Relegation Battle ?

Nah mate. Don't be unaustralian.

wow
W-League rates better.

It was near the end of the season.  Their first meeting rated 53k.

But 55,000 for the first fixture (at Bruce Stadium)

Who rather watch a game with less consequences 

@MediaweekAUS 10m10 minutes agoMoreFri STV #ALeague #FoxSports #BRIvMCY  65k

Jesus. 

Sat STV #ALeague #FoxSports #SYDvNEW 59k


W
 
Sat TV #ALeague #FOXonONE #SYDvNEW 61k (Syd 34k Mel 17k Bri 4k Ade 4k Per 2k)

What are we blaming this one on guys?

Gaelic football?

Actually, I was only joking above, but just noticed this:

Sat TV *updated* International Rules #VirginIRS Seven/7mate #AUSvIRE 606k: Metro 447k (Syd 45k Mel 212k Bri 42k Ade 76k Per 72k) Regional 159k

Last season 72k, 48k, 37k so Newcastle-Sydney games are never high raters because Newcastle is only above Wellington in average ratings.  59k for STV is a bit low but then the previous season where we had the barney between the PFA and the FFA about the CBA and the Matildas started off with a 51k rating.

Why blame .... why not analyse why its so low ...

I think the figure is around 30% of the population care about sport to watch it to varying degrees ... the other 70% mostly don't care ... or watch things like Socceroo matches ... the figure is similar world over ... more people go to museums in Australia than attend sporting codes matches.

So why do or does our playing base watch other codes .... why has the professional game in Australia over the past 80 years not been able to connect ...

The rating for the RLWC have been mega as has the International Rules and we can add Womens ashes match etc...

We are all  chasing the same people i.e. the 30% or whatever the figure is... its mythical to think there is some hidden Football market out there that does not watch anything... when in fact research shows many people are not code warriors and watch a number of sports.

I am all for putting the boot into FFA especially the last few years ... but IMO its a shared responsibility and our professional clubs IMO should equally share the blame  ... if blame is the right word ... 

Clean air, people don't know it's on, Gaelic football, effniks etc

We all know its the boredom factor of a ten team competition with no big names,no hype and no marketing.
The surprise would be if we maintained ratings .
You can't serve up the public the same old same old and expect good ratings or crowds.The public are bored and they will get more bored as the season progresses.
When something interesting happens ,the fans come out to see.Like a Sudden death World Cup Playoff.

All this is on FFA.It's their business.They are the franchisor.Sales are dropping .

If FFA are happy with a ten team sustainability competiton then things will just slide down hill.You don't need expensive consultants to work that out.What the football community needs to decide is whether the stakeholders who control FFA are doing a good job or whether they should be removed.Apparently someone elects these boffins in each state and territory.

People have to realise there is no magical reason ratings will improve,by doing nothing.It's the same old HAL.Nothing has changed.FFA have not done anything to produce a change to entice people to watch games.Like the same old box of Cornflakes on the supermarket shelf,the packaging is the same as it has been for years.People know cornflakes,but now there is muesli clusters or some other flakes all in fancy packaging.Will I stick to what plain old cornflakes or try those new ones with fruit?

So Syd FC premiers/champions got 34k Sydney viewers for their home Sat night game.

And Frankenstein AFL Mickey Mouse fumbleball (played in Perth) got 45k viewers in sydney.

Far King Elle

it's pretty hard to believe

@ crimsoncrusoe

Part of what you’re talking about (cornflakes vs. muesli) is appealing to “sports fans” rather than pure football fans. I have no problem with that but I think the issue is far more fundamental than that - football fans are pissed off with the way the game is run and they’re disengaging.

Worse still, the ffa has no connection or empathy with football fans and thus is clueless what to do. “You’ve gotta have a team” posters on bus stops is shite marketing, it just is, but that’s all they’ve got. The ffa suits are now the problem.

The refresh that is needed is simple - the HAL needs to become independent of the FFA, run under a charter that commits them to doing certain things (youth, women, 3+1 and eventually p/r) but keep it limited and let the clubs figure it out.

If we continue with this ffa power play of my way or no way they will kill the professional game, and there won’t be a third league to replace NSL then HAL - the code will remain amateur for good.

Waz

There is no doubt a massive effect with FFA in its current state....

But the core issues have deep seated roots and solving them to date has alluded every management team of the past 80 or so years ...

There is an answer but it needs a new throught process... 

 2 hours agoMoreSun STV #ALeague #FoxSports #PERvMVC 79k

The Perth rating was good for a change ,considering its sun evening.
@Waz,I agree 100% with you about FFA.But someone needs to explain how Frank Lowy,who I am sure is pulling the strings doesn't understand what is wrong and what needs to be done?The supposed saviour with a history of loving football and we are stuck in quicksand.Does blind arrogance cloud vision?
Anyone with half a football brain can see whats wrong and what needs to be done.A sustainability holding pattern is like waiting for the fuel to run out before deciding where to land a plane.
Football fans are wanting expansion,second division,p/r etc,but there is no plan from FFA.Until that happens,from a fans point of view it's ...'Nothing happening here ,call me when something happens.There's plenty to do over summer.
At the moment it's SFC at the top and WP and CCM down the bottom.Nothing new.It's a case of...I will check the scores on the news with the sheffield shield results.

Not bad. No one has anything on a Sunday Arvo so it's good. 

Actually that sun figure is better than sat.I am sure Foxsports would be quite happy if they got around 80k viewers on a sun night.It's a shame Perth have been playing so bad,with all their injuries.

Sunday evening is the best ratings timeslot, everyone is at home unwinding before the working week.

Fox ratings for last night:  97k

Rank	Description	Channel\Market	(r) National STV
1	LIVE: FOOTBALL: FFA CUP POST GAME	FOX SPORTS 501	108,000
2	LIVE: FOOTBALL: FFA CUP	FOX SPORTS 501	97,000

Pretty good on the Cup overall this season then. Definite lift in viewing even if attendance has fallen slightly.

108 k post game?Not bad for a tue night.
Having a second division with more professional clubs might give Foxsports food for thought.

The FFA have once again hijacked another season with their off field issues, this time around it’s the Congress. And by only thinking about themselves and their pockets, they’ve once again forgottten or simply not cared about their bread and butter, the A-league.

Not saying this is the only reason why ratings are down, but it is (once again) a massive factor, and a by-product of the FFA once again taking their eyes off the ball. Not only have they not spent any money on promoting or advertising the competition, but they’ve denigrated it by having all these off field issues, which have made headlines country wide all season long, even going back to preseason and the season before.

It’s a double whammy and a lose/lose for the game. I’m sick and tired of having this administration hijack the game’s best interests for their own personal gain. An independent A-league is a must, wether FIFA comes in or not, that must happen ASAP.
The league needs to be advertised, promoted, given clean air to breathe but it’s own administration, instead of being dragged through the mud pretty much every season with huge off field issues in infighting at board level. Our game has never got that part right in 40 years.

The football on show is better than it’s ever been, the Fox production is the best it’s ever been, the imports coming to Australia are the best they’ve ever been, and the total product is the best ever, yet ratings are down. To me, that’s not a quality issue, it’s all these other factors put together.

The ratings are what they are, the numbers are there for all to see. At the end of the day, we’ve got a 6 year TV deal with a guaranteed sum of money coming in every year, but things need to improve, and quickly.

I can’t help but think that the A-league clubs on their own, with successful owners and some great CEO’s and people who work behind the scenes, can’t manage this league better, to enhance everything about it, including the overall interest in the competition.