Semi's are empty half full , why?

damnyanks

Greetings,

Todays Cork Tyrone game only pulled 50k people. ARe the GAA over pricing the tickets or have people lost interest?

I was at the hurling last week. 45 quid a ticket, stadium had 40k in it.

paddy978

Too dear TBH

BrandonFlowers

too dear especially if you then wanna come to thefinal which cost €50+

Orizio

West Cork vs. Tyrone as a standalone was never going to get a particurly big attendance.

Trampas

don't worry come final day the stadium will be full.

I can see the woodwork from here

Daysha

I don't think it's to do with ticket prices at all. People forget that we're still a small country, the fact that we have an 82,000 capacity stadium which is filled 7/8 times a year though All-Ireland finals, big Dublin matches or 6N games in rugby is an achievement in itself.

Ok, maybe cutting ticket prices by €10-15 may bring in an extra few thousand, but unless Dublin are involved or it's a double header we'll never see a full 82,000 attendence for a semi final.

COB_here

imo too pricey considering tickets ,travel cost and everything else on match day ppl cant afford it

blueovalmk2

yeah have to agree there playing match`s up in GAA HQ that should be played in other pitchs more suited to teams an supporters alike

Koloman

They built the stadium too big. It should of been 70,000 people max.

Johnnyjump

It's full for both All-Irelands so no, it's not too big.

Johnnyjump

Also for the All-Irelands, there's always an awful scramble for tickets and there are always people disappointed.

blueovalmk2

Koloman wrote: »

They built the stadium too big. It should of been 70,000 people max.

ah wouldn say that cos they do fill it now an again,but wen they know it wont be filled they should be played else were

Heisenberg.

This post has been deleted.

johncm

i stopped going a few years ago. I used to be able to get tickets for myself and my nephew for every game except the one that matters. Got so pissed off with it i just don't bother anymore

blueovalmk2

Scien wrote: »

I waited until 3.30 today to buy mine off a Tout. I gave him a Tenner for a Upper Davin & he was glad to be rid of it.

the days of the Touts are numbered an good ridden`s!!

Koloman

It really does say something about the state of the sport when apart from Dublin and the finals it takes a few rugby matches to fill the stadium to capacity!

wow sierra

50k is a huge crowd for a sporting event. What crowds do they get at premiership games or Champions League.

I dont think ticket prices are an issue to be honest. Getting to see your county playing in an All Ireland Semi final is a huge deal. The ticket prices for GAA games compare very favourably with other sports or entertainment events. In my experience, and I'm sure most other supporters, the ticket price is a very small part of the cost of the day.

Maybe the recession makes it difficult to afford the train/petrol prices. Maybe overnight accomodation, food and drink or maybe missing out on work etc. These are the costs of going to GAA games - ticket prices are a minor issue.

Riskymove

the tickets are a lot cheaper than rugby/soccer matches (international); 50 odd thousand is a good attendance for a game where both sets of fans have to travel and is bang in the middle of holiday season

I do think its a joke that people who do make the effort to go to games like these are the ones who end up not being able to get tickets for the final

Bob_Harris

Why half full, because the stadium is too big. The "it will be full for the finals" argument is nonsense really. Even with 2 quarter finals and 4 teams playing back to back, it's still half empty.

They put too much money into it and then feel the need to play as much games there as possible to justify it.

What would have been a much more logical approach would have been to distribute the money so that we would have 2 or 3 top class stadiums (~40k capacity) across the country.

If my county get to a position where they have a fixture in Croke Park, I couldn't be arsed trekking up to Dublin with all the associated hassle involved.

Koloman

Bob_Harris wrote: »

Why half full, because the stadium is too big. The "it will be full for the finals" argument is nonsense really. Even with 2 quarter finals and 4 teams playing back to back, it's still half empty.

They put too much money into it and then feel the need to play as much games there as possible to justify it.

What would have been a much more logical approach would have been to distribute the money so that we would have 2 or 3 top class stadiums (~40k capacity) across the country.

If my county get to a position where they have a fixture in Croke Park, I couldn't be arsed trekking up to Dublin with all the associated hassle involved.

You're bang on there! They built the stadium too big.

Flukey

It has nothing to do with ticket prices. It is a lot more to do with people not being interested enough to bother their arses to go and support their teams. In short: Sunshine supporters. If you take today's attendance, minus the support of the two defeated teams, and do the same next Sunday, you'll find the total attendance will be under the 82,300 capacity, and that is including the neutrals who would have been at both semi-finals. Yet the moment the full-time whistle goes on an All-Ireland semi-final, you'll suddenly have fans appearing out of nowhere claiming their right to a ticket. As said, Croke Park will be full on All-Ireland final day, and amongst them will be people who will tell you that they are fully entitled to a ticket, although it will be the first match they will have attended this year. Many there today and next Sunday, and some who will have been at both, and all this applies to the Hurling too, will find themselves without a ticket on All-Ireland Final day.

rossie1977

Koloman wrote: »

They built the stadium too big. It should of been 70,000 people max.

lol i was outside croker for the all-ireland final in 2006, you could have filled the stadium 3 times over for that match with the amount of roscommon and mayo people looking for tickets that day (none successful either)

Koloman

rossie1977 wrote: »

lol i was outside croker for the all-ireland final in 2006, you could have filled the stadium 3 times over for that match with the amount of roscommon and mayo people looking for tickets that day (none successful either)

Maybe, but that is just one day in the year. In the coming years with no IRFU or FAI money coming in, the Croke Park stadium will become an albatross around the GAA's neck.

premierstone

Koloman wrote: »

It really does say something about the state of the sport when apart from Dublin and the finals it takes a few rugby matches to fill the stadium to capacity!

You do realise the rugby team represents 32 counties where gaelic games are confined to 2 :rolleyes: Do the math and come back to on the state of the sport :rolleyes:

Flukey

No Koloman, as I posted in another thread, come All-Ireland final day, Croke Park is not big enough. If it is not big enough on even one day of the year, and there are several days in the year when it isn't, then it is not big enough. Long before the IRFU and FAI started using it, it was not big enough. It was half empty today, and for the remaining 6 days of the week, there'll be hardly anyone in it at all and it won't be full next Sunday, but it is still not big enough as September 6th and September 20th will prove. When it can deal with the full demand for every single occasion it has, then it will be big enough.

90,556 people officially attended the 1961 Football final, bigger than the current capacity, and not everyone that wanted to be there that day got in, so it certainly isn't big enough. If on 99.99% of the days there was matches there, there was 00.01% of the capacity there and on the other 00.01% of the days of matches it could not hold the required amount, then it is not big enough.

Orizio

Koloman wrote: »

Maybe, but that is just one day in the year. In the coming years with no IRFU or FAI money coming in, the Croke Park stadium will become an albatross around the GAA's neck.

Koloman wrote:

It really does say something about the state of the sport when apart from Dublin and the finals it takes a few rugby matches to fill the stadium to capacity!

Dear god your talking an incredible amount of bollocks. Tyrone is a small county, and the Cork footballers are very badly supported. 50k is a decent attendance. And simply because Landsdowne is nearly completely, the FAI and IRFU money will not try up.

And while I know its a wet dream of many in Ireland to see the GAA disapear, it will stay a dream for the foreseeable future. The GAA is in rude health.

Koloman

Orizio wrote: »

Dear god your talking an incredible amount of bollocks.

Why do you revert to abuse when you have lost the argument? Some GAA die-hards tend to get very fundamentalist in their views when someone has the audacity to disagree with them.

As a casual GAA observer I find that sort of attitude epitomises all that is wrong with the association.

Orizio

Koloman wrote: »

Why do you revert to abuse when you have lost the argument? Some GAA die-hards tend to get very fundamentalist in their views when someone has the audacity to disagree with them.

As a casual GAA observer I find that sort of attitude epitomises all that is wrong with the association.

This post deserves no more then...

:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

...that, and the few seconds I took to make this post.

Lost what argument? That was my first reply to you, and you simply ignored my whole post. You shouldn't start threads on subjects that you have no intention debating about, nor should you start threads in a forum about a sport you clearly dislike. Also, personal insults like those in your reply are a far greater form of abuse then stating that your replies are no more then trolling nonsense. Finally, this passive aggressive baiting style of yours is particurly pathetic.

I wouldn't bother replying btw, I've given a troll like yourself more then enough of my time and effort.

Bob_Harris

Flukey wrote: »

come All-Ireland final day, Croke Park is not big enough.

What's your point? Any stadium on any final day in any sport won't be big enough, there will always be more demand for the final.

A high demand twice a year does not justify the place sitting half idle the rest of the year round.

Oh and I've been there with "only" 40,000 other people. **** atmosphere to be honest. Now stick those 40k in a 40k capacity stadium (in an easily accessible town out in the country) and you get an atmosphere.

Orizio

Bob_Harris wrote: »

What's your point? Any stadium on any final day in any sport won't be big enough, there will always be more demand for the final.

A high demand twice a year does not justify the place sitting half idle the rest of the year round.

Oh and I've been there with "only" 40,000 other people. **** atmosphere to be honest. Now stick those 40k in a 40k capacity stadium (in an easily accessible town out in the country) and you get an atmosphere.

Stating the bleeding obvious really. This is a fact for every stadium, particurly big ones, attacking Croker on this point simply seems prejudiced.

Croker isn't too big, it regurly sells out and is a huge cash cow for the GAA. The problem is with playing stand alone games in Croker when smaller provincial stadiums would suffice. Not quite sure what they could have done today though.

Bob_Harris

Orizio wrote: »

Stating the bleeding obvious really. This is a fact for every stadium, particurly big ones, attacking Croker on this point simply seems prejudiced.

I could be proved wrong, but I doubt there's a stadium as big as Croke Park, used as much as Croke Park, and pulls a regular "low" attendance like Croke Park does.

Orizio

Bob_Harris wrote: »

I could be proved wrong, but I doubt there's a stadium as big as Croke Park, used as much as Croke Park, and pulls a regular "low" attendance like Croke Park does.

You may be right, but you have to take into account that a lot of games held in Croker - camogie, lower competiton and underage games for example - are there simply because its GAA HQ, a reward and incentive to teams less/badly supported for their efforts. So a lot of games - semi-finals, finals etc - are held there as a matter of prestige, reward and tradition regardless of lower attendances. From this point of view, its less comparable to other large stadiums.

Regardless, a 80,000+ stadium that is sold out 7-8 times a year, as Croker will be, is not too small.

rossie1977

Bob_Harris wrote: »

I could be proved wrong, but I doubt there's a stadium as big as Croke Park, used as much as Croke Park, and pulls a regular "low" attendance like Croke Park does.

the olympic stadium in rome holds the same as croker, last year AS Roma averaged 39,282 in their 19 home league games, highest attendance was 63,000 for the roma derby with lazio, two years ago their highest gate was 48,447 against milan (5k less than todays match)

premierstone

Bob_Harris wrote: »

I could be proved wrong, but I doubt there's a stadium as big as Croke Park, used as much as Croke Park, and pulls a regular "low" attendance like Croke Park does.

Millenium Stadium in Cardiff is regularly half empty

homerjay2005

semi attendances, unless massive games, have always been in the 40k-50k mark

kerry v cork was 45,000 the first time and was lower in the other 2 stand alones, then there were double headers in the other ones, but still never went about 55,000/60,000

these 2 games should have been a double header as both combined wouldnt have been >82,000

i dont expect more than 35,000 the next day.

dublin are the only team that could guarantee an attendance of 55,000 on their own and maybe one or 2 hurling games like waterford/tipp/cork playing each other for example.

K-9

It's a ridiculous argument. As homerjay pointed out 50/60,000 is actually a good S/F crowd and that was always the case.

Your case seems to because it is only filled maybe 5/6 times a year, it should never have been built. The Millennium stadium and even Wembley should never have been built by that standard. Hell, you could apply it to Clones, Thurles, Gaelic Grounds etc.

The debt is small enough now on the stadium, hate to be the IRFU/FAI at the minute.

panda100

Flukey wrote: »

It has nothing to do with ticket prices. It is a lot more to do with people not being interested enough to bother their arses to go and support their teams.

I completely disagree.
Im a Limerick football supporter living a few roads away from Croke park. I would loved to have gone to the match yesterday but €45, especially in the current economic climate, is just far too much for me to spend every Saturday during the Summer. I think €30 or €25 is more reasonable especially for matches that the GAA know will only be half full.
With train tickets from Cork at €70 most families would be stretched to cover travel and ticket prices.


The GAA are absolutely raking it in and from what I can see they have little expenditure.
The Football and Hurling championship have sponsership by some of the wealthiest companies in Ireland. They have huge revenues from concerts, rugby,soccer and gaa matches.
I spoke at a confrence in Croke Park earlier this year. The Tickets were €170 for the day and there was at least 200 people at this confrence.
All the county teams have sponserships to cover their annual expenses. In Limerick it was JP McManus who wrote a blank cheque to the GAA to do up the gaelic grounds. Pairc ui chaoimh is like a pitch from the dark ages, still selling tickets from caravans outside.
What are the gaa spending their money on??

Orizio

You know, if you actually bothered to look a little you'd get the answer to that question very quickly...

Here.

The bulk of the money goes to 'games development' and admin costs.

sslazio11

That still doesn't excuse the state of Pairc Ui Chaoimh, the place is a safety hazard.

TomMc

Well for all the people who love to knock the GAA (and they have their faults), the fact that an amateur association had the vision to actually build a stadium to be proud of (granted, it was partly funded with Lotto money), while professional associations like the IRFU & FAI combined (despite lots of sporting success) arsed about for donkies years. When the Special Olympics were held, it was the only venue in the country that suited, and a showcase to help promote Tourism in Ireland.

Dublin fill Croke Park for championships games due to population, convenience and media hype. A league match and they wouldn't fill the Hogan stand. It would be very difficult for other counties to do so until the pinnacle events of the year, the All-Ireland finals. When the matches are attended by GAA people and delegates from every county in Ireland, not just the 2- 4 participating ones.

While 45 quid is a fair bit, for the games concerned it is favourable when compared with run-of-the-mill soccer internationals against lowly opposition and costs circa e70. Many of the costs of maintaining Croke Park would be the same as soccer stadia in the UK, that get games every second week (for 9 months of the year) with ten times the population in the immediate vacinity.

So the low attendances are partly due to relatively low population and travelling distances concerned, costs etc. especially for families. But also as a result of Celtic Tiger Ireland it is sad to say but the small majority of people in Ireland are now globalised consumers, that embrace little of indigenous Irish culture. Whether it be language, sport, music, dance, and so much more. Continental Europeans have far more time for their heritage and traditions. Then aren't so influenced by American and British culture (and I use that in the broadest sense of the word) and crass consumerism. To see shopping centre car parks full on a sunday one week and Croke Park half empty another is kinda sad.

Orizio

sslazio11 wrote: »

That still doesn't excuse the state of Pairc Ui Chaoimh, the place is a safety hazard.

???

How completely and utterly random. That ****hole is the fault of the morons at the Cork County Board btw, not Croker.

Orizio

TomMc wrote: »

Well for all the people who love to knock the GAA (and they have their faults), the fact that an amateur association had the vision to actually build a stadium to be proud of (granted, it was partly funded with Lotto money), while professional associations like the IRFU & FAI combined (despite lots of sporting success) arsed about for donkies years. When the Special Olympics were held, it was the only venue in the country that suited, and a showcase to help promote Tourism in Ireland.

Dublin fill Croke Park for championships games due to population, convenience and media hype. A league match and they wouldn't fill the Hogan stand. It would be very difficult for other counties to do so until the pinnacle events of the year, the All-Ireland finals. When the matches are attended by GAA people and delegates from every county in Ireland, not just the 2- 4 participating ones.

While 45 quid is a fair bit, for the games concerned it is favourable when compared with run-of-the-mill soccer internationals against lowly opposition and costs circa e70. Many of the costs of maintaining Croke Park would be the same as soccer stadia in the UK, that get games every second week (for 9 months of the year) with ten times the population in the immediate vacinity.

So the low attendances are partly due to relatively low population and travelling distances concerned, costs etc. especially for families. But also as a result of Celtic Tiger Ireland it is sad to say but the small majority of people in Ireland are now globalised consumers, that embrace little of indigenous Irish culture. Whether it be language, sport, music, dance, and so much more. Continental Europeans have far more time for their heritage and traditions. Then aren't so influenced by American and British culture (and I use that in the broadest sense of the word) and crass consumerism. To see shopping centre car parks full on a sunday one week and Croke Park half empty another is kinda sad.

Once again, this was not a low attendance. It was what you'd expect.

Also, the Irish people seem to embrace the GAA very well, the GAA benefiting from the Celtic Tiger more then most.

TomMc

I'd have to disagree with you on that. I know lots of people who went to GAA matches in the 80's and 90's when their county was successful. Fella's that played lots of Gaelic football as kids/teenagers too. A spell in the doldrums for a few short years and now despite recent (relative) success, they have no interest in going to matches again - just watch them on TV and preferably from the pub. Many of these same chaps will go to rugby matches even outside Ireland and yet not one of them every played the game in their entire lives.

Orizio

TomMc wrote: »

I'd have to disagree with you on that. I know lots of people who went to GAA matches in the 80's and 90's when their county was successful. Fella's that played lots of Gaelic football as kids/teenagers too. A spell in the doldrums for a few short years and now despite recent (relative) success, they have no interest in going to matches again - just watch them on TV and preferably from the pub. Many of these same chaps will go to rugby matches even outside Ireland and yet not one of them every played the game in their entire lives.

The reality is that of this was true beyond the anecdotal or trivial, we would have seen a significant fall in inter-county attendances since the 80's/90's - we haven't seen this though, the opposite as far as I can tell.

TomMc

Having followed Meath for over 25 years (league & championship), I can assure you that there has been quite a decline in the numbers of people travelling to games in recent years regardless of the opposition. And we are the county nearest to Dublin so the cost/time/hassle factor isn't such an issue. Far bigger crowd v Kerry in '86 & '01 in AI SF than v Cork in '07. And Kerry do not travel to semi's.

Power-surge

Were in a recession, people are out of work! I think it is down to ticket prices!! If you are living in say Cork, have a family and you are out of work, it is simply to expensive to travel and watch a match in HQ. Lets be honest, the GAA represent the middle/lower classes, they should cut ticket prices by a tenner or 15 euro...then they will see a bigger crowd!
70 euro for an All Ireland final ticket is not cheap!

shockframe

any game involving cork footballers would have trouble filling pairc ui rinn never mind croke park.

as an outsider living in cork i can honestly say that the support the footballers get is an absolute disgrace.only 300 people came to their homecoming in 2007 after they got beat by kerry.what interests cork is winning.thats why the hurlers have got great support over the years.anytime cork are beaten by kerry the first thing trotted out is "ah we're a hurling county and 10 football all irelands wouldnt be as great as winning 1 hurling all ireland".this coming from people who have never kicked a football in their lives and who would s""" themselves at the thought of playing someone like kerry or nemo rangers.even those who take the football is a game for bad hurlers approach wouldnt be fit to lace graham cantys boots.someone said to me before that after some kerry games in croke park this decade that a lot of cork fans liked to pretend that they were not football fans and said they would never support the footballers again

the cork footballers have a small hardcore following of around 2,000.the players know this well and before the final 2 years ago derek kavanagh said "were not doing this for the hangers on,we want to win for us and our die hard fans".the hurling fans would annoy you at times because everything the cork hurlers do is great.having to listen to national journalists hype up the cork hurlers like denis walsh and diarmuid o flynn is painful.the football have always been the poor relation but this crop of cork players are a serious team with no great egos, great modesty,excellent workrate and a team i would like to see win the all ireland.

back to the crowd point throw in the fact that west cork is the heartland of football in cork you would be in mitchelstown in cork and still be half way to dublin if you travelled from skibereen or clonakilty.its too far for a lot of people to travel to see the footballers play in my opinion.

its a pity they havent got better support because they have as good a record as mayo and dublin but whereas both these teams are respected by their fans and media cork are treated with disdain by their own fans and the media.of course if they win in 4 weeks time everyone in cork will sit up and take notice of them.

Orizio

I'm sure I said it before, but it really was a case of Tyrone vs. West Cork. The whole thing about the Cork footballers is compounded by the embarassment of many fans, including myself, of watching them get hammered by Kerry in Croker again and again and again...

walrusgumble

Koloman wrote: »

It really does say something about the state of the sport when apart from Dublin and the finals it takes a few rugby matches to fill the stadium to capacity!

surely this is not the first time you have noticed this?

walrusgumble

shockframe wrote: »

any game involving cork footballers would have trouble filling pairc ui rinn never mind croke park.

as an outsider living in cork i can honestly say that the support the footballers get is an absolute disgrace.only 300 people came to their homecoming in 2007 after they got beat by kerry.what interests cork is winning.thats why the hurlers have got great support over the years.anytime cork are beaten by kerry the first thing trotted out is "ah we're a hurling county and 10 football all irelands wouldnt be as great as winning 1 hurling all ireland".this coming from people who have never kicked a football in their lives and who would s""" themselves at the thought of playing someone like kerry or nemo rangers.even those who take the football is a game for bad hurlers approach wouldnt be fit to lace graham cantys boots.someone said to me before that after some kerry games in croke park this decade that a lot of cork fans liked to pretend that they were not football fans and said they would never support the footballers again

the cork footballers have a small hardcore following of around 2,000.the players know this well and before the final 2 years ago derek kavanagh said "were not doing this for the hangers on,we want to win for us and our die hard fans".the hurling fans would annoy you at times because everything the cork hurlers do is great.having to listen to national journalists hype up the cork hurlers like denis walsh and diarmuid o flynn is painful.the football have always been the poor relation but this crop of cork players are a serious team with no great egos, great modesty,excellent workrate and a team i would like to see win the all ireland.

back to the crowd point throw in the fact that west cork is the heartland of football in cork you would be in mitchelstown in cork and still be half way to dublin if you travelled from skibereen or clonakilty.its too far for a lot of people to travel to see the footballers play in my opinion.

its a pity they havent got better support because they have as good a record as mayo and dublin but whereas both these teams are respected by their fans and media cork are treated with disdain by their own fans and the media.of course if they win in 4 weeks time everyone in cork will sit up and take notice of them.

who is the gentleman who is nealry always zoomed in by rte camera's at every cork game (or most). the gentleman with the sambra. doesn't he go to both hurling and football. seems like cork's answer genuine supporter of the irish national football teams davy keogh

shockframe

walrusgumble wrote: »

who is the gentleman who is nealry always zoomed in by rte camera's at every cork game (or most). the gentleman with the sambra. doesn't he go to both hurling and football. seems like cork's answer genuine supporter of the irish national football teams davy keogh

cyril kavanagh.