Eddie Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 There is so much negativity about attendances on this forum and how the game is dying, but what other sports in the UK have higher domestic attendances than Rugby League? Football obviously, Union (not that much higher, especially considering the exposure it gets), are there any more? Certainly not cricket, hockey, women’s football, ice hockey, basketball etc. What other sports other than football or Union would get 62k to a cup final, or even half of that? Rugby League is still a big game and people continually saying otherwise is counter productive. The way some people talks it’s as if we’re a minority sport like shinty or cheese rolling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Plow Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 27 minutes ago, Eddie said: There is so much negativity about attendances on this forum and how the game is dying, but what other sports in the UK have higher domestic attendances than Rugby League? Football obviously, Union (not that much higher, especially considering the exposure it gets), are there any more? Certainly not cricket, hockey, women’s football, ice hockey, basketball etc. What other sports other than football or Union would get 62k to a cup final, or even half of that? Rugby League is still a big game and people continually saying otherwise is counter productive. The way some people talks it’s as if we’re a minority sport like shinty or cheese rolling. There was something about sports attendance in the UK, I’ll try and find it, but RL was on it behind football, union and horse racing maybe cricket as well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Man of Kent Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 Fifth biggest spectator sport after football - daylight - then racing, yawnion and cricket. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allora Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 44 minutes ago, Eddie said: There is so much negativity about attendances on this forum and how the game is dying, but what other sports in the UK have higher domestic attendances than Rugby League? Football obviously, Union (not that much higher, especially considering the exposure it gets), are there any more? Certainly not cricket, hockey, women’s football, ice hockey, basketball etc. What other sports other than football or Union would get 62k to a cup final, or even half of that? Rugby League is still a big game and people continually saying otherwise is counter productive. The way some people talks it’s as if we’re a minority sport like shinty or cheese rolling. 2017 figures https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/uk/Documents/sports-business-group/deloitte-uk-sport-attendances-infographic-2017.pdf Fifth as MOK said Talent is secondary to whether players are confident. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dunbar Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 19 minutes ago, Allora said: 2017 figures https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/uk/Documents/sports-business-group/deloitte-uk-sport-attendances-infographic-2017.pdf Fifth as MOK said Yes and no. Cricket is 2.7 million and Rugby League 2.3. But the cricket was divided into 1.1M for international and 1.6M for domestic and as the original question was which sports had higher domestic attendances than Rugby League I would put RL ahead of cricket in this category according to your posted data. "The history of the world is the history of the triumph of the heartless over the mindless." — Sir Humphrey Appleby. "If someone doesn't value evidence, what evidence are you going to provide to prove that they should value it? If someone doesn't value logic, what logical argument could you provide to show the importance of logic?" — Sam Harris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cdd Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 Cricket and RU both top us because of internationals. Until RL prioritises internationals we’ll never compete with those sports. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dunbar Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 9 minutes ago, Cdd said: Cricket and RU both top us because of internationals. Until RL prioritises internationals we’ll never compete with those sports. In attendance terms cricket tops us because of internationals. Club Union is ahead of League. "The history of the world is the history of the triumph of the heartless over the mindless." — Sir Humphrey Appleby. "If someone doesn't value evidence, what evidence are you going to provide to prove that they should value it? If someone doesn't value logic, what logical argument could you provide to show the importance of logic?" — Sam Harris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GUBRATS Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 Right let's be clear here , horse racing isn't a spectator sport , it is a means to gamble , nothing more , never has been Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eddie Posted August 25, 2019 Author Share Posted August 25, 2019 Ok so we are behind just Football and Union then, and ahead of all other sports in the domestic game (as Gubrats said Horse Racing doesn’t count). County cricket is played 5 times a week so their average crowds are tiny compared to RL. Given the media blackout and the fact League is only played in a small part of the country, crowds are massive compared to all other sports bar football. So why all the negativity? Yesterday on this forum it felt like some people couldn’t wait for a 65k crowd to be announced so they could wade in with some doom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eddie Posted August 25, 2019 Author Share Posted August 25, 2019 50 minutes ago, Dunbar said: In attendance terms cricket tops us because of internationals. Club Union is ahead of League. It is, but not so far ahead. If the national papers were to be believed Union would be played out in front of 100,000 crowds and League in front of 100. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Themusician_2 Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 Our clubs are in smaller markets than Football and RU. So no point in comparing to other sports unless there are teams in the same market Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allora Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 1 hour ago, GUBRATS said: Right let's be clear here , horse racing isn't a spectator sport , it is a means to gamble , nothing more , never has been I thought it was "The Sport of Kings" Talent is secondary to whether players are confident. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allora Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 Who do the Sponsors and money men think are the best Sports to spend their money on and gain exposure and sales? It would not matter at this stage of our game if GB/England won every Test for the next 10 years, that Horse has already bolted many years ago. Playing and winning International Test matches only gets exposure if the Sport has already a following and means something to the general public. I would not know or care if Australia won the Ice Hockey World Cup and it would hardly make me want to watch Ice Hockey because of it. Talent is secondary to whether players are confident. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dealwithit Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 4 minutes ago, Allora said: Who do the Sponsors and money men think are the best Sports to spend their money on and gain exposure and sales? Other sports hire professionals, industry leaders and influential people. RL hires the old Halifax manager into a senior role. Small mindedness. If you don’t treat your own organisation as valuable, why would others? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allora Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 13 minutes ago, dealwithit said: Other sports hire professionals, industry leaders and influential people. RL hires the old Halifax manager into a senior role. Small mindedness. If you don’t treat your own organisation as valuable, why would others? The RFL team. https://www.rugby-league.com/the_rfl/about_the_rfl/board__president It is an unusual group of people. Talent is secondary to whether players are confident. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dunbar Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 1 hour ago, Allora said: Who do the Sponsors and money men think are the best Sports to spend their money on and gain exposure and sales? It would not matter at this stage of our game if GB/England won every Test for the next 10 years, that Horse has already bolted many years ago. Playing and winning International Test matches only gets exposure if the Sport has already a following and means something to the general public. I would not know or care if Australia won the Ice Hockey World Cup and it would hardly make me want to watch Ice Hockey because of it. In the UK I have seen sports like field hockey and cycling increase its profile thanks to international success. Heck, even Curling had its day in the (winter) sun. The 2003 World Cup had a real effect on the popularity of Union in the wider sporting public at strategically important point in its development. A World Cup win by England in 2021 would be a huge opportunity. Now, whether, as a sport, we are capable of grasping that opportunity is a different matter. Attracting sponsors beyond (historically) fags, booze and gambling companies is whole other conversation. "The history of the world is the history of the triumph of the heartless over the mindless." — Sir Humphrey Appleby. "If someone doesn't value evidence, what evidence are you going to provide to prove that they should value it? If someone doesn't value logic, what logical argument could you provide to show the importance of logic?" — Sam Harris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allora Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 21 minutes ago, Dunbar said: In the UK I have seen sports like field hockey and cycling increase its profile thanks to international success. Heck, even Curling had its day in the (winter) sun. The 2003 World Cup had a real effect on the popularity of Union in the wider sporting public at strategically important point in its development. A World Cup win by England in 2021 would be a huge opportunity. Now, whether, as a sport, we are capable of grasping that opportunity is a different matter. Attracting sponsors beyond (historically) fags, booze and gambling companies is whole other conversation. edit Talent is secondary to whether players are confident. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eddie Posted August 25, 2019 Author Share Posted August 25, 2019 12 minutes ago, Dunbar said: The 2003 World Cup had a real effect on the popularity of Union in the wider sporting public at strategically important point in its development. Union has two massive advantages, being the game of the establishment means there is more about it in the media and more wealthy people willing and able to invest. Also the six nations is a great spectacle and we have nowt like that in RL and never will. I also wonder if RL had been given a different name and was considered a different code of football, the same as soccer, CFL, NFL, AFL etc; would things have been different, as it wouldn’t be compared with Union all the time as if they’re the same game played by different people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Essai Machine Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 4 hours ago, Eddie said: Rugby League is still a big game and people continually saying otherwise is counter productive. The way some people talks it’s as if we’re a minority sport like shinty or cheese rolling. Simple . Merge TGG with cheese rolling - call it the Super Cheese , with Cribbo as CEO - 'The Big Cheese' ! I'd pay to watch it ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dunbar Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 37 minutes ago, RugbyLeagueMan said: When will League shed it's tacky 'Benidorm' image? it's doing us no favours I wouldn't have worded it quite like that but the simple answer is 'never'. The social fabric of this country has been millennia in the making and it will not unravel without some kind of cataclysmic worldwide event. For Rugby League to be perceived differently we need it in new international territories where the prejudices are not already embedded. "The history of the world is the history of the triumph of the heartless over the mindless." — Sir Humphrey Appleby. "If someone doesn't value evidence, what evidence are you going to provide to prove that they should value it? If someone doesn't value logic, what logical argument could you provide to show the importance of logic?" — Sam Harris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clogiron Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 4 hours ago, Allora said: Who do the Sponsors and money men think are the best Sports to spend their money on and gain exposure and sales? It would not matter at this stage of our game if GB/England won every Test for the next 10 years, that Horse has already bolted many years ago. Playing and winning International Test matches only gets exposure if the Sport has already a following and means something to the general public. I would not know or care if Australia won the Ice Hockey World Cup and it would hardly make me want to watch Ice Hockey because of it. They look at the socio-economic group of those that attend/follow the game, the positioning of it in society, it's reach and if it's regarded as 'cool' hence why we always had the booze & fags sponsor's and why we struggle for other than betting outlets today. The game lacks a profile that could entice more spectator's nevermind sponsor's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Padge Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 6 hours ago, Man of Kent said: Fifth biggest spectator sport after football - daylight - then racing, yawnion and cricket. Take out internationals and cricket is on a par with chess as a spectator sport as far as attendance goes. Visit my photography site www.padge.smugmug.com Radio 5 Live: Saturday 14 April 2007 Dave Whelan "In Wigan rugby will always be king" This country's wealth was created by men in overalls, it was destroyed by men in suits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eddie Posted August 25, 2019 Author Share Posted August 25, 2019 19 minutes ago, RugbyLeagueMan said: Yup, the 'Benidorm' image. Companies want positive marketing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eddie Posted August 25, 2019 Author Share Posted August 25, 2019 What’s what’s this Benidorm image? If you mean Northern working class what’s wrong with that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Padge Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 24 minutes ago, Eddie said: What’s what’s this Benidorm image? If you mean Northern working class what’s wrong with that? Ask a blue-chip sponsor. Visit my photography site www.padge.smugmug.com Radio 5 Live: Saturday 14 April 2007 Dave Whelan "In Wigan rugby will always be king" This country's wealth was created by men in overalls, it was destroyed by men in suits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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