Quote:
Originally Posted by Revived Red
Again, I partly agree and partly disagree. Your quote of Rangers is interesting. The average attendance in the 4th tier was in fact 45,750. In the 3rd tier it was 42,938. But last season in the 2nd tier it was only 32,798. Attendances fall when there are significant off-the-field issues. The attendances dropped at Ewood Park not simply because of relegation but because of other matters.
It is partly true that we lost a generation after folding. But we failed spectacularly after winning promotion back to the Football League. Yes, there was a surge in attendances in that first season - but it should have been a greater surge. And we failed to retain and capitalise on that interest in the 2nd season.
You are also correct in the "Who are they" comment. That is the first thing that people say. The second is usually a query about the current state of finances. And how fantastic it is to give them such good news on that topic. The third topic of conversation is, sadly, gambling. It is impossible to underestimate the damage that has been done to the club's reputation by the two major scandals.
It could be argued that external reputation has little connection with domestic attendances. But I suspect there there will be those within the town and surrounding area who are not impressed by the club's reputation. Reverting to my original point, the decline in attendances at Blackburn and Glasgow Rangers would appear to be linked with disillusionment arising from off-the-field issues.
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You are correct with the off field situation especially at Ibrox however I would liken the situation more to Blackpool rather than Blackburn. The situation is not fully resolved but most of the parasites have been removed and the crowds are back over the 40000 mark in the league even against lesser opposition. Not many of the people I knew who stopped going to Ibrox went to see other Scottish Clubs and some still won't go to away games that used to go most weeks.
Up here after the "who are they" it's "are they a real team" and "are they from Liverpool". Nobody mentions finances or gambling. We seem to suffer fom lack of TV exposure. It's probably single figures for live games in the 10 years we've been back and most of them would be cup or playoff games.
You're right regarding attendances once we got back in the League but a table topping team will always attract more than a team struggling at the bottom. I don't remember attendances being that high in our first season and it didn't improve as things went on. Perhaps the chase to get in the league was more attractive than being there and struggling?