Author Topic: Hawthorns attendance's  (Read 12369 times)

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tegga

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Hawthorns attendance's
« on: December 09, 2019, 01:39:46 PM »
The question is, why are we not getting sellouts for our home games?
I know we have never really had consistent high attendance's, but with the ground capacity of ours, low ticket prices coupled with a team that is entertaining and top of the league where are the fans?
                                            Do we really have the fan base? Are we a dying breed? Do our offspring follow other teams? (Mine don't) Do a lot of our fans now live outside the area and have to travel far? Is transport a problem? Is parking an issue?
         Surely if you an Albion fan you will want to be there.

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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #1 on: December 09, 2019, 01:49:06 PM »
Can only speak for myself but mine is due
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seteefeet

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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #2 on: December 09, 2019, 02:00:28 PM »
Too easy to watch from an armchair these days.  :(
Even more so this time of year with Christmas coming plus 3 games per week, even if folk can afford it it's hard to justify with streams available for almost every game.

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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #3 on: December 09, 2019, 02:01:36 PM »
We are selling out, give or take, when we are not on Sky TV and we are on Sky all the bloody time. The answer is in that sentence.

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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #4 on: December 09, 2019, 02:02:02 PM »
The question is, why are we not getting sellouts for our home games?
I know we have never really had consistent high attendance's, but with the ground capacity of ours, low ticket prices coupled with a team that is entertaining and top of the league where are the fans?
                                            Do we really have the fan base? Are we a dying breed? Do our offspring follow other teams? (Mine don't) Do a lot of our fans now live outside the area and have to travel far? Is transport a problem? Is parking an issue?
         Surely if you an Albion fan you will want to be there.





not sure what the reason is as sometimes i will question our support and then fellow friends say well its on sky, and 3 weeks from christmas. but then why do other similar sized clubs have better attendances then ?

i wouldnt question our support several years ago as 90% of fans would say it is because we were charging £40 and rightly so...

but £20 a ticket, great attacking football to watch, and top of the league yet we cant sell out?

previous championship seasons we have had better attendances. i do think for a club our size our support needs improving and we should be having 25-26k gates IMO.

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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #5 on: December 09, 2019, 03:15:58 PM »
Personally speaking I'd love to see us sell out every game. But not as much as I'm loving watching this Albion team live and in person.

Unfortunately Sky have put me off some of the away days. Sadly they will continue to do so and this really vexes me. Supporters have all manner of reasons for not attending games.

But if people living locally choose not to attend because they can't be bothered dragging themselves out of the house then it's their loss and not mine.

I'm not judging anyone, I'm just commenting there are people who are seriously missing out on some cracking football. Premier League snobbery? Apathy? I don't really care so long as I can get my Albion fix.

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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #6 on: December 09, 2019, 03:18:58 PM »
I honestly don't care if its a full house or half empty, really don't care. Some can afford it but choose not to go thats their decision. I feel more for those who can't go for various reasons - money, health, caring for others, work etc etc. I've done 1 away this season and Blues will be my second, last few years i've managed 5/6 a season before that I never missed an away for about 7 years at least. Circumstances change, thats life but Sky definitely have a lot to answer for.
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baggie53

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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #7 on: December 09, 2019, 03:23:16 PM »
And people still say we should expand the ground - It would look really rubbish with swathes of empty seats
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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #8 on: December 09, 2019, 03:25:33 PM »
Why is anyone who attends game worried about the people who don't?
I have mates who, back in the day, would sooner have missed their own wedding than an Albion game.They don't attend now for various reasons, the main one being that they can watch the game on several platforms without having to queue up for the bogs, get soaked, get ripped off for a beer or a pie and parking, and freeze their goolies off.
But each to their own aye?  ;)
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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #9 on: December 09, 2019, 03:36:00 PM »
12.00 Sunday didn't help either plus bus and train schedules greatly reduced for the non drivers
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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #10 on: December 09, 2019, 03:43:07 PM »
SKY
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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #11 on: December 09, 2019, 03:50:09 PM »
I remember under Pulis the idea was we were too ugly to watch, so what is it now?
In fairness I think if we got promoted our attendances would rise by about 10% which is quite a big amount.
I personally think the local, younger generation just don't support unfashionable clubs. I know a few Indian lads from the area who are Liverpool fans which says a lot. Sadly that's the way it is.

TiptonThrostle

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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #12 on: December 09, 2019, 04:21:06 PM »
The fans are there though they just choose not to go.

someone has just mentioned but if we get promoted our gates will then be 25-26k. where are those 3-4k now ? or if we got to wembley we should sell 30k tickets so where are those fans now and what are there reasons for not going?

i have sky tv and my wife always asks why i still go to the night games in particular instead of sitting in a warm home and watching it on the tele but its still not the same as actually being at the game so i still always go.

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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #13 on: December 09, 2019, 05:32:08 PM »
Always went,was a home season ticket holder until I moved up to Darlington.I find it to far to go ,but I did see us play Middlesborough at the Riverside as that was local to me.

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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #14 on: December 09, 2019, 05:39:35 PM »
The Pulis years put a lot of fans off attending. Once you've got into the habit of not going it's hard to go back ( no matter how much better it is).

I was talking with a youth worker a few weeks back who was one of the many that said they wouldn't go to watch Hull City while the Allams are still in charge. He has said that even when the Allams finally sell up and go he's not sure he'll be back as he's found better things to do with his time.
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tegga

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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #15 on: December 09, 2019, 06:14:17 PM »
Thanks fellow Baggies for replying to my question.
Of course you can understand fans not attending due to poor health, and all clubs have their armchair supporters. Expense should not be a problem for most fans I would have thought, and if a person could not afford to go, you would like to think another one would snap up his ticket. It was mentioned we are selling out give or take, that means we are not selling out. I do think that Sky tv has a big affect, which shows we do not have a large enough fan base, because there are many clubs who do sell out even when on the t.v. I agree that as you get older circumstances can change, but what about the new generation of locals, due they all support Liverpool. Fans who choose not to attend, it's their choice, I am not going to judge them, and I can understand if you really suffered under Pulis and got out of the habit of going. I am not worried about this subject, but I would like to see full houses, and I am sure our club and players would.

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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #16 on: December 09, 2019, 06:25:05 PM »
Sky is the biggest sole reason for why our attendances dip. I’m lucky to work for myself so can have days off for the Albion but others aren’t as lucky. Sky are ruining football for supporters and I personally find their lack of care for fans who go to games disgusting but sadly it doesn’t look like the Sky TV bubble will bust anytime soon.

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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #17 on: December 09, 2019, 06:47:20 PM »

"i wouldn't question our support several years ago as 90% of fans would say it is because we were charging £40 and rightly so..."

I think part of the answer is in the sentence above … some stopped going because of this, and also because of the mind numbing football under Pulis. If you decide to stop going you get out of the habit and routine, it will take time to get them back.

I stopped because of Pulis coupled with my son starting Uni too far away to travel to games; we gave up our season tickets. mine of some 30 seasons and his from age 6 to 18. Fully intended to pick and choose more games. Pulis era jaded my enthusiasm.  Sunday was only my 2nd game of the season and only went because' son was home for the weekend. Must say I thoroughly enjoyed it and had begun to forget how the atmosphere at a game beats watching on TV hands down.  I'll be back for more.

I think Sunday was affected by 12:00 Kick off, TV coverage, being so close to Christmas, away end not sold out.  23K is only 3K off a sell-out ; I could easily see us put 3K on that gate week in week out ; in the prem and doing well an extra 7K is easily doable ; I think 30K gates are achievable (if the ground was big enough!)

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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #18 on: December 09, 2019, 07:00:23 PM »
I regularly used to get to about 7 games a season, travelling up from the Isle of Wight, I have since moved to Southampton and intended to get to more games, but, I bought a bungalow which required a lot of work doing,(total renovation), so my time is somewhat restricted, I was going to go to a game a few weeks ago but Sky moved it and I could no longer go, I shall probably get to a game over Christmas and hopefully a few more in the new year.
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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #19 on: December 09, 2019, 07:01:36 PM »
I honestly don't care if its a full house or half empty, really don't care. Some can afford it but choose not to go thats their decision. I feel more for those who can't go for various reasons - money, health, caring for others, work etc etc. I've done 1 away this season and Blues will be my second, last few years i've managed 5/6 a season before that I never missed an away for about 7 years at least. Circumstances change, thats life but Sky definitely have a lot to answer for.

Well said Oldbury. Wish people would engage their brain before slagging people off for not attending matches.

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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #20 on: December 09, 2019, 07:04:44 PM »
A lot of these responses are personal circumstances. However, the OP was more about the general malaise re. our attendances. One that is an extremely valid question.

There must be more general answers, for example, our fan base is simply not there? Or less disposal income for the working classes who used to be the vast majority at football games? I don't know the answer, but I hope the club are doing their research to reverse this worrying trend. 
« Last Edit: December 09, 2019, 07:16:58 PM by wbako »
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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #21 on: December 09, 2019, 07:23:21 PM »
So many factors to consider why attendendances ain't great.
Money
Time
Weather
Travelling

When we were the only top flight club in the region it was mentioned often on here about getting floating supporters, maybe we've lost those to clubs now in the premiership.
I won't travel again like I used to although I do wish I felt that way again, nothing beats been there.
Our households gone from 3 season tickets to a few yearly trips and that won't change no matter what happens.

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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #22 on: December 09, 2019, 07:42:35 PM »
Our support has increased in the last two decades back in the late 80s and 90s 15,000 home attendance would have been considered a good crowd. Still think we should have increased stadium to a 30 plus capacity show some ambition at least.

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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #23 on: December 09, 2019, 07:50:14 PM »
I think the common denominator is SKY but along with that there is the 'off-shoots' from the advent of SKY and the Premier League era. The sanitised, sterile, family orientated atmosphere at the ground has certainly stopped a huge number of long standing fans from attending regularly. Other points associated with this such as the ground becoming all-seater, the smoking ban, over-zealous stewarding, the general feeling of not being allowed to be a bit raucous and generally enjoy yourself, the distinct lack of an old fashioned football ground atmosphere have all had an impact. I know if I was a 7 year old now rather than in 1983 and I was first taken up the match, I don't think I'd experience the same feeling of excitement as I did then.
Another off-shoot of the SKY/ Premier League era is obviously the vast increase in the wealth in the game which again makes the game more and more disconnected from the traditional support base. Why would a working class bloke struggling to make ends meet want to help finance millionaire footballers? This is another reason without a doubt. Along the same lines, the increased wealth has obviously attracted more and more foreign players to the extent that English/British players are now in the minority, even at our level and below. Again this causes the traditional fan base to become more and more alienated from their club if they can't relate to the players who are representing their local side.
There are also more and more alternative forms of entertainment on offer now, as others have said, often from the comfort of your own living room, which could easily be far more tempting to pursue on a cold Winter's day. Once the habit of attending the match has been broken, it's awfully difficult to get back. The fact that you can now watch pretty much every game televised, even the non-SKY fixtures is bound to have serious consequences on attendances also.
I think everyone has their own individual reasons for not attending but I think I've highlighted the main points outside of the usual work/distance/affordability issues.
« Last Edit: December 09, 2019, 07:57:34 PM by Nathan »

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Re: Hawthorns attendance's
« Reply #24 on: December 09, 2019, 07:58:22 PM »
The atmosphere is one of the main reasons to go to live matches. I wouldn't get the same kick watching even the most skilful team in a half empty stadium.
I get the impression the demographic of the club is getting older (at least where I sit in the Halfords). The attractive football producing results must have attracted some who were put off by Pulisbal,  but besides that, I think there's only limited things a club can do.
A football club is an unusual product, as football fans don't hop around between clubs, like someone changing their car model.   I think the emphasis must be on attracting a younger age group, but apart from the Fan Zone, I don't really know how you 'market' a football club to the younger generation. The matchday programme, looks like its aimed at an elderly age group as its packed with articles from pre-war teams as in All Our Yesterdays.  There again, the younger generation probably wouldn't read it as they are are more into smart phones.
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