Dave Woods

[Griff]

IMG will soon have this sorted.

[Eddie]

57 minutes ago, Griff said:

IMG will soon have this sorted.

I assume you’re being sarcastic? 

[Eddie]

3 hours ago, Gomersall said:

And how many of the country do you think is converted to American Football aitch? Please don’t tell me how they fill the stadiums in London as those are attended by many from the rest of Europe outside the U.K. 

NFL is really popular in the UK, and the three or four games here each season sell out in minutes. There are a few people there from America and Europe but having been a couple of times it’s overwhelmingly English people at the London games. I imagine the Red Zone on a Sunday evening gets great viewing figures too. 
 

Edit - just googled and between 1.0m - 1.5m people in the UK watch it at some point every week. It’s popular. 

Edited October 2, 2023 by Eddie

[gingerjon]

9 minutes ago, Eddie said:

I assume you’re being sarcastic? 

Think of it as the equivalent of the forum needing someone to say, "But where's the station?" whenever Leigh are mentioned.

[Gomersall]

28 minutes ago, Eddie said:

NFL is really popular in the UK, and the three or four games here each season sell out in minutes. There are a few people there from America and Europe but having been a couple of times it’s overwhelmingly English people at the London games. I imagine the Red Zone on a Sunday evening gets great viewing figures too. 
 

Edit - just googled and between 1.0m - 1.5m people in the UK watch it at some point every week. It’s popular. 

It isn’t really popular where I live. I know one person who I watches the Red Zone. Link me your figures please. As I said earlier Eddie the NFL is a triumph of hype over substance. People watching the Red Zone probably do so because they know how boring it is to watch a single game live.

Edited October 2, 2023 by Gomersall

[Eddie]

4 minutes ago, Gomersall said:

It isn’t really popular where I live. I know one person who I watches the Red Zone. Link me your figures please. As I said earlier Eddie the NFL is a triumph of hype over substance. People watching the Red Zone probably do so because they know how boring it is to watch a single game live.

You’re obviously entitled to your opinion about the game itself, but I know loads of people who like it, it is definitely popular. Have to agree about the full games though, on tv anyway, though they’re better in the stadium as there’s other stuff going on. 
 

This is the first thing that came up when I googled, and is where I quoted my figures from https://theathletic.com/2245508/2020/12/08/the-future-of-nfl-redzone-beyond-episode-no-200-media-circus/?amp=1

[gingerjon]

2 minutes ago, Eddie said:

You’re obviously entitled to your opinion about the game itself, but I know loads of people who like it, it is definitely popular. Have to agree about the full games though, on tv anyway, though they’re better in the stadium as there’s other stuff going on. 
 

This is the first thing that came up when I googled, and is where I quoted my figures from https://theathletic.com/2245508/2020/12/08/the-future-of-nfl-redzone-beyond-episode-no-200-media-circus/?amp=1

You could very easily make the argument that on a national level (either England only, but definitely UK wide) American Football is comfortably more widely known and followed than rugby league.

Which doesn't change that the BBC - and probably others but it's only ever the BBC who get this level of scrutiny - have made an error in having nothing about the NRL Grand Final but that that probably owes more to a lack of knowledge among whoever is even still working there at website editor level rather than any real malevolence (or, indeed, criminal laziness on the part of poor Dave Woods).

[Gomersall]

5 minutes ago, Eddie said:

You’re obviously entitled to your opinion about the game itself, but I know loads of people who like it, it is definitely popular. Have to agree about the full games though, on tv anyway, though they’re better in the stadium as there’s other stuff going on. 
 

This is the first thing that came up when I googled, and is where I quoted my figures from https://theathletic.com/2245508/2020/12/08/the-future-of-nfl-redzone-beyond-episode-no-200-media-circus/?amp=1

Aren’t those figures for the US rather than the U.K.? I can’t see anything telling me they are U.K. viewing figures. “Stuff going on”. You mean distractions because the actual sporting event is so drawn out and dull? Ten second burst of sport followed by two minutes of distractions and then sold to the world is typically American. As I said, hype over substance.

Edited October 2, 2023 by Gomersall

[gingerjon]

8 minutes ago, Gomersall said:

Aren’t those figures for the US rather than the U.K.? I can’t see anything telling me they are U.K. viewing figures. “Stuff going on”. You mean distractions because the actual sporting event is so drawn out and dull? Ten second burst of sport followed by two minutes of distractions and then sold to the world is typically American. As I said, hype over substance.

https://www.broadcastnow.co.uk/broadcasting/bbc-beats-2021-peak-with-super-bowl-coverage/5167688.article

Internationals and the Challenge Cup Final normally seem to come in around 1.2m on the BBC.

So here's 1.3m watching the midnight live coverage of the Super Bowl on the BBC - presumably with another 100k or so watching Sky.

[RigbyLuger]

2 hours ago, Blind side johnny said:

They are reporting what they see as newsworthy as distinct from the sport. When WSL and wheelchair RL get "normalised" (i.e. just routine) their interest will wane. They are journalists, not fans.

I doubt them covering either takes anything away from any stories they'd write about the Championship or League One, because they weren't writing them before anyway.

[Eddie]

19 minutes ago, Gomersall said:

Aren’t those figures for the US rather than the U.K.? I can’t see anything telling me they are U.K. viewing figures. “Stuff going on”. You mean distractions because the actual sporting event is so drawn out and dull? Ten second burst of sport followed by two minutes of distractions and then sold to the world is typically American. As I said, hype over substance.

No there will be tens of millions watching in America.
 

Just because you think it’s dull doesn’t mean it’s not popular tbf. I wouldn’t watch cricket, golf, snooker or Union if I was paid but I accept that many others do like it. I do mean distractions though, it’s a totally different sporting culture, they go to the game for a day out. 

[HawkMan]

Knocking other sports success and putting it down to factors other than enjoying the game seems fairly frequent on here. People watch the NFL for other distractions apparently. Let's go all the way, people go to Union for prawn sandwiches and Champagne, to cricket to catch some sun and get a tan, and to football for the aggro or because Sky have brainwashed them. Oh hang on...that leaves RL as the sport with the most number of genuine sports fans going to see it, makes sense to me!

[Griff]

2 hours ago, Eddie said:

I assume you’re being sarcastic? 

No. Why?

[Eddie]

23 minutes ago, Griff said:

No. Why?

Because you seem to think IMG will sort stuff out. 

[Griff]

1 hour ago, Eddie said:

Because you seem to think IMG will sort stuff out. 

Media is their business. Of course they'll sort it out.

[Gomersall]

7 hours ago, Eddie said:

No there will be tens of millions watching in America.
 

Just because you think it’s dull doesn’t mean it’s not popular tbf. I wouldn’t watch cricket, golf, snooker or Union if I was paid but I accept that many others do like it. I do mean distractions though, it’s a totally different sporting culture, they go to the game for a day out. 

We were talking, or at least I was, about the popularity of American Football in the U.K. rather than in America.

[Eddie]

3 hours ago, Gomersall said:

We were talking, or at least I was, about the popularity of American Football in the U.K. rather than in America.

I know, you asked if the 1.5m viewers were in America and I confirmed not, they’re in the UK. Anyway we’ll have to agree to differ on this one

[Eddie]

8 hours ago, Griff said:

Media is their business. Of course they'll sort it out.

Do you think they’ve made any impact on media coverage so far? 

[Griff]

14 minutes ago, Eddie said:

Do you think they’ve made any impact on media coverage so far? 

Give them a chance.

Clubs voted almost unanimously for IMG. Folk on this forum called it progress. Were we all wrong?

Edited October 3, 2023 by Griff

[Eddie]

Just now, Griff said:

Give them a chance.

How long do they need? Honest question mate, they’ve been in for ages and don’t seem to have done anything to increase media coverage. 

[Griff]

3 minutes ago, Eddie said:

How long do they need? Honest question mate, they’ve been in for ages and don’t seem to have done anything to increase media coverage. 

Keighley were right to be sceptical then.

[JohnM]

Since this thread has morphed into an insightful critique of IMG, here's one view.

https://www.sportspromedia.com/insights/analysis/rugby-super-league-rfl-img-promotion-relegation-interview-rhodri-jones-dwyer/?zephr_sso_ott=IDctAy

[JohnM]

25 minutes ago, Eddie said:

How long do they need? Honest question mate, they’ve been in for ages and don’t seem to have done anything to increase media coverage. 

Indeed. What on earth are they playing at?  They've had over a year to rescue the game from itself. 

[gingerjon]

53 minutes ago, JohnM said:

Indeed. What on earth are they playing at?  They've had over a year to rescue the game from itself. 

Should we do a text search for those saying IMG have had more than enough time - despite the whole process not really kicking in until 2024 into 2025 and everything before then being foundation laying - and then overlay it with one of people saying that rugby league's problem is constantly expecting quick wins, never giving things enough time, expecting miracles, tinkering after tinkering, believing in "if you play it, people will come" etc etc

[Griff]

1 hour ago, JohnM said:

Since this thread has morphed into an insightful critique of IMG, here's one view.

https://www.sportspromedia.com/insights/analysis/rugby-super-league-rfl-img-promotion-relegation-interview-rhodri-jones-dwyer/?zephr_sso_ott=IDctAy

A thread for the close season, happen.