Why is there a decline in NRL TV ratings?

There is Australia's National Premier Football League and then there is a local regional sport

Sensational and humorous commentary here cos789... Seconded!

Sensational and humorous commentary here cos789. Do you work for the NRL? Because I think that you should, then you can help them with their problems. Have you thought of publishing this very entertaining article in a newspaper somewhere? Surely the SMH of Telegraph? Or perhaps they would be too afraid to publish. Keep up the good work, the NRL needs you

Nrl might have got their money but no promotion of the game! No storm matches live into Melb, Promoting AFL on their Tv shows eg Big Brother! Ch7 never talks about rugby league or even promote it through their Tv shows as u would expect! but Ch9 must be run by Victorians!even in Sydney

Fans suggested list of excuses for low RL crowds 01 .SL stuffed us up completely and we haven't recovered . . The mergers put people off , merged teams don't represent their region , merged teams are too powerful . . Dropping South Sydney put people off and put more off by coming back and will lose the rest by relocating or dying. . Dropping the expansion teams kill any chance of becoming national . . Dropping the other teams didn't matter because they weren't that popular anyway . 02 .We play to our "heartlands" .............. our heartlands are in the bush, . These people don't get the chance to go to many games as Ch9 chop and change times and generally play god. . Ch 9 and Foxtel shedule NRL games on short notice unlike the AFL that lock their shedule of games in October. . Our heartlands seem to be getting smaller all the time . . We're stuck in suburban times . 03 . It's a television game - . And the game was on Fox or FTA so the fans were at home . . Ratings are much more important than viewers . . You have to count the regional and city figures even though they overlap . . You have to count New Zealand figures even though it's not officially a state of Australia yet . . The ratings were down so I guess a lot of people went out to clubs and pubs to watch it . . There was a lot of sport on TV. ........golf , tennis , lawn bowls , motorsports , bowling , darts , WWWWE . There were good shows on TV ... Bloke's World, Iron Chef, Bert's big brother idol lost on celebrity dancing MKR survivor. . Couch potatoes count as real interested viewers . . The report is not valid because it only shows interest not real support like ratings where the person gets off his butt and . ............ sorry where the person changes the channel on the remote . 04.The game is popular but the team isn't . Either that popular crowd drawing team is down OR that unpopular drawing team is dominating . . It was an away game for that popular crowd drawing team so they couldn't use their memberships . 05 .It's the Sydney transport system . Public transport is unpopular or it's too crowded because it's popular . . I had to change trains twice to get to the ground. . You cannot expect people to go to the SFS just because people go to see the Swans at the SCG nextdoor. . You cannot expect people to drive to suburban grounds because of the roads, the traffic, the lack of parking and expensive parking. . 06. It's the weather . Too hot, too cold, too wet, too windy or perfect for doing something else . . You cannot expect people to go in weather like that even though there's room in the stadia because nobody goes . 07 It's the Timing . . It was unsuitable to have a game on the afternoon, at midday, at twilight, at night time or anytime really . . It was unsuitable to have a game on Monday ,Friday , Saturday, Sunday or mid week . 08. It's the media . Too little media, the unfair media, the negative RL media, too much AFL media . Our supporters can't read the media (nice pictures though) . according to the Telegraph, It's war. an invasion of Sydney, even though football was here before RL . . according to the SMH, AFL is taking over RL icon Birchdale Oval, even though football was there before RL. 09. It''s the economics. . Sydney people are doing it tough and just can't afford to go - it's the G.F.C, recession and depression. . Higher mortage prices , fuel prices , public transport prices , battery prices for their remote control . . $30 general entry, I was drinking UDL's at $9 per can 10. It's the people. . We don't feel validated by going to the football. .. .The SFS is a 20 minute walk from central and not really verty central at all. . The supporters have left Bondi for the CC. . Manly supporters wont travel across the bridge. . The supporters wont travel more than two suburbs. 11. It's the players . NRL players wanting to play AFL. . NRL players acting badly. . , More people wanting to play AFL in NSW than RL in the last 5 years . 12. It's the clubs . Financially stricken rl clubs (all bar one) are awaiting handouts. . Financially stricken rl clubs are unable to pay their CEO. . Financially stricken rl clubs are unable to attract sponsors . . Financially stricken rl clubs are losing sponsors due to misbehaviour. . Financially stricken leagues clubs are unable to support financially stricken NRL clubs , . And a new pokie tax is gonna kill off the financially stricken leagues clubs . 12. It's the lack of development by the NRL ,ARL , NSWRL and BRL.... and . We're facing development from AFL , FFA and Netball . . NZRL is sponging off Australia and Australia is raping the NZRL . S14 RU is stealing all our players . AFL is stealing our players . FFA will be stealing our players as soon as they expand . 13. It's the lack of blockbusters . . Sheduled against us was an another big game of .....RU , AFL, AL , NBL , ANL , WNBL....... . We sheduled a game against another big game of .....RU , AFL, AL , NBL , ANL , WNBL...... 14. It's the competition from world sporting events. . The upcoming Olympics (summer or winter) is grabbing everybody's attention . .......... and we had to go to bed early not to miss the openning ceremony. . The recent WC (FIFA, RU, Hockey, Basketball, Baseball, Cricket, Gridiron) is grabbing everybody's attention . The recent RL WC is not grabbing everybody's attention - blame the AFL for one Australia Vs Ireland IR test . Even the AFL International Cup is grabbing attention. 15. It's the government . They won't finance new stadiums , but when they do the crowds will be enormous. . As long as all people are able sit close to the sidelines . As long as the ends aren't too far from the action . What we need is the perfect venue with a roof. 16 It's our stadia. . They are too suburban. . When they gonna build new stadiums the fans will flock back.. . The new stadiums are too big and empty deterring people from coming. . Docklands - state of the art boutique stadium not used as too costly (low crowds) . Melbourne Rectangular Stadium - Now RL crowds are behind RU as well as AL and AFL. . Gosford - new stadium , new savior for Sydney clubs except Manly who made a premiership year loss. . Perth, Canberra , Lang park, Cronulla, Brookvale, Kogarah, Paramatta, Campbelltown, Penrith, Wollongong upgrades for no effect. . Newcastle upgrade on the way when the club is looking at downsizing . . Olympic Stadium wasn't built for our game. . Homebush & SFS - small crowds are a visual embarrassment Unfortunately most RL crowds are a visual embarrassment 17. When they gonna have double headers , triple headers ...we can then claim the one crowd for each game ! 18 . We don't have - . A centrally located "home of football" like the AFL because we wasted money at the SFS next to the Swans.. . A centre of sporting excellence like the GWS willl have at Blacktown. . The AFL's draft , management , development , clout , and aggressive approach to expansion .. . The AFL's $1.2 billion in TV rights. . A decent game , (but that's the least of our worries) 19. We do have .. An Olympic Stadium built in the middle of nowhere. . A geographically centred stadium at Homebush suited to AFL blockbusters and the GWS . . A new stadium built at Blacktown for AFL , because the NRL wasn't interested . . A new stadium built at Homebush for AFL , because the NRL wasn't interested . . Too many Sydney clubs. 20. When looking at NRL crowd averages . You cannot look at Sydney in isolation - because they are pathetically low . . You cannot look at Melbourne because they have no history there and because they are pathetically low . . You cannot look at this point in time because historically crowds dip this time of year . . You cannot look at crowds at the ground because the crowd looked and felt a lot bigger than the official low figure . . You cannot look at the crowd on TV because the crowd looked and felt a lot smaller than the official low figure . . You can look at past pathetically low crowd figures because that shows the present in a good light . . You overlook that 25% of all rounds affected by SOO with the best 34 players either unavailable or backing up after SOO. . You cannot look at NRL crowds because the focus is on SOO . . You cannot look at NRL crowds because they are inflated because "they all do it" (just ask the Storm) . You cannot look at NRL crowds because clubs are paid $100k to play to empty stadiums . . You cannot look at NRL crowds because they contain freebies from passport holding Pacific Islanders. . You cannot look at NRL crowds because they contain freebies from Moms , nans , nurses and carers . . You cannot look at NRL crowds because they contain freebies for Warriors gear, doing a haka or singing an anthem. . You cannot look at NRL crowds because they include players, officials, coaching, medical, fitness, trainers, boot studders, waterboys, catering, security, sales staff, turnstile staff, magazine sellers, cheergirls and people wandering into the ground lost .(you know most of the crowd ).. . You cannot look at NRL crowds because more people turned up to see Russel Crowe than South Sydney . 21. You cannot look at SOO crowds . Because they contain a lot of freebies . . Tickets still are expensive...spending $100 in Sydney to watch footie is way too much . Spending $50 for the nose bleed section is way too much . It is a big week in sport for Sydney so going to the game isn't part of it. . The game is just too good to watch on TV , Because the same same two teams play each other, then each other, then each other, every year after year after year. 22 . You cannot look at specific crowd attendances because "8588 is a really inmpressive figure". 23. You cannot look at Canberra crowds because Canberra is under performing . Because now it supports two clubs . . Because both those clubs cannot find a sponsor. . Because the sponsors have all gone to the new AFL club GWS. . Because nearby Wagga Council s doing stuff for AFL and not RL (because we didn't ask) . It's all a bluff because Canberra are renegotiating their stadium deal. 24 . It's a bluff because "the AFL want some publicity". . (Yes, Canberra, GWS and GC have been just been been one big bluff) . (Yes, the WAR, the invasion, the code hoppers, Wagga Council, Birchdale Oval and more have all been good publicity)

Rugby League's inability to increase their ratings and grow their base is not new. What is new however is the global paradigm within which it seeks to exist. The viewer, (the consumer) now has a diverse range of options for entertainment that didn't exist 20 years ago. 20 Years ago Pay TV was in it's infancy. No Internet options existed connecting the domestic consumer with the Global sporting landscape. Rugby was an amateur sport and not as yet re-united with the Olympic movement. Rugby now has 5.5 million registered players world wide and is looking to increase this number by over 1million within the next two years. If you think this doesn't matter to Rugby League then ask Israel Folau, Andy Farrell, SBW or Wendell Sailor.....etc, etc Pay T.V's coverage of the English Premier League and the success of the national soccer team has grown interest in the game from pre SBS levels and frankly why wouldn't a parent encourage their child to play Soccer as opposed to Rugby League when people like Paul Gallen are "playing" the game. Frankly the white anting of Rugby League is reflective of a broader and by no means isolated malady,affecting all sport. Commercialisation and politically correctness. Listen to the ABC's offsider's on Sunday and you will hear a lot about the politics of sport and not much about sport itself. Teams are given childish names that have little or no connection with their community. How many "Storm" players derive from Victoria ? Frankly it looks more like a B Grade Hollywood flick each week with a cast that for commercial growth must be seen to be diverse even at the risk of the games integrity. The ACB has fallen over itself to put the refugee Fawad into the Ashe's test series, despite the fact that he was not even the best performing spinner in Victoria last season, despite the fact that he is not yet an Australian Citizen, despite the fact that the Australian Government, after lobbying from the ACB had to sit till midnight to quietly approve legislation to allow eligibility, despite the fact that Fawad is in his mid 30's and hardly promises to be the future of Australia's bowling talent, and why ? Because diversity, provides government funding, deflects talk of racial discrimination and appeals to the commercial interests, both domestic and of the BCCI. No wonder people are turning off Professional Sport when it is run by such greedy Machiavellian's. Go out and play sport but if you want pure entertainment, Get a book. The days of the average Jo relating to these prancing, obsessively focused and childish millionaire's are over for me.

I rarely watch now as the game is far too soft. No shoulder charges, other good tackles penalised. Game is far too fast, which leads to nothing but dummy half runs. It's basically a slightly tougher version of touch football. A sport, no one goes to watch. Let the defenders strike at the play the ball again, allow tacklers to actually tackle, and shoulder charge, and you'll watch the ratings go up.

The future is a reality for overseas; The new start-up is likely to charge a subscription in the vicinity of $180-200 per annum but the main selling point is that punters can watch any game they choose rather than be dictated to by television schedules. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=10891391 Unfortunately, Senator Conroy has reigned in such digital rights deals being available in Australia and continues to provide the FTA networks with protection from "what the punters want" ensuring that our access to sport is still third world.

Another example of how evil Channel Nine and just how obscene the anti siphoning laws are; http://www.theage.com.au/sport/cricket/nine-wants-say-in-selection-20130619-2ojdn.html

DOW It is shown on GEM, but in Standard definition - go figure. The only games shown in HD on FTA is the delayed Sunday afternoon one. Strangely the Friday night games are in SD and the State of Origin and Grand Finals are shown on the main channel so no HD there either. Its a disgrace!

AR My position has been consistent through the last three years. My only wish is as a taxpayer, that the Government would have applied a similar consistency. I received this gem of information / propaganda from the department today with respect to a query on anti siphoning (if you or the government think that the current broadcast agreements are delivering excellent free to air coverage then I must be watching a different channel); "However, the government remains committed to the principles behind these reforms, and has been giving effect to these principles through other means. Significantly, the government’s consultations have ensured that industry is applying these principles in practice. For example, the current broadcast rights agreements for the Australian Football League (AFL) and National Rugby League (NRL) are broadly consistent with these principles and are delivering excellent free-to-air coverage of these iconic football codes for Australian sports fans."

Of course it not all about the grants, its mostly about the grants when you get $200m over 10 years I suggest it takes up a fair % of the lift up.What else do the grants do players wage,marketing ,development,admin.They are hardly a charity. If the Broncos had of received a 1/10 of that amount you might have an argument.Brisbane whilst a rl town is for example no where, as obsessed as Perth is for the AFL. I repeat the NRL will not be pouring large sms into a Perth NRL side,they have to be able to prove their self sustainability. You made a statement to the Oikster" I doubt there is a sport's club that has enjoyed the kind of benefits and advantages that the Broncos have".Well melad they did not get guaranteed funding of $200m over 10 years. Being a one team rl town is not a simple matter of just rolling out the carpet,you need playing personnel,marketing especially as the local BRL comp was very strong.They had to do it off their own back.Ask the Crushers all about being in a rl town. And you expect me to be naïve enough to think that enormous amount of funding of that magnitude $200m, is not an advantage. Money talks ,without it you have little chance of going nowhere.

It's not all about grants from the governing body. Being the only team in town helps too! The point is, I was responding to oikee's claim that "The Broncos are roting on the vine because the code has allowed them to rot". THAT is absolute nonsense. Over the last 25 years, no sporting club in Australia has had it better than the Broncos - the team that even benefitted more than any other from the SL war.

Bad attempt at humour. Fact $20m pa for 10 years in a city where another team already in place,so the entrance of a team is not a new phenomenon. Broncos received no money from the then ARL,and should Perth be included as I would expect,the NRL will not be pumping huge sums,if at all into a city where AFL is king.That is my point. if you believe $200m over 10 years is not a giant leg up compared to either a Broncos or indeed a Perth Pirate's team in a besotted AFL city,you are kidding.Throw in a Sydney stadium for one winter code tenant,and the facts stick out like dogs droppings.

OK AR it is about time someone came out with a big club,because you really are at loose ends: Look at your post 18th June " Origin rates around 2.5m " http://sopba.com.au/television-ratings-2013-state-origin : -SOO recorded 2.507m viewers across the 5 City metro Market Now to hit where it hurts and I quote" IN THE REGIONAL MARKETS ORIGIN 1 AVERAGED 1.466m VIEWERS Peaking AT 1.718M Now if it is humanly possible,I suggest you kindly add the city metro and the regionals together.I say no more,but let the figures speak for themselves. And you think marketers and advertsiers don't take the total figures into account.And BTW thank you Melbourne for your ratings contribution. Word of advice stick to what you know.We understand the usual people look for negatives,but really they should delve a little deeper.

"The continual capitals ratings is not a true reflection of the total picture and ones which AFL supporters like to ignore historically" Are you daft? The regional figures are excluded from AFL games as well. As I said, if you have them, post them...but what's the point of plucking numbers out of thin air?!

Do you really need someone to cut up your steak for you CC? Brisbane - NRL heartland, but a total of 4 teams from 4 codes. Sydney - NRL heartland, but a total of 14 teams from 4 codes. You think the baby Giants have it easier than the Broncos? Go back to sleep.

I am perfectly capable of reading the thread origin. Crowds and Tv ratings have a correlation I am afraid to report based on historicals.. eg A strong Parramatta v Canterbury on a Friday night,would have big Tv ratings aligned to a big crowd.history has shown this to be fact.Parramatta are last. Collingwood are in 6th spot hardly lacklustre compared to Parramatta,or st George or the Broncos or West Tigers. it is plainly obvious 1) Some ordinary games because of the fixed 20 week schedule on the big ratings nights Friday 7-30pm and Monday night 7pm. 2) Most popular /well supported teams in the doldrums.Not just 1 but 4. 3) whilst the WSW have been a revelation ,the cross over effect was minimal,and Parra had a shocker last year,which hardly was a benefit for 13. 4) I agree the code will be lucky to get anywhere near 77 out of the top 100 on pay TV based on the current formula. 5) With the new go forward admin<I suggest changes will be made for 2014. 6) I also believe this may well add impetus for expansion,in order to secure additional Tv spots 7) I therefore disagree with your reasoning and consider their effect to be minimal.

Plain as the nose on your face,regionals have people living in them,they are certainly in Qld and NSW very strong when it comes to NRL viewing. The continual capitals ratings is not a true reflection of the total picture and ones which AFL supporters like to ignore historically and no doubt played a part in the code getting over $1bn ,a figure you believed they would not get. That is what I am on about. and not SOO.

the Giants are not the only team in Sydney