Atmosphere 2024/25

[There is a Light]

I spoke to a few West Ham fans from the ‘Save our Concessions’ group yesterday. Unsurprisingly they despise the atmosphere at their ground. Sullivan and Brady are pricing the fans out and they have a similar problem to the Etihad each week with tourists and away fans in their end.

After seeing similar moves at Tottenham, United, Forest etc, I won’t be surprised if behind closed doors, City execs are planning something similar with removal of concessions. These clubs are working together and following the same formula on how to maximise match day profits. If that means people eventually giving up on season tickets due to cost, that will just be a bonus that feeds into a longer term strategy.

Warning signs have been there for a while IMO - the obvious increase in tourists, the four year freeze on season tickets, the disgusting way members were treated for the Real Madrid semi, no tickets appearing on the exchange for big matches, hundreds showing on third party sites at inflated prices, the realisation that these are being supplied by the club, the launch of flexi gold, the end of season tickets as we’ve known them, a hotel under construction that will be filled with tourists, moves made to cancel free disabled parking etc. The list goes on and I wouldn’t put anything past them now, especially when they see other clubs doing the same.

As many have already said, atmosphere is nowhere near the top of the list of the clubs priorities. It’s sad and I can only see a real fight on our hands in future, or the things that we all hate right now will only get worse.

 

[give it to gordon]

Walked into the stadium yesterday and the PA system was horrendously loud, putting my view into context I am deaf and if it's too loud for me god knows what damage it's doing to healthy ears.

It's like the club are actively preventing fans from talking.

It really is a problem. At half time you can't chat with the person next to you it's ridiculous.

Only been to few other away grounds and their PA is no where near as loud as the Etihad.

 

[stonerblue]

To be fair, it'd likely be silent if they didn't. I think they only started it to hide embarrassment

You think?
In the olden days the away fans and the home fans would be singing at each other

 

[Jazzyblue]

Inner city Manchester has changed. Barely half of the inner city these days were born in this country (49% of Moss Side, 48% of Longsight, 49% of Ardwick were born outside Britain), and from my experiences of meeting, speaking with, working with, knowing them, most of the immigrants I come across support United and Liverpool, and even Arsenal, Chelsea, Real Madrid and Barcelona more so than City.

Polish immigrants seem to be the biggest City supporting lot, but how many come to games?

That’s another issue, the inner city have been priced out. Those Polish and other immigrant Blues and the 50% of those born in Britain who might be City fans, all from the inner city, can’t all afford to go. Football is too expensive. So there’s no football attending culture with them.

It’s a bit different where I live in Wythenshawe, where 82% were born here and it’s swarming with City fans… but many have the same issue with not being able to afford to go.

Think it’s price and availability more than anything, fella. I watched the CL final in the Vue cinema when we won and it was packed with working class and younger Mancs of all colours, as was town that night. All it is we have a relatively small ground and a high percentage of ST holders, which means the longest serving and more affluent fans will get into the ground for PL games, but they are only a cross section of our wider support. Manchester has always been a city that brings people in with roots somewhere else, and some of them will always be City fans. Moss Side, Longsight and Ardwick being immigrant areas is hardly new. Victory parades, FA Cup, some CL nights are much more reflective than the PL, but that’s a PL issue more than a City issue. I reckon I spend more time with more people in the areas you describe than most on here, and there are loads of Blues from minority backgrounds, but like most Mancs they aren’t necessarily loaded, and taking a family to a game is a big outlay.

 

[Moss Side's Finest]

It really is a problem. At half time you can't chat with the person next to you it's ridiculous.

Only been to few other away grounds and their PA is no where near as loud as the Etihad.

To be fair I think they have turned the mics down

You think?
In the olden days the away fans and the home fans would be singing at each other

Aye, I remember those days, but sadly our fanbase just isn't the same now. I suspect we'd just sit their listening to away fans singing, or doing their usual shhhh noises as we are so quiet.

 

[BamberBridgeBlue]

It's dead simple.

1. Try and be in your seat for kick-off
2. Try and be in your seat at the final whistle.
3. Try and focus on the game rather than chatting to everyone around you in between getting up to get to the bar early.
4. Try and engage in the atmosphere a little, either by joining in the odd song or at least clapping.
5. Don't turn around and frown at those doing any of the above.


If you compared going to a City game with say going to the cinema, theatre or a concert. I guarantee almost every single person would do points 1 to 3 at the cinema/theatre/concert, yet so many struggle at football games, yet complain about the cost of tickets. Also, there is supposed to be an emotional attachment between the team and fans over and above what you would expect with a cinema goer, which makes it even more weird.

First sensible response to one of my posts on the atmosphere. The club needs to facilitate some things though. An organised singing section obviously. Expedite service for food and drink at half time.

The one that annoys me is a guy on my row who arrives late to his seat, leaves early at half time, late back after half time and leaves early. He must go to the urinals three times at least during the match too. His seat is in the middle of the fucking row! If that were me I’d at least have the decency to ask the club for an aisle seat.

I don’t believe any club in this country has a great atmosphere every game though. We have a great record v West Ham and once we were 2-0 the crowd sensed it was over. Every game will have it’s nuances and creating this atmosphere will take 90 plus minutes of constant commitment from a significant number of people.

 

[jrb]

Yesterday atmosphere wasn’t great by ant stretch of the imagination, but I have heard the atmosphere worse.

SSL1 where I stand struggled to get a long and loud sequence of chants going, bar a few chants after each goal. Different chants were starting off in different parts of SSL1 again. The chants weren’t joining up. TBH there was plenty of apathy and I can’t be arsed as chanting goes on SSL1 yesterday, sadly.

I thought 111, 110, and 109 were pretty decent yesterday. They were better than SSL1. I could even hear their chants whilst SSL1 was quiet. There was plenty of good natured banter with the West Ham fans. It was a throwback to the good old days of 111, 1110, and 109, when I used to stand on 110.

Let’s hope Chelsea is a better atmosphere. As for Salford, best not go there.

 

[Jazzyblue]

I don’t believe any club in this country has a great atmosphere every game though.

This is the truth. Another truth is that it only takes a few people. If you are in a pocket where even six or seven people around are vocal and you can hear the SS, you can have a great time and great time for most of us equals great atmosphere. If you are in a pocket where the only noise is the gentle rustle of a packet of wine gums and chit chat about the cat’s hernia you will go home convinced the atmosphere was shit across the ground, even it wasn’t.

 

[dickie davies]

It really is a problem. At half time you can't chat with the person next to you it's ridiculous.

Only been to few other away grounds and their PA is no where near as loud as the Etihad.

In block 104, you can't hear the PA and if you want to know what they're talking about, such as the Joe Corrigan pitch interview, you have to read the subtitles on the big screen

 

[uwe rosler 28]

The only way fans can get the club to listen is to boycot a game have 4 or 5 stadiums around the country virtually empty. Imagine 40k empty seats at arsenal spurs west ham City rags liverpool??