Fans need an extra incentive

It might be the most popular sport in the world, but it isn’t always easy to get supporters through the turnstiles to attend games.

Fellow Extratime columnist Eamon Zayed recently opined that Airtricity League attendances should hit an upward curve during the summer months and let’s hope that is the case.

Attendances have increased since the FAI took over the running of the league in 2006, but replicating the numbers that brought about a boom in the domestic game many decades ago is not an easy feat to achieve.

Part of the problem behind getting fans hooked on Airtricity League football is the lack of entertainment that is provided within the aged facilities that many clubs call home.

Okay, the quality of football on the pitch should be the main attraction (and normally it is for the bulk of fans who turn up), but the modern-day supporter wants a lot more if they are to consistently turn up to watch their preferred team in action.

Having a Leo Burdock’s van tucked away in the corner or watching two Under-8 sides chase a football around at half-time just doesn’t appeal to the type of fans who will happily snap up the latest merchandise of an English Premier League team that they may never see play live.

Some might say that those are not the type of people that the league should be targeting, but they are. And so too are families. Making an Airtricity League match into an event is the best way to bring new fans in. But how do you do that?

First of all, the league needs to be better marketed. The way things currently are - to be involved with the domestic game is like being part of some secret society. Get it out in the open when games are on by slipping family match-day coupons through the letterboxes of homes, pasting posters on bus stops and train stations and setting up more events that help turn players into recognisable figures.

Once fans do find their way to the ground, then clubs should be doing all that they can to welcome them in and provide reasons for them to return for the next fixture. Obviously, facilities may have a huge part in this with Tallaght Stadium always going to be more of a draw than Jackman Park, but this is something that the FAI are aware of and have previously stated that they want to upgrade every ground in the league.

Modernising each ground will take some time, but improving the match-day entertainment can be done now. When in the United States not so long ago, this column was amazed at how the pre-game and half-time periods were used so effectively in other sports.

From t-shirts being fired into the crowd to mascots keeping kids amused to various on-field competitions taking place and a wide selection of food stalls open, it had something for everyone and built up the excitement ahead of kick-off and the second-half.

Not all of the initiatives that work in American sports will translate to a Friday night in Ireland, but the effort needs to be made to help turn each game night into an event that people want to be a part of. It is time that clubs started to generate decent ideas that will give potential fans an extra incentive to turn up regularly to Airtricity League games.