[Archived] The Old Gate Debate

[AndyR]

I guess this has a place in this thread rather than its own but someone has put the 92 clubs in order of the worst clubs to support.

http://www.24dash.com/showbiz&slapdash/14938.htm

I don't know how the Stanley are deemed a better club to follow, or how Brum and Villa are better than us either but 76th isn't bad. I know since my first season ticket in 87, Full Members Cup winners, Premiership winners, Carling Cup winners, Champions League appearances, UEFA Cup appearances, Charity Shield games, a number of semi finals (both cups) is a very impressive haul for a club of our size.

Worth a quick read anyway

[FourLaneBlue]

When we played Cardiff in the FA Cup replay of two years ago we wanted to reduce the prices to around the usual £10 mark, Cardiff were fully against this and wanted more, I think eventually we met them half way and the price was about £20.

Can't say I blame them...revenue from cup runs can be vital to lower league sides.

For the report on best clubs to follow mentioned above by AndyR here is the criteria used...Littlewoods - Best/worst Clubs to follow

Edited January 5, 2007 by FourLaneBlue

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

Clubs must realise though that they may get a better pay day by the home club reducing prices by a bit which will bring in more supporters. It is a tough call for them to make but I feel dropping prices by say a fiver will bring in more gate revenue.

But there's the rub in dropping the prices Mansfield Blue ...... you have to get the people/town to respond in sufficient numbers to make up for the price drop.

Rovers drop the prices v Boro and 19-20,000 home fans only turn up.It appears a short term fix to me that appeases only the ticket price moaners,it certainly does NOT benefit Rovers financially in any way,infact the club probably looses money!

At a guess,Rovers would have been hoping for a gate aroung the 27,000 mark on New years day but it just isnt happening.

Edited January 6, 2007 by SIMON GARNERS 194

[thenodrog]

Clubs must realise though that they may get a better pay day by the home club reducing prices by a bit which will bring in more supporters. It is a tough call for them to make but I feel dropping prices by say a fiver will bring in more gate revenue.

Have you not got a calculator?

btw I seem to rem that Lee suggested a while back that the average revenue from ticket sales (before the latest price reductions btw) was just £13 per head. (Is that correct.... anybody?) If that is indeed the case just where do you suggest that we go from there?

[den]

Have you not got a calculator?

btw I seem to rem that Lee suggested a while back that the average revenue from ticket sales (before the latest price reductions btw) was just £13 per head. (Is that correct.... anybody?) If that is indeed the case just where do you suggest that we go from there?

That came from BRISA, after a discussion with JW. Yes it's right.

[thenodrog]

Thank you Den.

So to all you deep thinking cheap ticket brigade...... just where do BRFC go from there? Especially considering that after the european nights etc it's probably nearer £12 now.

Edited January 6, 2007 by thenodrog

[RevidgeBlue]

So to all you deep thinking cheap ticket brigade...... just where do BRFC go from there?

We carry on with the current pricing policy and have fun counting the minimum 37m TV money next year!

[Gav]

We carry on with the current pricing policy and have fun counting the minimum 37m TV money next year!

I firmly believe that the club will strive to make football more affordable to Joe public and with the Sky money going up, a balance will be found between us remaining competitive and affordable ticket prices.

The clubs in good hands and we should be thankful for that.

[disgruntled]

Rovers might price their tickets to make them 'more affordable to Joe Public' but when their revenue is significantly less than the clubs they are competing with it doesn't make great sense.

Wigan can get away with it as Whelan will subsidise it, but who is going to subsidise our cheaper tickets?

[joey_big_nose]

I firmly believe that the club will strive to make football more affordable to Joe public and with the Sky money going up, a balance will be found between us remaining competitive and affordable ticket prices.

The clubs in good hands and we should be thankful for that.

Intresting question here: How much proportionally is gate revenue of total takings now? And how much will it be after the new TV deal?

It has to shrink consderably, paving the way for clubs to drop ticket prices. It would mean us dropping further behind the big clubs in terms of available revenue, but the magnitude of the lost financial ground has to propotionally reduce considerably.

Hughes himself has said he expects prices to go down next season on a general Premiership level.

[den]

Hughes himself has said he expects prices to go down next season on a general Premiership level.

Has he?

[Gav]

Rovers might price their tickets to make them 'more affordable to Joe Public' but when their revenue is significantly less than the clubs they are competing with it doesn't make great sense.

Wigan can get away with it as Whelan will subsidise it, but who is going to subsidise our cheaper tickets?

With the sky money going up from 20 to 37million that'll subsidise cheaper tickets for a while without compromising the clubs fortunes on the pitch.

The club are already doing just that with the current deal still in place and our revenue is one of the worst in the Premiership.

[Al]

Our total gate money for a Premiership season is about £5,850,000 (£13*25,000*18matches) and this includes season tickets. It pales into insignificance to the £37mil TV money and reducing the price would not reduce this figure significantly in view of extra bums on seats. It can therefore be done for a while to try to attract extra support.

[Darth Paul]

I posted this on the BRISA website a couple of weeks ago but have had no response, either because people didnt feel it was a good idea or because no one bothers to go on the site anymore...

Anyway, I would be interested to hear peoples opinions...

Hi, not sure if anyone actually still visits or reads these pages or not but I heard of an idea recently which may be of interest to the club in relation to attendances, and thought going through these channels was the correct way to air it.

Rovers have tried lowering pricing and have improved the product (ie finishing 6th) but still the public does not respond. We already have the lowest priced tickets in the division so maybe we need to look at a different angle - how easy and convenient can the club make it to get to the game. If 50,000 people lived within 10 mins of the ground I suspect attendances wouldnt be a problem

Completely by coincidence I read an article in an in flight magazine about 10 days ago saying how Bayer Leverkusen fans can use all public transport on match days free.

I havent checked the validity of this but I could see this being something which Rovers could emulate to their benefit, with a view to increasing attendances.

Basically, on production of a match day ticket fans can get on trains and buses to and from the ground on a match day. The club would have to negotiate this with the train and bus people but hopefully the local council would be willing to help. (The public v private transport angle could be used. Rovers in environmentally friendly transport pledge etc etc...)

Normal bus and train services would run, ie there is no need for a football "special" service, it would just make it easier and less incovenient for fans to use them.

As the bus station is right next to the train station on the boulevard fans could hop off the trains from places such as clitheroe, bamber bridge etc and straight on to an Ewood bound bus.

It has long been felt that if Ewood had a train station, it would make going to the games more attractive. That cant be done but this is probably the next best thing.

Buses leaving the ground could be given traffic priority by the police to get people home quicker.

To fans living closer to the ground this may not mean much but I feel if it is presented in the right way it could really help attract floating fans from the peripheral areas. We have excellent transport links, particularly on the trains to such places so why not utilise them better?

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

You've got to laugh,so now as well as offering cheap tickets Rovers now have to subsidise the fans travel to Ewood?

So lets reiterate, thats cheap tickets, subsidised travel to the match......free Bovril,pie and programme next?

I FOOKIN HATE FREELOADERS!

[BrianPotter]

Rovers might price their tickets to make them 'more affordable to Joe Public' but when their revenue is significantly less than the clubs they are competing with it doesn't make great sense.

Wigan can get away with it as Whelan will subsidise it, but who is going to subsidise our cheaper tickets?

Our gate receipts (or lack of them) are currently being subsidised by the Walker Trust to the tune of 5000 extra bums on seats per game I beleive.

We should all remember what a fortunate position our club is in compared to most others. We compete at the highest level, have some good players and we have no debt and are run by people to whom the club actually means something. Its just a shame that the people of Blackburn can't get behind them a little bit more, as we have a solid platform to build on to make Rovers a long term force.

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

Thats all it needs Brian another 5,000 home fans to attend on a regular basis.....even our lord Jesus christ never mind Rovers has run out of ideas on how to do it!!

Edited January 6, 2007 by SIMON GARNERS 194

[Darth Paul]

You've got to laugh,so now as well as offering cheap tickets Rovers now have to subsidise the fans travel to Ewood?

So lets reiterate, thats cheap tickets, subsidised travel to the match......free Bovril,pie and programme next?

I FOOKIN HATE FREELOADERS!

Laugh all you like pal, laugh your way to a half empty stadium every week as well.

As much as you might like to deny it, declining attendances isnt just a Rovers problem, its an issue for 90% of clubs, its just that the size of our club means it hits us earlier and harder than the rest.

My point was that ticket prices cant be reduced much further so there must be some other way of attracting fans to the ground on matchdays...

Fans still have to buy tickets, the club merely facilitates their decision to do so using this idea. I would rather have 30,000 of what you call "freeloaders" filling Ewood every week, spending their cash on tickets and the rest, than sticking with the just over half capacity we currently have, all of which have paid full whack, and hopefully none of which will go in the club shop to buy reduced or sale items in the fear that they too may be accused of being freeloaders.

You cant just make people come to Ewood if they dont already, there needs to be a hook. Its isnt prices, it isnt finishing 6th so what is it?

What do you suggest...hypnosis?

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

So where does the money come from to subsidise the cheap/ free transport then......out of Rovers pockets yet again?.Tell you what,why dont Rovers just pay the fans to attend Ewood eh!

I'm as frustrated as you mate but Just Like the club,you and everyone else I haven't got a clue as to how attract more support as all viable avenues have been exhausted IMO.I ask the question why are a relatively successful club like Rovers treat with such contempt when we cant fill the ground at £15(and less) a throw for league and Uefa games?

If they wont come and support us then sod 'em,like many my patience is wearing thin,too much blame/ emphasis is put onto the club,people need to take a close look at themselves and ask can they really be bothered?are they themselves doing enough?.......the answer becomes clearer every season with reduced attendances.

Edited January 6, 2007 by SIMON GARNERS 194

[Modi]

Laugh all you like pal, laugh your way to a half empty stadium every week as well.

As much as you might like to deny it, declining attendances isnt just a Rovers problem, its an issue for 90% of clubs, its just that the size of our club means it hits us earlier and harder than the rest.

My point was that ticket prices cant be reduced much further so there must be some other way of attracting fans to the ground on matchdays...

Fans still have to buy tickets, the club merely facilitates their decision to do so using this idea. I would rather have 30,000 of what you call "freeloaders" filling Ewood every week, spending their cash on tickets and the rest, than sticking with the just over half capacity we currently have, all of which have paid full whack, and hopefully none of which will go in the club shop to buy reduced or sale items in the fear that they too may be accused of being freeloaders.

You cant just make people come to Ewood if they dont already, there needs to be a hook. Its isnt prices, it isnt finishing 6th so what is it?

What do you suggest...hypnosis?

If I use public transport from where Ilive it's 2 buses and a train each way and costs around £15. (That's Huddersfield). For Martin it's three trains from Scunthorpe and over £30. We're season ticket holders.

Would we get the travel free in which case my s/t is halved in price; and Martin would be paid to attend!

Alternatively do you discriminate against those who travel?

[thenodrog]

Most will know that I'm not all that in favour of reducing ticket ticket prices as it devalues the product. Cat A matches are now treated with more disdain by the 'freeloaders' than they ever were before imo. What the club should do is enhance the product to make it all better value for money.

Free football park n' ride special buses for a couple of hours before and after the match along the major roads for Cat A games initially might alleviate parking problems and would certainly allow for a different match day experience. Being dropped at the door could make a big difference to both club and supporters. The pre and post match beers and pies would be consumed in Ewood Park rather than in the surrounding pubs. These pubs all benefit from the Rovers home crowds but who also slap the club in the face by offering the 'couchpotatodiehardalecan' fans the matches on Sat TV.

Within Ewood food and drink choice, quality, service and prices could also be reviewed for these games as could pre and post match entertainment.

Ticket stubs from Cat A matches might also be used as %age discount vouchers for other matches or used to contribute to a full ST the next year.

There's loads of ways which can be explored to reward the proper diehard supporters. All the club is doing now imo with these discount schemes is pandering to the whines of the less committed ones.

[Lee]

We carry on with the current pricing policy and have fun counting the minimum 37m TV money next year!

But everyone else gets that minimum too. So we are operating at a disadvantage when we are competing against the likes of Manchester City, Everton, Aston Villa (pre Lerner) as they get almost twice as many fans through their doors every other week, meaning that their gate revenue per season is twice that of ours.

It is only because Rovers run such a tight ship when it comes to their spending that we are able to make up some of the differences.

Finances certainly isn't my area but I'm sure that our non-footaballing expenses on a year by year basis is significantly lower than many other clubs that we compete against in the Premiership. (Liverpool have 18 staff involved with their website!!)

As has said by others, if only we had an extra 5000 fans every fortnight, it would make such a huge difference to our coffers and the money available to spend on the team.

There's loads of ways which can be explored to reward the proper diehard supporters. All the club is doing now imo with these discount schemes is pandering to the whines of the less committed ones.

How much have you spent on your UEFA Cup home tickets so far this season Gordon?

Edited January 6, 2007 by Lee

[Bobby G]

I hate how its a double-edged sword...

It isnt a coincidence that our falling gates have been met with less spending by our board. Under the first few years of Souness' reign, Id think that we were among the biggest spenders outside the top 4, and we were averaging Id say about 3-5 thousand more fans a game, if not more.

[thenodrog]

How much have you spent on your UEFA Cup home tickets so far this season Gordon?

Very little ...... but then so have non ST holders in effect.

[stuwilky]

Very little ...... but then so have non ST holders in effect.

Youve had three matches for £15?

A Non ST holder has paid at least double that.