Places in England where RL is more popular than football

[Wiltshire Rhino]

18 minutes ago, Eddie said:

Wasn’t Willy Carson your chairman back in the day? I may have imagined that though! 

He was

[Josef K]

1 hour ago, Eddie said:

Wasn’t Willy Carson your chairman back in the day? I may have imagined that though! 

I think racing commentator Julian Wilson was also a Swindon Town fan. I don’t know if he was on the board ?. 

[Eddie]

41 minutes ago, Josef K said:

I think racing commentator Julian Wilson was also a Swindon Town fan. I don’t know if he was on the board ?. 

And Melinda Messanger. 

[The storm]

On 22/07/2021 at 15:17, Hela Wigmen said:

I bet there’s actually very few places, if any, where this is the case. 

Featherstone 

[Hopping Mad]

19 hours ago, wilsontown said:

York is weird all round. It's not that small a city, but there haven't been big followings for either City or the Knights in the 10 years I've lived here. I was wandering around today and I've seen no City shirts, 1 Knights, 1 Aberdeen FC, loads of Leeds Utd and several Liverpool.

We're just not a town that's all that interested in sport, sadly. Knights are doing everything right (and the football are not), but it's really going to be a long job.

One of York's problems is a very large minority of the population isn't from the city. The incomers (and I'm one) simply aren't interested in what the local football and rugby league clubs are up to (which, in the 13 years I've lived in York, hasn't amounted to much). My sporting allegiances were fixed long before I relocated to York. Not uncommon, I imagine. I do go along to watch City and the Knights maybe six times a season in total. Now both clubs have departed for a retail park on the outer ring road, it'll be even fewer.

Edited July 23, 2021 by Hopping Mad

[The Hallucinating Goose]

I'd be willing to argue Hull but I can't be bothered right now, I'm making my tea, maybe I'll put my case forward later.

[Phil]

31 minutes ago, The Hallucinating Goose said:

I'd be willing to argue Hull but I can't be bothered right now, I'm making my tea, maybe I'll put my case forward later.

I’d agree with that 

[Route66]

Millom ?

[fieldofclothofgold]

49 minutes ago, The storm said:

Featherstone 

The area that Featherstone and Cas are part of are an important breeding ground for players 

[ELBOWSEYE]

Interesting topic, most RL towns have RL teams as the most popular team in the towns, and although football is big if you go to a cup final or (if I live long enough) win a grand final the streets would be filled with fans celebrating butno football team would get that response including England. 

Edited July 23, 2021 by ELBOWSEYE

[PREPOSTEROUS]

A few years back Leeds Utd reserves played at Belle Vue, they pretty much played to a capacity crowd (circa 10k at the time). Trinity, Cas or Fev can only dream of that kind of pull. Football is bigger everywhere.

[Spidey]

Just now, PREPOSTEROUS said:

A few years back Leeds Utd reserves played at Belle Vue, they pretty much played to a capacity crowd (circa 10k at the time). Trinity, Cas or Fev can only dream of that kind of pull. Football is bigger everywhere.

That’s the real truth. No matter how big you think RL is in a town. Football will be bigger, by any metric - supporters, participation etc

[DimmestStar]

Based on average attendances prior to COVID there are more fans watching Rugby League than football in Hull.

[Owl]

Places in England where RL is more popular than football

.....our front room..........

[Leyther_Matt]

1 hour ago, DimmestStar said:

Based on average attendances prior to COVID there are more fans watching Rugby League than football in Hull.

I was in Hull a month or two ago and, in a not so scientific experiment, I found that FC and KR shirts vastly outnumbered all football shirts combined. A pleasant surprise, though that might just be a case of the locals trying to outdo each other after wins the previous day and inadvertently outdoing football?!

[Eddie]

3 hours ago, ELBOWSEYE said:

Interesting topic, most RL towns have RL teams as the most popular team in the towns, and although football is big if you go to a cup final or (if I live long enough) win a grand final the streets would be filled with fans celebrating butno football team would get that response including England. 

Where is that? 

[Stirlin]

6 hours ago, Hopping Mad said:

One of York's problems is a very large minority of the population isn't from the city. The incomers (and I'm one) simply aren't interested in what the local football and rugby league clubs are up to (which, in the 13 years I've lived in York, hasn't amounted to much). My sporting allegiances were fixed long before I relocated to York. Not uncommon, I imagine. I do go along to watch City and the Knights maybe six times a season in total. Now both clubs have departed for a retail park on the outer ring road, it'll be even fewer.

Free parking , new ten pin bowling alley , IMAX cinema , Puttstars to lower your par , more restaurants than you can shake a stick at , Go Kart track , shopping , the hospitality at the stadium is first rate , I have never eaten so well and it is open to all but get in early as the last home match they sold out. Bring the wife and kids and have a great day out.

4 hours free parking on Sunday match day , buy a bottle of water in M&S food hall opposite stadium and they will validate your parking from 2 to 4 hours. Or visit the Vangarde office next door to Prezzo restaurant who will do the same.

[ELBOWSEYE]

9 hours ago, Eddie said:

Where is that? 

Warrington 

[Hopping Mad]

9 hours ago, Stirlin said:

Free parking , new ten pin bowling alley , IMAX cinema , Puttstars to lower your par , more restaurants than you can shake a stick at , Go Kart track , shopping , the hospitality at the stadium is first rate , I have never eaten so well and it is open to all but get in early as the last home match they sold out. Bring the wife and kids and have a great day out.

4 hours free parking on Sunday match day , buy a bottle of water in M&S food hall opposite stadium and they will validate your parking from 2 to 4 hours. Or visit the Vangarde office next door to Prezzo restaurant who will do the same.

Thanks for the parking tip. That'll be useful, when I do get around to going to the LNER.

I'm child-free-by-choice.

[Phil]

10 hours ago, Leyther_Matt said:

I was in Hull a month or two ago and, in a not so scientific experiment, I found that FC and KR shirts vastly outnumbered all football shirts combined. A pleasant surprise, though that might just be a case of the locals trying to outdo each other after wins the previous day and inadvertently outdoing football?!

There seems to be very little or no crossover between soccer and RL in Hull. I was at a corporate do at a Hull City match a few years back, their fans were chanting “we hate Rugby League”

[Leyther_Matt]

24 minutes ago, Phil said:

There seems to be very little or no crossover between soccer and RL in Hull. I was at a corporate do at a Hull City match a few years back, their fans were chanting “we hate Rugby League”

I think that's probably sparked by the issues with sharing the stadium and the complications of the stadium management company more than anything else. Not entirely dissimilar to the situation in Wigan where it isn't uncommon to see Saints shirts at Wigan Athletic games and I know plenty of Warriors fans who support Bolton Wanderers.

That said, I went to a Hull City v Bolton game the other year that was moved to the Friday night to avoid clashing with Hull FC playing in the Challenge Cup Final so there must be some crossover.

[Hopping Mad]

6 minutes ago, Leyther_Matt said:

I think that's probably sparked by the issues with sharing the stadium and the complications of the stadium management company more than anything else.

Same thing happened at Halifax. Plenty of Halifax Town fans, former supporters also of the rugby league club, now refuse to watch Fax RL because of the 'complications' (real or imagined) caused by the clubs sharing The Shay.

Edited July 24, 2021 by Hopping Mad

[Phil]

6 minutes ago, Hopping Mad said:

Same thing happened at Halifax. Plenty of Halifax Town fans, former supporters also of the rugby league club, now refuse to watch Fax RL because of the 'complications' (real or imagined) caused by the clubs sharing The Shay.

That is true, the relationship between the two sets of fans is definitely tense, I felt compelled to make that decision by the behaviour of the soccer fans and cut my links with the football club 

[Liverpool Rover]

11 hours ago, Leyther_Matt said:

I think that's probably sparked by the issues with sharing the stadium and the complications of the stadium management company more than anything else. Not entirely dissimilar to the situation in Wigan where it isn't uncommon to see Saints shirts at Wigan Athletic games and I know plenty of Warriors fans who support Bolton Wanderers.

That said, I went to a Hull City v Bolton game the other year that was moved to the Friday night to avoid clashing with Hull FC playing in the Challenge Cup Final so there must be some crossover.

There is some crossover but the Majority either support one of the RL teams or Hull City.

[Eddie]

11 hours ago, Phil said:

That is true, the relationship between the two sets of fans is definitely tense, I felt compelled to make that decision by the behaviour of the soccer fans and cut my links with the football club 

Ok so Halifax, Wigan and Hull seem like places where people support either the RL or football team(s) but not both, and I gather it’s similar in Huddersfield. Such a shame and completely unnecessary - is there anywhere where there isn’t a divide and most people support both?