No TV deal?

[A ORLOV 8,628]

16 minutes ago, MattK said:

That is one way of looking at it. Another is that TV is still the best mechanism for getting your sport in front of millions of eyeballs. It is then in the gift of the promoters to put on a spectacle which makes armchair fans into pay on the gate fans.

Just look at UFC. They use TV coverage excellently, not just to showcase the live fights, but to do build-up (when was there ever a build-up programme to a speedway meeting), reality-style training series, "best of" programmes etc. The consequence, they sold out the O2 Arena in minutes when tickets went on sale earlier this month for a fight card which doesn't even contain a championship bout.

Someone in speedway needs to put together a highlights prog that a tv company might show using clips from re-run etc from the clubs and even the GP series which would be cheap tv, possibly sell re-runs videos and get people interested to a point of attending meetings if they do not live too far from a track.  

[Starman2006 2,354]

55 minutes ago, Trotter65 said:

If promoters actually promoted the sport properly in their local areas then the TV coverage could be a huge promotional tool going forward...for every person lost they should gain 2....if there is no promotion and no TV then nobody is going to even know about league speedway and it's future is far bleaker ..TV is a must..

Its down to the individual promoters to promote there club, Matt ford does it at poole, why cant others. Reguarding the TV deal, Phil rising says there is one in place. please see my post above. Its not rocket science. you need to dangle a carrot..

Edited February 16, 2018 by Starman2006

[Grand Central 2,654]

I find it quite interesting how some are using examples from other areas of sport (?) and their TV marketing success.
And yet I don't have the faintest idea of what they are talking about.
Clearly the marketing has been good enough to engage many many people who like that kind of thing ... but it has passed me by, totally.

Perhaps that shows the mountain Speedway would have to climb to be effective at getting through to folk anything like me.

I was wondering does this UFC have a UK league of system of twenty odd venues running March to October that I can attend regularly on Monday nights?
And if so, how do they go about getting all the other venues running that night filled, with (say) 1500 spectators or so, whilst one of them is also being televised Live at the same time? Their experience at making that a success may be useful here.

 

Edited February 16, 2018 by Grand Central

[Hot Shoe 58]

19 hours ago, moxey63 said:

Speedway is its own worst enemy. Season upon season we have promoters annual "We may not run next year," followed by "We're ok to run," once March arrives. It is so unprofessional.

When tracks like Coventry and Cradley, and Oxford, can fall by the wayside... all major clubs 30 years ago, there does become a time when even the most ardent of fan walks from their last meeting thinking whether it's the last they'll see, through choice or the impending bulldozers rolling in. 

Peter Oakes was correct recently, pointing out that only one club had gone out of business through financial hardship - Hull. So, reading that fact, it does make you feel that speedway's future may not be in the hands of the new brigade of fans, but on how much the land is worth that the track sits on.

 

 

 

 

I agree with a lot of that but the problem speedway has always had is that rather that what the track sits on it's survival is more to do with who owns the track.

Speedway promotions have always run season to season because unlike football and rugby clubs that mainly have traditionally owned there own grounds speedway is at the mercy of the stadium owners. The lack of investment in the sport going back decades has contributed in speedway's demise.

[Tsunami 10,219]

5 hours ago, A ORLOV said:

Someone in speedway needs to put together a highlights prog that a tv company might show using clips from re-run etc from the clubs and even the GP series which would be cheap tv, possibly sell re-runs videos and get people interested to a point of attending meetings if they do not live too far from a track.  

To my knowledge there was a serious attempt In the mid 00's through the combined efforts of the Speedway recording companies, GRT Media, Re Run, Mike Bennett, etc, to do just that, but were met with legal complications from within, and the whole project was dumped. Sad and a great opportunity to sell speedway in a cleaned up version, missing out the delays, track grading, etc and making it more presentable to a new audience.

Edited February 16, 2018 by Tsunami

[StevePark 2,780]

19 minutes ago, Tsunami said:

To my knowledge there was a serious attempt In the mid 00's through the combined efforts of the Speedway recording companies, GRT Media, Re Run, Mike Patrick, etc, to do just that, but were met with legal complications from within, and the whole project was dumped. Sad and a great opportunity to sell speedway in a cleaned up version, missing out the delays, track grading, etc and making it more presentable to a new audience.

Neil Machin (then co-promoter at Sheffield) was a great advocate for a 'Match of the Day' type highlights programme.  I can't remember why it didn't get 'off the ground,' but I wouldn't be surprised if money didn't play a part.

[Starman2006 2,354]

2 hours ago, StevePark said:

Neil Machin (then co-promoter at Sheffield) was a great advocate for a 'Match of the Day' type highlights programme.  I can't remember why it didn't get 'off the ground,' but I wouldn't be surprised if money didn't play a part.

Now that would be a brilliant idea, if someone and a couple of rider pundits can front it. Could always ask Gary Lineker..

[OveFundinFan 4,137]

1 hour ago, Starman2006 said:

Now that would be a brilliant idea, if someone and a couple of rider pundits can front it. Could always ask Gary Lineker..

You never know, he might do it for a few bags of crisps!

[ancient mariner 540]

21 minutes ago, OveFundinFan said:

You never know, he might do it for a few bags of crisps!

Plus £1.5 million per year IIRC

[Starman2006 2,354]

53 minutes ago, OveFundinFan said:

You never know, he might do it for a few bags of crisps!

Ha ha, i somehow doubt it..

[Stainlesssteelride 106]

Does speedway work on tv?    It's viewing figures are low even for a minority sport.  

[Tsunami 10,219]

23 minutes ago, Stainlesssteelride said:

Does speedway work on tv?    It's viewing figures are low even for a minority sport.  

Apparently BT were quite satisfied with the number of viewers last year.

[Hot Shoe 58]

1 hour ago, Tsunami said:

Apparently BT were quite satisfied with the number of viewers last year.

Yes because for very little outlay in terms of money they get subscribers that they wouldn't otherwise get. They need all the income they can get to pay for the contract they have with the Premier League to screen football.

[RobMcCaffery 2,752]

1 hour ago, Hot Shoe said:

Yes because for very little outlay in terms of money they get subscribers that they wouldn't otherwise get. They need all the income they can get to pay for the contract they have with the Premier League to screen football.

BT aren't the ones with the problem re the Premier League deal - that's firmly Sky's problem. 

The lesson has been learnt and the next deal will be less on both sides. BT's resources dwarf Sky's so I wouldn't be worried about their finances. They are leaving Sky to make the desperate deals and are clearly looking to ensure that future deals in all sports are financially justifiable. It looks like they've tested the BSPA this year with their initial offer. 

It is frightening that members of the BSPA still can't see the value of a TV deal. Most other minority sports would be biting BT's hand off.

But then there is the real world, the sporting world and then British Speedway's......

 

 

[steve roberts 9,242]

14 hours ago, StevePark said:

Neil Machin (then co-promoter at Sheffield) was a great advocate for a 'Match of the Day' type highlights programme.  I can't remember why it didn't get 'off the ground,' but I wouldn't be surprised if money didn't play a part.

...during the days of 'Screensport' there was a highlights/news desk programme (fronted by Rob McCaffrey) which I used to enjoy and 'guest' riders would occasionally appear in the studio.

 

Edited February 17, 2018 by steve roberts