Written by Kathy Pietruska
Tensions escalated between starting forward Brenner Souza da Silva and the FC Cincinnati soccer organization, but no one on the outside knew why.
Souza da Silva is one of FCC's best offensive players, and rumors swirled among fans as to why he might not be happy playing in Cincinnati. Many fans believed that Souza da Silva was clearly disrespectful in pushing for a move out of Cincinnati.
Where did this bad attitude come from? Why did he want to leave the organization? Was it his personal problem or did the FCC organization treat him unfairly? After about a year and a half of media attention, the FCC has officially transferred Souza da Silva to Udinese in Italy's Serie A.
Fan theories abounded in the media, and Laurel Pfahler, founder and owner of the three-year-old blog Queen City Press, was the only reporter to insert herself into the middle of the blog to give readers closure. Pfahler's reporting beat out Cincinnati's more established news organizations and boosted her business.
The truth is, Souza da Silva had a tough first season in 2021, trying to adapt to a new team in a new country, and did not think the club would help him with the transition. So he asked to transfer in the winter of 2021, but FCC had just hired a new general manager, Chris Albright, and coach, Pat Noonan.
Souza da Silva had a great season in 2022, but didn't have a good relationship with Albright. When the offer to play in Europe came, Souza da Silva thought Albright was holding him back. When April arrived, Souza da Silva pushed through with the transfer. Pfahler was the reporter who pursued this story and provided the answers fans desperately needed.
The transfer of Souza da Silva was a historic moment for the FC Cincinnati organization and Major League Soccer (MLS). Cincinnati received a club-record $10 million, excluding add-ons and sell-on rates. This is FCC's most expensive transfer and ranks among the top 10 most expensive transfers in MLS history.
Various famous sports sites, including the official MLS website and ESPN, have reported on the transfer, but I would like to speak to Souza da Silva about his personal thoughts on what happened between him and FCC. There were no reporters. But Ms. Pferrer worked tirelessly to arrange a virtual interview with Ms. Sousa da Silva through her manager, so that she could get the answers her readers had been craving.
Once the interview was set up, Mr. Pfahler contacted the FCC to let them know that the interview would take place. She asked Albright for an interview. This interview kindly provides Albright with a way to respond to any negative comments that Souza da Silva may make regarding the FC Cincinnati organization.
However, Cincinnati's response was not positive. Rather, they were puzzled as to why Pfahrer wanted to keep talking when Souza da Silva was no longer with the team or even with the country. The FCC seemed intent on leaving the situation alone and moving on, but Pfahler was determined to get answers.
“Our fans want to know more, and it's my job to give them what they want,” Pfahler said.
As word spread that an interview with Souza da Silva had been published in the Queen City Press, Pfarrer's paid subscriptions increased due to fans wanting to know what happened, and the Queen City Press was the only medium that could provide the answers they were looking for.
Although increasing subscribers was a big benefit of posting this article, Pfahler made it clear that it was not the main purpose of publishing the article. Rather, her intention was to stay true to the truth and her readers, and her subscribers happened to bring in additional profits.
More than 700 of her paid subscribers recently showed their dedicated support for Ms. Pfurler when the FCC revoked her credentials for two weeks due to an undisclosed dispute. She commented that many subscribers would file complaints with the front office after Pfurler posted a statement clarifying why he would not be broadcasting live games for the next two weeks. One fan even made and sold T-shirts with the phrase “Support Laurel” written on the front. Pfahler has since returned to live streaming her matches and thanked her fans for their unwavering support.
Sports have been a passion for Farrar since childhood.
“I grew up in a house with two brothers and a father. They were all involved in sports and I was the middle child, so naturally I wanted to do what my older brother was doing.” said Pfahler. “So I started playing sports. I was pretty athletic, so it came naturally. Then I started writing, because my mom was an English teacher. And then… She was a really good writing teacher.”
Continuing to pursue this passion, Pfahler participated in a journalism program and student magazine throughout high school and knew sports journalism would be her future career. She studied journalism at Ohio University and has worked as a freelance journalist for professional media outlets such as ESPN, The Athletic, Dayton Daily News, and WCPO 9.
Prior to the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, Pferrer continued to work as a freelance writer for The Athletic's website and WCPO 9 in Cincinnati. But when the pandemic shut down sports, her freelance work was put on ice. While waiting to hear when she would be able to get her job, she explored the idea of creating her own blog. In 2021, that dream became a reality when Farrar launched Queen City Press, which covers all things FC Cincinnati.
Pfahler had a good reputation through her contributions to other media outlets, and when it came time to launch her own site, she promoted it on social media and quickly gained subscribers.
“I think working for The Athletic has established trust, especially among the FC Cincinnati fan base,” Pfahler said. “Many of them enjoyed my coverage, and even when they knew I wasn't going to write anymore, they still wanted to follow me and subscribed to Queen City Press. Ta.”
The Queen City Press website includes a variety of media, including articles, photo galleries of games and team-related events, and podcasts. Queen City Press has tiered subscription pricing. Photo galleries are free to viewers, articles can be accessed for $3 per month, and podcasts are available for $6 per month.
Pferler reached out to several fans of her site who liked her sports coverage and wanted to support her at a higher level than just a paid subscription. Due to her interest in higher levels of support, she began developing and offering various sponsorship tiers, including paid advertising opportunities.
According to Patreon, a business tool that provides web analytics, Queen City Press currently has more than 700 paid subscribers and consistently receives more than 1,000 page visits each week. The longer Ms. Pferrer covers FC Cincinnati in her Queen City press, the more her subscriber numbers and page views will increase.
Pfahler works tirelessly to provide quality content to her subscribers while still finding time for her husband and children.
“Well, it's hard to balance work and personal life. I mean, I have to do it, but I'm pretty much a one-man, one-man show, so if the news breaks, there's no one else I can ask for an interview.” said Pfahler.
But she has found a balance that allows her to work comfortably. When sports news drops, Pfahler can either take his personal time to write and publish the story, or he can accept that he is slower to publish stories than other news organizations and wait.
Running his own sports-covering site is time-consuming, but Pferrer has found a balance between providing quality content to his fans and being an active participant in his family's life.
