The legendary Brian Clough – probably the most memorable and scary manager of my time in the game – once said: “The day will come when football is played in empty stadium for the benefit of TV.”
Now I don’t believe for a minute that the great man counted prophecy of a worldwide pandemic among his various abilities but with wall to wall and floor to ceiling football on our screens at the moment his words came hurtling back at me. And it seems a possibility that the game is at more than a crossroads as we look for an e nd to lockdown and a return to what the clubs hope will again be full stadiums.
Now I’m not suggesting that may not be the case but there may be reasons to believe that – like the rest of society following this pandemic – football may be facing considerable changes.
There are four reasons – possibly more – to believe that the game will finally have to sell out to TV:
- Many have lost their jobs and the cost of season tickets – and the travel involved – could become prohibitive.
- The pandemic has placed the fear of travelling by public transport into our mentality anyway which of course could reduce once vaccination is entirely widespread.
- Have people become used to watching the game from the comfort of an armchair as the game has monopolised our viewing?
- Will we have become entirely used to the routine of no longer travelling to game.
I’m not suggesting for a moment that many won’t always travel to games but there is a possibility of a fall off, even if one only considers the cost to those struggling for or being out of work.
And it seems to me that should there be such a decline inside the stadium’s clubs, and the Premier League will have to look for alternatives.
These could involve attempting to up prices for those who CAN afford to pay more or making the game as available for all games via TV as it has become during lockdown.
That could see the Premier League doing so itself at a monthly fee or by perhaps cutting a deal with the broadcasters.
We have already had a taste of football being available via our Amazon Prime subscriptions. The future looks interesting,
Your views would be appreciated.
My friends and I are gagging to get back, an away day would be a dream!
Maybe we should flip it.
All we hear is clubs and TV saying they need the fans back, the product is so much worse.
Maybe we should be saying if you want us all back we want Saturday at 3.00 football for at least 75percent of home games.
We don’t want all the rule changes, we hate VAR, it’s killing the game.
Maybe it’s time for us to collectively say no to where they are taking the game.
I think they need us more, if you look at France where the TV deal collapsed and apparently Spain is not far behind, they need the supporters cash, maybe we should start to get our point of view over.
The premier league gravy train could hit the buffers if the fans say no more of stupid kick off times,
Well said, Dave. Knowing that the games are all kicking off at the same time would make plans for the future more secure. TV can be accommodated on Sky and others by showing the recorded games back to back after the final whistle. Upside would be that BBC didn’t need to compete with telephone figures of fees. We could have the Pools back again. Downside (?) would be that betting companies would have their ‘markets’ dramatically reduced. But who is football for?
COYI
Bring it on as soon as possible I say. I’ve been a season ticket holder for years and years. I got very jaded and disillusioned with following West Ham after the move to the OS. I chucked my season tickers in at the end of last season because of the hassle I had claiming back the money for the games lost to Covid. Watching the games – and the vastly-improved performances – on TV in recent months has relit my fire. If I could watch every game on TV I’d be over the moon. I’d never trouble the West Ham ticket office – which has always been run chaotically – again.
‘You are old, Father Hugh’ the young man said. The future belongs to the youth, the present belongs to all of us. Just because us oldies will adjust to prefer watching on TV doesn’t mean that younger generations will be happy with that. The future is bright. TV is OK but only as an aid to life’s experiences. Just like on-line schooling. Might fulfill the measurable transfer of information so that examination of retained ‘learning’ may be evaluated and ranked BUT that in itself is not education. So, watching the game as presented on TV is nowhere near a replacement for the experience of going to a match.
As for Brian Clough – one needs a selective memory to think that he may have been a role model. ‘Is that cash or a bottle in your brown paper bag, Brian?’
Good piece of writing, Hugh. Got me thinking about it!!
COYI
Old as yer fell buddy – football belongs to us all as things stand but personally I think TV football is inevitable and have thought so for a long time. The future of football of course more accurately may belong to the clubs and PL SIGH
Saturday 3pm kick off for nearly all is what we want back along with the fans once this covid pandemic is sorted and we are all vaccinated .Its just not the same and never will be..Likewise VAR is an abomination and should be blasted into outer space.My biggest worry is of course how much capitalism and the few billionaires are taking over a game that was always meant to be affordable for the working class people right from its inception as our National game.
I’m a season ticket holder but it’s easy to forget that there’s a world which exists outside of the east end if London. I’m sure there are supporters all over the world that can’t attend games that would pay good money to subscribe to a tv season ticket of some sort. Plus also of course there are disabled supporters or the older generation that don’t find it easy getting to the London stadium.
Football on TV is a poor substitute for being there. This is the longest it’s been for me without a live game since 1968. Can’t wait to go to a game again even if it’s just my local non-league team Ebbsfleet United.
I accept it’s unlikely that we’re ever going back to the days of all games kicking off at 3pm on a Saturday, TV’s too imbedded in the game for that but I’m sure most fans are like me and will be back in the stadiums as soon as they are allowed to be.
I am desperately missing the camaraderie of being in the crowd at the game, socialising with friends and other ST holders, watching on tv is good up until a point but the ritual and habit of going to games and all involved in pre / post game activities hard to substitute in a sanitised lockdown. Like Val I think that for anyone around the globe or in other parts of UK that can’t attend in person for any number of reasons they should have a way of watching that is affordable, lets be honest trying to get an away ticket without having an away ST is not always easy, I love the away atmosphere but in the absence of that watching all of these games live is a more than acceptable substitute. There is and has always been room for both options, it should also provide a kick in the harris for clubs that play a brand of football that their fans can’t stand, that is a double edged sword but on one side it should make clubs and managers more conscious that the way they play should be the reflection of their fans desires putting football back in touch with it’s fanbase. Clear feedback provided by how many home supporters want to attend the matches.
Strange you should write this today as the Missus and I were discussing ourselves.
We asked ourselves whether we’d still go to live matches, and even in our 60s the answer was a definite yes to home matches (unless tickets were so expensive). However
theses days away matches are limited to London fixtures, normally with friends who support whoever we’re playing (so hard not to jump up when we score)
I agree I don’t fancy a packed Javelin to St Pancras anymore, but all in all, Football has served a great purpose in these dark days of Covid, and I vote it carries on
Would the UK be doing any different?? Hardly, most European leagues run a match starting every two hours, so it wouldn’t be different to other Countries.
For the moment I’ll make do with scaring the dog when we score