FanExp — Kaohsiung’s Steel Mill, home to the 17Live Steelers
This is written for fans who are interested in attending #PlusLeague basketball games in Taiwan, who are limited in the mandarin language.
Overall Fan Experience:
First time heading down south to Kaohsiung as well as my first live game in over 12 months in Taiwan. The home of the Steelers is at 高雄鳳山體育館 which holds up to around 5300 people. Located in the district of Fongshan east of the CBD. ‘Potential’ is the word that pops in my mind when I recount my experience with the main reasons being that although it’s a smaller stadium the location, surroundings and services means there is ample opportunities to create better fan experiences.
Merchandising:
Finally got my hands on a Chou Yi-Hsiang singlet(his gameplay since being back from the CBA is another topic). He’s a player I try to imitate from an on court perspective, workout arms all day, sleeve tattoo and heads down driver. There were 3 different kits that you could purchase alongside a variety of other labeled Steeler clothing such as track pants, t-shirts and hoodies. I like the colour ways available, they are not your stock standard black and white, more flavorful from a style perspective. However it was disappointing to see them sell last seasons stock verses the stock for this season. For example I was ecstatic at the prospect of picking up another Steeler jersey with my all-time favorite Wang Po-Chih aka The Tank, only to find that the elusive #10 wasn't available. Instead they had his #7 jersey number from last season.
From a pricing perspective, definitely on the dearer side of what one would expect to pay in Taiwan for sports/street wear. In terms of quality, I would say that it they will be quality similar to Giodarno etc. The jersey itself looked and felt fantastic however I’m disappointed that the names are heat pressed, would have preferred stitching at this price point.
All important though is the fact that foreign credit cards are accepted here! So important because for foreign visitors they often don’t carry cash and aren't able to access domestic credit cards. This is a huge plus.
Food:
There was around 8 different food trucks , a strawberry milk focused vendor, multiple skewer providers, Burger King, KamiKami Burger and a dumpling stall.
I was able to try three vendors, although not the full selection I did pick the ones with the longest queue time. First up is the grilled hot plate vendor, doing stir fry of Taiwan pork strips , pork sausages and onions. There was only two choices to selct from everything mix or just Pork/Pork sausage so the simplicity was well recvied. For 100 NTD it’s a simple stirfry with ample flavour, this is a great budget option.
Up next was a skewer stall that also famously sells Chicken Ass that Mr Howard so adores. I went with the full skewer selection, essentially one each of the different skewers. Although there was a good portion of meat on the skewers, the texture was average and the food felt overly flavoured.
Saving the best for last is Kami Kami burger, these flaming bad boys are simply sensational. Grilled beef burgers with a numbing mala sauce on top, it’s a great take on an American stadium classic. For $150 NTD, you get a burger and drink, from a price to taste perspective this is a must for visitors of the stadium.
Seating:
For $2200 TWD / around $70 AUD you will be getting great seats, they are courtside, has cushioning, good amount of back support and most importantly slightly elevated so you are not constantly looking up. My seats had me right behind the basket and it was a great angle to observe the coaching and bench staff for the home team.
It was a bit odd though as there wasn’t a clear point of entry for the seats, this meant that I had to use the same entrance that players, managers and league officials used, which was fantastic but a bit perplexing trying to find a way to the seats.
But It wasn’t the best from a watching the entire game perspective. It felt like you were watching half-court sessions, kind of like playing NBA 2K. Just a general rule, from a viewing perspective its always better to have seats looking courtside / center court.
Toilets:
There seems to be only one set off bathrooms that is located to the right of the entrance. Very small bathroom for an arena, it gets full quickly, will be a huge problem if the arena was full. For cleanness I would say its typical of a public Taiwan standards.
#Vibes
A weekday game, had weekday results as the arena looked fairly empty with only about 20–25% of the arena filled. However due to the condensed nature of the stadium, the atmosphere was electric. The hardcore, true Steeler fans were booming and it’s easy to imagine how much more exciting the atmosphere would be if it was at max capacity.
Noteworthy things to consider:
Key players for the home team:
In terms of players that you should pay attention to if you’re watching the Steelers for the first time or the Plus League. For good displays of floor command and general point guard skills it would #4 Chen You-Wei(Jerry).
While ChairmanBalls favorite is no doubt also a fan-favorite aka Tank, Wang Po-Chih. Equipped with monster calves the size of tree trunks, Wang is a favorite because of his joyous character on the court, near unstoppable drives and ofcourse those cannon 3 balls.
*Moving forward no doubt it has to be Jeremy Lin but more to come on this later.
Address/Logistics:
高雄市鳳山體育館, №65號, Tiyu Rd, Fengshan District, Kaohsiung City, 830
Around a 25–35 minute drive when you include Taiwanese driving and traffic from the CBD, Fengshan is relatively accessible for all major types of transportation.
There are two MRT stations (Fongshan Stadium and Fongshan West Station) both will require around 10–15 minutes of walking.
The stadium is located in actively/physical wellbeing area such as parks and gyms. I would highly recommend swinging by the night market pre and after the game for eating options if it gets to busy at the stadium.
