By Rich_daddy -
September 24th 2008 @ 10:56am
Loading ...Related coverage
No room for the common supporter
Out of curiosity, I jumped on the AFL site this week to see just how hard it is to obtain a grand final ticket. To my amazement I realised that if you aren’t connected with the AFL, then you have Buckley’s chance of getting a GF ticket.
Of course, GF tickets are always going to be high demand, but I think it stinks that the average Joe Blow doesn’t even have the opportunity to line up and buy tickets.
According to the AFL site, you have to be a member of an AFL club, an MCC member or connected to the AFL in some way. Even being a member of one of the competing clubs doesn’t always get you a seat.
From personal experience, as a country member of the Swans I had no chance of getting tickets during their GF years. Only premium members who payed $800 a year were granted access to GF tickets. I presume it would be the same for other clubs.
So there are only two legitimate ways (not counting scalpers or ebay) for the common supporter to get tickets.
One is to get lucky in winning a competition or the other is buying a hospitality package, and who can afford that at $2,000 a pop?
So it seems that money can buy everything. I just think it is dangerous for the AFL to shun the common supporter from the GF. They rely on these people to go to games during the home and away season, and if they don’t grant more GF tickets to this group then it could have an effect on crowd numbers in normal games.
Yes, I’m having a whinge because I am neither lucky nor rich. Looks like I will just have to make do with watching it on TV.
Get Australia's best AFL opinion emailed daily.
Like this content? Buzz it up!
Free Email updates:
Our daily emails are only sent if there is content for the sport or that author. You can subscribe to multiple daily emails; or get the daily Roar email with all our content in it. We value privacy. More...
(17)
Pickles said | September 24th 2008 @ 11:37am | Report comment
Agree completely.
The Centre Square package they have been advertising is just a legalised way to scalp tickets.
I am a Carlton supporter and i am hopeful my team will make the finals next season, its highly unlikely we will make the grand final but i’m going to have to buy a $600 membership just so i am guaranteed a seat if we do make it. I might be buying the same membership for the next 10 years just so i can get a grand final if my team makes it in at least one of those years.
Michael C said | September 24th 2008 @ 12:41pm | Report comment
Rich_daddy -
I think it’s quite fair that club members get dibs ahead of Joe Blow on the street. However, it’s the allocations that is the main issue.
Firstly, all 16 clubs get allocations, the participating clubs share a pool of I think less than 20,000 tickets – - and these days they often bring a combined 70,000+ members to the table. The other clubs especially will use tickets as fund raising tools, often associated with their GF breakfasts/luncheons etc – - and that’s probably fair enough – because, like it or not, there really needs to be a means by which people can pay nearer to ‘real value’ and ensure that money stays as much as possible in the system (i.e. contributing directly to clubs).
Even in 1999, for a poorly supported club like NorthMelb, I was very, very glad I’d paid extra for a higher level membership that included ‘guarranteed ACCESS to a GF ticket’ should North make it. To exercise that ‘guarrantee’, I lined up in Yarra Park outside the MCG for about 8 hours on thankfully a nice Sunday afternoon and got my ticket(s). With just a normal membership, it would have been pot luck on any left overs from the club allocation.
Are the premium memberships getting too expensive, is that effectively becoming a form of phantom scalping – in that the package value mark up is based largely around a ticket that is only there on a 1/8 chance that your team makes the GF and even then, you still have to pay for the ticket.
Is it fair that corporates get as many tickets as they do such that quite often you hear of someone who effectively got given a spare ticket that was effectively just lying around (those anecdotes in the main will be the quite rare, I suspect).
The greatest annoyance though is that even as a sell out, that often the AFL members reserve is not fully attended and that perhaps people should have to nominate their intent to attend by 5pm of the Thursday before and any left over capacity can be sold…….but, again, first dibs to the competing club’s members.
That’s why prelim final weekend is so regarded as the peoples weekend, the last chance for the majority of the fan base to see their team live. My main gripe for us Joe Blow family folk who can no longer afford premium memberships is that we should at least get a $10 discount on any finals tickets we buy……….give something back to us, and then maybe more of us will turn up to elimination finals even if we reckon our side is not a hope in hell to progress further.
Unfortunately, when there are 18 teams, it’ll just be even harder to fit 18 teams allocations into it all.
Justin said | September 24th 2008 @ 1:04pm | Report comment
I am sure it wouldnt fix all the problems of getting GF tickets but I think there should be a reward for members of the AFL or clubs who attend matches throughout the year. There are many people who jump on the bandwagon when their team gets into the GF.
The VRC have a mechanism where your membership is scanned each time you go to the races. Now considering in Melbourne we really only have 2 grounds it shouldnt be that hard to have a similar system and therefore it would reward those that are real members who put in not only the cash but the time to support their club.
Is there any sort of ballot system in place for GF tickets?
I must say I dont have a lot of sympathy for supporters who are not members who complain about how hard it is to get tickets. There are thousands of members who pay up and attend matches week in week out and they deserve first crack. And no I am not a member of any club or the AFL.
Pippinu said | September 24th 2008 @ 1:19pm | Report comment
No doubt that the greatest priority should be members of the two competing clubs – but the mathematics tell you that many must miss out. If you have two clubs competing with total memberships of 80,000, then only one member in four will be able to attend. You might be able to increase that percentage marginally, but not by a lot.
I agree with MC that it is fair enough that clubs have an “enhanced” form of membership that gaurantees a grand final ticket. If a club is lucky enought to have 10,000 members willing to pay such a premium, all strength to them. Most clubs are looking for ways to raise revenue, and that is one obvious and legitimate way.
Michael C said | September 24th 2008 @ 1:32pm | Report comment
Justin -
certainly with existing and new technologies, it shouldn’t be too big a stretch – - –
but, it would work against elderly and younger fans who can’t attend each match due to timings – - so, perhpas just try to qualify if by minimum 5 games
or,
the earlier you renew your membership, the further up the queue you’ll be – - i.e. first in, first served based on membership renewal – - surely clubs’d love that, as a real motivation for members to renew before Christmas.
But – again, you don’t want to over compensate for fairness ahead of necessary revenue raising for the clubs – - so, a balance needs to exist.
What we really need is another 50,000 capacity at the MCG………….or…………rebuild Waverley to original specs.
JohnB said | September 24th 2008 @ 1:49pm | Report comment
Sounds like the economically rational thing to do is to buy the apparently expensive hospitality package in the years your team does get in, and not pay for a higher grade membership year in year out. Maybe there’re other benefits to the “enhanced” memberships that make them more competitive, but if access to a GF ticket is it, do the numbers add up?
Michael C said | September 24th 2008 @ 2:11pm | Report comment
JohnB -
certainly on the basis of attendance at GF above all else- you’re pretty spot on, save you $2000 grand until you get perhaps one of the most memorably ‘packaged’ days of your life.
the main thing about the premium memberships is that it normally involved specified seating sections at home matches all season also in the more ‘premium’ seating sections at either Telstra Dome or the MCG (these 2 venues in my case for the Roos).
Redb said | September 24th 2008 @ 4:20pm | Report comment
The Grand Final could accomodate more supporters in the 1970s when 120,000 coudl fit in and corporate membership like AFL and MCC was not available. I agree that MCC and AFL members must use it or lose it.
I missed out on ANZAC day tickets this year, despite trying to buy tickets 3 weeks before the game, yet due to MCC or AFL members not turning up the crowd came in just under 90,000, 10,000 short of capacity.
The problem of access to the Grand Final has been a problem for 30 years, its one of the reasons the AFL considered increasing Waverley Park’s capacity to 180,000 such is the demand. Of course it would fill up only once a year and could not be justified.
It’s shame but not unusual in world sport as the average American will tell you if you want tickets to an normal NFL game net alone the Superbowl.
Supply and demand you cant get around it, buy a premium membership.
Redb
The Substitute said | September 24th 2008 @ 6:55pm | Report comment
Redb,
True, but even that beacon of sports commercialization the Superbowl manages 17.5% of tickets to each of the competing clubs. Not bad when you consider the typical Superbowl venue is 70k (and no NFL venue has 100k like the MCG).
http://www.nfl.com/superbowl/faninformation
The AFL’s distribution? 11.5%
Oh, and the FA Cup Final… 90k capacity — 25,000 to each competing club
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/fa_cup/6571255.stm
Even by world standards, the AFL’s distribution is a joke.
And for the record, I am a Cats member who has yet again missed out in the ballot.
Rich_daddy said | September 24th 2008 @ 9:27pm | Report comment
Another thing I forgot to mention in my post is the fact that the AFL has allocated up to 15.000 seats to sponsors. Even if there were 150 sponsors, that still works out at 100 people per sponsor. Enough to get quite a few employees of the companies and their familes seats to the game, simply because of who they know.
Adrian Musolino said | September 24th 2008 @ 10:11pm | Report comment
I agree completely.
Last year my friend and I went through hell trying to find GF tickets.
We eventually got them and had a great time but seeing empty seats in the upper stands at the G was heartbreaking when you consider how many fans missed out.
There is also another issue – the lack of atmosphere. Granted it was a one sided game but there was little atmosphere and noise coming from the corporates, suits as we called them, in the members area.
Antony said | September 26th 2008 @ 11:36am | Report comment
Wow, well I think it’s fair that participating clubs get allocated tickets..
And it doesn’t cost an arm and a leg.. I’m a student with a hawthorn membership which cost me $200, I entered the ballot for a ticket and was lucky enough to receive one.. Guranteed Hawks membership for a GF ticket costs $300 a year.. A small concession to pay if you are confident in your club and wish to see a GF..
Rich_daddy said | September 26th 2008 @ 2:12pm | Report comment
Antony,
I’m very happy for you that you got a ticket to the gf. But as you said in your post you got lucky. Also I think Hawthorn may be a bit more generous than other clubs. As a Sydney member, I know only premium members have access to grand final tickets.
Redb said | September 26th 2008 @ 2:46pm | Report comment
The AFL needs to negotiate with the MCC and ensure that MCC members must claim a ticket or lose their right to attend the GF by a certain date, so that they can be offered to the competing club members you have missed out to date.
Redb
Pat said | September 29th 2008 @ 3:22pm | Report comment
I suppose its a bit of a sticky situation. MCC members have to wait around 10 years to be accepted so I guess they see it as their right to have that seat whether they use it or not. There is also the issue of the facilities within the MCC area that you will effectively be giving the Joe Blow’s access to.
At the end of the day, the AFL, whilst it pays lip service to the every day supporter, they are really don’t care about them as the revenue raised by gate receipts is fairly insignificant when stacked up against TV rights and advertising. The higher the profile on TV the larger the investment by advertisers who want their name out there during a big game. I suppose, the fewer people that can fit in the ground, the higher the numbers of those watching on TV. Advertisers love this as their target audience is, therefore, so much larger. Advertisers are happy to may more for a slot and TV stations, as a result will pay more for TV rights as they know they can on sell advertising for so much more money.
Its a viscious circle that, unfortunately, the everyday supporter has to pay for by their inability to be involved. The AFL wants the everyday supporter to watch on television to increase advertisers taget audience while they fill the ground with corporates and sponsors that are, effectively, paying millions for the privelage.
Rich_daddy said | October 1st 2008 @ 1:04pm | Report comment
Pat,
A 10 year wait would get you restricted membership if you were lucky. According to the MCC site, people who applied for membership in 1988 are now full members, so that’s 20 years! A full membership costs about 500 bucks a year. Then if you aren’t from Melbourne there is flights and accomadation of top of that, each trip. Hardly worth the money if you just want to get to the Grand Final.
Redb said | October 1st 2008 @ 1:18pm | Report comment
Most clubs have premium memberships that offer a chance at tickets to the GF, if a member of a non Vic club it is actually pretty easy to get tickets as not all members have the ability attend. If its a big melb club = forget it.
Redb