By Scott Spjut
The Regal Seagull

With the anticipated opening of the Sandy stadium only months away, Real Salt Lake players are hoping to finally get noticed by some professional sports teams.

“We’ve already received a few tentative offers,” said Julyanne Ryles, spokeswoman for the Real Salt Lake soccer team. “Nothing finalized yet, but we’re hopeful.”

Previously, players with Real (pronounced ray-AHL) had no chance of making it to the major leagues. They were limited to playing against college or other community-league teams in front of a few hundred fans – mostly relatives who were ready with Tupperware full of orange slices at halftime.

But now, team officials are hopeful this new stadium will bring more exposure for Real Salt Lake. Having a home stadium to call their own may catch the eyes of recruiters from the National Football League, giving the dozen or so players on the soccer team a chance to make it big.

“Every kid, growing up, hopes to one day play in the NFL,” said midfielder Kole Cady, who has been with Real Salt Lake for 3 years. “I may have not taken the same path as everyone else to get there, but I’m still close to getting there.”

Another player, Stu Brindle, feels especially prepared for the possibility of playing American Football.

“I play fullback for Real,” he said. “And I know they’ve got fullbacks in football. How different can it be?”