You're right it's not necessarily just nostalgia, romanticisation of prior eras is a big part of it too...
Again, you're implying a longing for things of the past in general is my primary reason for liking designs. I like the designs for what they are, not necessarily the era. You're still trying to jam a square peg into a round hole. There are plenty of modern examples of great design, particularly in other sports, that I wish NRL clubs would take inspiration from.
What's subjectively ugly to you is subjectively a masterpiece to somebody else in the world... So just because you find it an ugly design doesn't mean that it is an ugly design, and if the clubs trashed every jersey that doesn't fit the narrow definitions of a good jersey on here then they'd be throwing away basically every design every created apart from an extremely select few that are kosher, and throwing away the opportunity of creating a new masterpiece.
If Van Gogh had stopped painting after only a few pieces were completed cause everybody in his time hated his paintings then the world would be without some of the greatest paintings of all time, and if the Raiders had scrapped their involvement in the Marvel jerseys because people on here and/or people with similar views thought that it was "tacky", "not traditional enough", and "doesn't fit the teams brand" as they see it, then they never would have created the first Hulk jersey which is the Raiders highest selling jersey of all time.
Had you taken the word "subjective" into greater consideration over the word "ugly", it would have saved you two paragraphs of stating the obvious. If I can't have a subjective opinion on RL design in this forum then I give up.
In group preference bias would completely taint the sample, let alone the fact that the sample size of your friends is insignificant.
I'd also bet that once you boil the subject down to whether or not the jersey designs turn them off supporting a club or going to games that all most all would say no it's not that much of an issue.
Most family/friends know I do this sort of stuff but I don't usually bring it up in conversation, so its normally someone else broaching the subject. The fact that they know what I do probably skews their opinion on whether its important or not. And no, I don't think what a team wears is the deciding factor in whether most people continue to support their team. So I agree on those two points.
By that same line of thinking however, I don't think one-off promotional designs are necessarily creating new fans or increasing fan engagement to the extent that massive sale figures suggest. Sure, there's probably a decent percentage of kids that cotton onto a club as a result, but how many would have eventually done so as they were brought up in the culture (i.e. what's the net benefit)? How many of those kids would just jump to the next team that wins a premiership a few years down the track or just switch sports entirely?
@M2D2 : If you weren't already a keen RL fan, would you have jumped on a team as an adult because they released a Marvel jersey or would you have bought the jersey as a Marvel fan without significantly increasing you engagement with the sport? Would it be unreasonable to assume some adult Marvel fans would buy multiple team's jerseys because they like those superheroes but not watch or support those teams?
The main benefit of this initiative appears to be great merch sales (good for business), a bit of publicity for a couple of weeks a year (which drives merch sales) on top of some free advertising (fans walking around in Marvel gear), and the very occasional new fan. The negatives, to me, are that the club's brand is diluted and that the NRL may be perceived as willing to bend over for any brand bigger than theirs and unable to stand on its own two feet (which may drive fans and sponsors away, keep in mind that this is opinion and I don't need to be reminded as such). The benefits just don't outweigh the potential negatives in my opinion, maybe they do in the short term but not long term.
Not dismissing their opinions, just pointing out why their opinions are infinitely subjective and at the end of the day not very helpful, if you don't like it that's fine don't buy it or wear it, but don't at the same time suggest that somebody who does like it and does buy it is wrong and/or stupid, not saying that you yourself have done that, but it does happen all the time especially on here, and especially when a gimmick jersey is the talking point of the time...
I get it, people don't like to be dismissed for their opinions. I've also heard a number of times that I should shut my mouth with regards to merchandising and marketing and stick to my day job (which has nothing to do with design, by the way) so the air of exclusivity doesn't just come from the design purists but also from the other side of the fence as well. I value their opinion as they know more than I do on these subjects but it would be nice to not be shut down every time I say something wrong, just because I don't work in these fields, and rather engage me in proper discussion as you have. But its just the nature of the thread to have strong opinions and ultimately I'm glad its here otherwise I'm resigned to the even smaller echo chamber of my website and I wouldn't have as great an opportunity to be convinced to see through my own biases.
for clubs as well as gain coverage with promotional opportunities for clubs.
