[Albion] Cost of football really is a joke

[Mr Putdown]

From their FAQs, Sunderland pick them at random from their equivalent of young Seagulls.
Looks like They don’t have a paid package.
https://www.safc.com/club/faqs

Exactly.

The post I quoted made no sense whatsoever. Love or hate them, Sunderland have a huge fan base and don’t charge for kids being mascots.

 

[LamieRobertson]

Exactly.

The post I quoted made no sense whatsoever. Love or hate them, Sunderland have a huge fan base and don’t charge for kids being mascots.

I'd have taken the Sunderland posters comment more seriously if he had perhaps not come on another teams forum and quoted just our mascot fees...hence my light hearted comment...and yes an impressive attendance...I wonder what it would have been if they had been nearer the bottom of the league rather than the top..it got pretty toxic up there in there last season in the PL

 

[maffew]

The club cant win. It would be lovely if everything that we think should be free could. Wasnt last year the first year to make a profit since god knows when? Should it have been free before that or forecast into the fact we stayed up the mascots would be free. I guess supply/demand/distribution eg giving some to Seagulls club members seems reasonable from where I am sat. At school some kids went to Disneyland/Ski trips for holidays, we went camping. It neither seemed fair not unfair really and it was quite clear to us that wealthier kids got more "things". Some of them were spoilt brats. Most werent . It might be "only 7 grand" a game the club should cover it... While in the real world.... Factor in admin, perhaps insurance, whatever else, I've no idea but I dont think its a money spinner, more cover costs and a bit

A nice to have that's all. Reminds me of charlie and the chocolate factory

 

[wakeytom]

I'd have taken the Sunderland posters comment more seriously if he had perhaps not come on another teams forum and quoted just our mascot fees...hence my light hearted comment...and yes an impressive attendance...I wonder what it would have been if they had been nearer the bottom of the league rather than the top..it got pretty toxic up there in there last season in the PL

We only managed an average of 41k our last session in the premier League and a much lower 28 last season so yes there was quite a drop off.

That said I do post on here and I started the thread as Brighton is one of the listed teams and as a fan of football in general am concerned about the future of 'live' fans rather than virtual

 

[HHGull]

Proper right wing v left wing on here at the moment

 

[Tim Over Whelmed]

Fans now having to pay to be a mascot?

I am sure its been talked about on here before but £350 to be one at Brighton, with all this money sloshing around why charge?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-46526716

I guess because they give out a kit so everyone has the latest kit, sponsor, etc and they don't want little Johnny or Julia in a Brighton kit with yellow socks or something with a former sponsor on, something that is possible specified in the Sponsorship Contract with the current sponsor.

In fairness can you imagine the waiting list if it were a free for all? There would probably be people willing to pay to get up the list etc , etc.

What I would say, if you are thinking of doing it, it's a great day for the kids and well worth it to see their little faces.

 

[beorhthelm]

Proper right wing v left wing on here at the moment

the socialist approach would be to have enough players for all children who want to be a mascot that weekend.

 

[LamieRobertson]

We only managed an average of 41k our last session in the premier League and a much lower 28 last season so yes there was quite a drop off.

That said I do post on here and I started the thread as Brighton is one of the listed teams and as a fan of football in general am concerned about the future of 'live' fans rather than virtual

'Toxic' wasn't referring to numbers but atmosphere.. ....as to future of 'live fans' ..admission prices...kick off times ..of course we could broaden it to the cost of shirts ..kits for children and their ridiculous prices.. ....mascot prices being only the icing on the cake and as was seen only applies to some ...although the figure at West Ham seems outrageous...surprised you didn't lead with that

 

[wellquickwoody]

I don't understand the issue here to be honest. You get what you pay for surely? You pay for a seat you get a seat, you pay for a VIP experience you get a VIP experience. People who are against this, do you think you should be able to buy front row seats at gigs or VIP meet and greets for the same amount as the cheapest ticket? Proper baffling thread this one.

Remember that I am a Tory.

Imagine being 8 year old Johnny and occasionally being taken to see your superstar heroes. Not every game but once or twice a season, on your birthday maybe or at Xmas. Imagine that you only ever get to see Burnley or Cardiff at The Amex,but that’s OK as mum can not afford tickets against the ‘big’ clubs. Imagine that your PE kit is proper Albion stuff, but a season or two out of date away kit as that is cheaper than the new home kit that dad says is too modern anyway. Now imagine Billy Spoiltgit at school bragging about how he sits in 1901 with his dad and is friends with Glenn Murray’s son, and has every kit since we made the Prem. The first kid might think that Billy is a bit of a knob but would be very envious when Billy’s dad buys a mascot place every year for a glamour fixture.

Now imagine if there was only one mascot per game, drawn at random from the registered junior fans list. Imagine how much joy, pride and gratitude Johnny would feel if here were lucky enough to be a ‘chosen’ one? And Billy or his dad could never take that away. That is why the club should reduce the numbers and make it free.

 

[Gazwag]

So how many of these youngsters get a £600+ iPhone paid for by their parents each year, it always seems strange to me the amount of "poor" people queuing at McDonalds posting rubbish on social media on their expensive phones

 

[Wozza]

I’m fairly sure that there was no charge for mascots up to a couple of years ago. Up until then I think you had to be a member of the junior seagulls (small annual cost) and your child’s name was drawn at random to be the mascot. Also at that time I don’t think you had as many mascots for each home match ( maybe just 2 or 3), but in the last couple of years it’s all been changed - more mascots and they all have to pay.

I’m not sure about the current position on mascots for away matches but up to a couple of years ago you could simply phone up and ask - if they had room for a mascot you just turned up, no charge.

Overall, I know we’re just following the same commercial approach as othe PL clubs, but I think it’s a shame the club has changed its approach to capitalise on this, at a time when its income has never been higher. The club quite rightly makes a big play on its involvement in the local community thru AITC etc, but the opportunity to be a match day mascot ( for free) could be another way of providing a fantastic experience to kids who otherwise might never get that opportunity.

The setup has changed due to a massive increase in demand.

Also, as has been mentioned numerous times, two free spaces are still awarded (by lottery) each match.

 

[father_and_son]

Remember that I am a Tory.

Imagine being 8 year old Johnny and occasionally being taken to see your superstar heroes. Not every game but once or twice a season, on your birthday maybe or at Xmas. Imagine that you only ever get to see Burnley or Cardiff at The Amex,but that’s OK as mum can not afford tickets against the ‘big’ clubs. Imagine that your PE kit is proper Albion stuff, but a season or two out of date away kit as that is cheaper than the new home kit that dad says is too modern anyway. Now imagine Billy Spoiltgit at school bragging about how he sits in 1901 with his dad and is friends with Glenn Murray’s son, and has every kit since we made the Prem. The first kid might think that Billy is a bit of a knob but would be very envious when Billy’s dad buys a mascot place every year for a glamour fixture.

Now imagine if there was only one mascot per game, drawn at random from the registered junior fans list. Imagine how much joy, pride and gratitude Johnny would feel if here were lucky enough to be a ‘chosen’ one? And Billy or his dad could never take that away. That is why the club should reduce the numbers and make it free.

...but there are enough Young Seagulls that even if no new children started supporting the club, they would all be close to retirement before the last one of the current crop got his/her moment.

Yes, absolutely agree its a magical moment, but it *cannot be available to all*, there are just too many kids supporting the club. So a "selection" process is required, some way to a) determine which kids actually want to be a part (pretty sure that _and_son would have hated the experience of being so 'in the limelight' at that age); and b) which ones actually get to be a part; c) when the chosen ones get to be a part.

Yes, a lottery would be very right on, but doesn't [immediately] address the first or the last. Not every kid can go to every game... the monday night, term time games aren't the best for little 8yr old Johnny, especially when it's nowhere near his birthday or christmas and so becomes disconnected from the event. Declining the free package seems very off to me, so do we force shy little Johnny out in front of 30k (or probably 15k who haven't come in from the concourse yet!).


This is and should be a choice for parents to make... they should be able to choose the game so it suits, calendar-wise and opponent-wise. Choices cannot be made available to all, for free, because there is a *very* limited number. Don't blame the club for monetising that choice at all. The cost for a standard package isn't a million miles away from taking a class-load to the cinema or to LaserQuest or whatever. The BBC should have compared prices of the "standard" package and been clear about the costs for what is/isn't included. From what I can see, our packages actually cost less than £50 to be the mascot and everything else thrown in would retail at £200-ish anyway. Without knowing the "standard" price, I can't tell if West Ham are offering similar value for money but I doubt it.

 

[Wozza]

Now imagine if there was only one mascot per game, drawn at random from the registered junior fans list. Imagine how much joy, pride and gratitude Johnny would feel if here were lucky enough to be a ‘chosen’ one? And Billy or his dad could never take that away. That is why the club should reduce the numbers and make it free.

You think there should be 19 mascots a season instead of 228, dramatically reducing the chances of every kid, and halving the number of free spaces? Okaaaay...

 

[wellquickwoody]

You think there should be 19 mascots a season instead of 228, dramatically reducing the chances of every kid, and halving the number of free spaces? Okaaaay...

Make it magical, rare, and free from the influence of money. Yes, far less would get to experience it, but some kids might start to appreciate that wealth cannot buy every angle of happiness and contentment. Make it special, not normal, make it a dream, not an expectation.

 

[JBizzle]

To be honest with the amount of money in the game, I find a lot of the revenue generating activities to be a bit crass. When we were in the Championship and 90% of our income was Uncle Tony plowing in his own funds, I could kind of get it and that was always the justification for high season ticket prices, £250 mascot packages, £90 for a full kit etc, etc and adding the travel costs onto the price of the ticket is essentially £100 off your ticket price over a season (which is great).

However, I really don't see how any of the teams in the Premier League should be charging their fans such high prices when match ticket income is such a small percentage of the revenue.

 

[Weststander]

Make it magical, rare, and free from the influence of money. Yes, far less would get to experience it, but some kids might start to appreciate that wealth cannot buy every angle of happiness and contentment. Make it special, not normal, make it a dream, not an expectation.

This.

 

[Wozza]

Make it magical, rare, and free from the influence of money. Yes, far less would get to experience it, but some kids might start to appreciate that wealth cannot buy every angle of happiness and contentment. Make it special, not normal, make it a dream, not an expectation.

So you’d literally deprive 200+ kids to teach some kind of moral lesson?

Out of interest, do you have children?

 

[chaileyjem]

Now imagine if there was only one mascot per game, drawn at random from the registered junior fans list. Imagine how much joy, pride and gratitude Johnny would feel if here were lucky enough to be a ‘chosen’ one? And Billy or his dad could never take that away. That is why the club should reduce the numbers and make it free.

They already have 2 mascot slots that are free and allocated at random.

 

[MattBackHome]

What does everyone reckon is the best age for kids to do it?

 

[wellquickwoody]

So you’d literally deprive 200+ kids to teach some kind of moral lesson?

Out of interest, do you have children?

No, but I have step children and grand children , oh, and if it makes any difference I was once a child myself, probably a bit like Johnny.