Sky Sports

[Crump99]

Didn't Lakeside get 7000 in to the stadium one night when they did a 'freebie'?

 

How many of those paid full price the meeting after?

 

I suggest admission price does make a big difference when deciding what to spend your 'leisure time disposable income' on...

 

And charging circa £40 (or more), for a family of four (without the obligatory food and drink) is asking a lot if you expect many to take you up on that deal...

 

"I will never forget that the 2006 Grand Final, arguably the greatest modern day meeting ever, watched live by over 6000 people and by thousands more at home, was followed by a Craven Shield fixture attended by less than 700 people. If that Grand Final won’t pull people in, then what will?!?!" - Mick Bratley 2010

 

[sommelier]

I would much rather watch a match on Sky than attend. I get commentary, a dozen angles, close up pictures, slow motion replays, rider and manager interviews... and it's included in my subscription.

Bit like saying then you would rather watch a porn DVD than the real thing!

[mikebv]

Bit like saying then you would rather watch a porn DVD than the real thing!

Depends what yer missus looks like...😀

Anecdotal evidence suggested that a large portion of that crowd was in fact fans from other clubs who went as a one off because it was free.

Interesting then that all those people managed to get there from 'various parts' that particular night...

 

Maybe the 'nightmare' that is the Dartford Tunnel wasn't an issue for that one 'free' evening...?

 

The only evening in the past lord knows how many years...😘

[CookieIpswich]

7000 is fine for free if you get food and beverage takings but which club does?

[Ben91]

Average ball in play time is closer to 60 mins for Premier League football.....still a valid point though

 

To that point most Speedway heats are slightly under the minute mark so it's also less than 15 minutes of Speedway, add in the fact that you can be in a Speedway stadium longer than you are in a Football ground and Football offers much better value for money.

 

Exactly! Look at sky as well, if that was £10-£12 for the full package I'd have it.

 

 

I'm the same with beer and spirits. I like a nice glass of cognac or a nice Islay whiskey but have you seen the price compared to beer? It's almost as though there is more to it than just the quantity. I sometimes wonder if you are meant to appreciate the intensity of the product or something?

 

Oh well never mind.

 

It is a nice analogy but it doesn't fit for me. Speedway is not something people are priced out of but want in the way an expensive Cognac may be too expensive for some. As for the quality over quantity, I'm not convinced there is more quality in a single Speedway meeting when compared to a Football match. As for intensity, again just because it is a motorsport it doesn't make Speedway more intense than Football, hell look at Darts, there's plenty of intensity there and it is two blokes throwing projectiles at a cork board.

 

 

Manchester United and all PL teams could let supporters in FOR NOTHING - the actual gate receipts for football at that level are a tiny proportion of the income for a football club. The income for PL football is generated by TV and sponsorship deals where the vast amount of it goes into the pockets of the players and agents. So to try and draw any comparison between Speedway and Football is hopeless on that basis.

 

But look at it this way; if its £50 to sit and watch a PL football match for 90mins that you should actually probably have paid £10-15 quid for (see my point above) then it would then compare to £15 for 15mins of Speedway. Then you might argue that Football is better 'value for money'. But even then I would say 15mins of action around the EWR Scunthorpe knocks 90mins of Manchester United 0 Hull City 0 into a 'cocked hat everyday of the week.

 

But there isn't just Premier League Football. There are Football teams in the fifth and even sixth tiers of the English Football Pyramid who offer Football in better facilities and for a more reasonable price than the top level of British Speedway.

 

Of course comparisons can be drawn. Football is thriving, Speedway isn't. How do you improve a product? Look at the competition you have that is at the top of its game. This whole 'Footballers are paid too much' stuff is nonsense, it's supply and demand. There is a product and people will pay for it, sponsors will pay to have their names plastered over stadiums, kits and players. You wouldn't see that with Speedway. If more people were in the Speedway stadiums in the first place though sponsors may be more easy to come by because they have a bigger captive audience. Despite the money being pumped into the game from all angles Football would be nothing without the paying customer who goes to the stadium.

 

Even if you paid £10-15 for a Football match in the Premier League you are still getting more minutes of entertainment for your money than for paying the same to go to a Speedway meeting.

 

To compare a 0-0 draw to a meeting at Scunthorpe is a very one sided way of thinking of things. It could quite as easily be a 6-3 Everton vs Bournemouth thriller compared to a gate and go fest at Leicester.

 

I'm a big fan of both sports, Speedway for me is a better raw product and always will be. But I go to see my Football team week in, week out and it costs me roughly the same as going to see my Speedway team who I will go to watch two-three times a season now if they're lucky. Why? Because I get better value for my money, in my opinion, attending the Football.

[mickthemuppet]

Nearly all sports are struggling thanks to the power of Television and live matches including football. My local football club (about 10th tier) used to get up to 2,000 spectators in the 1950's ,now they are pleased to get 100. The Sunday league used to have 36 teams now 12.

Essex cricket used to play at Colchester , Clacton, Brentwood, Southend, Westcliff , Ilford and Chelmsford . They have now dropped Colchester leaving just Southend and Chelmsford.

I went to a county table tennis match between Essex and Surrey and then Middlesex which had a 1000 people attending each.

The local netball folded about 10 years ago

There used to be 6 tennis teams now there is only one

The water polo team used to get up to 600 supporters now nearly nil

So the only sports really being successful are the top tier in football

[CookieIpswich]

If I ran a speedway club

 

Each team would be introduced and they do one lap as an introduction to the crowd followed by a couple minutes warm up then chequered flag is out.

 

 

As they are presented local kids line the inside of the centre green all round the track waving club flags.

 

As soon as heat 1 is two laps in the heat 2 bikes must line up ready to roll out after last bike from previous race pulls off track.

 

Interval entertainment, dancers with up to date music, I'd have two old riders per home meeting attend and complete 4 laps each and do a top gear style leader board, this allows old and new fans to appreciate previous legends. Maybe followee by a competition to win signed rider club goodies and free entry tickets to the next meeting.

 

Roll the boys out again after the interval and have your evening dusted within an hour

 

Of course unless injuries or stoppages are severe

 

Over an hour is a piss take

[foamfence]

If I ran a speedway club

 

Each team would be introduced and they do one lap as an introduction to the crowd followed by a couple minutes warm up then chequered flag is out.

 

 

As they are presented local kids line the inside of the centre green all round the track waving club flags.

 

As soon as heat 1 is two laps in the heat 2 bikes must line up ready to roll out after last bike from previous race pulls off track.

 

Interval entertainment, dancers with up to date music, I'd have two old riders per home meeting attend and complete 4 laps each and do a top gear style leader board, this allows old and new fans to appreciate previous legends. Maybe followee by a competition to win signed rider club goodies and free entry tickets to the next meeting.

 

Roll the boys out again after the interval and have your evening dusted within an hour

 

Of course unless injuries or stoppages are severe

 

Over an hour is a piss take

Well the bar takings would certainly be up.

[robert72]

Corrected before? What are you on about as per usual. You have the quote to prove? ?

 

Of course only the top few leagues throughout the country charge way more than speedway and as they are the most popular leagues isn't that the obvious comparison. .

Premier league Champions Leicester City v Derby County (local rivals) in the 4th round of the FA cup in the beautiful king power stadium was adults £10 & oap or u22 just £5 last night for 120 mins of football

[stevebrum]

Premier league Champions Leicester City v Derby County (local rivals) in the 4th round of the FA cup in the beautiful king power stadium was adults £10 & oap or u22 just £5 last night for 120 mins of football

And Leicester's entrance price against Man U last week?

And there UEFA entry prices?

 

That was a great incentive to get people to pay for entry no doubt.

But similar to cheap or free entry to Speedway SKY matches that some clubs have done in the past.

 

Football promotions are much more in tune with the needs of its supporters that's clear.

Edited February 9, 2017 by stevebrum

[marko]

Speedways biggest enemy is the modern bikes, it's cringe worthy that even rookies feel the need to have a new van all painted up and three bikes, guess who pays for all that down the line?

 

We need to get back to simpler times when riders could just have one bike and that would pretty much last them the season, get the costs down for the riders and it should filter down to the promoters then the fans.

Or keep the prices as they are and reinvest the money into facilities for the fans or towards projects for attracting youngsters into the sport.

[g13webb]

Just having an Anorak moment in reply to post 15 by GRW123 I fully agree with your description of Neil Street but I think that he did not invent the 4 valve engine. I my memory serves me right I think that you will find the 1932 Rudge speedway engine has 4 valves. Sorry to be off topic. All the best Relic

 

Yeah, your probably right. But it was Neil Street that brought the technology into the modern era and highlighted the difference it was to achieve.

 

That night in question, Kings Lynn Vs Newport , could have been a typical meeting had it not been for the performance of those two machines. The fact Phil Crump rode to a 15 max was not unusual, but the easy manner in how he achieved it was. 1/2 lap ahead in some races.... But the real indicator of the machine's capability, was that an ageing Neil Street only dropped one point all night, beating Terry Betts in the process....... They even came 1st and 2nd in the second half final, such were their dominance.......

 

Because of the supreme power of those 4 valvers, riders had to purchase the equivalent just to start races on equal terms. That signalled the start of costs being hiked up to meet the higher demands, which inturn coincided with the start of crowd numbers dwindling..,

[poolebolton]

The BSPA have made some good decisions and have got sponsors lined up but the biggest event in this 2020 project in when the right from Sky become available this could be the first time there is a bidding war between BT and SKY which is massive for the sport.

[CookieIpswich]

There will be no massive bidding war as I believe the recent sky deal is alot different to that of the one before where monies switched hands.

 

I thibk the previous involved paying for the rights with additional payments for live meetings, I think the latest deal was purely paid on tv matches only as sky gave up the title sponsorship.

 

If the bspa are clever, they could break the competitions down and deal with different broadcasters for different products or even embrace new technology and allow exposure via sponsors

 

Its not only sky or bt in the mix, itv4, eurosport, or another new crazy platform which would generate income IF you believe that 100,000 speedway fans subscribe just for speedway....

[Shale Searcher]

 

Yeah, your probably right. But it was Neil Street that brought the technology into the modern era and highlighted the difference it was to achieve.

 

That night in question, Kings Lynn Vs Newport , could have been a typical meeting had it not been for the performance of those two machines. The fact Phil Crump rode to a 15 max was not unusual, but the easy manner in how he achieved it was. 1/2 lap ahead in some races.... But the real indicator of the machine's capability, was that an ageing Neil Street only dropped one point all night, beating Terry Betts in the process....... They even came 1st and 2nd in the second half final, such were their dominance.......

 

Because of the supreme power of those 4 valvers, riders had to purchase the equivalent just to start races on equal terms. That signalled the start of costs being hiked up to meet the higher demands, which inturn coincided with the start of crowd numbers dwindling..,

 

 

They were custom built, Neil Street conversions, 2 to 4 valve, they weren't production engines, were they?

 

They came soon after the Streety Mods...

[Buttons]

Something that has always bugged me is riders putting their helmets on before they are introduced to the crowd, many clubs need to pay much more attention to presentation.

 

[New Science]

If I ran a speedway club

 

Each team would be introduced and they do one lap as an introduction to the crowd followed by a couple minutes warm up then chequered flag is out.

 

 

As they are presented local kids line the inside of the centre green all round the track waving club flags.

 

As soon as heat 1 is two laps in the heat 2 bikes must line up ready to roll out after last bike from previous race pulls off track.

 

Interval entertainment, dancers with up to date music, I'd have two old riders per home meeting attend and complete 4 laps each and do a top gear style leader board, this allows old and new fans to appreciate previous legends. Maybe followee by a competition to win signed rider club goodies and free entry tickets to the next meeting.

 

Roll the boys out again after the interval and have your evening dusted within an hour

 

Of course unless injuries or stoppages are severe

 

Over an hour is a piss take

Tell me this is a wind up !

[John Scrutton]

Think I am right but seem to remember that a rule was brought in that riders HAD to wear helmets during the parade and also you couldn't slap there hands as they went pass you.

[Shale Searcher]

Something that has always bugged me is riders putting their helmets on before they are introduced to the crowd, many clubs need to pay much more attention to presentation.

 

 

 

This has to be decided before the parade.... Helmets, no helmets.

 

With helmets the riders can do practise starts and corner squirts..

 

Without helmets, they are not allowed to do practise starts, corner squirts or any race simulai....

 

 

Strict rules, fines for disobedience.....

[hrhbig]

Absolute disgrace this constant price increases, remember going to Exeter and finding that the raffle tickets were 6d, they were only 3d at Poole.