Our support has aged dramatically over the last 20 years. Unless we get kids and young adults into the habit of coming to games it won't matter what the boycotters do. I feel very pessimistic about the future.
Our support has aged dramatically over the last 20 years. Unless we get kids and young adults into the habit of coming to games it won't matter what the boycotters do. I feel very pessimistic about the future.
I agree Santa, the average age of the Junior Reds is now 23 and a half.
When Duchatelet departs, it will certainly generate an upturn in attendances, although the extent of this is likely to be determined by the timing and the extent to which the club has withered on the vine.
We shouldn't, however, underestimate two important factors highlighted above, namely, the inherent lack of enthusiasm for League 1 football (or worse) and the fact that many people will have got out of the habit of going to The Valley. Going to games with friends or family or seeing them in the ground is, for many supporters, an integral part of the experience - indeed, in recent times, it's usually the only enjoyable part. If some supporters lose enthusiasm and stop going, those they previously attended with may well do likewise. On a macro level, of course, the more the ground empties, the worse the atmosphere becomes and so the spiral of decline continues. No amount of freebies from Katrien are ultimately going to mask that.
It'snot the diehards we need to worry about. They will be back. It's the less committed who get out of the habit of going. It's the kids whose parents no longer go who never get in the habit of going. It's the potential new fans who won't bother, or who decide to go somewhere with better football and a better atmosphere.
We may ... will ... win the battle but with every passing month there will be more who won't return when the Belgians have gone. They are not only killing the club in the here and now, but they are destroying the future as well.
I'm 33 and have been going since I was 2 years old. My 94 grandad took my dad, who took myself, mum and sister. Since then we've introduced many people to the club who eventually became season tickets in the 96/97 season onwards.
Now I travel too much to attend, my mum, sister and father have lost complete interest and don't even check the scores or keep up to date with it. The friends they introduced didn't renew this season for the first time.
My grandad who had been going to Charlton before the war, unfortunately passed away last year. When he was sick and it was obvious he wasn't going to pull through, I told him a white lie that Roland had sold the club when he asked if they had. It killed me to lie to him but the smile on his face seemed worth it.
It pains me so much that the owners just don't give a shit about the club, it's history or more importantly it's fanbase. We are just a pawn for some egocentric billionaire and it's heartbreaking to watch.
I myself am the only one who still pays an interest and attended a few home and away games last year but the emotional attachment is diminishing by the day. When we lose I feel the sadness for a minute and get on. I think it will be a real challenge to get any fans back, even after Roland has gone.
For me this is the biggest dilemma. Encourage people to stay away and you almost certainly lose some forever. Many of our season ticket holders would have only been encouraged to come in the Premier League days. This relegation and all the crap from RD and KM has potentially sent all those fans to West Ham where you can watch decent football and the top sides for no more than the cost of an East Stand ticket.
As unpalatable as it seems, in my experience, it is not only possible to switch teams but it is quite common.
For many the only reason they go to the games is because they have a season ticket and the only reason that they buy a season ticket is 'because they always do'. One season away and there's a decent chance that they will never come back.
It also takes much more to make someone come along than to keep them coming. This will be why the season ticket deals when we were relegated from the Premier League was so, 'potentially' rewarding with a free one if we were promoted.
I also think that the concentration of those against RD and KM on here mask the fact that there will be many that have given up coming less as a statement and more because they don't want to watch us anymore. That could be because the results were so terrible last season, the fact that League One is such a horrible place to be or any combination of those and other factors. I suspect that those might need us to be in the Premier League before they come again and we are losing a whole generation of children (which is the future) while we stagnate in the third division.
The most depressing thing about it all is that I don't think RD is going to leave anytime soon. I think he made it clear by saying that he sees us as 1.5% of his 'Empire' that he cares so little about us (and what the club costs him) that he can afford to own Charlton until he dies and it will make no difference to him at all. If we are costing him 1.5% of his wealth/earnings each year that's probably the equivalent, for most of us, of buying one round of drinks a week. Is he going to be bothered about the money in relation to him having to publicly admit that he made a mistake buying and/or running the club or concede that a group of football fans have 'told him what to do'?
I also think that the longer it goes on and the smaller the fan base becomes the bigger the gulf between what someone would want to pay for the club and what RD would sell it for becomes.
There must be a point at which developing The Valley and/or Sparrows Lane will generate more money than selling the club with c. 5000 (or 4,000 or 3,000 or 2,000 or less than 1,000) season ticket holders?
I hope I'm wrong, and I don't want those protesting to give up, but I think if a disgruntled fan base was going to force him to sell he would have gone by now. I desperately hope that falling too short this season might be the tipping point, but at the moment I can see no light at the end of the tunnel.
On that cheery note I think I'll take the afternoon off and start drinking now!
Our support has aged dramatically over the last 20 years. Unless we get kids and young adults into the habit of coming to games it won't matter what the boycotters do. I feel very pessimistic about the future.
For me, this is the real worry. The club is losing a generation which I don't think we can ever get back - sons and daughters who have never been encouraged to go to games will never "return" because they were never there. The longer this goes on the worse it gets.
I'll admit, I hardly go now and I don't see that changing - other things occupy your days - how did I ever find time to go week in, week out for all those years?
Our support has aged dramatically over the last 20 years. Unless we get kids and young adults into the habit of coming to games it won't matter what the boycotters do. I feel very pessimistic about the future.
For me, this is the real worry. The club is losing a generation which I don't think we can ever get back - sons and daughters who have never been encouraged to go to games will never "return" because they were never there. The longer this goes on the worse it gets.
I'll admit, I hardly go now and I don't see that changing - other things occupy your days - how did I ever find time to go week in, week out for all those years?
Another couple of seasons with RD in charge and we'll have virtually no fans left and will be lurking near the bottom of L2. Can't see anything shifting him and presumably KM will remain as CEO. The club will effectively no longer exist once the fans have gone.
I think Roland would sell tomorrow if he could get his money back. The trouble is that price tag would be about £50 million and what is the club now realistically worth , a club losing possibly £10 million a year.
I think Roland would sell tomorrow if he could get his money back. The trouble is that price tag would be about £50 million and what is the club now realistically worth , a club losing possibly £10 million a year.
Not going to matches because we are in the 3rd division and playing crap football, isn't much of a boycott, it's more the natural driftage that happens when clubs are poorly run, and fans get disinterested.
All the people who are saying they've got other things to do, I totally understand, but if we were back in the PL and playing Arsenal on Saturday, they'd be desperate for tickets.
Would you care for a small wager on that , I never really cared who Charlton were playing. I've watched them for years through the divisions and at countless away grounds and all I wanted was them to beat the team in front of them. Obviously a successfull team meant playing in the top division but personally I didn't enjoy the premiership and stopped attending those away games when Chelsea charged me £25 for my six year old daughter to get in. For now I'll stay away and should he sell up and hopefully my business venture allows me to return although stepping away for Charlton allowed me to start it up. But Accrington or Arsenal it makes no difference to me.
Not going to matches because we are in the 3rd division and playing crap football, isn't much of a boycott, it's more the natural driftage that happens when clubs are poorly run, and fans get disinterested.
All the people who are saying they've got other things to do, I totally understand, but if we were back in the PL and playing Arsenal on Saturday, they'd be desperate for tickets.
Would you care for a small wager on that , I never really cared who Charlton were playing. I've watched them for years through the divisions and at countless away grounds and all I wanted was them to beat the team in front of them. Obviously a successfull team meant playing in the top division but personally I didn't enjoy the premiership and stopped attending those away games when Chelsea charged me £25 for my six year old daughter to get in. For now I'll stay away and should he sell up and hopefully my business venture allows me to return although stepping away for Charlton allowed me to start it up. But Accrington or Arsenal it makes no difference to me.
Many people would have been attracted during the PL era by the opposition, and drifted away after we got relegated. I imagine Fulham would have attracted similar fans, having a similar image as a "family" club. West Ham have targeted such people as well, though the terrible view and fights between fans and stewards might put people off!
Comments
I'm coming back,
I want the world to know.
the average age of the Junior Reds is now 23 and a half.
We shouldn't, however, underestimate two important factors highlighted above, namely, the inherent lack of enthusiasm for League 1 football (or worse) and the fact that many people will have got out of the habit of going to The Valley. Going to games with friends or family or seeing them in the ground is, for many supporters, an integral part of the experience - indeed, in recent times, it's usually the only enjoyable part. If some supporters lose enthusiasm and stop going, those they previously attended with may well do likewise. On a macro level, of course, the more the ground empties, the worse the atmosphere becomes and so the spiral of decline continues. No amount of freebies from Katrien are ultimately going to mask that.
So much for improving the matchday experience.
We may ... will ... win the battle but with every passing month there will be more who won't return when the Belgians have gone. They are not only killing the club in the here and now, but they are destroying the future as well.
Now I travel too much to attend, my mum, sister and father have lost complete interest and don't even check the scores or keep up to date with it. The friends they introduced didn't renew this season for the first time.
My grandad who had been going to Charlton before the war, unfortunately passed away last year. When he was sick and it was obvious he wasn't going to pull through, I told him a white lie that Roland had sold the club when he asked if they had. It killed me to lie to him but the smile on his face seemed worth it.
It pains me so much that the owners just don't give a shit about the club, it's history or more importantly it's fanbase. We are just a pawn for some egocentric billionaire and it's heartbreaking to watch.
I myself am the only one who still pays an interest and attended a few home and away games last year but the emotional attachment is diminishing by the day. When we lose I feel the sadness for a minute and get on. I think it will be a real challenge to get any fans back, even after Roland has gone.
As unpalatable as it seems, in my experience, it is not only possible to switch teams but it is quite common.
For many the only reason they go to the games is because they have a season ticket and the only reason that they buy a season ticket is 'because they always do'. One season away and there's a decent chance that they will never come back.
It also takes much more to make someone come along than to keep them coming. This will be why the season ticket deals when we were relegated from the Premier League was so, 'potentially' rewarding with a free one if we were promoted.
I also think that the concentration of those against RD and KM on here mask the fact that there will be many that have given up coming less as a statement and more because they don't want to watch us anymore. That could be because the results were so terrible last season, the fact that League One is such a horrible place to be or any combination of those and other factors. I suspect that those might need us to be in the Premier League before they come again and we are losing a whole generation of children (which is the future) while we stagnate in the third division.
The most depressing thing about it all is that I don't think RD is going to leave anytime soon. I think he made it clear by saying that he sees us as 1.5% of his 'Empire' that he cares so little about us (and what the club costs him) that he can afford to own Charlton until he dies and it will make no difference to him at all. If we are costing him 1.5% of his wealth/earnings each year that's probably the equivalent, for most of us, of buying one round of drinks a week. Is he going to be bothered about the money in relation to him having to publicly admit that he made a mistake buying and/or running the club or concede that a group of football fans have 'told him what to do'?
I also think that the longer it goes on and the smaller the fan base becomes the bigger the gulf between what someone would want to pay for the club and what RD would sell it for becomes.
There must be a point at which developing The Valley and/or Sparrows Lane will generate more money than selling the club with c. 5000 (or 4,000 or 3,000 or 2,000 or less than 1,000) season ticket holders?
I hope I'm wrong, and I don't want those protesting to give up, but I think if a disgruntled fan base was going to force him to sell he would have gone by now. I desperately hope that falling too short this season might be the tipping point, but at the moment I can see no light at the end of the tunnel.
On that cheery note I think I'll take the afternoon off and start drinking now!
I'll admit, I hardly go now and I don't see that changing - other things occupy your days - how did I ever find time to go week in, week out for all those years?
I'll admit, I hardly go now and I don't see that changing - other things occupy your days - how did I ever find time to go week in, week out for all those years?
Can't see anything shifting him and presumably KM will remain as CEO.
The club will effectively no longer exist once the fans have gone.
Anton Ferdinand.
West Ham have targeted such people as well, though the terrible view and fights between fans and stewards might put people off!