Jump to content
British Speedway Forum

Recommended Posts

Personally I think the EL is unsustainable in its present form, otherwise we would not be having this very discussion time in and time out. If it were then we would be discussing the number of teams that wanted to join and how we could fit them into the league instead of the number of clubs that want to leave.

 

From a purely business point of view and forgetting entertainment, number of teams, costs, entrance fees etc., the main problem is the lack of control that you have over how and when you sell your product to your market. The GP's, other FIM events, and the number of riders that compete in overseas leagues restrict your ability as a promoter to sell your product at a time that suits your customers. The GP's & World Cup have taken the prime summer weekends, the Polish league takes away Sundays and therefore in most cases Saturdays. For a lot of tracks this is prime time. I cannot imagine another business that would give its prime sites or trading times to anyone else without a huge fight. The EL has capitulated and is reaping the consequences. If they cannot compete against this then they must find another way. No GP riders, and no riders whose first commitment is to an overseas club. Speaking personally, and as an Eastbourne supporter (traditionally a weekend track), if that means PL speedway then fair enough, it's better than what we get now.

 

 

We have seen teams have prime time weekend in the Pl like Workington and Newport has it done them any good are crowds flocking to see them .....to much happens at weekends these days them day to make it prime time things hve moved on unlike some of the fans on here ( bring back one off finals golden helmet second halfs etc etc )

 

The crowds tell you l that people don't want to watch Pl and don' think t it better than what were watching now ....yet again if you could show me that Pl teams are bringing in big crowds and makeing tons of money then you may have a point but seeing that's not happening it can't be the case .

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

 

 

No this culture of clubs losing money hand over fist has got to be reversed but that won't happen if the League stays the same or drops to 8 teams which then it would get worse. Crowds are at an all time low and a big reason for that is way the EL is run - it isn't value for money and not not supporter friendly.

 

 

Yet again you forget that The El is still bringing in bigger crowds than the Pl ...as for value for money the El is much better you paying 2 or 3 more to see a much better standard the Pl is poor value in teams of how much you pay to watch it and the poor crowds reflect that .

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

The thing that annoys me most about the elite league is the lack of variety. I can see the attraction of the premier league for that reason but I agree that it is a lower standard and that means the elite league remains the preferred option. I don't know how though that it is possible to bring more variety to the el without watering down the product.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Utd made an Operating profit of £100,000,000 last season and that shows that some sports ie football teams (as in your post)can and do make money, only a stupid debt by some American has put Utd from a very wealthy to a heavily debited club

Young hyderd -It's the easest thing in the world to make £100m profit in one year is you ignore all the costs to get there in the first place

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Yet again you forget that The El is still bringing in bigger crowds than the Pl ...as for value for money the El is much better you paying 2 or 3 more to see a much better standard the Pl is poor value in teams of how much you pay to watch it and the poor crowds reflect that .

 

I think you're missing the point. It isn't about who has the biggest crowds, better riders, better stadium etc. It all about viability.

 

The facts are if you add up all the EL clubs margins and all the PL clubs margins the PL comes out better off and the PL has almost twice as many teams. That alone is what makes the PL more tempting for Ipswich. The financial difference means they they could take a hit in the numbers coming through the gate to start with. Once they start knocking in some decent home wins there will be the lost supporters tempted to have a look.

 

It was exactly the same for us at King's Lynn and I can confidently say our support has been better than it was for our last 10 years in the EL as a whole

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

To be honest if I had a business that I made 300k profit a year on, and I didnt wanna pay so much tax I think a Speedway team would be an ideal investmet for getting the tax bill down :wink:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I think you're missing the point. It isn't about who has the biggest crowds, better riders, better stadium etc. It all about viability.

 

The facts are if you add up all the EL clubs margins and all the PL clubs margins the PL comes out better off and the PL has almost twice as many teams. That alone is what makes the PL more tempting for Ipswich. The financial difference means they they could take a hit in the numbers coming through the gate to start with. Once they start knocking in some decent home wins there will be the lost supporters tempted to have a look.

 

It was exactly the same for us at King's Lynn and I can confidently say our support has been better than it was for our last 10 years in the EL as a whole

 

 

Yet again it only counts for certain teams ....i think we all argree that if Louis is to run Ippo then Pl is the place for them but under someone i maintain they could make a very good El team the same if Kl were to be in the El .

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Young hyderd -It's the easest thing in the world to make £100m profit in one year is you ignore all the costs to get there in the first place

 

They actually posted a loss. Taken from BBC News site:

 

The club's parent company, Red Football Limited, on Tuesday published financial results for the three months to 30 September that reveal turnover increased from £57.7m to £63.3m in comparison to the same three months in 2009.

 

The main reason for that is a rise in commercial revenue to £24.2m, up over 25%. It was also revealed that United's gross debt had fallen from £514.7m to £509.4m.

 

Last month, United announced a £79.6m pre tax loss for the last financial year, mainly due to one off interest and debt charges, but despite that, the club generated revenues of £278m and have more than £100m of cash reserves.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

They actually posted a loss. Taken from BBC News site:

 

The club's parent company, Red Football Limited, on Tuesday published financial results for the three months to 30 September that reveal turnover increased from £57.7m to £63.3m in comparison to the same three months in 2009.

 

The main reason for that is a rise in commercial revenue to £24.2m, up over 25%. It was also revealed that United's gross debt had fallen from £514.7m to £509.4m.

 

Last month, United announced a £79.6m pre tax loss for the last financial year, mainly due to one off interest and debt charges, but despite that, the club generated revenues of £278m and have more than £100m of cash reserves.

And just think 1% of that £100mil would save Ipswich Witches!!! :rolleyes:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Yet again you forget that The El is still bringing in bigger crowds than the Pl ...as for value for money the El is much better you paying 2 or 3 more to see a much better standard the Pl is poor value in teams of how much you pay to watch it and the poor crowds reflect that .

 

What exactly defines a better standard? Are you suggesting the Racing is better in th EL,because if you are I would think you'd be outnumbered by PL fans telling you different.Sometimes seeing so called "Top riders" also means seeing them clear off into the distance too

 

I think a read of screamers' post proves that it isn't always the case regarding crowds,only 1 EL club made a profit,in the PL the figure was way more and as for ambition to move to EL,it would be financial suicide for any team,sure there are clubs in the PL that are struggling but the established ones are all pretty certain to open their doors each year

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

What exactly defines a better standard? Are you suggesting the Racing is better in th EL,because if you are I would think you'd be outnumbered by PL fans telling you different.Sometimes seeing so called "Top riders" also means seeing them clear off into the distance too

 

I think a read of screamers' post proves that it isn't always the case regarding crowds,only 1 EL club made a profit,in the PL the figure was way more and as for ambition to move to EL,it would be financial suicide for any team,sure there are clubs in the PL that are struggling but the established ones are all pretty certain to open their doors each year

 

 

So are saying that there are better standard riders than Chris Holder Freddie l and Kenny b in the Pl ? if not then the standard is better in the El hence why more people watch it . Unlike others i understand that the racing can be good and any standard if the mix/ track/ riders is right on any given day

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

So are saying that there are better standard riders than Chris Holder Freddie l and Kenny b in the Pl ? if not then the standard is better in the El hence why more people watch it . Unlike others i understand that the racing can be good and any standard if the mix/ track/ riders is right on any given day

You`re having a right old bash on this topic orion,any body would think it`s a witchunt :wink::P

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

No this culture of clubs losing money hand over fist has got to be reversed but that won't happen if the League stays the same or drops to 8 teams which then it would get worse. Crowds are at an all time low and a big reason for that is way the EL is run - it isn't value for money and not supporter friendly.

 

Never a truer word spoken. Well said, and reflects everythign I've been trying to say for several years now.

 

Anyone who thinks otherwise ... wake up and smell the cappucino!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Young hyderd -It's the easest thing in the world to make £100m profit in one year is you ignore all the costs to get there in the first place

 

You have just gone on my Xmas card list. :D

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Guest
This topic is now closed to further replies.

×

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue. Privacy Policy