As most people know we've been vocal in our concern about crowd numbers this season. A couple of Friday's ago we ran our first live debate on the issue and just over 400 fans spent an hour and a half discussing some of the issues behind the crowd figures. We were joined by Archie Fraser the Head of the Hyundai A-League who stayed for the whole period and I hope used the exercise as it was meant - as a live focus group to gauge the feeling of real fans, to interact with them and understand their way of thinking. The sort of "Little Study" Clive Mensink referred to when speaking to us last week. We invited every A-League club to join the debate.....the only one that took us up on the offer was Brisbane Roar. They saw, as would any Gold Coast United representative if they'd joined us, that price was almost universally the biggest issue for arguably the two most concerning clubs in terms of crowd...the Roar and Gold Coast.
So it is to their credit that since that Friday debate we've seen the Roar twice reduce their ticket prices...overnight we've seen them reduce them further giving adults the chance to attend for just $15 and kids for $10 meaning a parent can attend with a child for $25. Peter McLennan I applaud you and thank you for listening. This is the sort of pricing we need to see adopted....I'd argue not just by the Roar but by all clubs. Our game needs to be as inclusive as possible as we've all seen this season just how fragile its foundations are.
It reminds me of the famous Avis branding campaign of "We're number two. We try harder." Football in this country is still a long way from being number two so it needs to try as hard as it can and one way it can do that is in offering families the most cost effective sporting experience they can get....couple that with the inherent association most families have with the game through participation and that is something the other codes can't match. That's how we become number two.....and when we're number two then we try harder again.
So now it's up to you Brisbane fans.....you've got what you wanted...the cheapest seats in the league...now it's up to you to show the clubs and the FFA that price really is the major factor affecting attendances. Football fans nationwide are depending on you. Because if you return in your droves in response to this pricing by your club it will cause club executives everywhere to re-address their pricing structures from the Gold Coast to every other club in the league and the new clubs soon to enter.
So for the benefit of football fans everywhere I urge you Brisbane fans who have stayed away to get back and support this initiative from your club...reward them for having the honesty to admit they got it wrong....tell your friends....email all your work colleagues and team mates and send a clear message that the support has not gone away...they just can't be taken for granted.
So it is to their credit that since that Friday debate we've seen the Roar twice reduce their ticket prices...overnight we've seen them reduce them further giving adults the chance to attend for just $15 and kids for $10 meaning a parent can attend with a child for $25. Peter McLennan I applaud you and thank you for listening. This is the sort of pricing we need to see adopted....I'd argue not just by the Roar but by all clubs. Our game needs to be as inclusive as possible as we've all seen this season just how fragile its foundations are.
It reminds me of the famous Avis branding campaign of "We're number two. We try harder." Football in this country is still a long way from being number two so it needs to try as hard as it can and one way it can do that is in offering families the most cost effective sporting experience they can get....couple that with the inherent association most families have with the game through participation and that is something the other codes can't match. That's how we become number two.....and when we're number two then we try harder again.
So now it's up to you Brisbane fans.....you've got what you wanted...the cheapest seats in the league...now it's up to you to show the clubs and the FFA that price really is the major factor affecting attendances. Football fans nationwide are depending on you. Because if you return in your droves in response to this pricing by your club it will cause club executives everywhere to re-address their pricing structures from the Gold Coast to every other club in the league and the new clubs soon to enter.
So for the benefit of football fans everywhere I urge you Brisbane fans who have stayed away to get back and support this initiative from your club...reward them for having the honesty to admit they got it wrong....tell your friends....email all your work colleagues and team mates and send a clear message that the support has not gone away...they just can't be taken for granted.
