British GP’s Belle Vue Fri/Sat 13th/14th June

[JoeW436]

I was at Le Mans last week so didn’t see either GP but just watched Bewleys rides when it mattered on Friday night, just brilliant.

[proud panther]

1 hour ago, THE DEAN MACHINE said:

Brilliant glad you enjoyed it and so did I watching it on tv but when it’s analysed without rose tinted glasses or as long as I’m ok then it’s all good then the reality is our premier event attracted a crowd of less than 6000 and quite frankly thst is embarrassing and if you ever want speedway to move forward out beyond it’s dwindling fan base then a new Cardiff is needed, bad racing or not, it could maybe run alongside a round at belle vue but BV is at its maximum impact on the general public and is only keeping the already converted happy, this is not anti belle vue and I’m not having a pop at anyone who went and loved it, I just care about the future of our sport and without a vision of some like posslewhite I don’t think it has one , 6000 fans at BV at its best  is 13,000 down on Cardiff at its worst 

Think we both know speedway isn't likely to move forward, as you put it. That's probably why I'm happy to watch a decent meeting, despite a very amateurish presentation.

[THE DEAN MACHINE]

The first Cardiff GP the attendance was around 40,000 up from the previous year at Brandon Coventry which was around 12,000 and stayed around 40,000 for about 10 years,why ? Because there was a buzz about it, it had a sense of occasion, it was the new kid on the block and we all know not one person there went for the racing as more often than not it was crap and the track was more often than not awful but it didn’t matter and every year we saw people who hadn’t been to speedway for years turning up  and it was the same for the Toruń and Prague GP, the place was buzzing with Brits of which many hadn’t been to speedway for years but had heard of the great time British fans were having through mates and went over there, BV is fantastic we all know that and they were the best GPs for racing but as I said at the start of all this it didn’t attract me to go because it felt like just another meeting and not the bombastic all guns blazing social event that it should be and Cardiff for the first 10 years was, which when imo the circus should of moved to a new town but it didn’t and became stale, a new city venue would give a boost to the GP which I think it needs but if discovery think BV every British GP then the sport is done for because this  tiny bubble that BV has inflated will burst, there is no easy answer but whatever that answer is BV in its current guise ain’t it 

[1 valve]

14 hours ago, mikebv said:

You have zero chance of making a London GP pay..

You will be talking circa half a million for rental of the stadium, and the riders, mechanics, and FIM "top brass" hotel costs..

The sport in the UK gets barely 20,000 a week if every track ran a meeting..

Wembley was over forty years ago with several tracks in London, and there were well over 150,000 a week attending speedway nationally back then..

London was also a very different place to live, ethnicity wise...

Who is the Albanian and Somalian No 1?

And, if some baulked at the Cardiff hotel prices, London's will be, at best, the same..

The sport in the UK, (without radical change), is beyond saving, given the constant erosion of support over the past two decades, and the constant increases in admission which bust inflation..

A London GP, even if successful, (it has no chance of being so) will make zero positive difference number wise, to the 20,000, and dropping, that attend each week...

Anyone got half a million to spend on a London GP? If so, send me the money and I will do the rest...

With a professional promotion staging of the event, a London GP would have a great chance of succeeding. 
A few things to consider.
The London Stadium is in Queen Elizabeth Park which those who have been there know it would be a perfect venue to hold the fans zone and more similar attractions. 
The cost of "hiring" the stadium for a week is circa £180k - £400k  all food and drink is licensed so no revenue from that source.
There would be the cost of laying a temporary track, which because the stadium can accommodate an athletics track could be much larger than Cardiff and closer to that at the NSS 
Dates would need carefully sorting given the requirement of the resident football club.
 London holds a significant attraction for visitors from both home and abroad being the third highest visited capital in the world As such tour operators from all speedway nations would jump at the chance to create packages to London.
An anticipated attendance of 40,000 for a summer meeting would be on the conservative side and additional revenues could be created from holding SGP2 meeting the day previous - the stadium holds 60,000 and the athletics meeting being held on the 19th July is sold out
Any sporting event held in London attracting 40k + attendance is a magnet for sponsors especially if it is a one off & TV coverage is planned. Revenues from title and other sponsorship packages would comfortably cover stadium costs.
I started this post with "With a professional promotion staging of the event" & this is an issue.
Unfortunately whilst many folk involved in UK speedway understand the sport, they appear not have similar levels of knowledge or means/contacts to successfully promote an event of magnitude. That said, third party independent sports promotion companies can help. And Benfield Sports did a fantastic job of realising the vision which became Cardiff GP. 
  

Edited Wednesday at 09:47 AM by 1 valve

[SpeedwayJoe]

I agree with you 1valve, the London Stadium would be perfect.  Stratford International is only 7mins away from St Pancras and Kings Cross stations by HS1.  The Olympic park would make a great setting for a fan zone.

Last year the London Stadium also held baseball as well as athletics where the lower tier had to be reconfigured, so it can be done.

[THE DEAN MACHINE]

One thing I absolutely despise but is an absolute must for the promotion of any event is free tickets to social media influencers, I know half of the crowd on here being of a certain age have just googled what they are, they really are lazy narcissistic layabouts but the fact is the youth of today buy into their whatever it is that they do, for the price of a ticket you get publicity you can’t get anywhere else, I know other sports and events use it to great success, the kids see the hero 😂 at these events and want to go because if it’s good enough for their hero it’s good enough for them and they want to be like them, as I’ve said I despise these waste of life muppets, I know they are a product of today’s society but they do have one good purpose and we like other events need to use them 

[THE DEAN MACHINE]

4 minutes ago, SpeedwayJoe said:

I agree with you 1valve, the London Stadium would be perfect.  Stratford International is only 7mins away from St Pancras and Kings Cross stations by HS1.  The Olympic park would make a great setting for a fan zone.

Last year the London Stadium also held baseball as well as athletics where the lower tier had to be reconfigured, so it can be done.

Not against a London GP but most of the remaining speedway fan base is based in the north so a GP based in the north would be a better option, London has changed from the cockney knees up type of city it used to be and not in a good way either, working there I’ve seen major crime in broad daylight and I’ve also watched the police do nothing about it because they don’t rule the streets, I would still go if one was in London but it won’t be Wembley 81 

[DJC]

36 minutes ago, THE DEAN MACHINE said:

One thing I absolutely despise but is an absolute must for the promotion of any event is free tickets to social media influencers, I know half of the crowd on here being of a certain age have just googled what they are, they really are lazy narcissistic layabouts but the fact is the youth of today buy into their whatever it is that they do, for the price of a ticket you get publicity you can’t get anywhere else, I know other sports and events use it to great success, the kids see the hero 😂 at these events and want to go because if it’s good enough for their hero it’s good enough for them and they want to be like them, as I’ve said I despise these waste of life muppets, I know they are a product of today’s society but they do have one good purpose and we like other events need to use them 

I've always wondered why Tai hasn't fully got into this side of marketing. He's tried it himself but getting someone that would also do Soccer Aid (which is exactly what you've mentioned above now, gone are the Bradley Walsh vs Maradona days) involved in a GP for a vlog, get them on the centre green and in the pits when things get heated would be incredible coverage and out reach

[longmeadow]

Fourty thousand at the olympic stadium?. Couldnt get twelve thousand last week over two nights

[IainB]

23 minutes ago, longmeadow said:

Fourty thousand at the olympic stadium?. Couldnt get twelve thousand last week over two nights

But could get 20,000 the year before at a stale Cardiff.

If it returns to Manchester next year on a single night, cheapest tickets could be nudging £100

[therefused]

1 hour ago, THE DEAN MACHINE said:

Not against a London GP but most of the remaining speedway fan base is based in the north so a GP based in the north would be a better option, London has changed from the cockney knees up type of city it used to be and not in a good way either, working there I’ve seen major crime in broad daylight and I’ve also watched the police do nothing about it because they don’t rule the streets, I would still go if one was in London but it won’t be Wembley 81 

London is more accessible for everyone in the country though, a lot more than the north east. 

[norbold]

2 hours ago, THE DEAN MACHINE said:

Not against a London GP but most of the remaining speedway fan base is based in the north so a GP based in the north would be a better option, London has changed from the cockney knees up type of city it used to be and not in a good way either, working there I’ve seen major crime in broad daylight and I’ve also watched the police do nothing about it because they don’t rule the streets, I would still go if one was in London but it won’t be Wembley 81 

So, are you saying that London is so dangerous no-one goes to big events there any more? Maybe the FA Cup Final should be moved to Newcastle. Maybe Arsenal, Spurs, Chelsea and West Ham should relocate? Cancel the Test matches at Lords and The Oval? 

[therefused]

For what its worth, and a sample size of one, i would go to a GP in London but Cardiff returning doesnt interest me at all. 

[Hackett]

1 hour ago, IainB said:

But could get 20,000 the year before at a stale Cardiff.

If it returns to Manchester next year on a single night, cheapest tickets could be nudging £100

Imagine NSS will be used again next season for a SGP as long as the costs of hosting don't go up significantly. Rather than the 2x SGP could well imagine the FIM could look at SGP2 / SGP3 on the Fri. 

WBD Sports are not going to consider Stadium venues in London due to cost. Speedway Star mentioned that it could be the last SGP at Warsaw this season due to cost. WBD will look to maximise opportunity at speedway stadiums rather than new venues. The audience both at the venue and on TV doesn't warrant it. 

[THE DEAN MACHINE]

2 hours ago, therefused said:

London is more accessible for everyone in the country though, a lot more than the north east. 

Contrary to belief and myths the north has discovered electricity and does have a really good transport network and is no more a problem to get places than London,putting it plainly London is a sh**hole these days and nobody wants to go there anymore, while staying in London by St Paul’s cathedral, me and the Mrs have never felt so scared for our lives as we did on that trip and we haven’t been back since and I even gave up work inside the inner A406 because the whole place is just hassle and gridlock 

[THE DEAN MACHINE]

1 hour ago, therefused said:

For what its worth, and a sample size of one, i would go to a GP in London but Cardiff returning doesnt interest me at all. 

Same here, Cardiff had run it’s corse around 2014 

[THE DEAN MACHINE]

1 hour ago, norbold said:

So, are you saying that London is so dangerous no-one goes to big events there any more? Maybe the FA Cup Final should be moved to Newcastle. Maybe Arsenal, Spurs, Chelsea and West Ham should relocate? Cancel the Test matches at Lords and The Oval? 

No im saying British people don’t visit the Capitol like they used too, foreign tourist do because they still believe the dream,I have been to big events there, I went to see Guns n roses at West Ham stadium 70,000 people coming out into what used to be hackney was an eye opener to anyone who was there, all places have there crime, I went to Hamden park to see Bon jovi and you get warned by the police not to leave the stadium just as a couple to stay in groups because of the kids targeting easy pickings but London has become a hell hole 

Edited Wednesday at 02:28 PM by THE DEAN MACHINE

[1 valve]

3 hours ago, longmeadow said:

Fourty thousand at the olympic stadium?. Couldnt get twelve thousand last week over two nights

Actually there was more like 5500 folk attended as many went to both Friday & Saturday which just about maxed out the venue. 
 

[1 valve]

23 minutes ago, THE DEAN MACHINE said:

No im saying British people don’t visit the Capitol like they used too, foreign tourist do because they still believe the dream,

The tourist board report around 12 million UK residents visited London last year on day and short stay visits. This figure was the best since before Covid hit and forecast from hoteliers and the like are predicting an increase for 2025 resulting in the highest number ever of domestic visitors to London. 
Apart from Singapore and a few other "small" capitals dotted around the world all large city's (including Manchester & Cardiff) suffer from a level of undesirable behavior and frankly this has been the case for many years. 
Still no reason to doubt that a well promoted speedway GP event held in London would be nothing more than a total success.  
 

[THE DEAN MACHINE]

16 minutes ago, 1 valve said: 
Still no reason to doubt that a well promoted speedway GP event held in London would be nothing more than a total success.  
 

I agree and I would go, it just wouldn’t be my first choice of destination