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League turns to Magpies for advice on building big nest egg
Daniel Lane
August 27, 2006
EXCLUSIVE
THE NRL will use AFL club Collingwood as a model to cash in on fanatical supporters and rake in millions of dollars.
A meeting of marketing managers from each NRL club during the week heard a delegation from Collingwood extol the virtues of having loyal fans inject cash into the club.
Collingwood's membership base generates $8 million a year from fees with a range of memberships from "Legends", worth $715 for adults, through to "Baby Magpie" at $35.
What captured the marketing managers' attention was that the fees not only covered the $6.5 million salary cap but also left the club with a healthy amount of change.
Collingwood have a yearly turnover of more than $20 million.
The NRL plans to launch an off-season campaign to encourage fans to become paid-up club members, highlighting the fact the ticket will make them an active and integral part of their club.
The NRL wants to create a similar fan culture to that active in Melbourne, where people from the CEO to coach listen to their members.
If based on the Collingwood model, the memberships would include such things as premium seating at home games, cocktail parties, a medallion, official season guides, birthday cards, coaching clinics, a teddy bear, backpack, beanie, baby's bib, opportunities to win special prizes, a membership cap, discounts at cinemas, restaurants and even travel agencies.
However, former Sydney Swans player and Channel 10 commentator Neil Cordy warns there is much more to club memberships than asking fans to part with cash.
"The memberships won't work as they do in AFL if the NRL continues to have a floating premiership draw," he said. "The AFL draw is set in concrete at the start of the season and it takes something very major to change it because of the impact it will have on members, caterers and sponsors of a national competition.
"The set draw allows the AFL club members to plan their weekends well in advance. You can't do that in rugby league."
The NRL has been buoyed by research that shows only 30 per cent of AFL club members go to games. The evidence suggests the members are simply happy to help with a donation.
Cordy said memberships would also mean directors of rugby league clubs would be more accountable.
"Membership means participation and financial membership means a sense of ownership," he said.
"They'll expect to be involved in a lot of the processes involved in running the club."
While some AFL club memberships include voting rights for the board of directors, NRL fan memberships are unlikely to have the same privilege. However, rugby league club members (not leagues club members) have always been able to vote for their board after a three-year waiting period.
Source: The Sun-Herald
http://www.smh.com.au/news/league/le...012791464.html
just pathetic that the NRL has to go to such lengths to grow. At least I know part of the reason for crowd difference between sydney NRL teams and Melbourne AFL teams. sydney transport sucks compared to melbourne public transport. all roads and railways lead to the MCG in Melbourne but in sydney we didn't have a central stadium until Stadium Australia was completed