Etihad Atmosphere - 2021/22

[Northblue]

Genuinely curious, as I might have a small chance of relaying this to someone at the club...what does everyone think all the problems are currently re the matchday experience, the issues around attendance/atmosphere etc are and what would you do about them? All suggestions welcome.

I don't know what the main issue is or whether it's even anything the club can control (If people just cba for example) but one thing that could help (if only a little) is the service at halftime.

It's very noticeable that half the stadium aren't back in their seats until the 50th minute or so which gives a very dull start to the second half where in some cases we might need that energy.

I'm not saying a pint or chips are a necessity at HT but clearly a lot of people don't mind missing a couple of mins of the game to queue for one - I'm guilty myself of queuing for 15 mins and thinking "I've got this far, may as well see it out" but started binning it off the past couple of games, would be nice if we could still queue up and get served in time to be back in our seats. I think that could help.

 

[Manc Born & Bred]

Genuinely curious, as I might have a small chance of relaying this to someone at the club...what does everyone think all the problems are currently re the matchday experience, the issues around attendance/atmosphere etc are and what would you do about them? All suggestions welcome.

You can start with all the nonsense with digital tickets, transferring them and even buying them via the website. In fact the the website needs a major overhaul to be more fan and user friendly. More staff outside to enable queues to go down quicker, better parking would also help. Why am I queuing to get into a car park which uses ANPR? It's because the steward manning the entrance wants to see proof that we have paid in advance. But when cars see a sign for a car park and don't know you have to pay in advance they slow everyone down so maybe huge signs telling people this basic info would help and then we don't get queues. Also having stewards who are meant to direct cars where to park would do their job better if they weren't on their phones. Not even inside the ground yet!

 

[carlosthejackal]

Genuinely curious, as I might have a small chance of relaying this to someone at the club...what does everyone think all the problems are currently re the matchday experience, the issues around attendance/atmosphere etc are and what would you do about them? All suggestions welcome.

The atmosphere is not really any different than any other premier league club , all seater stadiums have killed it throughout the league , hopefully the safe standing experiment will improve it .
Ticket prices are a big issue , we are still mainly a working class fan base , the cost of kids tickets is especially scandalous.
I’ve zero interest in the match day experience in relation to entertainment or City square , obviously some enjoy it and good luck to them .
Very little if any consultation about mobile tickets .
Queues to get in are a joke, decided to arrive late for the kick off rather than spend twenty minutes queuing.

 

[Cheadle_hulmeBlue]

Genuinely curious, as I might have a small chance of relaying this to someone at the club...what does everyone think all the problems are currently re the matchday experience, the issues around attendance/atmosphere etc are and what would you do about them? All suggestions welcome.

the main issue for me is that we don’t have a proper home end. We have a few blocks separated by away fans.

one of the few clubs without an actual home end.

My suggestion: when we expand or even before that, we need to add rail seating into the north stand and create a home end there. Move the family stand to another area.

we could even build a large second tier in the north stand and create a home end there. We’ve gotta do something as what we have now is rubbish

 

[Didsbury Dave]

Genuinely curious, as I might have a small chance of relaying this to someone at the club...what does everyone think all the problems are currently re the matchday experience, the issues around attendance/atmosphere etc are and what would you do about them? All suggestions welcome.

The biggest issue facing the club is the one that they are ignoring: the atmosphere.

Young fans are as interested in the atmosphere and the singing and the noise in the stadium as they are the football. It is exciting to them. It is the reason they decide to become a fan: they want to be part of that "tribe". If the club make the effort to improve this, and there are readily available solutions, they will increase the matchday attendances and fanbase. Lots of old fans have also stopped attending for this reason.

To create a real big match atmosphere the whole ground need to make noise. Basic human psychology means that if people around them are making noise, they will too. Nobody wants to be the only person in the whole block singing. The layout of the ground and the singing sections are all wrong to achieve this aim. If the singing comes from one "leading" source, one area, more people will join in more because it is louder and it will spread both ways at once around the stadium instead of just one. Currently, noisy away supporters mean that both singing sessions cannot hear each other so do not sing together and often sing two seperate songs at once. the rest of the stadium will NEVER join in when this happens.

The club missed an enormous opportunity to make this change when the South Stand Top tier opened. That should have been called The New Kippax and cheap season tickets offered to fans in the existing singing areas. But there must be other ways to achieve this. The most obvious of course would be to relocate the away fans into the east stand and move the fans in the corner singing area into the south stand (almost a straight swap) so they are next to the current vocal supporters. But there are other potential solutions which can't be hard to find.

Ultimately efforts to improve the atmosphere by creating one single singing area will increase the fanbase by improving the matchday experience for everybody and will of course help the team. It is ridiculous that these relatively simple steps to change the club's culture have never been taken.

 

[bobbyowenquiff]

Genuinely curious, as I might have a small chance of relaying this to someone at the club...what does everyone think all the problems are currently re the matchday experience, the issues around attendance/atmosphere etc are and what would you do about them? All suggestions welcome.

Thanks. The more feedback the better. I enjoyed your Goater interview on Saturday by the way. The reason less people were watching though on such a nice day was that it was impossible to get served with food and drink by the stage (not even water) because the service was terrible with long queues.

My ideas are:

1. Better public transport (especially night games) The club, TFM and City Council need to sort this out, starting with shuttle buses into town down bus only lanes, taxi rank, more trains if possible.

2.The experience in the ground in my block (East Stand Upper) is dire. No chance of ever getting food and drink in the stadium because of crap service (been like this for 10 years now)

3. Creative ticket pricing as we have done in the past like the Hamburg game

4.Clearer information about purchasing tickets. It is almost impossible for walk-up fans to get tickets. Why not have a stand-by system as they do at other grounds. The website is a disaster. It should be the primary source of ticket info along with social media

5.More leadership from the club. Fans have been demoralised by the negative media campaign. We need to come out fighting in public. Khaldoon should speak more and defend our business model.

 

[stan bowles]

The biggest issue facing the club is the one that they are ignoring: the atmosphere.

Young fans are as interested in the atmosphere and the singing and the noise in the stadium as they are the football. It is exciting to them. It is the reason they decide to become a fan: they want to be part of that "tribe". If the club make the effort to improve this, and there are readily available solutions, they will increase the matchday attendances and fanbase. Lots of old fans have also stopped attending for this reason.

To create a real big match atmosphere the whole ground need to make noise. Basic human psychology means that if people around them are making noise, they will too. Nobody wants to be the only person in the whole block singing. The layout of the ground and the singing sections are all wrong to achieve this aim. If the singing comes from one "leading" source, one area, more people will join in more because it is louder and it will spread both ways at once around the stadium instead of just one. Currently, noisy away supporters mean that both singing sessions cannot hear each other so do not sing together and often sing two seperate songs at once. the rest of the stadium will NEVER join in when this happens.

The club missed an enormous opportunity to make this change when the South Stand Top tier opened. That should have been called The New Kippax and cheap season tickets offered to fans in the existing singing areas. But there must be other ways to achieve this. The most obvious of course would be to relocate the away fans into the east stand and move the fans in the corner singing area into the south stand (almost a straight swap) so they are next to the current vocal supporters. But there are other potential solutions which can't be hard to find.

Ultimately efforts to improve the atmosphere by creating one single singing area will increase the fanbase by improving the matchday experience for everybody and will of course help the team. It is ridiculous that these relatively simple steps to change the club's culture have never been taken.

Great point about the siting of the away fans killing the atmosphere.

 

[Tarzan41]

I don't know what the main issue is or whether it's even anything the club can control (If people just cba for example) but one thing that could help (if only a little) is the service at halftime.

It's very noticeable that half the stadium aren't back in their seats until the 50th minute or so which gives a very dull start to the second half where in some cases we might need that energy.

I'm not saying a pint or chips are a necessity at HT but clearly a lot of people don't mind missing a couple of mins of the game to queue for one - I'm guilty myself of queuing for 15 mins and thinking "I've got this far, may as well see it out" but started binning it off the past couple of games, would be nice if we could still queue up and get served in time to be back in our seats. I think that could help.

I agree. We’ve always taken turns to go on 37 minutes to get beers for the rest. Now you’ve got to start queuing at 30 and so we’ve sacked it after the first shambles this season. May not be much but that’s £20 per match from our group that City won’t ever see. The staff, the management and the product offered are not fit for purpose. This compounds the ticketing issues as there is zero incentive to get in early.

 

[Corky]

City fans all around the stadium in 40.5 blocks but the 1.5 blocks for away fans kills the atmosphere? Not a chance.

Cheapest seats are on level 3 will never be heard.

Fans too bothered about watching the game they paid to see.

The fans who are really worried about how it looks on TV not going to the game themselves.

Burton away showed it isn't standing that is the problem, that was the worst atmosphere ever, with away fans in the seats making more noise.

Digital tickets forced on the fanbase at the worst possible time is the final straw for some people, and the club not being contactable to sort out any issues.

 

[Keeper!]

Genuinely curious, as I might have a small chance of relaying this to someone at the club...what does everyone think all the problems are currently re the matchday experience, the issues around attendance/atmosphere etc are and what would you do about them? All suggestions welcome.

Pay on the gate, at least electronically and sit where you want, ideally be able to sit with your mates/family, not been able to do so puts a lot of people off attending.


A lot of people simply don't have time to be searching for tickets etc.

Wednesday night pay on the gate and I think you would have had a lot of causal fans turning up to attend.

 

[Marvin]

Genuinely curious, as I might have a small chance of relaying this to someone at the club...what does everyone think all the problems are currently re the matchday experience, the issues around attendance/atmosphere etc are and what would you do about them? All suggestions welcome.

I saw you on the big screen at half-time doing a half-time show but I couldn't hear what you were saying...the noise through the speakers is loud but indistinct. Not really too bothered about that!

Well done on your personal success. My thoughts:

• I was very annoyed with the comment by Kevin Parker who I think let the fans and Pep down by providing an open goal for the media. They don't need a 2nd invitation. I think City fans have become a bit complacent and we just sit back and soak the goals up, and can be quiet. The hunger and nervous clamour for success has gone. There is little to be done about that.
  
  
• I enjoy very much going to City and love going to the game, the build-up during the week, and the day itself. I love it. I have always loved it.
  
  
• I think small away numbers damage the atmosphere but what can you do about that?
  
  
• I think fans can sense already that this is not going to be our season and hence some optimism has faded. Key players out injured and a car crash of a transfer window didn't help (we had loads of money, and didn't spend it on areas of the team that were weak, so fans sense that we're going to struggle a little).
  
  
• I would like to know what's happening with ground development. It's exciting when new developments are happening and it creates a good vibe of a growing club.
  
  
• My match-day experience is partly online. Discussing the game online. It has got very frustrating reading the absolute nonsense from other fans and journalists about City. I don't engage with them any more as I refuse to give them my money but it upsets me when I see my club disparaged in the media. I would like to know what the executive of City think about the media coverage. I don't like the way that City just seem to take this all the time. I am an Arab, and I like that City are owned by Sheikh Mansour but it hurts when the Arab world is continually attacked in the media. it's hard to accept. Why do we have to just sit in silence and accept racist assumptions all the time? This is probably a very personal view, and not common?
  
  
• I would like City to bring the web-site in house. If City incorporated a message board and fan activity including videos, I'd use that rather than this City. They should learn to engage fans more. It's two way not one way. They should also realise that many fans are very creative and they should harness the fans more rather than see them as customers from whom they can take money.
  
  
• You could get reporting of the women's team, and academy sides from fans a bit like what Cheesy does but let City fans make the content and it can be controlled by an editor. Basically the material that you do, and City Xtra but do it under the banner of the club with some freedom.

 

[Marvin]

City fans all around the stadium in 40.5 blocks but the 1.5 blocks for away fans kills the atmosphere? Not a chance.

Cheapest seats are on level 3 will never be heard.

Fans too bothered about watching the game they paid to see.

The fans who are really worried about how it looks on TV not going to the game themselves.

Burton away showed it isn't standing that is the problem, that was the worst atmosphere ever, with away fans in the seats making more noise.

Digital tickets forced on the fanbase at the worst possible time is the final straw for some people, and the club not being contactable to sort out any issues.

These are your views and completely valid as such. I had to move my seat at the start of the season and so I have met new fans. The one thing we all talked about was the mobile ticketing. It was perceived negatively and yet everyone got in and no one had any problems themselves.

IMO the mobile ticketing is far from the disaster that some fans think it is. Perhaps they could do a better job in communicating through the Summer what is going to happen and what this potential service can do. What you can do with Google Pay etc. Instead it comes out of the blue and it feels a bit panicky.

 

[Marvin]

Pay on the gate, at least electronically and sit where you want, ideally be able to sit with your mates/family, not been able to do so puts a lot of people off attending.


A lot of people simply don't have time to be searching for tickets etc.

Wednesday night pay on the gate and I think you would have had a lot of causal fans turning up to attend.

That's a good point. Problem with seating as opposed to standing is that you can't just find a place together. I don't think anyone has ever found a solution to getting fans together. Once you sell 90% of the tickets you are left with single seats.

 

[Keeper!]

That's a good point. Problem with seating as opposed to standing is that you can't just find a place together. I don't think anyone has ever found a solution to getting fans together. Once you sell 90% of the tickets you are left with single seats.

Games like Wednesday and it's not an issue, have areas of the ground available for pay on the gate for the times when we struggle to sell.

 

[Man_City_Loyal]

Before this takeover our club was universally accepted as having a huge, loyal and humorous support base, so why does the media and even our very own club find it ok to now attack it at every opportunity?

Yep, many saw us a team to check on.

Now because of a few empty seats (they can't attack us for our recent success) that's all now forgotten what we were thought of as fans back in the day.

Even funnier coming from fans of clubs we would outnumber in past games

 

[Corky]

These are your views and completely valid as such. I had to move my seat at the start of the season and so I have met new fans. The one thing we all talked about was the mobile ticketing. It was perceived negatively and yet everyone got in and no one had any problems themselves.

IMO the mobile ticketing is far from the disaster that some fans think it is. Perhaps they could do a better job in communicating through the Summer what is going to happen and what this potential service can do. What you can do with Google Pay etc. Instead it comes out of the blue and it feels a bit panicky.

I was asked about getting tickets for a relative and kids for tomorrow, I said I could buy them but had no means of getting them to them as they default to mobile tickets and not paper. I offered them my login details to do it themselves and they decline. Not sure how many other people don't bother with one more hurdle?

 

[pace89]

Genuinely curious, as I might have a small chance of relaying this to someone at the club...what does everyone think all the problems are currently re the matchday experience, the issues around attendance/atmosphere etc are and what would you do about them? All suggestions welcome.

IMHO, fundamentally it comes down to two things:

1. Price of tickets
2. Ease of purchasing

Pricing across the board is fundamentally too expensive for a club with a working class fan base based in City which has some of the poorest local authority areas in the EU+UK. We don't have generations of supporters from all over the UK/world to take up the slack but the pricing doesn't recognise this at all. It needs to be significantly cheaper which requires a fundamental change in concept from the club.

The way tickets are sold is akin to booking a holiday. Even the terminology they use is 'booking' rather than buying. It's just another indication that they club think they are selling an 'experience' to a mythical consumer invented by marketing consultants rather than selling tickets to their supporters. The club have created an approach designed to cater to the supporter they wish they had and not the ones they do have.

Watching City should be cheap and easy but's expensive and complicated.

In combination selling an expensive product in a complicated and convoluted way changes the experience of watching City. Instead of participating in City's success we are simply an audience in receipt of light entertainment. The passion is diluted, and having parted with so much cash we expect to be entertained to the same standard every week.

There are multiple other reasons you could look to. The architecture of the stadium, the layout of supporters, the lack of a single end, poor transport, complacency amongst an ageing fanbase that has a sense of entitlements having put up with the 80s 90s and 2000s, but all these things would be mitigated (if not resolved) by cheap tickets made easily available.

The reason the Hamburg game was so memorable wasn't just that the tickets cost £5, it was because they were sold on a first come first served basis - no City card of whatever it's called these days, just pay £5 and watch the game.

 

[Marvin]

I was asked about getting tickets for a relative and kids for tomorrow, I said I could buy them but had no means of getting them to them as they default to mobile tickets and not paper. I offered them my login details to do it themselves and they decline. Not sure how many other people don't bother with one more hurdle?

without trying it for myself, it feels like mobile / electronic tickets should be easier and much quicker than paper tickets. You can transfer files electronically but paper you need to go with it.

Long term this will surely get a lot easier and better.

 

[ONTHERUNWITHTHAKSIN]

Genuinely curious, as I might have a small chance of relaying this to someone at the club...what does everyone think all the problems are currently re the matchday experience, the issues around attendance/atmosphere etc are and what would you do about them? All suggestions welcome.

Sit in SS2 and had to constantly ask the stewards to move or sit down as they were constantly blocking the view.

They even told me that if i didn't sit down i would be reported!!!!

Getting away from the stadium is a massive issue, I live about 30min away and it took me 1hour 45min to get home in car.

Maybe if they had Park and ride South of the City centre it would relieve the bottle neck of traffic or more carriages on the Metro

The speaker system in the ground is too loud and to generate an atmosphere you need the crowd to generate their own chants not some over the top music.

 

[Keeper!]

Genuinely curious, as I might have a small chance of relaying this to someone at the club...what does everyone think all the problems are currently re the matchday experience, the issues around attendance/atmosphere etc are and what would you do about them? All suggestions welcome.

Tell the club to put a stop to the lies and anti propaganda in the UK media.

The club are looking increasingly weak , valid criticism I have no problem with at all, but lies, slander and libel need addressing by MCFC, it's long overdue.

It's long over due that the genuine fans of this club heard from the CEO, tickets, pricing, ground expansion, media, supporter services all need some sort of modification and don't get me started on blue shorts ;)