I've been thinking recently about how much this covid malarky could possibly change the rules around viewing games forever.
Before this all happened, no matches were allowed to be aired live at 3pm on a saturday and streaming services were only allowed to be viewed from a non UK location (and not with a vpn, you naughty boys & girls). The lockdown restrictions have forced the football authorities to be finally dragged into the 21st century, albeit on a temporary basis for now.
When the time comes and we're allowed back into stadiums, I personally can't see things going back to how they were.
Thoughts on this?
Comments
If it's a free for all, then the smaller clubs will get smaller and smaller until they disappear, who is going to watch Bromley on tele for a tenner a pop when they can see all the Premier League games for the price of a Sky subscription - including a game while Bromley are playing? Current supporters will, but what happens as they die off?
A massive part of following a smaller club - including Charlton - is the camaraderie forged when you meet every other Saturday, if that goes out the window, then eventually virtually everyone becomes an armchair supporter of a big club. It's tough for kids to wear their Charlton scarf at school when the sheep around them all follow Manchester United or Liverpool, the thing they have over them is that they (usually) actually go to matches, and that feeling they get at the weekend when surrounded by like minded people fills them with pride and gets them through the piss taking of the glory hunters throughout the week. If they are sat at home watching on tele, all that is gone.
I fear that you are right though, very little "innovation" in football over the past thirty years has actually improved it for the majority, but that has not stopped it happening in the past, and it wont stop it now, I guess it will come down to money, and how much more the richest can make.
A metaphor for life...
We all know big clubs will get their way though.
Stadiums need to be packed with as many fans as possible as soon as possible.
That is the only solution as far as I am concerned.
Live broadcast coverage should be very limited too.
But the greedy clubs got their way. After just a few years of showing a couple of live games a week, football became a billion pound industry with attendances higher than ever at all levels.
Don't be too conservative - not all change is bad!
May I add that I would like to think there would be live coverage, set up in some way, for fans living abroad.
From my point of view, I have been to a handful of games a season for the last 25 years. When The Valley is largely open, even if we are still wearing face masks, I'll be there a lot more often. People are desperate for social interaction and engagement after a year of sitting at home, so the people that only ever sat at home and watched games on TV or streams may maintain the behaviour, but anyone that has ever been to a game, at any level, will be back live, even if it clashes with a live TV game or is being streamed, because they are essentially bored with it.
When the novelty of a normal life has worn off, then we may see problems, but I think that's a long way off.
(I exaggerate for effect - but you get my drift)
He doesn't watch any other live football.
I don't get it.
I know there's a lot more to life than football but a Saturday afternoon is the time when life takes a backseat and football becomes the single only focus in life.
Likewise with pubs, theatres, restaurants etc.
Other cities may have a similar problem too in due course.
Part of the attraction of supporting a local team outside the Premier League is the dream that one day you could climb the pyramid and be among the best clubs in the land.
Once the ‘big 6’ pull the ladder out from underneath everyone else by having a separate league with no relegations, it will hurt the overall purpose of supporting local/smaller clubs for a lot of young people.
Sky/BT/whoever are not stupid. Once fans are allowed back in stadiums they will know that fans will go to games and attendances will likely be up as people have been starved of going to live football. The Championship is something like the 4th/5th best attended league in the world, and there are a number of big clubs in that league.
The big televised games will still be Saturday lunchtime for local derbies, or Saturday night/Sunday afternoon for other big games. They won't put Man City v Liverpool (for example) at 3pm on a saturday when they know a million people are at other games. It'll be shit like Brighton v Burnley that no one cares about.
I don't think they'll show every clubs games live via streaming either, clubs like us would be silly to do that.
Does that include the Burnley & Brighton fans?
And then there is the greedy profit hungry big clubs. Wince.
Despite it all, can 'community' football clubs still be viable?
But definitely streaming to fans in England for a tenner when a match ticket is 20-25 would as you say be complete suicide for a lot of clubs, especially ones outside the premier league.