[Football] 31,000 attendances

[Simster]

Nope, nothing to do with the Albion, that was actually the gate for a game in the Womens Super League today - the Manchester derby.

Absolutely incredible really. They're obviously doing something right up there. I wonder how much tickets were?

 

[Horton's halftime iceberg]

We battered Bristol City at Ashton Gate, had a penalty saved and only managed a 0-0 draw.

Chelsea v Totteneham at Stanford bridge tomorrow has already out sold this game I believe.

 

[Bozza]

Heard a bit about this on 5Live earlier this week. £7 adults, I believe, with kids free or very cheap.

Lots of chatter about how playing at the proper stadiums has been largely dispiriting for the women to date as although the attendances are larger than they regularly get, they still end up playing in front of largely empty cavernous stadiums.

Not sure today’s crowd is indicative of doing anything right (although maybe they are) but more a special one-off occasion type crowd, see also:

- small club drawing a big club in the cup
- that big game day thing that rugby union do at Twickenham

 

[Green Cross Code Man]

Nope, nothing to do with the Albion, that was actually the gate for a game in the Womens Super League today - the Manchester derby.

Absolutely incredible really. They're obviously doing something right up there. I wonder how much tickets were?

£7 tickets and under 16 free.

 

[Horton's halftime iceberg]

Heard a bit about this on 5Live earlier this week. £7 adults, I believe, with kids free or very cheap.

Lots of chatter about how playing at the proper stadiums has been largely dispiriting for the women to date as although the attendances are larger than they regularly get, they still end up playing in front of largely empty cavernous stadiums.

Not sure today’s crowd is indicative of doing anything right (although maybe they are) but more a special one-off occasion type crowd, see also:

- small club drawing a big club in the cup
- that big game day thing that rugby union do at Twickenham

I have heard Bloom really does not like our WSL team playing at Crawley, especially as we got 4.5K last year at the Amex last year.

Need that other stadium, perhaps we will develop at East Brighton (Whitehawk FC) after all.

 

[Green Cross Code Man]

Chelsea v Totteneham at Stanford bridge tomorrow has already out sold this game I believe.

The tickets were free so not sold out. These game show interest for the women's game but are not sustainable without almost giving, or in this case actually giving the tickets away.

 

[Simster]

Heard a bit about this on 5Live earlier this week. £7 adults, I believe, with kids free or very cheap.

Lots of chatter about how playing at the proper stadiums has been largely dispiriting for the women to date as although the attendances are larger than they regularly get, they still end up playing in front of largely empty cavernous stadiums.

Not sure today’s crowd is indicative of doing anything right (although maybe they are) but more a special one-off occasion type crowd, see also:

- small club drawing a big club in the cup
- that big game day thing that rugby union do at Twickenham

Mens football is out on it's own when it comes to attendances and ticket demand. Other sports and flavours of football have to do special things to attract crowds and when they do they ARE doing something right. The Big Game was a great experience at Twickenham last year, and I suspect the WSL derbies this weekend will also leave fans wanting more.

Seven quid to get people through the door is a gutsy move, taking advantage of no top level mens football being played. It's not like they won't make money in concessions, programmes etc. And most importantly, we surely want our football loving girls being inspired by watching Lucy Bronze and people like her.

And 3,000 at Bristol is superb too. This stupid idea of Albion playing at Crawley surely has to end soon. Its embarrassing.

 

[Horton's halftime iceberg]

The tickets were free so not sold out. These game show interest for the women's game but are not sustainable without almost giving, or in this case actually giving the tickets away.

Looks like free to STH, like our U23 games, £3 and £1 to non ST and £60 corporate with meal.

 

[Green Cross Code Man]

Looks like free to STH, like our U23 games, £3 and £1 to non ST and £60 corporate with meal.

Very attractive deals, but the Evening Standard reported them free?

 

[Gazwag]

Heard a bit about this on 5Live earlier this week.

I heard a bit this afternoon before kick off - I had to turn it off - they way they were talking was as if Women's football did not exist before today

 

[Ernest]

Even had one of the reporters on Soccer Saturday doing the game , PC gone MAD

 

[Sussex Nomad]

Isn't this all a bit about gender aligning, in other words, believing their game is up to scratch, when it quite plainly isn't. 31k watching a female game at the equivalent of non league football? No thanks.

 

[Poojah]

Isn't this all a bit about gender aligning, in other words, believing their game is up to scratch, when it quite plainly isn't. 31k watching a female game at the equivalent of non league football? No thanks.

I’ve watched non-league football in front of 47k for what it’s worth, but I get your point.

There’s clearly an artificial drive to promote women’s football, no doubt borne out of pressures to conform with political correctness and gender equality. On the whole, I’m not really a great fan of the PC trajectory we seem to be on in this country, but is it such a bad thing in this case?

I give you the example of the Premier League which is the complete opposite; massively popular globally and therefore bursting at the seams with wealth completely as a result of market forces. But is it good for football as a whole in this country? Ask yourself that as a fan of the Brighton and Hove Albion of twenty years ago, rather than today, and I suspect that you’ll conclude that it is not.

One of the reasons that women’s football is less entertaining than the men’s game is because women naturally lack the physical attributes of their male counterparts. But it’s not the only reason. Another reason is the difference in access to coaching and facilities.

Elite men’s players will have effectively been playing professionally from their early teens, being coached by world class coaches in world class facilities. Your female equivalent is probably still training a couple of times a week in a park or other public training facility. The fact that women’s international football is often compared with the national league is actually a testament to how far the women’s game has come, as there are no shortage of players in the national league who would have enjoyed the benefits of top youth academies growing up.

Female tennis players also lack the physical attributes of their male counterparts, and yet women’s tennis remains entertaining and well watched worldwide. The key difference is that women’s tennis has been well funded for decades and as such has allowed players to reach the standard they have.

If backing the women’s game beyond what market forces currently dictate gives it a shot at reaching a standard where it can genuinely support itself then that has to be a good thing, doesn’t it? It’s not fair to let archaic attitudes of the past prevent it from reaching its potential in the future.

 

[Sussex Nomad]

I’ve watched non-league football in front of 47k for what it’s worth, but I get your point.

There’s clearly an artificial drive to promote women’s football, no doubt borne out of pressures to conform with political correctness and gender equality. On the whole, I’m not really a great fan of the PC trajectory we seem to be on in this country, but is it such a bad thing in this case?

I give you the example of the Premier League which is the complete opposite; massively popular globally and therefore bursting at the seams with wealth completely as a result of market forces. But is it good for football as a whole in this country? Ask yourself that as a fan of the Brighton and Hove Albion of twenty years ago, rather than today, and I suspect that you’ll conclude that it is not.

One of the reasons that women’s football is less entertaining than the men’s game is because women naturally lack the physical attributes of their male counterparts. But it’s not the only reason. Another reason is the difference in access to coaching and facilities.

Elite men’s players will have effectively been playing professionally from their early teens, being coached by world class coaches in world class facilities. Your female equivalent is probably still training a couple of times a week in a park or other public training facility. The fact that women’s international football is often compared with the national league is actually a testament to how far the women’s game has come, as there are no shortage of players in the national league who would have enjoyed the benefits of top youth academies growing up.

Female tennis players also lack the physical attributes of their male counterparts, and yet women’s tennis remains entertaining and well watched worldwide. The key difference is that women’s tennis has been well funded for decades and as such has allowed players to reach the standard they have.

If backing the women’s game beyond what market forces currently dictate gives it a shot at reaching a standard where it can genuinely support itself then that has to be a good thing, doesn’t it? It’s not fair to let archaic attitudes of the past prevent it from reaching its potential in the future.

Totally agree with your second paragraph. But as a country so full of liberalism we are pushing a game that quite clearly is not for pushing. I have been to Wimbledon when you get a full house for the womens game and you only get a ticket on ballot so have no choice. Well, you do, you could go have a beer until the mens game is on, but for many of us Wimbledon is a one off experience. The womens football game is being pushed way out of recognition and is still well under par to anything in mens football. As I said before, it is all about gender aligning.

 

[Pavilionaire]

I don't have a problem with the development of the women's game but there will be repercussions:

1. We already had football saturation before this point.
2. I fear for other sports that will lose out - there's only so much time, money and female athletes to go round.

 

[Sussex Nomad]

I don't have a problem with the development of the women's game but there will be repercussions:

1. We already had football saturation before this point.
2. I fear for other sports that will lose out - there's only so much time, money and female athletes to go round.

Why don't they show women's netball with the same coverage? Good sport, well played by women. I find it ridiculous how they try to make a spectacle out of women's football.

 

[drew]

Have to say there seems to be some really dumb comments on here, almost as if some feel they are threatened by the growth of women's football?

Firstly, any drive to promote any sport is artificial as the alternative is for the sport to grow organically.

Why someone is saying promote Netball instead of football I don't know. There are far more countries where women play football than they do netball. Also, netball had plenty of promotion during the recent world cup in Liverpool or did that pass you by.

Football is the most popular sport on the planet so it's odd that some seem to think that women shouldn't get a slice of the cake. I don't think I have heard anyone claim that women's football is the equal of the mens game, or that it ever will be but it's popularity is growing.

In Sussex at U16 level, last year there were 4 teams in the league, this year there will be 12.

As for stadia, I believe that in WSL there is a requirement that the teams get to play a certain number of games at the clubs main ground. For us, the alternative is Crawley and I can understand why that is not acceptable to Bloom but it is not yet cost effective to open the Amex for every game. I believe Man City play most of their games in the reserve stadium next door to the Etihad which has a capacity of 7000.

At the end of the day, nobody is being forced to watch women's football.

 

[crodonilson]

Even had one of the reporters on Soccer Saturday doing the game , PC gone MAD

They’re doing one women’s game every week on the panel now the WSL has started.

 

[Superphil]

Chelsea v Totteneham at Stanford bridge tomorrow has already out sold this game I believe.

Lots of no shows then, attendance was 24500.

 

[The Large One]

Have to say there seems to be some really dumb comments on here, almost as if some feel they are threatened by the growth of women's football?

At the end of the day, nobody is being forced to watch women's football.

They appear to feel threatened by women, full stop. MASSIVE insecurity issues...