By Joe Arnold
The Cincinnati Enquirer

When Cincinnati's new arenafootball2 team was announced last November, team owner Mark Hamister said arena football in the Queen City wouldn't be a flash in the pan.

"We take a personal and direct interest in making sure (the organization is) run well," Hamister said at the Nov. 15 announcement.

Nine months later, and despite a sub-.500 record, the Swarm will be back in Cincinnati next season.

"We're coming back. That is one question that is not up for discussion," Hamister said Friday. "That's not even on the table for conversation."

Cincinnati finished 7-9 with a 61-59 victory at Wichita Saturday.

That the Swarm are returning for a second season in a league where the number of teams is anything but consistent speaks to the relative popularity of the team.

Since the af2's inaugural season in 2000, the number of teams in the league has fluctuated between 15 in its first season to 34 in 2002. Twenty-seven teams competed this past season.

First-year coach Chris MacKeown said he was aware of the washout rate among teams in the league, but said it wasn't a concern for the Swarm.

"That's one thing you really can't worry about in pro sports," MacKeown said. "That does happen. They do grow the league. But, honestly, there are too many other things to worry about.

"With U.S. Bank Arena and the Hamister group, it wasn't a one-time deal. They're in it to give it a shot and to give the people of Cincinnati a sport to watch."

Apparently, so are Cincinnatians. The team drew an average of 4,189 fans to its eight home games, nearly on par with the league's 4,603 per-game average. By comparison, Green Bay, which joined Cincinnati as an expansion team for the 2003 season, averaged 2,955 fans in its eight home games. The Swarm's home opener April 19 drew a season-high 7,238 fans to U.S. Bank Arena.

Both Hamister and MacKeown said that before the season, they had hoped for attendance figures to be at or near the league average.

"We hope to grow that," MacKeown said. "With arena football, you're fighting tradition in terms of spring and summer activities. It's an exciting game. Once you get people in the door, they'll come back."

Drawing more fans to U.S. Bank Arena tops management's list when its sits down today to discuss plans for next season. The team's relative low visibility in Cincinnati's competitive sports market needs to be changed, Hamister said.

"We need to make sure our coaching staff and our players spend more time in the community to get to know their fans better," he said.

The Swarm, which finished in second place in the National Midwest division behind 14-2 Quad City, will "be real close to breaking even" financially, Hamister said.

"It was a decent season for a rookie team," Hamister said. "When you finish below .500, I'm never going to break out the band. We're looking to be a serious playoff contender next year."