In a recent post I wrote about the advantages football clubs can gain from using social media and mobile in a more innovative and integrated fashion. This post focuses solely on some of the real world challenges that football clubs desperately need to tackle.
Player involvement
Players need be more engaged in the commercial side of the club. Currently, there’s a disconnect between the playing side and the commercial side of the business, both act like different entities without real overlap. It’s understandable and commendable that the performance of the team has priority as it’s ultimately the service that’s being sold. It’s not understandable that the team has priority however, the club should always be more important. This little distinction makes quite a difference; and an even bigger one if you reposition football from sport to entertainment.
I find it staggering how little some players care about supporters, communities and the commercial success of clubs. I don’t know if it’s a lack of awareness, e.g., for the link between a team’s performance and domestic violence, or the link between points per season and share of television revenue. It could also be down to the way contracts are structured: how about linking the performance bonus of players to the overall commercial performance of the club as it often happens in “normal” companies and with “normal” employees?
I found the views expressed by the CEO of the New Jersey Nets Brett Yormack, (at the Leaders in Football Conference last October) really refreshing and full of common sense: When players are injured they are still employees of the club and are therefore actively engaged in the commercial activities: they visit the season ticket holders before/during/after the game. And it goes even further; they are not only used for relationship management but also in the recruitment process for new season ticket holders and sponsors.
From sales led to brand led
But it’s not only the players that need refocusing. It might be different with some of the big clubs, but a significant number of small clubs don’t have a clearly defined brand. By that I don’t mean pantone colours or any design related topics (even though designs and creative can vary immensely from channel to channel), but brand essence and brand vision in comparison to their strategic set. Immediately, consistency of communication would increase. Immediately, the loop with commercial partners would be short-circuited and finding sponsors would be simplified. Immediately, a competitive advantage could be created and a clear vision and purpose established. A vision and purpose that includes the community, the supporters, in short, all the stake holders and therefore embeds and engages the club actively and consistently. For this to happen, football clubs need to moved into the brand led phase of corporate development, but as of yet they are still stuck somewhere between technology and sales lead.
Fill your stadium
My number 1 priority would be to fill the stadium – get as many people to experience your primary service and product. Because once they are excited, they will return and this time they will pay the full price. It’s about reaching out and engaging based on Regis McKenna’s thought: “A value of a brand can now be defined by the number of active participants in its network.”
Get your players to smooch with your guests and season ticket holders, but get your commercial people out on the streets filling any empty seats. Years ago, we had the half price admission at half time, now that’s a really neat way of increasing your reach and interaction. If I’d be running a club, I would say to my people: I want to have every seat filled. For the reasons above, but also because of the perception, in TV, to the away fans, to the journalists, that the club is a successful brand that people want to see.
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Twitter: BillBoorman
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Felix,
Don’t want to disagree with you but the key problem with free tickets by clubs is the cost of stewarding and policing, which is calculated on a ratio per head. I proposed somthing like this at Rushden and Diamonds and a give away but these costs prohibited given frees to schools. The best proposal I have seen in action was by Huddersfield Town. in my old role we were club sponsors and heavily involved in the commercial side.
They gave a club shirt to every 7 year old in the local schools. The reasoning being that club loyalty, although often parent lead, is formed between 7 and 8. To give the local colours and interact with this age group developed “brand loyalty.” If you catch them at 7 they become life long supporters, later in life and club loyalty is already being formed. This was very succesful for the club and has continued since.
Many of the lower level clubs I have been involved with are very active in their own communities and the players are brand ambassadors. Higher up the leagues and the superstar status players who play for clubs for 2 – 3 seasons max, then the divide between a clubs commercial interests and the player is massive. it is a bit like they are there on a timesheet! Take their cash and move on. the players hold the power at most of the clubs and commercial duties are restricted by contract.
I have plenty of other observations on this from my time with PrimeTime, and will add further comment soon.
Bill
Twitter: FelixWetzel
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Hi Bill,
that’s an interesting point and seems to suggest that clubs don’t really have much ticket sales on match day itself. I am looking forward reading your guest post, maybe you can share some figures.
Or is there another way of looking at it: For example, what would be the price per ticket to break even? Or what would be the price per ticket if you calculate the % of people returning another day and paying the full admission fee/turning into season ticket holders (similar to lead/sales ratios), or what would be the price per ticket with one drink bought in the stadium? Surely that would be a way of subsidising it and looking a little longer term.
I like reach out into the local communty as Huddersfield have done so successfully and I believe that social media and mobile can play a big part in it.
Twitter: blogging4jobs
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Felix,
Players are put on a pedestal and worshipped during the course of their career. They have no reason to be concerned about filling seats and ticket sales because they do not see the correlation. There has been no teaching, discussion, or dialogue about how these directly correlate to their bonus or percent increase when negotiation time comes around. Certainly no expectations have been set by managers or owners to the players they employ.
Those players that do understand how these things are directly related to a team’s brand and success should be rewarded and monetary compensation seems to be best. Sounds like to me the motivation model and compensation model needs to be changed if teams want their players to be all in. Perhaps a player can receive a percentage of ticket sales if they promote they team in addition to what they already make based on performance.
Good post!
Jessica
@blogging4jobs
Twitter: FelixWetzel
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Jessica, thanks for your comment. I think it’s absolutely spot on – sport is an important aspect of social cohesion, and therefore needs to be structured accordingly.
Twitter: Stephenodonn
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Felix and Bill, I agree with much of what you say. However there is a huge disconnect between what is possible and appropriate for small clubs compared to clubs with global brands.
As Bill says, kids (particularly boys) are the most impressionable age around 7-10, and make the decision on which team to support at that time. Clearly the influence of their father, family and friends is very strong, but so too is the pull of the big glamorous clubs, that have brands which permeate any local loyalty.
My home town team is Airdrie United (who have just been relegated from the Scottish 1st to 2nd Division). Their biggest problem is that despite being halfway between Glasgow and Edinburgh, every kid feels compelled to choose between Glasgow Celtic and Glasgow Rangers, depending upon which school they attend. Airdrie’s stadium is located directly across the road from my old primary school but, as far as I know, they do no outreach work whatsoever to engage the local children at that impressionable age.
Twitter: FelixWetzel
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Stephen, I wonder how it works in the USA when franchises move cities & how quickly it takes to become a decent following. I agree that you are supporting one team from childhood, but at the same time, if you just enjoy the game, you might go and watch another club regularily if you are living in that club’s city and therefore slowly you build a certain emotional bond. Sometimes, also, the further you live away the more interested you become in your local team even though it isn’t you main team.
Twitter: Stephenodonn
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I must say there is much to admire about the franchise system in the USA, and the strict draught and trading rules they employ, in order to keep teams on a level playing field. Ironically, it’s a very Marxist concept, which would be laughed out of town in the English Premiership.
The marketing point I was trying, and failing to make, is that clubs (in most sports) who are outwith the elite, need to find additional engagement points where passive and new fans can be brought in. If a club misses a potential lifetime customer before the age of 10, they should have a strategy in place that addresses that lost demographic at various other stages. On a topical note, political parties are becoming very smart at exploiting events, where people are more susceptible to their message. Last week I had a call from the Lib-Dems, wanting to know if I approved of the coalition with the Tories. Then again, only yesterday they called to renew my membership, which isn’t due for another 2 months.
I’ve only read your press releases, but it seems to me that both Jobsite and Pompey are making the best use of this year’s media coverage to benefit the club and your company.
Twitter: FelixWetzel
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Stephen, I admire the franchise system too, I would love to see this here – maybe when the European Super League is born. Have a look at Steve Boese comment below – he is giving some examples on how it’s done in the States. And good on the Libdems, shoring up their supporter base and bringin lasting change to this country.
Twitter: alanwhitford
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Hi Felix
A well thought out and structured approach to how a football club could interact and extend its reach, hence success. Although my sports related brand build and marketing is not in foootball, I believe the lessons also could resonate. I spent a 3+ year period in motor racing, building a team identity, finding and securing sponsorship, and delivering the ROI analysis at the end of each year. In Sports Cars (LeMans) and F1 projects, the elitism of the teams (see today’s Toyota report http://en.espnf1.com/f1/motorsport/story/17707.html?CMP=OTC-RSS), meant that the spectator are held at arm’s length – or even further away than that – from the face of the team, the drivers. Access to the pit lane is restricted to the ‘beautiful people’, with major sponsors having hospitality similar to the ‘sky boxes’ in US sports stadiums. Drivers do a bit of PR (at a price), but are not really engaged with the customers.
Touring Cars (which we did in Australia, New Zealand, Macau and Japan), on the other hand, embrace the fan. Our pits were almost never closed (except during Race and Qualifying periods). Hospitality tents were track side. The drivers, mechanics and other team personnel regularly engaged with sponsors and fans. The media was warmly welcomed to mix with the team, sponsors and fans. We ran external activities in the community, engaged with fans from 8 to 80. In Japan, attendance at the races was 50/50 male/female.
The result: Sponsors received terrific value for money. The team and its individual members developed a warm relationship with the fans. Drivers and mechanics understood the financial and brand elements of the team and where they fit in. And, as all teams had a similar approach, the stands were full.
So, can a football team pull this off today? Will a team be honest with its players and management about the actual running costs and how their performance might impact success/failure of the business? Will management/owners actually run their business as a business, balancing the books before buying in the next mercenary striker at an exorbitant transfer fee and unsupportable weekly wage? Oops, there I go.. better stop the rant now.
I would like to add that, viewed from afar, the integration programmes that you have put in place at Jobsite with Pompey should be applauded.
Twitter: mickrigby
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I honed in on your comment about ½ price at half time to get people in… Volumes, footfall, traffic, bums on seats. It’s all the same thing; lots and lots of people participating in the event and if lots of people are in a stadium they are buying drinks from you, purchasing your merchandise getting closer to you the brand and forming bonds.
It can only be a good thing and if they only pay ½ price this week then they will pay full price at some point soon.
Most county cricket clubs still open their doors for free for the last session of a county match. It allows dads to get their kids to experience the magic of cricket, and one or two of the nippers will become as obsessive with the game as I did.
Twitter: FelixWetzel
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And that’s exactly how you build a following – it’s also interesting that it seems possible for some sports and certain levels. I also wonder how much school sports has to do with it, so if you played rugby in school are you therefore more a rugby follower than a football one?
Twitter: ashread14
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Hi Felix,
Great post!
As I just mentioned to you on Twitter, I feel that players should be more involved in the commercial side of the business, after all they are employees and very well paid ones!
Often clubs will do signing sessions or player appearances, and often it’s the same few players involved every time. Players can be key in brand building both online and offline, whether it’s via getting involved in clubs social media presences, answering fan questions or maybe something that also reaches offline.
One great example is one of the NBA teams (I think it was NBA) sent players out around the city with tickets, giving fans clues to locations via social media and whoever found the players won the tickets.
The power players have to attract and engage fans is an amazing opportunity for clubs, it’s great chatting to someone behind the scenes on twitter or even offline but the real draws and opportunities come when players get involved, as I said at the start players are employees too and get very good wages – so my advice is make the most of them!
Twitter: FelixWetzel
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Ash – that’s my stance on it as well. We can learn a lot from US teams & additionally from the players use of social media alsa Ochocinco.
Twitter: SteveBoese
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Felix – Very interesting post and continuing discussion. I will add a comment and observation from one example of in the US of the ‘smaller’ club scenario, That is the US minor league baseball system. Most minor league baseball teams play in smaller, (sometimes very small) cities. They maintain an affiliation with a Major League club which provides (typically) several of the players, the coaches, and some additional financial support. The teams themselves are independently owned however. The nature of Minor League baseball almost certainly guarantees that the majority of players only have a year or two with any one club. So the teams tend not to direct the marketing or outreach efforts around specific players (who most fans don’t even know). Rather the focus is on the fan experience, the amenities, the value for money (tickets and concessions are usually quite affordable), etc. The teams try to make the connection with the fans more directly, and not via players, since the team realizes the constants in the equation are the venue, the service, the atmosphere, etc. and not the actual performers on the field. Two-thirds of the players change every year, but that almost never impacts any one’s decision to attend a game.
Twitter: FelixWetzel
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Thanks for this interesting perspective and example from the US. That is certainly an approach for smaller clubs here as well. Are the stadia you are refering to quite modern? And what does the fan experience entail? Is it quite a family experience? Is it the love of the game or the love to the club? I guess it’s a combination of both.
Twitter: Stephenodonn
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Just a small aside regarding my club Airdrie United. Long story short, the previous incarnation of the club went bust by investing millions in a brand new 10,000 seater stadium, in order to qualify if they won promotion to the top league (which they nearly did). The present team play in the same stadium, which is now owned by the local council. As a de facto community asset, the people of the town now identify much more closely with the football club.
Twitter: SteveBoese
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Felix – the stadiums tend to be a mix of older and new, but with the smaller capacities the building costs are more reasonable so we tend to see more newer stadiums. For example the city where I live hosts a baseball team in what would be the equivalent of the Championship in English football. Out park holds maximum 13,000 or so, The team focuses on family entertainment primarily. They have children’s activities in the concourses around the field, they have contests on the fields for kids and families to participate, and so on. They also like to connect with local charities for food drives and other community outreach efforts. They are really just an asset to the city. Most fans tend to come to the games over marginally for the results on the field.
Twitter: alanwhitford
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Hi Steve,
Another interesting element of the Baseball Minor Leagues (Farm System) is the link/affiliation between the local team – Rochester Red Wings – and it’s Major League affiliate – Minnesota Twins, in terms of building an extended brand loyalty/fan following for the major league team. I wonder, though, if it is as strong in Rochester now as it was when I grew up in the area and the Major League partner was the Baltimore Orioles. Friends and family at that time would make 2-3 journeys to Baltimore to watch ‘their’ players who had made it to “the Show”.
To you main point, sports in America tends to be family entertainment, no matter what the sport. From the Major sports of baseball, football, Ice Hockey and basketball to emerging sports like soccer, the massive crowds of NASCAR motor racing – the fan bases are all mixed sex, family audiences.
Twitter: FelixWetzel
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Alan, spot on. I think the concept of farm teams could also work in other sectors outside of sport. As could the idea of a sport’s agent. Have a read of this one: http://felixwetzel.com/where%E2%80%99s-my-jerry-maguire-368
Twitter: alanwhitford
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The Jerry Maguire post is a great one. I love the ‘feeder company’ approach. That essentially is what the Minor League is in US baseball, and the US university system is in basketball and football. As to who is the agent? In my Woodstock Recruitment Philosophy, the recruitment consultant is actually a consultant! and could perform the trusted advisor role for candidate, employee and employer.
Twitter: FelixWetzel
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Steve – thanks for the clarification & explanation. Most football clubs have understood this concept as well – the more family friendly the higher the attendance of families and the higher the revenue generated. To achieve this safety and easy access is a minimum requirement. For example, Arsenal, has built their stadium under these aspects. Compare this, however, with Fratton Park, and you’ll see the difficulty with making it more family friendly and finding the investment for it. Maybe the relationship with bigger teams is the way forward also over here.
Twitter: alanwhitford
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Felix
It might be an interesting exercise to map the club average attendances (I saw the figures streaming by on Sky Sports this morning) to the activities of the club and their positions in the different divisions over time.. Crewe Alexandra, for example ( I happen to support the club because of long time friends who live in the area), averaged just over 4,000 in attendance this year, despite finishing in the bottom half of Division 2. Their last year in the Championship, average attendance was 6,700, and the next two years in Division 1 the figures were 5,400 and 4,900. This might be the Chicken or Egg story – lower attendance means lower revenue, means less money to spend on ‘quality’ players from outside the club system – lower results, lower attendance, lower revenue…….
Hi Felix
Totally agree with you. As we discussed on Monday, Graham Taylor initiated these strategies at Watford back in 1977. (Albeit without the mobile technology and social media.) They work.
An observation on player involvement: I’ve noticed that, on facebook, players’ fan pages and personal profiles seem to motivated by narcissism and self-interest (masquerading as ‘giving back to the fans’). Players operate as individual brands – and work to promote their own brand rather than their parent-brands (the clubs). Yet I, as a fan, am emotionally connected long-term to the parent brand and only temporarily to the player. For me, this feels out of kilter.
Twitter: FelixWetzel
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Olly – it does feel out of kilter, but I guess for the individual player it’s about their own brand and for the club it’s about the club. In my opinion, more balance is needed.
another brilliant post and ensuing commentary/debate Felix.
It got me wondering how Rugby (my preferred sport) approaches this. I’m not really sure that the marketing powers are as switched on as they might/should/could be – but there’s definitely more engagement at a player level with the public. Now of course, this is easy when you’re not quite so readily put onto a pedestal as some kind of sporting god – and also in a sport where it’s, IMHO, much more of a team game – but I thought I’d ask one of the players from the Ospreys (http://www.ospreysrugby.com/) I follow on twitter @CaiGriffiths what he thought of this article. He came back with the following:
great article! As players we want to play week in week out in a packed Liberty. Us as players we will do anything to get them in
from academy to lions we more than happy to pacticipate in activityd to get bums on seats. We very proactive down here!
I wonder if this is what football was like in the early days – before it became so overhyped. Real engagement with real people playing a real game.
I love the sport – and I have a real affection for the people who play it – I just hope that it can learn from the things that Soccer has got so wrong as the commercial strains put upon it see it try and emulate the financial success of Soccer. Guess we’ll just have to wait and see.
Twitter: FelixWetzel
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Alex – thanks for your input and for contacting Cai Griffiths – it gives a great new different perspective.
Felix, another good post and one that has caused much debate!
Some practical considerations in relation to the concept of giving away free tickets etc:
1. There is a myth that give someone a free ticket and they will spend £40+ on merchandise – not true – average spend per head at most football stadia is between £1-£2.
2. Your loyal season ticket holder who has been coming forever and pays his £500 a year gets annoyed that the very seat next to him is being given away for free – why should he pay £25 to watch the same game as a ‘future fan’?
3. Ladies toilet facilities are a big issue. Poor facilities turn them off. They will not come back if there is nowhere to spend a penny!
4. Do the free shirt giveaways to kids under 7 really work? I am not convinced. Family legacy and on the field success are without question the two biggest influencing factors in the formation of your supported team for life.
5. One of the biggest challenges is how you keep the family entertained. Clubs rely on the 90 minutes to draw the crowd. The turning point comes when English football fans start to see the game as one part of an entertainment experience rather than the only reason to go, and develop an entertainment spectacle.
Just a few thoughts to fuel the debate…
PB
Twitter: FelixWetzel
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Hi Paul,
Interesting points – thanks for sharing such a cool inside. Not every club can have success, does that mean that fan numbers will dwindle and are mainly reliant on family legacy?
What you will see is a large % of young football fans turning to teams like Man United, Chelsea, and more recently the up and coming super powers like Man City rather than supporting their local club. You can see it. Look at how many replica shirts of the big 4 clubs are sold all around the country, whilst other smaller clubs distribution is almost always local, regional at best.
Overall fan numbers at smaller clubs will ultimately start to dwindle when clubs are not successful.
Here at Leeds we have a huge fan base, however a large % did not want to watch League One football for a fourth season. We are seeing strong demand for hospitality next season as we move back up to the Championship. Should we get back to the Premier League we could expect to see 40,000 every week at Elland Road…
there was a really interesting radio programme on Thursday evening on Radio 5, Brian Alexander was looking into the example of German football. Fans have to own 51%, the players are encouraged strongly to mix with the fans and the proportion of salary that each club spends on player wages averages at around 50%, in comparison to 65% in the EPL. Many clubs ensure their training grounds are fan friendly, with some of them drawing 8-10,000 for training matches. I recently went to Germany to see three games in three days at Dortmund, Koln and Dusselfdorf. The fan experience is at the centre of German football. Ticket prices are lower, and transport in the region to and from games is subsidised to the point that even if you stay overnight, your transport tickets are valid until the next day. It is becoming ridiculous when I can fly to Germany, watch 3 incredibly entertaining games in packed and atmospheric stadiums, cheaper than I can travel to one English game. English clubs MUST bring the fan back to the centre of their thoughts…
Twitter: FelixWetzel
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Nice one, Joe. That in a way means that English Football Clubs’ strategic set is even wider, as it now also entails clubs from other countries.
Interestingly, it also reported a number of english fans were regularly starting to follow german teams, as they could drive from Calais to their games in 3-4 hours… makes you think!
Joe
Very interesting point, I would question the exact ‘number’ of English fans travelling to Germany to watch games, i would bet that it is only a very small number and only to Munich or the biggest clubs?
Twitter: ryanmurrant
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When I started going to watch football in 1981 you could touch the players, shake their hands, get an autograph without questioning and have a conversation with them, they were humans. Now you can only do that by appointment. They are like film stars. The game I fell in love with is now a business, and whilst this is a huge, huge positive it is also a problem.
A clubs success in the community is to have affiliation between the fans and the players, that is priceless. Where clubs must capitalise on this is by offering those fans something back. So many clubs will charge full price for a game that will only see 50%-75% of the seats being filled. Why not reduce those prices, encourage the next generation along for £5, £10 or even free and see your attendances soar? Surely that is better for the brand?
I do agree that there is a case against offering a “future fan” a discounted ticket right next to a loyal season ticket holder; however over the course of a season the season ticket holder receives far more benefits in discounts, priorities etc. That said surely it makes more commercial sense and is better for the brand to have 30,000+ paying £10 each rather than have a stadium a third full?
I think clubs, players and agents need to realise that they need to be part of the clubs community. It’s of no benefit to the club or the player when the player walks down the street to either be ignored or to ignore. They need to realise that for 30 seconds plus of their time to say, “yes you can have my autograph it’s a pleasure” and to pose for a photo could secure 30 years plus of support from the young local fan, who by the way has ten mates at school wearing Chelsea, Man U and Arsenal shirts!
Ryan, when you go to a pop concert or theatre, how many tickets are given away free? very few…football is an entertainment experience for which there is a market rate.
If the stadium capacity is 30,000 then which is the best commercial model?? There is no guarantee that your 10,000 fans paying £30 each will become 30,000 fans paying £10 each – very unlikely indeed.
Twitter: ryanmurrant
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Hi Paul thanks for the reply,
I do agree with you to an extent; however I have been at Leicester FA Cup games where there have been only 9-10,000 fans there and I have paid rate card for a ticket. I know that both clubs have to agree on the price of the tickets for cup games and sometimes the smaller clubs demand rate card, but surely it makes sense to use these games as the ones for reduced rates? The FA Cup is a wonderful competition and it use to draw massive crowds but this isn’t the case anymore. Football is about the atmosphere and experience and a full house is better than a half empty (of half full) stadium isn’t it?
I caught the bug in the 80’s when the grounds were full for FA Cup games and the average income families could afford to attend. I will now pay whatever it costs to see Leicester, but I know of people that are now priced out of games. How much of a threat is that to the future of the clubs?
From a fans point of view, my perception would be that it is better to have full grounds. Why not get young fans to the game, breed that next generation and build the foundations now so that when Sky pull that plug in however many years the game is returned to the fans?
can i ask that the learned viewers to this blog provide some ideas for a challenge…
what pre and post match entertainment options should clubs be providing? how would you get them earlier, keep them longer?
before any one suggests it, most clubs already show the early and late kick offs on the big screens etc!!
i look forward to your responses!
Twitter: ryanmurrant
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NOT the Sky sumo wrestlers!!! remember them?
i’ll have a think about this…
thanks ryan i look forward to your thoughts…
Mentioning again the German experience (again!) the whole towns start at 8 in the morning, entertainment in the squares, good hot food around the grounds (not death burger vans), and no one seems like they are being shoved out of the ground after the game by security. To be treated like adults… Not something clubs in the UK on the whole are great at.