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Looking at tonight's championship fixtures it has dawned on me the real damage the reaction to this virus has actually had on the sport I have loved.
My team are playing tonight and I had to look it up to find out who and where the game was.
There was normally a buzz around every game before, as fans discussed what was coming up next week.
The long term damage done to the game is far far greater than most realise I think.
Confused here as you seem to be referring to what the effect is in the short term. If clubs can financially survive the financial hit things will probably return to normal regarding the things you mentioned.Quote:
Originally Posted by AlwaysAway2
:tbg:
I'm not convinced the damage is short term.Quote:
Originally Posted by Taunton Blue Genie
I am or was a diehard travelling fan. I don't think there is any chance of the critically important away support returning.
I think the die hard fans at away is not the issue. I imagine attendances will be down long term, how many people just do something out of familiarity, I can see lots of people finding other things to do or realise didn't miss going to games too much.
What sort of damage do you mean?
If you refer to attendances I’m not sure it will be an issue.
On the other hand, some people (including me) will, more than ever, appreciate attending sporting and music events after perhaps taking such things for granted previously.Quote:
Originally Posted by mazadona10
Let's be honest, if you went back to March when all sport stopped and looked at threads then, people were talking about football not being played in years - there certainly weren't too many saying games would be played in June. Hardly surprisingly when we're talking about a situation none of us have experienced before, we all were pretty hopeless at predicting what would happen when the virus first hit this country and I don't doubt the same will apply about what happens to football when life returns to "normality" - all I can say is that you won't catch me going to a game until I've had a vaccine, but, once I have done, I'll be there for the next match.
After the Second World war, there was a huge increase in the numbers attending sports events compared to pre war figures. Now, I know this situation isn't the same as it was then, but I would say that what happened seventy five years ago is the closest comparison we can make to what we've been through in the past eight months - I think that if grounds are able to open to their full capacity, crowds could well soon be back to pre Covid levels and may possibly be higher.
Agree with Bob, as with the economy I think football with spring back with great speed.
Things taken for granted have been taken away and when returned people will over indulge.
I'm personally really missing going to matches now, watching on the tele doesn't interest me as much but as soon as I can I'll be back there.
Of course I'm thinking of a world where the vaccine has all but eradicated the virus. I'll always be cleaning my hands more often though, that's a habit I'm keen to stick to.
It’s not us oldies that I worry about returning, it’s the youngsters (15/18), who I worry about.
It wasn’t imbedded in them, as much as the oldies and some of them might have discovered women :hehe: (or men) .
It’s going to be a rough ride.
As for travelling away, apart from individuals in cars or on trains, I can’t see coaches going for a while half full, unless fans wanna pay double
Why? There's tons of people who absolutely cannot wait to get back to the football, once that's allowed they'll be there in numbersQuote:
Originally Posted by AlwaysAway2
It’s more than just itching to get back into the grounds, it’s the whole day and night surrounding the match, a few pints with the boys, bit of a pub crawl, fall into bed, find the result out in the morning etc:hehe:
Me and a lad I work with both for some reason just assumed we were home tonight.
I'm looking forward to when things get back to normal, but I know already that I wont be as committed as I previously was. A midweek game getting home late with work in the morning was never a concern. Now I'd be tempted to give it a miss, and just go to the weekend games.
It could end up with higher attendances if enough have missed it. Alternatively, if there are matches on sky I can see some deciding it’s not worth the mid week trip to the ground in rush hour traffic.