[Football] Premier League Fan Experience

[blue-shifted]

I don't think there's any need for disagreement on this thread. It's the pace of the change which many are finding difficult. It was only 20 years ago that we were in effect throwing money into buckets to ensure the clubs survival and now we're looking at becoming a global brand. Who could have predicted in the darkest days of marches through Blackburn that now the biggest supporter concern is the method of determining offside and which drinks receptacles are and aren't allowed.

I think we should respect that many on here started supporting when we were a lower league club because they enjoy the trappings and charms of lower league football. That's what we were when they signed up. It's kind of similar to getting with an overweight girl, who all of a sudden loses 4 stone and becomes a belter. 90% will be over the moon. 10% quite like fats birds though

 

[Raleigh Chopper]

Just to put the record straight, I am not bemoaning anything about the Albion today, I am loving every second of it.
It's just that I have very fond memories of going away to almost every match before The Amex.
How can you not have memories of the many times we went to Peterborough and Brentford, or the promotion game at Port Vale for example.
(Other away games are available)

 

[Bodian]

Woking FC are just around the corner. I've not been of late but I do enjoy an away day further down the food chain.

Super photos - especially of the players. What lens were you using? I've tried similar at Barrow, but can never get enough zoom or speed for the quality you've achieved. Which, by the way, is something else that annoys me about the PL - you can't take decent cameras in because the crowd is 'part of the product' - so you're not allowed to photograph them.

 

[Horses Arse]

Absolutely. Makes me laugh how certain fans get hung up on this rubbish about being treated like customers and the club running like a business. Such crap. In what way are top clubs run like a business any more than smaller clubs? Ok some big clubs like Arsenal screw fans over hugely with ticket costs, but many small club's fans down the leagues are currently being screwed over by their boards in one way or another.

There are a few rubbish club rules like bottle tops, but imo the club do a superb job in most areas. There's changes I'd like to see but largely only with aspects of football that the club cant do anything about, like safe standing and sacking off VAR.

I always liked the idea of being treated as a customer rather than a fan - I thought it meant that the customer would be thought of as right initially and respected way more than football fans ever were. Unfortunately that's not the case; if you don't like the decisions made or the way you are treated by the club then you are very much treated as a fan. They know they have you and treat you accordingly. It was a good idea but not followed through unfortunately.

 

[Horses Arse]

I don't think there's any need for disagreement on this thread. It's the pace of the change which many are finding difficult. It was only 20 years ago that we were in effect throwing money into buckets to ensure the clubs survival and now we're looking at becoming a global brand. Who could have predicted in the darkest days of marches through Blackburn that now the biggest supporter concern is the method of determining offside and which drinks receptacles are and aren't allowed.

I think we should respect that many on here started supporting when we were a lower league club because they enjoy the trappings and charms of lower league football. That's what we were when they signed up. It's kind of similar to getting with an overweight girl, who all of a sudden loses 4 stone and becomes a belter. 90% will be over the moon. 10% quite like fats birds though

Well said!

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

I get both sides of this argument and have enjoyed, for differing reasons, watching Albion in all 4 leagues. The Prem isn’t the be all and end all for me though. I certainly enjoy it, but would not be too bothered if we got relegated back down the leagues.

 

[Insider]

A lifelong Albion fan just sent me the following thread: http://nortr3nixy.nimpr.uk/showthread.php?377352-Premier-League-Fan-Experience from North Stand Chat, and invited me to comment. The thread certainly makes interesting reading but, as much I might like to in one or two cases (!), I can’t comment on every individual contribution. I would however offer the following overall perspective.

Our entire focus from the day Tony Bloom took over our club was to reach, and stay in, the Premier League. It was Tony’s initial vision. Indeed, the American Express Community Stadium and our Lancing training ground were built to help fulfil that vision, while our investment in players, coaches, and staff (in all areas of the club) has been designed to sustain and build on that very same vision.

Along the way, we have had to make necessary changes to people and policies, and also to the way the club was previously run - not because it was run badly before but because we now stage our matches in front 30,000, rather than 5,000, people, and because we are now regularly exposed to a global TV audience, not to snippets on a domestic highlights show. On these factors alone, we are a world away from Withdean and League One football.

In the past decade the overall security climate, and our specific responsibilities for the safety of everyone in our stadium, have also changed dramatically. We‘ve explained our responses to the world we now live - in detail along the way - to all those fans who have read our programme notes or website pages, who have attended or asked questions at our numerous fans’ forums each season, or who have called or written to us for a more personal response.

We make absolutely no apologies for treating our fans as customers. This mindset, clearly misunderstood by some, is a positive not a negative. For far too long football took its fans for granted. A customer-focused football club doesn’t allow for such complacency. It means letters, e-mails, and phone calls from fans get answered promptly. Complaints from fans are taken seriously and addressed. All fans are listened to, and all fans are treated fairly.

We’re far from perfect, and we look to improve every day, but we’ve created a safe, secure, friendly, and welcoming environment at the Amex. We’ve sold out 23,000 season tickets and 1901 club memberships – and we’ve topped the Premier League’s fan experience table in each of our first two seasons at this level. We’ve maintained our connection with, and support for, our wider community winning “best community scheme” in four of the last five seasons.

Since Tony’s initial vision was established, we have extended our stadium, built a training ground, created our academy, and added a women’s and girls’ division to our club. We are now extending our training ground further, are looking to add more seats to our stadium, and have underlined our contribution to the local economy through the employment of more than 1,000 people, many local, each match day – 20 times more people than in our League One days.

We have made our club more diverse and more inclusive. We have engaged more with our growing fanbase, which is now younger and more international, than ever before. And we have partnered with world class organisations who have renewed their long term backing for our new vision - to be a top 10 Premier League club and a top 4 Women’s Super League club. We’ve enjoyed - and, at times, endured! - an incredible journey, and we’re still on it!

We are very lucky. Our club is owned by a lifelong Albion fan who has, and continues to, back us to the hilt. Our club is run by people that, between them, have attended thousands of matches – as paying fans, as well as club directors, in this country and all over the world - and who take the right short, medium and long term decisions for the club’s future health. And our club is staffed by top quality people, fans themselves, with many years’ football experience.

In top level sport, nothing is entirely predictable. There will be ups and downs. Fans wont get everything they want or feel they deserve – and neither will the club. We certainly can’t guarantee we will be playing at the highest level every year. We can however guarantee we will do everything possible to ensure we can, and that whatever changes we make in the future, however the club evolves, we will continue to take our fans, partners, and community with us.

Happy New Year to all!

Regards, Paul B

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

A lifelong Albion fan just sent me the following thread: http://nortr3nixy.nimpr.uk/showthread.php?377352-Premier-League-Fan-Experience from North Stand Chat, and invited me to comment. The thread certainly makes interesting reading but, as much I might like to in one or two cases (!), I can’t comment on every individual contribution. I would however offer the following overall perspective.

Our entire focus from the day Tony Bloom took over our club was to reach, and stay in, the Premier League. It was Tony’s initial vision. Indeed, the American Express Community Stadium and our Lancing training ground were built to help fulfil that vision, while our investment in players, coaches, and staff (in all areas of the club) has been designed to sustain and build on that very same vision.

Along the way, we have had to make necessary changes to people and policies, and also to the way the club was previously run - not because it was run badly before but because we now stage our matches in front 30,000, rather than 5,000, people, and because we are now regularly exposed to a global TV audience, not to snippets on a domestic highlights show. On these factors alone, we are a world away from Withdean and League One football.

In the past decade the overall security climate, and our specific responsibilities for the safety of everyone in our stadium, have also changed dramatically. We‘ve explained our responses to the world we now live - in detail along the way - to all those fans who have read our programme notes or website pages, who have attended or asked questions at our numerous fans’ forums each season, or who have called or written to us for a more personal response.

We make absolutely no apologies for treating our fans as customers. This mindset, clearly misunderstood by some, is a positive not a negative. For far too long football took its fans for granted. A customer-focused football club doesn’t allow for such complacency. It means letters, e-mails, and phone calls from fans get answered promptly. Complaints from fans are taken seriously and addressed. All fans are listened to, and all fans are treated fairly.

We’re far from perfect, and we look to improve every day, but we’ve created a safe, secure, friendly, and welcoming environment at the Amex. We’ve sold out 23,000 season tickets and 1901 club memberships – and we’ve topped the Premier League’s fan experience table in each of our first two seasons at this level. We’ve maintained our connection with, and support for, our wider community winning “best community scheme” in four of the last five seasons.

Since Tony’s initial vision was established, we have extended our stadium, built a training ground, created our academy, and added a women’s and girls’ division to our club. We are now extending our training ground further, are looking to add more seats to our stadium, and have underlined our contribution to the local economy through the employment of more than 1,000 people, many local, each match day – 20 times more people than in our League One days.

We have made our club more diverse and more inclusive. We have engaged more with our growing fanbase, which is now younger and more international, than ever before. And we have partnered with world class organisations who have renewed their long term backing for our new vision - to be a top 10 Premier League club and a top 4 Women’s Super League club. We’ve enjoyed - and, at times, endured! - an incredible journey, and we’re still on it!

We are very lucky. Our club is owned by a lifelong Albion fan who has, and continues to, back us to the hilt. Our club is run by people that, between them, have attended thousands of matches – as paying fans, as well as club directors, in this country and all over the world - and who take the right short, medium and long term decisions for the club’s future health. And our club is staffed by top quality people, fans themselves, with many years’ football experience.

In top level sport, nothing is entirely predictable. There will be ups and downs. Fans wont get everything they want or feel they deserve – and neither will the club. We certainly can’t guarantee we will be playing at the highest level every year. We can however guarantee we will do everything possible to ensure we can, and that whatever changes we make in the future, however the club evolves, we will continue to take our fans, partners, and community with us.

Happy New Year to all!

Regards, Paul B

Fair play. Difficult to argue against that. And happy new year to you as well Paul!

 

[Stat Brother]

Fair play. Difficult to argue against that. And happy new year to you as well Paul!

Yet some of the ingrates on here will.

 

[Beach Hut]

I think the biggest issue is some fans cannot accept the rapid rate of change which started with the move from Withdean, maybe VAR really is the last straw for not just the club but football per se for some fans.

That said I am surprised some older fans are so resentful of change as their personal and working lives would also have evolved and changed.

 

[Bry Nylon]

I for one won't be happy until the CEO and deputy chairman comes on NSC on New Years Eve to provide a reasoned and detailed response to this thread.





Oh.

 

[Bry Nylon]

Fair play. Difficult to argue against that. And happy new year to you as well Paul!

You're still not getting a coat hanger.

 

[Stat Brother]

I think the biggest issue is some fans cannot accept the rapid rate of change which started with the move from Withdean, maybe VAR really is the last straw for not just the club but football per se for some fans.

That said I am surprised some older fans are so resentful of change as their personal and working lives would also have evolved and changed.

No the biggest issue is we have a bunch of moaning b*****d 'fans' who wouldn't know happiness if it walked up and punched them in the face.

Appeasing them now is no different to trying to appease them for 'ruining the club by not spending money' and will be the same as trying to appease them when they're screaming 'why aren't we in the Premier League any more'.


F**k'um.

 

[Bry Nylon]

No the biggest issue is we have a bunch of moaning b*****d 'fans' who wouldn't know happiness if it walked up and punched them in the face.

F**k'um.

Still can't fathom how you never even got shortlisted for the BHAFC Public Relations job. Travesty.

 

[dazzer6666]

No the biggest issue is we have a bunch of moaning b*****d 'fans' who wouldn't know happiness if it walked up and punched them in the face.

Appeasing them now is no different to trying to appease them for 'ruining the club by not spending money' and will be the same as trying to appease them when they're screaming 'why aren't we in the Premier League any more'.


F**k'um.

You really shouldn’t have posted the first draft of Mr Barber’s response...........

 

[Beach Hut]

No the biggest issue is we have a bunch of moaning b*****d 'fans' who wouldn't know happiness if it walked up and punched them in the face.

Appeasing them now is no different to trying to appease them for 'ruining the club by not spending money' and will be the same as trying to appease them when they're screaming 'why aren't we in the Premier League any more'.


F**k'um.

I can't buy into that at all, change can prove very unsettling for some people be it work or leisure. BHAFC has rapidly evolved very quickly which was inevitable given the vision of the owner.

I have seen it countless times during my working life where people simply cannot accept any change at work as they cannot or do not want to evolve, I don't think the evolution at BHAFC is dissimilar to any form of change.

 

[jimhigham]

Super photos - especially of the players. What lens were you using? I've tried similar at Barrow, but can never get enough zoom or speed for the quality you've achieved. Which, by the way, is something else that annoys me about the PL - you can't take decent cameras in because the crowd is 'part of the product' - so you're not allowed to photograph them.

Yes, that is frustrating. I even got buzzed by a steward at Ebbsfleet though, as the camera isn’t small. I shot those using a Canon 5D Mk III with an EF-L II f/2.8 70-200, which is a simply glorious lens. Because I work with Sussex Sports Photography I’ve upgraded to a Canon 1DX (which I’ve just had to spend almost £700 on a service with new shutter and mirror box).

I’d love a 500mm lens but they’re the same cost as my car.

Glad you liked the pics.

 

[Stat Brother]

I can't buy into that at all, change can prove very unsettling for some people be it work or leisure. BHAFC has rapidly evolved very quickly which was inevitable given the vision of the owner.

I have seen it countless times during my working life where people simply cannot accept any change at work as they cannot or do not want to evolve, I don't think the evolution at BHAFC is dissimilar to any form of change.

But were those people moaning like drains before the change, then moaning still further harking back to the (current) 'good old days' after subsequent changes?

 

[drew]

Surely the question is whether your a football supporter or BHA supporter?

Ask all those Wycombe and Coventry fans would they like to see their team in a 30k stadium playing in the Prem against the top teams? I would expect the vast majority would. You take the rough with the smooth when you follow a club. For us, we have had serious doses of both.

It is of course a different experience but I wouldn't swap what we have or for that matter, the journey we've been on, or in fact the journey we are still on. It could end up back in the basement or it could lead to us watching the team in a foreign land. Isn't that the joy of supporting a team?

 

[Blue Valkyrie]

What is brilliant is that we have has the chance to experience both.... And we've done it the right way round

Sent from my SM-A520F using Tapatalk

Absolutely this.


And there is always Crawley or Lewes etc. for the lower level experience on Albion free days.