Here's your 'Survey' AFL - Why dont you go anymore?

Why don't you attend the footy as often?


  • Total voters
    409
Oct 2, 2008
8,897
18,482
AFL Club
Richmond
Other Teams
Brothers of Destruction
You can vote for a combination of things too. Lowest attended season since 1996!!!! So instead of making this a trivial point scoring affair between club supporters, let's avoid the childish tribalism and acknowledge this is a wide spread problem for the entire competition with few exceptions.

For me,

1. Digital Ticketing
2. Gambling Ads
3. Rolling Fixture
4. Rule Changes / Umpiring
5. Match Day Experience

Are my top 5,

Brief explanation

Too difficult sitting beside my friends or family unless they're also Richmond GA members. Rolling Fixture gives me no chance to plan an interstate trip I do one a year to see the Tigers, no chance to lock in dates with friends - we have kids now, and wives, we need a whole season to plan this out.

Too many gambling ads, sick of it, music in-between goals, match day 'host', during intermissions, just really uninspired by the match day presentation, over it. Just let me spend half time sinking a few with the boys whilst we talk s**t. I dont wanna see someone answer 'who was brendon gales brother Richmond traded for from another club'

And lastly, the umpiring is absolutely ****ed 🙂

Keen to see the results
 
Feb 9, 2009
17,159
23,041
Footscray
AFL Club
Richmond
I'll clarify that my vote for 'gameday experience' isnt because of a lack of music, djs, dancers, strobe lights, kisscam etc that they have in the american sports. its because of all that s**t that theyve added.

if i go to the footy with family and friends, i want to be able to talk to them after goals and during breaks. not be blinded by disco lights or deafened with constant 'music' and meaningless kisscam/gambling ad drivel.
 
Dec 9, 2015
5,500
9,857
AFL Club
Collingwood
For me it's:

1. Game day experience - absolutely horrible, deafening loudspeakers, flashing lights, not much human atmosphere
2. Rule changes and weird umpiring during home and away season, which vanishes during the finals... just umpire every game like the grand final
3. Cost - every aspect too expensive

Been to one game since 2015, and hated it
 

banzai

Norm Smith Medallist
Oct 14, 2003
5,064
5,792
AFL Club
Richmond
For me it was when we won the Grand Final in 2017, kind of felt like the end of my footy journey. Im 38, prob missed about 5 games in VIC from age 10 to the year we won it. Now ill go to about half the games. I did go last night but spent the game on my phone and wondering why I was there. Much easier to watch it at the pub with mates. Lack of parking also a problem, couldn't be bothered with public transport. I still have my AFL Gold Membership, it was worth it all in the end, not sure I need to keep it much longer though. Be happy to watch a Grand Final at home now if we ever make one again.
 
Last edited:

Sky

Doctor Demise
Feb 14, 2021
3,769
7,826
NT
AFL Club
Geelong
Other Teams
Raptors, Storm, Chelsea
The rule changes are awful. If they want to introduce shitty rules to speed the game up then they must make it that the last touch is deliberate out of bounds unless it’s inside a 50 arc. I’m so sick of watching the same crap. Defender kicking it back in which almost always ends up near the boundary line up a corridor where it goes out of bounds.

Those people they hire to talk crap before the game and during half time ruin the match day experience for me also. Port Adelaide is the worst for this but I live in Adelaide so that may be quite biased.
 
Oct 19, 2020
21,741
31,467
AFL Club
Richmond
You can vote for a combination of things too. Lowest attended season since 1996!!!! So instead of making this a trivial point scoring affair between club supporters, let's avoid the childish tribalism and acknowledge this is a wide spread problem for the entire competition with few exceptions.

For me,

1. Digital Ticketing
2. Gambling Ads
3. Rolling Fixture
4. Rule Changes / Umpiring
5. Match Day Experience

Are my top 5,

Brief explanation

Too difficult sitting beside my friends or family unless they're also Richmond GA members. Rolling Fixture gives me no chance to plan an interstate trip I do one a year to see the Tigers, no chance to lock in dates with friends - we have kids now, and wives, we need a whole season to plan this out.

Too many gambling ads, sick of it, music in-between goals, match day 'host', during intermissions, just really uninspired by the match day presentation, over it. Just let me spend half time sinking a few with the boys whilst we talk s**t. I dont wanna see someone answer 'who was brendon gales brother Richmond traded for from another club'

And lastly, the umpiring is absolutely ducked 🙂

Keen to see the results
Can you include in the poll 'blanket corporate advertising' which includes adds on the loudspeaker, advertising on the; Sherrin, Auskick jumpers, ground, goalposts, run through banners, umpires, players, tickets, scoreboard, pre-game 'entertainment' and the abhorrent digital adds on the fences and grandstands.
I also hate being forced to sit in the upper decks .
 

PetterdHoisted

Norm Smith Medallist
Apr 27, 2014
6,314
9,538
AFL Club
Richmond
1. STAND rule - diabolical, and the rest of Shocking's AFLX rules
2. Music blaring at the game and stupid 'are you paying attention' crowd victimisation so you just can't relax
3. Gambling obsession

disgrace what Gill has done to our game, he walks away with how many $millions in his pocket, having destroyed the product and flattened attendances and TV aduiences
 
Oct 2, 2008
8,897
18,482
AFL Club
Richmond
Other Teams
Brothers of Destruction
Gambling ads make it hard to go or watch at home with my kids.

Kids are sponges and I hate that mine are constantly asking about the gambling ads.

The dissent rule is a blight on the game too.

Turn the stupid music off.
Solid points, they've normalised betting to our kids - brainwashed them. My kids ask me, 'what are the odds, dad?'

Wtf, there's so much wrong with that
 
Oct 14, 2011
66,409
111,579
AFL Club
Richmond
I'll clarify that my vote for 'gameday experience' isnt because of a lack of music, djs, dancers, strobe lights, kisscam etc that they have in the american sports. its because of all that s**t that theyve added.

if i go to the footy with family and friends, i want to be able to talk to them after goals and during breaks. not be blinded by disco lights or deafened with constant 'music' and meaningless kisscam/gambling ad drivel.
After a decade trying to improve the 'state of the game' and just making it worse in the process the AFL are resorting to plan D:

Just blind em all with disco lights.
 

Contador

Club Legend
Aug 24, 2009
1,267
1,922
AFL Club
Western Bulldogs
Can you include in the poll 'blanket corporate advertising' which includes adds on the loudspeaker, advertising on the; Sherrin, Auskick jumpers, ground, goalposts, run through banners, umpires, players, tickets, scoreboard, pre-game 'entertainment' and the abhorrent digital adds on the fences and grandstands.
I also hate being forced to sit in the upper decks .

It's true capitalist efficiency when the crowd is packed into the top tier miles from the action while the good seats are 90% empty. Really adds to the atmosphere and looks great on tv too.
 

FreddyTwoShoes

All Australian
May 1, 2012
931
1,411
Melbourne
AFL Club
Geelong
1. STAND rule - diabolical, and the rest of Shocking's AFLX rules
2. Music blaring at the game and stupid 'are you paying attention' crowd victimisation so you just can't relax
3. Gambling obsession

disgrace what Gill has done to our game, he walks away with how many $millions in his pocket, having destroyed the product and flattened attendances and TV aduiences

Okay, if I'm pushed for reasons why I might not go in future, it'll be very similar to yours, PetterdHoisted, with a slight variation.

1. BLICAVS rule - diabolical, and clearly robbed us of several flags :D
2. Music blaring at the game and stupid 'are you paying attention' crowd victimisation so you just can't relax (well said)
3. Gambling obsession (well said)
 

Demon13304

Club Legend
Feb 12, 2014
1,815
3,298
AFL Club
Melbourne
I find it funny that people aren't going to games NOW because of the umpires. As if you all haven't been complaining about the umpires since the dawn of time lol

I might be young but I certainly remember the exact same complaints about them 20 odd years ago
 
Last edited:
May 2, 2006
28,046
42,025
Brisbane
AFL Club
West Coast
Other Teams
East Fremantle
Pretty much this thread just sounds like a bunch of old farts grumbling because they got older and CBF going anymore.

Oh, don’t me wrong, I'm one of you. I certainly enjoyed it a lot more when I was younger. Now it just feels like a hassle, which is dumb because I can just walk across the road to the gabba... might go to a friend's place on the other side of the stadium next time. Can just watch the game from her balcony instead.
 
Feb 9, 2009
17,159
23,041
Footscray
AFL Club
Richmond
2. Music blaring at the game and stupid 'are you paying attention' crowd victimisation so you just can't relax
if i ever get shown on one of those, theyre getting the double bird.

im surprised the very creepy and slightly sex-abusive kisscam was ever allowed past the legal department. especially in america where they'll sue for anything. plus all the cases where they were spending minutes pressuing people to kiss their family.
 

PetterdHoisted

Norm Smith Medallist
Apr 27, 2014
6,314
9,538
AFL Club
Richmond
Pretty much this thread just sounds like a bunch of old farts grumbling because they got older and CBF going anymore.

Oh, don’t me wrong, I'm one of you. I certainly enjoyed it a lot more when I was younger. Now it just feels like a hassle, which is dumb because I can just walk across the road to the gabba... might go to a friend's place on the other side of the stadium next time. Can just watch the game from her balcony instead.
Could be age, but I think there is a negative feedback loop once the crowds start dropping away, the atmosphere gets lousier and lousier and more and more drop off.

The AFL may have cooked the golden goose with their endless meddling with the game the past few years.
 

Roksman

Premiership Player
Feb 12, 2012
4,123
26,188
AFL Club
Richmond
I don't go to sporting events to watch umpires pay trivial 50m penalties because a player sneezes.

  • Protected area 50 metre penalties
  • Stand Rule - netball on grass
  • Dissent rule (only rescinded this week).
  • unnecessary contact if a player brushes someone
  • Standard tackles are now "Dangerous tackles"

The game is like Scarecrow Tiggy where players aren't allowed to move while players just run past them.

Game is almost where they wanted it - AFLX.

Won't return until the new CEO gives us our game back - and fwiw I have barely missed a game since 2009 when I first got an AFL Silver membership.
 
Would rather just watch on Kayo. Going to games is such a hassle for a disappointing product, not to mention the cost of going.

Most games (even featuring my own team) bore me so much I end up changing over to something else before half time. The Eng vs NZ test match was better viewing than any game last weekend.

Then there's the issue of the league being a morally corrupt piece of s**t.
 
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