[Archived] Poll - Falling Attendances.

[philipl]

Alan75 and Chesh have both very accurately described the situation.

Paul's solution to the problem does not work for the simple reason that more than 50% of the players (probably soon to be 80%) recruited are non-Brits. It is impossible to cartelise a monopsony when it isn't your fellow PL club who might outbid you but some Italian, French, Spaniard, Ukrainian, Qatari, etc etc.

The solution in part is Big Sam's approach- but there are only so many unloved and unwanted Jayjays and Spits out there as Sam found out this summer (flattery is the sincerest form...)

[cletus]

Theno...Not mentioned as yet but the current trend of working 4x12 hour days on and 4 days off must be having some effect.

Tiz true. i work 4 on 4 off & cannot get to some games. As it falls this year, i can get to most home games up to christmas, but after then it`s not too great.

[CAPT KAYOS]

Alan75 and Chesh have both very accurately described the situation.

Paul's solution to the problem does not work for the simple reason that more than 50% of the players (probably soon to be 80%) recruited are non-Brits.

345157[/snapback]

But that's only at the moment Philipl- if a limit is agreed upon to the number of 'non-Brits' as before this would soon sort itself out.

Not everybody can play for the Utd and Chelski's of this world so the players would have to start seriously thinking about what they wanted to do.

[BRFC4EVA]

To play devils advocate here, some clubs are trying to do something about it. By creating catergory games usually 3 tiers, then are charging the most to away fans who in turn usually charge the most themselves.

For example, at west brom, catergory a+ will be the £35 for away fans (arse, liv, chels, manure) who are themselves usually the most expensive. However, when we go there, as a catergory b game, it will be £25 for a away ticket.

Lots of clubs are now doing this and at least it punishes the big clubs for keeping their prices high!

[AggyBlue]

To play devils advocate here, some clubs are trying to do something about it. By creating catergory games usually 3 tiers, then are charging the most to away fans who in turn usually charge the most themselves.

For example, at west brom, catergory a+ will be the £35 for away fans (arse, liv, chels, manure) who are themselves usually the most expensive. However, when we go there, as a catergory b game, it will be £25 for a away ticket.

Lots of clubs are now doing this and at least it punishes the big clubs for keeping their prices high! 

345265[/snapback]

No, it's all about supply and demand. Home clubs know when they play one of the bigger clubs demand for tickets will be high. Therefore they can afford to hike the prices knowing full well they will probably still sell the away allocation.

[OscarRaven]

To play devils advocate here, some clubs are trying to do something about it. By creating catergory games usually 3 tiers, then are charging the most to away fans who in turn usually charge the most themselves.

For example, at west brom, catergory a+ will be the £35 for away fans (arse, liv, chels, manure) who are themselves usually the most expensive. However, when we go there, as a catergory b game, it will be £25 for a away ticket.

Lots of clubs are now doing this and at least it punishes the big clubs for keeping their prices high! 

345265[/snapback]

Punishes the big clubs for keeping their prices high? Cause those big clubs hate it when they get more gate money dont they?

Punishes the big clubs fans more like it.

[Blue blood]

Personally I reckon that its a combination of most of the factors, and most of which the club can do little about. Im sure the economics of the game mean that even with falling attendances that higher ticket prices are more profitable to the club overall, and thus are unlikely to change.

In Blackburn's situation however I reckon that the most important factor is a poor standard of football. People will be more willing to pay the higher prices if they know they are getting a superior product i.e. attractive winning football. Hence the higher attendances in the first three seasons under souness. In fact this goes for all teams as far fewer fans would pay the prices of Chelsea/Arsenal/manure if they weren't winning. However these days winning needs money the situation is unlikely to change.

On an optimistic note I can remember a German team failed to qualify for the champs league and the players through fan pressure had to give back a percentage of their wages. (apologies if already mentioned.) Im also fairly confident that you can get in to german league games for a decent price . If this is the case premier league clubs should be asking what the differences are that allow this to happen?

[thenodrog]

Don't know any details yet but Talksport are reporting vast tracts of empty seating at the Riverside.

Yet another small town club from a depressed area suffering from having too few hard core supporters.

[BRFC4EVA]

Its not about how hardcore the support is, its the amount of supporters they have. For example, take us or boro. For a home game sat, 3pm kick off we might get say 23k. Now for teams like us and boro, if this is on t.v it takes a coupla 1000 off the crowd. However, for arsenal and chels 45,000 are willing to turn up to a home game sat 3pm. Knock 3,000 of this cos of a sky game, but its still a full house.

And to the coupla of post above, keep your hair on it was on a suggestion on my behalf, not my opinion!

Edited September 10, 2005 by BRFC4EVA

[den]

Don't know any details yet but Talksport are reporting vast tracts of empty seating at the Riverside. 

Yet another small town club from a depressed area suffering from having too few hard core supporters.

345981[/snapback]

6000 empty seats against Arsenal. 28000 gate in a stadium that holds 34000.

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

Today's horrible first half at Notlob just back's up the poll.

Enough said.

[Exiled in Toronto]

When old lags like Revidge and CLB don't want to go to Bolton, then football definitely is on the slide. Both, and me, wouldn't have missed a trip to Burnden for anything.

But then football has made it very clear that it caters for the TV audience first and last, so it shouldn't come as any surprise.

Any consumer product or service today lives or dies by how it meets the three needs of quality, value and convenience. You can do well by scoring very high on one of those attributes and being OK on the other two: TV dinners are extremely convenient while being not quite as good quality or value as home cooked. Shopping at Walmart is extremely good value while being OK quality and not so convenient.

Live football as was before Sky was very good value - when I went as a lad I could pay to get in from my weekly spending money; the quality was iffy - both players and facilities, but it was very convenient: 3pm Sat and 7.30 weds didn't clash with mealtimes or anything else really.

Nowadays, for the fan, it is very expensive compared to a trip to the cinema or whatever, the quality is better but increasingly iffy - as we saw today; and it is highly inconvenient - best personified by the 5.30 Sat kick off, when do they expect everyone to eat FFS?

However, for the television fan, it has never been better. The old MOTD used to be very good value, OK at best quality, and very inconvenient. Nowadays, if you watch it in a pub, it's unbeatable: the quality of coverage is terrific, the value is good and what could be more convenient that a stroll down you local for a few beers while you watch (that you can't get in the ground), some good pub grub, and a decent atmosphere.

What amazes me is that the clubs didn't realise that, as the TV offer got more attractive, that they would have to readjust the Quality/Value/Convenience equation for the live game if they still expected people to come. A combination of holding the line of kick-off times and days to enable the paying fan to have some regular structure to their lives, a recognition that pricing for the family would have to stay accessible, plus putting teams out who would try to win rather than try to avoid losing.

Would it have helped? I have no idea, but I do know that offering the worst value in tha game's history at the most inconvenient times would inevitably result in decline when the TV option got so attractive.

Football is dead as an accessible people's event.

[Paul]

Good post EIT.

Our cause is not being helped by the national media, which must have an impact on the casual fan's decision to attend or not. The game was live on Five Live and discussed quite a lot of 606 afterwards. I haven't seen anything of the match BUT every item I have heard on the radio has been entirely negative in respect of both Bolton Wanderers and Blackburn Rovers. The two main culprits were Alan "I'm just wonderful" Green and Adrian "I'm a super Baggy" Chiles who ran down the clubs, teams and fans in an appalling manner for at least three hours yesterday. Personally I'd like to ensure they need their microphones surgically removing.

I can just about take Alan Green but presenters like Chiles who can't broadcast about a trip to the post ofice without mentioning WBA should be shot. To some extent these people have a responsibility to support and promote the game from which they earn a living. Yesterday they did nothing but deride both clubs, criticism is fine but it should not be for its own sake.

[Mike Graham]

The only good performance at Bolton was the Rovers fans (the few who turned up) who were magnificent.

Pity about the game. With entertainment like this we will be lucky to have 18000 home fans agaist the Toon next Sunday. At least if you watch the game on Sky you can switch off or cut the lawn. Some of us had to endure 90 mins of utter crap at The Breezeblock with no alternative but to make our own entertainment hence the magnificent racket from the Rovers fans.

[waggy]

i think a lot off roverites will turn up on sunday,big al's goodbye and sourpuss's public exucution.for years i dogged my mates for not going to away games,now i don't go.

now they do not go the home games,i hope i do'nt follow that trend

[RevidgeBlue]

Good post EIT.

Our cause is not being helped by the national media, which must have an impact on the casual fan's decision to attend or not. The game was live on Five Live and discussed quite a lot of 606 afterwards. I haven't seen anything of the match BUT every item I have heard on the radio has been entirely negative in respect of both Bolton Wanderers and Blackburn Rovers. The two main culprits were Alan "I'm just wonderful" Green and Adrian "I'm a super Baggy" Chiles who ran down the clubs, teams and fans in an appalling manner for at least three hours yesterday. Personally I'd like to ensure they need their microphones surgically removing.

I can just about take Alan Green but presenters like Chiles who can't broadcast about a trip to the post ofice without mentioning WBA should be shot. To some extent these people have a responsibility to support and promote the game from which they earn a living. Yesterday they did nothing but deride both clubs, criticism is fine but it should not be for its own sake.

346271[/snapback]

To be fair to Green he has usually been extremely complimentary about us on occasions in the past.

[RevidgeBlue]

EIT, I would definitely have gone had it not been live on the box, or if we had been challenging for the title/Europe/battling against relegation.

However at this stage of the season out of 2 options:

1) Give one of our our closest rivals 32 quid + travel + no beer in ground

or

2) Watch match live in Pub 2 mins away with a couple of beers for a fiver

just swung it in favour of option 1

I think it's inexcusable not going to a home game to do the same though because you're depriving your own club of the money.

[andyrovers]

There was beer in the ground

[stuwilky]

There was beer in the ground

346489[/snapback]

Yeah my mate called that one wrong.

Sorry.

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

Reports are there will be thousands of empty seats at Stamford Bridge tonight v Anderlecht......£48-60 a throw!

Will they listen to the fans??........................

Edited September 13, 2005 by SIMON GARNERS 194

[den]

They will listen when the big clubs are affected. No doubt about that whatsoever.

As for the rest - tough.

[waggy]

burnley fan at work is going to nobend tonight price off ticket £18.makes you think

[OscarRaven]

Anyone else feel lied to?

We were promised more entertainment this season what have we got?

5 games 4 of which were 4-5-1 (a defensivley strong formation)

Rovers goals per game ave=0.60 (last season ave=0.76)

1 win out of 5 in what you could argue is one of the easier starts in the league, no top teams.

1 point per game = 38 points (not European football!!!)

We went to Bolton on Satuarday with one intent getting a draw. Is this what we are to expect a Blackburn team that plays for a draw at home to the powehouse that is Tottenham Hotspur and when visiting such fortresses as the Reebok?

Oh not to forget the messiah Bellamy will save us..... just like Owen will save Newcastle I suppose.... Bellamy will soon get fed up of playing up front on his own.

I think we are worse this season than last on paper but isn't a nice gloss been put on it?

[S15]

Shut up you moron.

Results = Entertainment in my eyes... This time last season we had 2 points, we now have 5....

You do the math.

Edited September 13, 2005 by shillito15

[thenodrog]

Anyone else feel lied to?

I think we are worse this season than last on paper but isn't a nice gloss been put on it?

346734[/snapback]

Lets compare the squad at the start of last season with the squad at the start of this season.....

Gone are Short, Stead, Johannson and the overrated Jock whilst and in are Mokoena, Nelsen, Bentley, Savage, Zurab, Kuqi and Bellamy.

You thick or what?