles' tendon) at this facility and reached out to management to let them know what happened and perhaps suggest their young staff be trained a little on what to do in case of emergency. At the time of my injury, the staff kinda stared at me roll around in pain but didn't stop the game or call for mall security/help or anything. Didn't ask me if I was even ok. That was about 3 wks ago and to date, I've heard nothing back from the management. Accidents happen but from a customer service perspective, this has been a terrible experience. So be warned, once you sign the waiver, they will not care what happens to you!

My kids, age 3-7, have loved going to Soccer Shots after school for the past two seasons. It is…read morenon-competitive and fun for even very young kids, and they learn how to play soccer without any stress. The coaches are enthusiastic and really enjoy being with the kids. And the owner, Trey, is very nice and easy to reach. They have had some administrative issues, however, and my original review was very upset at them for failing to send a coach to my son's birthday party as scheduled and confirmed. That's why they don't have a 5th star. The classes alone would have earned 5 stars. But apparently mistakes like that are not common for them, and they have been appropriately very apologetic for it. The owner immediately took responsibility for the mistake and they sent my son's favorite Coach to our house to give a private lesson to my son and a few friends to make up for it.

Recently put my two year old in soccer shots. The patience coach Maryam has and the skills they are…read moreteaching these young kids with such a short attention span was beyond precious. They really have it mapped out well and are super thoughtful. I was impressed with the coach and her stern yet patient demeanor. Looking forward to the rest of the season for sure!