With season tickets higher than anywhere else in the world in this country I was wondering what you would think if Norwich were to say drop season ticket prices drastically to say £150. You can purchase a season ticket at Bayern Munich for just £100. Of course this means less revenue from tickets but the advantage is they are able to attract many more fans globally meaning higher income in terms of shirt sales etc. This model has caused German teams to be some of the best supported in the world both within their country and internationally, but this way of business is not done in this country. It seems with all other clubs being so expensive there maybe opportunities for a club like Norwich to drop prices and attract fans who may otherwise go elsewhere. It maybe that because of the finances of the club taking a risk such as this would not be possible, although there could potentially be great benefits. It seems now that to compete financially in the premier league sides have to branch out from their traditional fan areas to the rest of the country and internationally and this maybe one way of achieving this. Putting the fans first if you like, in plans for club finances and expansion has proved very successful in other countries but is not really executed here. I just feel there is maybe an opening for us to do so. Any other ideas? Clearly like most I have no idea about the intricate workings of financing a football club.
while people continue to pay top dollar for tickets, the club has no reason to drop them. they'll only keep on going up, certainly at norwich, until such a time that there is a very large drop in takers. also, it would never work at a community club like us because we simply will not attract mass support outside these shores unless we suddenly started winning major trophies - that's why clubs like bayern and dortmund can charge less. they also have standing so tickets can be cheaper cos they can cram more people in to cover the costs.
I agree it would never really be feasible for a club such as Norwich. Maybe the point is more what can a club such as Norwich offer to put fans first that others don't in order to attract a wider fan base. Even small clubs abroad have very cheap season tickets and make their money elsewhere. It is of course hard to know how much running costs for match days etc are. I would guess England is very high, with large police presence etc.
Safe standing sections to the grounds? Germany again has introduced small sections of the ground to terracing, this is adaptable to accept seats for European games etc Increases capacity which could/should lead to a general decrease in season ticket prices (supply and demand) Id be fully up for making the Barclay a standing area
I would love to have a standing area improves atmosphere as well. That kind of thing I think could be hugely beneficial to the club. Was there not a report recently saying that standing could be safely implemented in english grounds or a club looked into it or something.
Every time they look at it they say it's a good idea and perfectly safe Then the Liverpool lot start up... Hillsborough was a tragedy but we can't allow it to run football forever, mistakes were made and we have learned from them
its the wages - the wages are the problem in this country. even crap players are on massive money and until they come down, we'll all be paying top dollar. if we refuse to pay the players as much as they want, nobody will come here. and players will continue to ask high wages while sky continue to pump vast sums into clubs coffers. its difficult but i think, for the time being, our club have got things about right. they've set a relatively low wage ceiling (for a premier league club) but it is still extremely expensive to pay for and i'm getting close to my self-imposed top limit on what i will pay for a ticket at norwich, but to get the club back on track, and while demand is still there, the club are right to keep prices high. i, like many others i imagine, would love to see some of the german safe-standing areas developed in modern stadiums but i fear that this country will never go down the standing route again. unfortunately, the reasons it will be stopped are not actually the correct reasons.
As long as it is properly regulated there is no problem. Tragedies that have occurred have often been due to excess fans been allowed in or fans causing trouble. Its worked in other countries for years. I see no reason to not allow regulated standing areas. Maybe allow people to drink alcohol in view of the pitch as well such as in Germany Although that would never work in this country sadly
I have absolutely no complaints with our club. Its a national problem and if the FA want football to be a continued success they should regulate it to make it more fan friendly. As a student I can afford about 7/8 games a season not just because of the ticket price but travel is very expensive. It would be interesting to see what the effect would be though if a club were to say drastically drop prices or become very fan friendly. If this would cause them to lose money or if more fans are attracted so they make it. Hell of a risk though.
the problem is tipsy, if a premier league club did that, they'd get relegated because all their players would up sticks! that's why nobody will do it through choice. it's not worth the risk. clubs, sadly, are better off playing in the top flight with an empty stadium than they are with a full ground in the championship. us supporters are not a vital ingredient anymore to how a club is run and how successful it becomes. the game is diseased because of sky but its entirely possible that without sky we would have no club to support right now. sad but true.
Beef, you need to think long and hard about this, I'm not saying you haven't already, but having supported football when you could stand, I can tell you it's not as much fun as you may think. It only takes a couple of over excited people to start a surge forward, say after a goal has been scored, and your in trouble, it doesn't matter how big or strong you are as an individual, that surge cannot be stopped. How do you allocate space and for who? Do you allow small children into that section, they would be extremely vunerable should anything happen. Seating was put in by law for a very good reason, and I don't want to see that reversed. If you watch the video of the Man City game, when they scored the last goal a load of fans surged forward running down the aisle's and clambering over the seats and other spectators, quite honestly it made me shudder! I'm not trying to be an old stick in the mud here, but I was at the Man U game many many years ago when their fans tried to take over the whole ground, one got on the roof of the Barclay and ended up falling through, crashing onto the steps of the stand. Not saying it will happen, but it could! ILD OTBC
I understand your concerns. In Germany they have about 3 rows then a barrier so there is never more than a couple of rows behind you which is quite different to having 20 rows pushing down from behind you. In fact most grounds just have 1 row then a barrier so no one is directly behind you. They also regulate the number of people allowed in each standing area which is of course the most important thing. Many studies have been done to make sure its safe, although there is of course no 100% guarantee but nor is there with seating. I think according to the rules it may only be 1 row standing then a barrier now.
in germany, its called 'safe standing areas' because thats what they are, safe. its not like the old school terracing of the late 80s and before
I went to an A league playoff game of Perth Glory Vs Wellington Phoenix, we were in the standing section, the view was crap and the atmosphere was **** (edit: admittedly it was filled with Aussies which probably explains some of it). I don't know why everyone raves about the good old days of standing. Its like people saying trying to get signal with a crappy arial with a back and white TV was fun and reminds you of the good old days. Times have changed!
After witnessing what happened in the 80s and still happens now, I would never ever even entertain such an idea. It's like forgetting there was ever a war. Number one, guess what? They used to regulate the number of people allowed into old terracing too! Most importantly though, although these may be safe it's a step in the wrong direction. It only takes someone to relax the rules a tiny bit and then a tiny bit more another twenty years later and before you know it we have open terracing again. There is just no argument for it. The safest option are all seaters.
Since every home game this season has been a sell out there is no incentive for the board to cut prices. As I only get to see us at occasional away games I go to Peterborough to watch live football (was there when they tore the binners apart 7 -1). Probably because i am an old fart, and also not a Posh supporter, but standing on the terraces doesn't bring back the way I used to feel when standing to watch football.
I'm not saying anyone's right or wrong but an allocated section as standing allows the choice. It's about personal choice at the end of the day
Understand that But if it's the only way you could get in the ground to watch, say father and 5 year old son, I don't think their personal choice would be to get crushed! I remember going to games and being so crammed in that you had no choice where you went, if the crowd moved you moved, if someone fell over they got stood on, and if you went off for a pee you never got back to your original place. You can't have an allocated space in that situation, so naturally people push and shove each other to get a view of the pitch, and I don't know about you but I don't like to pushed and shoved around, so inevitably there's a bit of tension. We're going to have to disagree on this I think. ILD OTBC
That's absolutely fine, there are plenty of arguments for and against. I dont think it will be something that happens for a long time if ever. Lots of politics and delegation on such a matter I'm 6 foot and have been since I was 13 and I know for a fact it pisses people off when I stand lol. I do like to stand but I do respect those that don't want to and I think it's very important to use allocate family areas Get em in young and get em hooked. Guaranteed money for the club for life
