effeffsee_the2nd Posted October 21, 2020 Share Posted October 21, 2020 It could only be a falkirk fan to start this . When we are back to normal ( the old normal with no SD) what is football attendances going to look like?Will there be a big rush to get back ?Or with such a long - getting longer - gap in this activity for many, will peoples habits and behaviour have changed ie they have filled the time with other activities and are now too busy to go back to games? Will tv amd internet broadcasts decide they quite like this new setup broadcasting every game?What do you thinkSame as before or better?Less than before ?Significantly less than before? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8MileBU Posted October 21, 2020 Share Posted October 21, 2020 (edited) As soon as it’s given the ok for fans to return and social-distancing isn’t required, I’d expect fans to flock back to games. I also wonder if there might even be a slight increase in attendances initially, as fans are consumed by the urge to get to games purely down to being denied the option for so long. After that I think it’ll largely revert to pre-pandemic levels as fans realise their team is utter shite, can’t be fucked with the drive to Stranraer away, can’t be arsed with a freezing, wet, windy afternoon in Arbroath or because the pies at Dunfermline are as rancid as the locals. Edited October 21, 2020 by 8MileBU 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivo den Bieman Posted October 21, 2020 Share Posted October 21, 2020 I think people will be cautious. I don't think there will be a "victory over COVID" day, more a gradual process of it getting easier to live with. I can't wait to get back to a game personally and will aim to get to as many as I can in the first few weeks of whenever the fans are allowed back in. I suspect quite a few folk will have lost the habit or will not want to rush back with what will be lingering concerns about safety / possible infection. Plus I think crowd behaviour will maybe affected. It will be interesting to see what happens to livestream infrastructure that has been set up. There maybe a market there. The diehards (such as those posting on here) will always want to be there live but some may appreciate the convenience of being able to watch from home- especially the older folk for whom the appeal of the trachle down to Stair Park has long faded. Personally I spend nine hours a day five days a week in front of a computer or in a zoom meeting so I'm afraid the one day where i don't have to do that- i.e. Saturday- there is zero appeal on yet again sitting in front of a computer watching football. It's quite strange, really. There will be at least 437,000 at the first Auchinleck Talbot game at Beechwood Park once the lockdown restrictions have eased. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HibeeJibee Posted October 21, 2020 Share Posted October 21, 2020 Very interesting topic and coincidentally I've recently been giving it some thought myself. Even in these first 3 posts you see totally different predictions. For starters it's impossible to say with much confidence. I know intelligent, well-informed people who think the football situation will markedly improve from December or January. I know others who think the football situation will not have markedly improved next autumn. I think there are certainly at least 6 aspects at play: (1) it seems unlikely we will go straight from no crowds to throwing all the doors open in a single step. More likely it will be a gradual return with very limited crowds, ticket only, no away fans etc. This may sustain pent up demand. Alternatively if it is prolonged (years not months) unfulfilled demand may start to evaporate. Also if clubs can only get a quarter or half of their usual crowds in will they double or quadruple their prices? Plenty people with the means would pay more to be among the lucky ones: but if they do would prices ever start coming down again? (2) socially the lesson from history is that crowds should go up due to pent up demand being released. This happened after both the world wars, and it was sustained for quite a few years. However there are obvious differences. Football continued throughout both conflicts... granted some provincial and many non-league clubs shutdown... and crowds never stopped except for a few weeks in autumn 1939 (plus had limits in blitz areas for a couple of years from 1940). Men returned to civilian life from overseas, and had few ways to spend a Saturday afternoon bar the pub, cinema or football. It is also thought crowds brought a feeling of tribalism and camaraderie they missed from their days in the forces. In time alternate leisure pursuits, TV and the motor car contributed to a decline in crowds. This time around it looks like spectator sport will be about the last area of life to reopen. Will people have fallen out of the habit? Will some people simply be too worried about the idea of gathering together ever to return? Will other people embrace that opportunity? Will there be a renaissance in mass participation activities? (3) economically the lesson from history is that crowds should go down due to unemployment and insecurity. This has happened multiple times... most severely in 1930s and most recently in late 2000s... and crowds always drop significantly. It looks like being serious and prolonged this time. If people can't afford it, they just won't go - although if they've been deprived of it for so long, some people would sacrifice other aspects of life for the chance. This is perhaps less likely to affect non-league football, where games are local and prices comparatively modest. [It'll also be interesting to see if amateur football recovers in terms of participation as it has already been haemorrhaging players and teams over last 5yrs] (4) no-one has mentioned blocked broadcasting hours. What if protection of Saturday afternoon is never reinstated? EPL and Scottish Premiership games on TV could alter consumption, as could big clubs streaming home or away games that would have been unavailable before. This is perhaps more likely to affect non-league football, where many fans have a 'big' team. (5) streaming will not be a golden bullet. Right now it is vital as the alternative is no spectator income. However no clubs seem to be charging anything like what they did for tickets. It'll cost £6 for my household to watch Berwick v EK this Saturday when we'd have paid £20 at the gate. Armchair fans don't buy car park entry, programmes, refreshments or HT draw tickets and must purchase less merchandise overall. Equally a relative who lives up north will pay £6 and couldn't have come to game in person. Will it enhance the value of season tickets: if you can't make a game, you can still watch from wherever you are instead? Will it depress their value: why commit when you can always decide last minute to view in the comfort of your own home at comparatively little cost? (6) Some fans may have no choice if their team folds. Clubs went bust in 1930s due to the depression. Clubs shutdown in 1940 for the war and never reopened. If forced to guess: I'll plump for a short-term crowd boost for social reasons, medium-term slump for economic reasons, and long-term likely to prove much the same as before. All those guesses could well prove wrong though. Frankly it's a mugs game for anyone trying to predict prettymuch anything currently. Oh and I know: TL, DR... 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derry Alli Posted October 22, 2020 Share Posted October 22, 2020 Attendances will rise by 5% across every club (bar those always sold out) because lapsed fans will go back. Then, about 6 weeks later it'll drop to lower than before as for the money, the standard is terrible. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scary Bear Posted October 22, 2020 Share Posted October 22, 2020 Could go either way. If fans get used to sitting in the house watching live streams and they’re still available, then crowds at games will likely be less than before COVID-19. Some fans might have found other pastimes during this period. Maybe they won’t be rushing back. Some fans, possibly older ones or ones with health issues will maybe be a bit worried about going back to games. Some fans will have lost jobs and won’t have money for football. On the flip side, there’ll maybe be a load of fans who’ll be desperate to get back to normality and get to a gams again. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sergeant Wilson Posted October 22, 2020 Share Posted October 22, 2020 1 minute ago, Scary Bear said: On the flip side, there’ll maybe be a load of fans who’ll be desperate to get back to normality and get to a gams again. That might put a few on the gate, depends who of course. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scary Bear Posted October 22, 2020 Share Posted October 22, 2020 16 minutes ago, Sergeant Wilson said: That might put a few on the gate, depends who of course. I left that typo in there to get this response. Thank you. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sergeant Wilson Posted October 22, 2020 Share Posted October 22, 2020 4 minutes ago, Scary Bear said: I left that typo in there to get this response. Thank you. I'm nothing if not reliable! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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