Tri-Nations Test - TV Ratings

[strong_latte]

It's unfortunate that the average league fan can't be hood winked like our Union cousins who turn up to just about anything and everything with the word International in it.

Don't be so sure... I went to the Springboks test in sydney this year and it only managed 60,000! While that doesn't sound bad, believe me, for the self conscious elbow patch brigade at the ARU IT IS! The wallabies were playing a TOP international team and also a feirce and hated rival!! The fact that the ground didn't sell out at least a week before the game seems to show that Sydney siders are getting lazy in their support...

 

[Bengal]

Yep...that's why the words 'just about' are before anything and everything...

However,I take your point

 

[ali]

I got $30 (odd) seats for Lang Park. To get the same view at Telstra I'd have to pay double. That's pretty ordinary. I'm an above average international fan but I wouldn't pay $60 for a ticket. If I were an rl fan but not overly fussed by internationals and I had to take my whole family even $20 for a crap seat would be steep. The game wasn't promoted well but enough people knew it was on that half a million people in the host city watched on telly. While 28,000 went that half a million people obviously weren't prepared to spend that money to go to the game either. If I thought the ARL would make more money out of charging high prices it wouldn't be so bad - but they probably don't make more because it turns so many away. And I wouldn't mind them making more money if they put it all back into international development - but it's highly doubtful they would.

The game was hard to market. There was no anticipation of a contest. I'd say a lot of club fans tuned in with a passing interest to see how there players were going. That loss, and the addition of NZ's two out and out stars next year, would for mine, guarentee a crowd of over 50000 if the match is repeated next year.