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Our New Stadium


junio_oscarSY
Eton Blue at the Chelsea Megastore

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The problem is, the club aren't trying to grow fanbase the same way the Blackhawks did. In a big sports city like Chicago, teams are trying to get people in the arena over the different sports teams. The fanbase grew because people from Chicago embraced the team due to the success.

 

What I'm saying is that the "new" fans, are most likely from overseas. Whilst I'm sure that is great for the clubs finances, it does not then translate into more people coming to the ground every week , or travelling the country. Just because someone from Malaysia has fallen madly deeply in love with Chelsea, I don't think that is the same thing as growing a strong domestic fanbase, which ultimately sustains the club through more difficult times.

 

 

The Blackhawks aren't trying to get fans into the arena over other sports teams.  They are trying to get fans into the arena in general (particularly younger fans). The Blackhawks are one of the six original hockey teams in the NHL. Their fanbase as of 7 years ago, were the diehard fans that were fans from the 1960's.  The problem is that they no longer went to games or bought merchandise.  Then when the Blackhawks started playing well and growing their fanbase, those diehard fans complained about raising ticket costs and all the "new fans who don't know anything about the game".  Does that sound familiar?

 

You say that all the fans attending the matches every week are not fans but then you say that "new" fans are not attending every week.  They may not be the same fan every week but they are paying to get in the stadium of a team they support at least financially.  Realistically, most fans can't afford to attend every game because it is price prohibitive (which supports your point). How a fan supports their team is up to them.  If I spend more to support Chelsea from Chicago than another fan that is local, who is the better supporter?  It just depends on who you ask.  I would never consider myself a bigger supporter than a local fan but if the local doesn't buy product I can assure you that the club would consider me the better supporter.

 

The questions becomes, do you want the team to be a top team every year?  If that is the case, you will have to accept that for a team to be competitive every year, the team needs to sell merchandise and pricey tickets. With that will come the many inconveniences that you are experiencing.  The other option is to go back to the way things were before Roman.  He is a billionaire, but it is better business if he can increase the revenue of the team and not have to fund player purchases by himself.

 

If the Bridge held 10,000 extra seats and sold them for the 19 home PL games at 40 per seat that is an extra 7.6 million. That is not including the shirts, food and extras that come with attending a match.  Figure another 40 per person in extra costs and you are looking at 15 million per year.  Plus all the other matches that aren't Premier League.  That's an extra player.

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I've said before that the least money makers for the club are the die hard match goers as they and very little beyond the ticket. They want the day trippers who come and buy a shirt, scarf, commemorative mug or the corporate box owners.

 

That's what I have been trying to point out.

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Arsenal as a football club had to pay for their new stadium.

 

Our new stadium would in effect be a gift from the owner.

 

Do you think Roman will just fork out £500m for a new stadium? I find that unlikely. He may contribute but I think the club (ie the fans) will be expected to foot most of the bill and that means Arsenal level ticket prices.

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If you build a new stadium, at least some prices will go up.  If you are lucky, the additional seats are the lowest price levels. It really depends on how many more seats a new stadium would produce.  Hopefully adding some kind of corporate suites would allow for the ticket prices to not raise dramatically.  

 

How much higher are Arsenal tickets compared to Chelsea?

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Interesting stuff here on the ticket pricing and fanbase.

Bogey77 is spot on about the tickets; if you want the club to compete on the highest level and to be a top European club the tickets will be expensive to a lot of people.

If you look at our club the stadium is pretty much the only thing keeping us behind clubs like Arsenal in terms of revenue and generating it.

I think 55k-60k would be the right size for stadium. How big could SB be realistically?

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Just been reading through this and felt compelled to comment.  The notion that a life time supporter like Carshalton Blue should be happy that Chelsea can now fill a stadium whilst charging top dollar as it helps the club compete financially is farcical.  He has just said that he, and many of his friends, have been priced out of attending every game (something which he has done for his whole life....his main hobby and passion)....yet he is in some way supposed to be happy about this?  "Well I can't afford to go any more......but at least there is a Japanese tourist in my seat paying 70 quid for a ticket so I guess I should be happy that the club are coining it in."

 

It is just a load of rubbish.  Have some of the people commenting here ever considered that it may actually mean a bit more than money and the on field success that may bring?  The club has been an actual part of people's lives....in their family for generations.....links with the area, local pubs and the stadium.  If money and trophies were the only important things, then people like Carshalton Blue wouldn't have followed Chelsea all over the country during the barren years of the 1980's.  Where were the tourists then? It is part and parcel of modern football but it doesn't mean you have to like it.

 

Those who pointed out that the club value day trippers who flash their flexible friend in the Megastore more than long term match day goers who just buy their ticket are of course bang on the money.  They do.  But that rankles with a lot of people and rightly so.  Those who turn up taking photos at every throw in, decked out in their full kit and sitting there in silence have every right to be there as they have paid for the match day ticket......but they wouldn't be seen for dust should Chelsea ever go down the sh!t pan and tumble down the divisions.  As others have said, their interest is more likely to be fleeting.

 

And I hate the notion that cause they've coughed up 70 quid for their ticket and spent 200 in the club shop on full kit, John Terry trophy presentation socks and shin pads, mugs, pencils, rulers and sharpeners bearing the club's crest that they're "just as much of a fan as someone who has been going for 30 years."  Of course they're not. Why say anything different? It isn't a competition or bragging rights (which no doubt some will accuse me of), just a fact. Of course everyone has to start somewhere and if they carry on supporting the club for years then fair play......but if they really are just a fleeting, day tripper then it really isn't comparable is it?

 

I find all that weird anyway.  If I was on holiday in New York, no doubt I'd want to go and see the New York Yankees play for the experience.....so I too would be one of those said 'day tripping tourists'......but then I'd respect my position as one.  I wouldn't go and buy the full kit and baseball cap (they play baseball right?) and a f***ing foam finger.  Why the hell would I do that?  I have no affinity or bond with the city or team......and know nothing of the club's history.  And I certainly wouldn't expect to be valued ahead of a long term supporter....or claim to be the same.  "I've paid for my match day ticket so should be valued by the Yankees as much as Jim over there who has seen 27 baseball seasons here!"

 

Arsenal are a prime example of this modern day thinking.  Their supporters are supposed to lap up them 'balancing the books' as if it is something for them to personally celebrate.  Go on Gooners....throw a party in the streets of Islington as people on the board are raking in money.  Oh and look.....people in Malaysia are buying a shirt so you should be happy about the money it is generating.  I think the extra game abroad is soon approaching.....and who knows where that will snowball to? The fact it is all so money orientated and the clubs are referred to as 'products' depresses a lot of people.  

Edited by George Mills
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Nobody has said that 'tourists' or any fan is not welcome at the club. I said in my original post that all CFC fans are welcomed the more the merrier. 

I have no doubt they spend more money at the club, just like corporate fans sitting in there sw**ky boxes do and long my that continue as it all helps Chelsea.

As blueboy was trying to point out though there is a fanbase out there who are getting overlooked at the minute, he's the die-hard who has probably worked out that Middlesborough away in the cup on a wednesday night even with travel is cheaper for him than Stoke at home in the prem on saturday.

All i ask is we try and incorperate everybody. I am quite lucky i have decent job and have had my season ticket since the old west stand with my dad and brother. I have seen first hand how the crowd at the bridge has changed over the last 20yrs and i know success will always do that and i aint knocking it. All fans are welcome in my eyes but its just a shame that many from back then have been priced out and wish we could find away to get as many of them back as we can........cos i guarantee its their kids that are growing up supporting us and them who will continue when football becomes a little less trendy.

We could get 40k crowds for big games 25yrs ago, with them and a whole new generation of blues plus our friends from around the world if we had a bigger stadium,terracing or something that could make sure everyone can get in at affordable prices that has to be the plan. But like most things in life once a price goes up they never come down again. Thats why i keep banging on about terracing and offering a matchday experience for people who otherwise wouldn't be able to go. 

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Those tickets that the "tourist" obtained are available to anyone and likely came from a season ticket holder that sold their ticket.  Are you saying that a season ticket holder that sells some of their games to supplement the cost of the season ticket is not a true fan because they are letting a "tourist" buy their tickets?  I am from the states and if I ever make it to a match at the Bridge, I will be a day tripper.  Does that make me less of a fan? 

 

Most athletic teams target the prime earning individual for their tickets sales.  That is the 25-50 year old fan.  Unfortunately that limits that attendance of the younger fans.  It is part of the price that is paid to have a high wage team.  As fans, you should want the games sold out at a high price per ticket to ensure that your team can continue to bring in the best players.  

 

Here in the states, I just recently gave up our season tickets that we have had for 30 years to the Chicago Bears because I got tired of paying for them.  I could afford the tickets but I just got tired of paying for them or trying to sell them.  My choice but another fan bought the rights to the tickets and they can start their season ticket experience.  I will still buy individual games as I choose but the important thing is that someone is going to the game.

 

Not everyone can afford a season ticket, but that is not the fault of the team.  The team has to make as much as they can while still filing the stadium so they can put the best team on the pitch.

 

If Chelsea could sell out a 65,000 seat stadium, then that is what all fans should hope for as it will provide for the best possible team year after year.

 

Sorry if this hurts the feelings of some fans but being a fan with low income does not mean the team should take less money for a ticket just to make you happy when there is another fan (or attendee) willing to pay more.

You've missed the point, i said fans like you who have been fans for a long period are different to tourists who while in London just want to take a game in,i've more respect for a die hard Chelsea fan from overseas who has spent a fortune on flights/hotels ect to come & see us rather than just a London/UK/ tourist, who to them its no different than going to see a London show, all they care about is the event rather than the club itself. Also their the same people that will happily pay a tout £100s of pounds for a ticket, so Chelsea FC quite often dont see their money for tickets ect

 

I'm not alone in my feelings it goes all the way across the top clubs fans in the country, ask any old skool Gooners(Arsenal fans) if their happy being at the Emirates, they all say the same, the ground is a souless bowl with x amount of tourists & not proper Arsenal fans.

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Just been reading through this and felt compelled to comment.  The notion that a life time supporter like Carshalton Blue should be happy that Chelsea can now fill a stadium whilst charging top dollar as it helps the club compete financially is farcical.  He has just said that he, and many of his friends, have been priced out of attending every game (something which he has done for his whole life....his main hobby and passion)....yet he is in some way supposed to be happy about this?  "Well I can't afford to go any more......but at least there is a Japanese tourist in my seat paying 70 quid for a ticket so I guess I should be happy that the club are coining it in."

 

It is just a load of rubbish.  Have some of the people commenting here ever considered that it may actually mean a bit more than money and the on field success that may bring?  The club has been an actual part of people's lives....in their family for generations.....links with the area, local pubs and the stadium.  If money and trophies were the only important things, then people like Carshalton Blue wouldn't have followed Chelsea all over the country during the barren years of the 1980's.  Where were the tourists then? It is part and parcel of modern football but it doesn't mean you have to like it.

 

Those who pointed out that the club value day trippers who flash their flexible friend in the Megastore more than long term match day goers who just buy their ticket are of course bang on the money.  They do.  But that rankles with a lot of people and rightly so.  Those who turn up taking photos at every throw in, decked out in their full kit and sitting there in silence have every right to be there as they have paid for the match day ticket......but they wouldn't be seen for dust should Chelsea ever go down the sh!t pan and tumble down the divisions.  As others have said, their interest is more likely to be fleeting.

 

And I hate the notion that cause they've coughed up 70 quid for their ticket and spent 200 in the club shop on full kit, John Terry trophy presentation socks and shin pads, mugs, pencils, rulers and sharpeners bearing the club's crest that they're "just as much of a fan as someone who has been going for 30 years."  Of course they're not. Why say anything different? It isn't a competition or bragging rights (which no doubt some will accuse me of), just a fact. Of course everyone has to start somewhere and if they carry on supporting the club for years then fair play......but if they really are just a fleeting, day tripper then it really isn't comparable is it?

 

I find all that weird anyway.  If I was on holiday in New York, no doubt I'd want to go and see the New York Yankees play for the experience.....so I too would be one of those said 'day tripping tourists'......but then I'd respect my position as one.  I wouldn't go and buy the full kit and baseball cap (they play baseball right?) and a f***ing foam finger.  Why the hell would I do that?  I have no affinity or bond with the city or team......and know nothing of the club's history.  And I certainly wouldn't expect to be valued ahead of a long term supporter....or claim to be the same.  "I've paid for my match day ticket so should be valued by the Yankees as much as Jim over there who has seen 27 baseball seasons here!"

 

Arsenal are a prime example of this modern day thinking.  Their supporters are supposed to lap up them 'balancing the books' as if it is something for them to personally celebrate.  Go on Gooners....throw a party in the streets of Islington as people on the board are raking in money.  Oh and look.....people in Malaysia are buying a shirt so you should be happy about the money it is generating.  I think the extra game abroad is soon approaching.....and who knows where that will snowball to? The fact it is all so money orientated and the clubs are referred to as 'products' depresses a lot of people.  

One of the best posts ever on here ::clap2::

 

You've summed up me & my mates & other old skool lads feelings perfectly ::clap2::

 

Some fans will sell their soul(look at Cardiff for example) for a bit of glory, sod that i'm Chelsea first & foremost no matter what division we play in or how long we go without a trophy, its nice to win trophys of course it is but its not the be all & end all for most of us old skool.

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Once the team was bought by a billionaire, it has been changed forever.  Unfortunately, the club will no longer provide the longtime fans with the same experiences of the past (good and bad).  I would be disheartened too if I had supported the club for all those years.

 

The trade off, whether you like it or not, is the quality of the team on the pitch.  If the club continues to use the money properly, it is unlikely that there will ever be a downturn in the performance of the club. At least to the extent where they would lose supporters.  The longer the run of success the larger the fanbase becomes and the less the worry about loss of support.  We have a great example in American football with the New England Patriots.  Billionaire owner bought an average team and has built it into a giant with one of the biggest and best stadium that sells out every week with a team that is top level every year.

 

"And I hate the notion that cause they've coughed up 70 quid for their ticket and spent 200 in the club shop on full kit, John Terry trophy presentation socks and shin pads, mugs, pencils, rulers and sharpeners bearing the club's crest that they're "just as much of a fan as someone who has been going for 30 years."  "

 

I believe I refereed to them as a "supporter" rather than a fan but maybe I am wrong.  When I call them just as much of a "supporter" of the team, I would be referring to the financial support given by the purchasing of merchandise and such.  If you have a longtime supporter who goes to every match and spends 20 on food and drinks each match and you have the seat next to them with a different person every match that pays the same for the ticket but spends 200 a match, you can see which seat produces the better return across the season.  The club would rather have the "tourist".  That unfortunately puts the longtime fan at the back of the line.  Wish there was a way around it but I have never seen it work out for the longtime fan.

 

The longtime fans definitely don't have to like it, but I have followed many different sports and the result is always the same. It is kinda of like the club has gone over to the dark side.  The is no easy way back from the dark side.

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Welcome to the modern world, Lofty! Unfortunately it's inevitable that the new stadium will have a corporate name, like Samsung Stadium.

Blame Platini and his unfair FFP agenda. Each club now needs to 'maximise revenues' to be competitive.

Edited by Huttsey
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The Samsung Arena. Well if they're going to put in a substantial amount into the project then they would have every right to expect their name in lights so to speak. People might not like the idea right now but if Arsenal fans can get used to The Emirates I'm sure we could get used to whatever ours would be called. The bottom line is it wouldn't be Stamford Bridge so it wouldn't be as if we were renaming our current home. 

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