TOPIC:

FMD...I just heard on the radio that 25,000 tickets have been sold so far for this weekend's AFLW game between WCE and Freo at Optus. People must be really hanging out for the footy season is all I can say.

Only $3 to get in and it's a fundraiser for the ES fires, so a worthwhile event, if the weathers good it will likely draw high 30k's. I cant make it but Outer's taking his daughter and 2 of her friends, all who love the footy, the grand daughters also go to most of the mighty Lions games.

Only $3 entry....surely the AFLW could easily secure a similar attendance with a $20 entry fee?...going to a worthy cause...seems like an opportunity missed here...500K would do a lot more than 75K for the Bush fire fund ....surely?

So it costs $100k to rent the stadium and they are happy to at this stage get back $75k on a game that I wouldn't bother watching if it was on the oval next door to me.
The WAFC always throws up cost of venue when they dither about where to hold WAFL Grand finals.
If the real football followers in WA were ever in doubt as to where they stand in the pecking order of AFL /WAFC priorities the $$ loss on a minnie mouse competition bares the answer.

Tiger Tales wrote:

Tiger of old wrote: Incorrect, home members do not automatically get ground entry, only if they’ve chosen that membership category, and I reckon the majority of members would not choose the entry to every home game category nowadays, I don’t. I would be surprised if not at least 70% of people are still paying ground entry.

Correct but all Claremont memberships do include some level of included ground entry
Gold $180 - All Home games
Silver $90 - 2 Home games
Bronze $50 - First Home game
Country $60 - 2 Home games

No chance 70% of people are paying ground entry each week. There’d be 300+ free tickets given to players, coaches, other team officials, umpires and club staff each game day. That means only 200 members, sponsors and invited guests with included entry turn up at each home game.

Think it would be closer to 40% mainly opposition supporters and tight arses who don’t by a gold membership and go to more than 2 home games each year

Ok so maybe I was wrong on my gate receipts opinion but free entry would still result in big drops of crucial revenue for most WAFL clubs. You think Claremont would still get takers for 180 bucks for gold membership if entry was free? No they would have to drop the price of that category by a heap and the other categories also.

Didn’t someone say the WAFL GF may need to played elsewhere in future because even at WAFL GF prices (which I assume start at around $25 general admission), would need a crowd of around 26,000 at Optus just to break even?

I’m no maths genius but even a full stadium at $3 a head would run at a loss.

Anyone recall that? Might have been written by JT or Mark Duffield. So who is stumping up the cash to make up the shortfall? Who makes or loses money at Optus? Is it the state government or the company with the contract to manage it? Don’t think it’s Stadiums West.

Tiger of old wrote:
Ok so maybe I was wrong on my gate receipts opinion but free entry would still result in big drops of crucial revenue for most WAFL clubs. You think Claremont would still get takers for 180 bucks for gold membership if entry was free? No they would have to drop the price of that category by a heap and the other categories also.

If the Gold membership included a Reserved seat in the members area I'd continue to pay $180 for that privilege versus the cheaper memberships that wouldn't entitle you to a reserved seat in the members or free general entry for non-members only giving admission to the outer.

Getting more people to games is a must for the competition to survive - free entry has worked for the AFLW - why cant it work for the WAFL? More people at games creates a better atmosphere which means they are more likely to come back. More people means more money gets spent on food and beverages and merchandise - TOO you might have a couple of extra beers or buy a new club polo if you don't have to pay to get in!

Or we can just keep doing what we have been doing for years - thats been working so well

SANFL still charge similar entry to WAFL but I think u/18 is free, they get results mainly due to far better marketing ...... and a reasonably even comp helps.