Dredd Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 Without the fan base there is no football club. Sooner or later people will start to vote with their wallets and stay away, that might not be this season but City have to look ahead too. 16k season tickets at £350 avg (some are higher than this some lower) is £5.6 million. SLs money aside that is a bit chunk of money. If we finish this season poorly with the product that's on show at the moment, how many of them will renew? Maybe half being diehard will buy a season ticket whatever happens but I know a few of these who have said if LJ is in charge next season then they won't be renewing. Start next season poorly and the POTD crowd stop coming too. That obviously transfers over into concessions sales, turnover for the sports bar and grill, hospitality, shirt sales etc. SL may be thinking it's pointless getting a new man in with 10 games to go but surely from a marketing and business point of view it's vital to get some of the feel good factor and optimism back into the stands. Everything that's happening is alienating the club from the fans, and it's the fans that are the most important thing to the football club. I used to look forward to a match day, a few drinks before, a pasty at half time. The fun is being bled out of matchdays for me and now I get there as close to kick off as possible and don't bother with food as I'll eat before I leave. Straight away that's almost £15 per home game lost, over £300 per season. The cost of relegation just in losing money from tv and the EFL is big enough. Creating a divide between the powers that be at the club and the supporters is worrying. Every business wants their customers to feel valued and that their opinion matters. This couldn't be further from what we have at the moment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redapple Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 Spot on Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red-Robbo Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 19 minutes ago, Dredd said: Without the fan base there is no football club. Sooner or later people will start to vote with their wallets and stay away, that might not be this season but City have to look ahead too. 16k season tickets at £350 avg (some are higher than this some lower) is £5.6 million. SLs money aside that is a bit chunk of money. If we finish this season poorly with the product that's on show at the moment, how many of them will renew? Maybe half being diehard will buy a season ticket whatever happens but I know a few of these who have said if LJ is in charge next season then they won't be renewing. Start next season poorly and the POTD crowd stop coming too. That obviously transfers over into concessions sales, turnover for the sports bar and grill, hospitality, shirt sales etc. SL may be thinking it's pointless getting a new man in with 10 games to go but surely from a marketing and business point of view it's vital to get some of the feel good factor and optimism back into the stands. Everything that's happening is alienating the club from the fans, and it's the fans that are the most important thing to the football club. I used to look forward to a match day, a few drinks before, a pasty at half time. The fun is being bled out of matchdays for me and now I get there as close to kick off as possible and don't bother with food as I'll eat before I leave. Straight away that's almost £15 per home game lost, over £300 per season. The cost of relegation just in losing money from tv and the EFL is big enough. Creating a divide between the powers that be at the club and the supporters is worrying. Every business wants their customers to feel valued and that their opinion matters. This couldn't be further from what we have at the moment. The loss of TV revenue - even after the new deal - will be the greatest wallet hit for the club if we are demoted. ST sales will be secondary by some way, and you'd expect a fall in them for L1 football, no matter who was in charge. That said, I am not among the pessimists who think Johnson will still be at the helm after a relegation. That's what is known in psychotherapy jargon as "catastrophising". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
REDOXO Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 The problem with turning a football club into a business of this magnitude is it turns supporters into mere customers. There are families that have lived and died supporting this club. I have five generations in my own family! We are Bristol City supporters (not customers) and many of us have been through thin and thinner but really this is the thinnest. At the moment This is not our club, its almost the sole property of The Lansdown's, supported by the Johnson's and Mark Ashton, to do what they wish, forgetting who he/they are supposed to be doing it for. The situation can change and at some point almost certainly will, but for now we all have a real problem whether you are SL LJ MA or just a supporter this position sucks....everyone has to stop sucking!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marmite Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 18 minutes ago, Dredd said: Without the fan base there is no football club. Sooner or later people will start to vote with their wallets and stay away, that might not be this season but City have to look ahead too. 16k season tickets at £350 avg (some are higher than this some lower) is £5.6 million. SLs money aside that is a bit chunk of money. If we finish this season poorly with the product that's on show at the moment, how many of them will renew? Maybe half being diehard will buy a season ticket whatever happens but I know a few of these who have said if LJ is in charge next season then they won't be renewing. Start next season poorly and the POTD crowd stop coming too. That obviously transfers over into concessions sales, turnover for the sports bar and grill, hospitality, shirt sales etc. SL may be thinking it's pointless getting a new man in with 10 games to go but surely from a marketing and business point of view it's vital to get some of the feel good factor and optimism back into the stands. Everything that's happening is alienating the club from the fans, and it's the fans that are the most important thing to the football club. I used to look forward to a match day, a few drinks before, a pasty at half time. The fun is being bled out of matchdays for me and now I get there as close to kick off as possible and don't bother with food as I'll eat before I leave. Straight away that's almost £15 per home game lost, over £300 per season. The cost of relegation just in losing money from tv and the EFL is big enough. Creating a divide between the powers that be at the club and the supporters is worrying. Every business wants their customers to feel valued and that their opinion matters. This couldn't be further from what we have at the moment. Good post and sums up a lot of peoples feelings but for some reason SL does not seem to want to stop the rot. I remember when we got promoted 2 years ago that the club were shocked and surprised at the wage demands and transfer fees of championship standard players. Someone hadn't done their research very well obviously. Maybe SL is still getting his fingers burnt by these demands and won't pay what he considers "over the odds". That fine stadium is going to be like a ghost town next year IF we go down and we don't challenge near the top. In 12 months time we could be in meltdown looking towards Div 2. There are no guarantees we would succeed in Div 1. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Popodopolous Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 We certainly won't grow the fanbase in this city if we go down- right now at work, a convo about Pogba being shit and Wenger's time being up. PL this, rugby that (NOT Bristol rugby incidentally). City are a million miles away from those I work with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merrick's Marvels Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 Good points all. So it beggars belief that Lansdown would say, as he did at that business breakfast a couple of weeks ago - "They'll all be back if we're top of League 1 next year" Where on earth do you start with a fwit statement like that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dredd Posted March 8, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 He said that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
REDOXO Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 22 minutes ago, Merrick's Marvels said: Good points all. So it beggars belief that Lansdown would say, as he did at that business breakfast a couple of weeks ago - "They'll all be back if we're top of League 1 next year" Where on earth do you start with a fwit statement like that? 18 minutes ago, Dredd said: He said that? Even I am suspicious that SL would have said that....Any confirmation? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Honiton Tony Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 Yes he did say it ....... and unfortunately he is correct Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger Red Hat Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 1 minute ago, Honiton Tony said: Yes he did say it ....... and unfortunately he is correct He may be correct, but it won't stop a sizeable number of current season ticket holders from not renewing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniro Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 If he phrased it like that, it was horrible, but his overall point is probably true - there's nothing like a promotion challenge to pull in punters. A drop in season ticket sales by a couple of million quid is small change for him personally. As long as his whole sporting empire is sound (and it is because of the value of the property and commercial assets) seasonal fluctuations are not a problem for him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curr Avon Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 1 hour ago, Merrick's Marvels said: Good points all. So it beggars belief that Lansdown would say, as he did at that business breakfast a couple of weeks ago - "They'll all be back if we're top of League 1 next year" Where on earth do you start with a fwit statement like that? Sheffield United are a bigger club than City and are currently spending their sixth consecutive season in League 1. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iamsober Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 2 hours ago, Dredd said: Without the fan base there is no football club. Sooner or later people will start to vote with their wallets and stay away, that might not be this season but City have to look ahead too. 16k season tickets at £350 avg (some are higher than this some lower) is £5.6 million. SLs money aside that is a bit chunk of money. If we finish this season poorly with the product that's on show at the moment, how many of them will renew? Maybe half being diehard will buy a season ticket whatever happens but I know a few of these who have said if LJ is in charge next season then they won't be renewing. Start next season poorly and the POTD crowd stop coming too. That obviously transfers over into concessions sales, turnover for the sports bar and grill, hospitality, shirt sales etc. SL may be thinking it's pointless getting a new man in with 10 games to go but surely from a marketing and business point of view it's vital to get some of the feel good factor and optimism back into the stands. Everything that's happening is alienating the club from the fans, and it's the fans that are the most important thing to the football club. I used to look forward to a match day, a few drinks before, a pasty at half time. The fun is being bled out of matchdays for me and now I get there as close to kick off as possible and don't bother with food as I'll eat before I leave. Straight away that's almost £15 per home game lost, over £300 per season. The cost of relegation just in losing money from tv and the EFL is big enough. Creating a divide between the powers that be at the club and the supporters is worrying. Every business wants their customers to feel valued and that their opinion matters. This couldn't be further from what we have at the moment. how long have you been going to City? My apologies if you have been going for a long time. The reason I ask is have you not seen the situation we are in now before? Cos I have more than once! Fans will moan during the season about the performance , management etc. but come the next season all will be forgotten and away we go again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Popodopolous Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 I think the board, and much of the non football side (and you could argue LJ and Holden at the moment!) But basically they don't understand football, or indeed football fans! Point about the latter is mainly aimed at the board but attitude of a club would filter down from the board IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Natchfever Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 3 minutes ago, iamsober said: how long have you been going to City? My apologies if you have been going for a long time. The reason I ask is have you not seen the situation we are in now before? Cos I have more than once! Fans will moan during the season about the performance , management etc. but come the next season all will be forgotten and away we go again! This time is way different. The most divided fanbase I can recall and Mr Lansdowns ratings have never been lower. As for the coach... Come next season I suspect many will be more discerning about how they spend matchdays and will ignore BS BS plus Johnsons book of cliches. Not everyone by a long way of course. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dredd Posted March 8, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 9 minutes ago, iamsober said: how long have you been going to City? My apologies if you have been going for a long time. The reason I ask is have you not seen the situation we are in now before? Cos I have more than once! Fans will moan during the season about the performance , management etc. but come the next season all will be forgotten and away we go again! Had a season ticket since the Danny Wilson era. Struggle to remember a time where everyone was on such a downer with no positives in sight. Even McInnes had us getting results to get out of the mire before the end of the season, and showing some fight. SOD we knew we were going down when he took over and the squad wasn't good enough. Here there has been a vast outlay on what should be good enough players but we aren't getting results, playing with any fight, and there's seemingly no chance of the manger getting changed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CotswoldRed Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 2 hours ago, REDOXO said: The problem with turning a football club into a business of this magnitude is it turns supporters into mere customers. There are families that have lived and died supporting this club. I have five generations in my own family! We are Bristol City supporters (not customers) and many of us have been through thin and thinner but really this is the thinnest. At the moment This is not our club, its almost the sole property of The Lansdown's, supported by the Johnson's and Mark Ashton, to do what they wish, forgetting who he/they are supposed to be doing it for. The situation can change and at some point almost certainly will, but for now we all have a real problem whether you are SL LJ MA or just a supporter this position sucks....everyone has to stop sucking!! Cretinous and Deplorable. I don't give a shit this week though. I have a week off to relax, get pissed and cycle in Spain. It's 23 degrees and bloody lovely here. LJ is but a stain on my subconscious. I can live with that for a few days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
REDOXO Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 1 minute ago, CotswoldRed said: Cretinous and Deplorable. I don't give a shit this week though. I have a week off to relax, get pissed and cycle in Spain. It's 23 degrees and bloody lovely here. LJ is but a stain on my subconscious. I can live with that for a few days. HAPPY DAYS! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CotswoldRed Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 1 minute ago, REDOXO said: HAPPY DAYS! Still owe you a few beers by the way Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LC_ Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 I can't get to every game so am a POTD. I'll watch the Huddersfield match from my sofa and am 99% that I won't give any more money to the club this season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
REDOXO Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 3 minutes ago, CotswoldRed said: Still owe you a few beers by the way Strangely I may be up your way again next week...My determination to drink is rarely diminished! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atticus Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 3 hours ago, REDOXO said: The problem with turning a football club into a business of this magnitude is it turns supporters into mere customers. There are families that have lived and died supporting this club. I have five generations in my own family! We are Bristol City supporters (not customers) and many of us have been through thin and thinner but really this is the thinnest. At the moment This is not our club, its almost the sole property of The Lansdown's, supported by the Johnson's and Mark Ashton, to do what they wish, forgetting who he/they are supposed to be doing it for. The situation can change and at some point almost certainly will, but for now we all have a real problem whether you are SL LJ MA or just a supporter this position sucks....everyone has to stop sucking!! Exactly how I feel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivorguy Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 They aren't invulnerable. Mass desertion of fans this season and next would force their hand whatever the current spin. Media coverage of the fans' disgust would help this along. They are vulnerable because the ill feeling could spread to all of BS's portfolio. One awful 3am in the morning thought is that they actually want City to fail as they realise they can't deliver and so will let the club flap around in the lower leagues and concentrate on easier, cheaper, ways of making BS successful. I think those on otib saying and feeling this is the worst position that City have ever been in are correct. In the past there was a.ways hope things would get better. Under present structure I no longer have that confidence Never ever felt so depressed by City over last nearly 70 years Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bazooka Joe Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 1 hour ago, Curr Avon said: Sheffield United are a bigger club than City and are currently spending their sixth consecutive season in League 1. Hey, with Johnson at the helm we'll beat that hands down (or should I say Lansdown!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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