2024 CanPL attendance

[Kent]

3 hours ago, Ozzie_the_parrot said:

Why don't you change the name of the other thread into whatever you want and discuss whatever you want there? As the opening poster you should be able to do that. 

 

 

The thread you created was merged into this one before I saw it, so I don't know what your original title was, but based on the opening post that got merged here it seems like the one Kingston created aligns with your vision of the thread you created. Consider it's existence as the moderators and the community here admitting you had a good idea to create that thread, and it was a mistake to merge it with this one. Is there a particular issue you have with the title of the new one Kingston created?

[shermanator]

1 hour ago, CDNFootballer said:

Went to the VFC game last night, was happily wrong about predicting a historic low crowd for the weekday game.

By the time it filled in 30 minutes after kickoff, was thinking over 2k for sure on the unreliable eyeballing. Ads in the local newspapers apparently this year (this weeks anyway), hope it continues, increase in marketing and visibility for the team is key this year to increasing attendance.

I saw a few Cavalry games in 2019 in front of some pretty sparse crowds. If 2700 is the Thursday weeknight crowd, might be a decent year attendance wise in Vancouver, especially if they continue to play as they have through 2 matches.

[shermanator]

2851 for Pacific vs Valour last night

[gwsmith63]

Moved to match thread. 
 

 

Edited April 20 by gwsmith63

[jordan]

2 minutes ago, gwsmith63 said:

Another miserable day in Ottawa. Similar to last weekend without the strong winds. 
 

Rainy and around 5 degrees right now but hopefully warmer by kickoff. 
 

Hoping for around the same attendance number as v York but might be tough. 
 

On a positive note, though, the pollen count is next to zero.
 

 

I struggled getting 3 seats together in my row and had to move, I’m thinking(hoping) it could be busy.

[gwsmith63]

1 minute ago, jordan said:

I struggled getting 3 seats together in my row and had to move, I’m thinking(hoping) it could be busy.

That would be great!

[CDNFootballer]

4569 in Ottawa, pretty good considering the bad weather today.

[JamboAl]

1 hour ago, CDNFootballer said:

4569 in Ottawa, pretty good considering the bad weather today.

The game finished just in time because it was absolutely miserable after the game; sleet and lots of rain.

[Unnamed Trialist]

The way this thread has morphed into a hegemonic truth-fest is terrible for those of us who thought we had our mental health issues under control.

[SoccMan]

We are at a disadvantage when we try to compare CPL attendances to similar type leagues like that Canadian basketball league, or that Lacrosse league or even to a certain extent Major Junior Hockey league . These other leagues play in indoor arenas and especially when it comes to junior hockey in nice smaller venues where 3 to 5 thousand in a small indoor stadium the atmosphere will be second to none . But the most important factor that the CPL has to deal with is the weather . If it’s cold or raining these indoor leagues are not affected it will not affect attendance. No one going to say a pro lacrosse game in Canada is going to stay away if it’s raining or it’s cold or there is the threat of rain , but for the CPL unless it’s a nice warmer sunny day the weather will have an effect on people going to games . Moreover , our stadiums in Canada are all wide open no real cover over the stands to really protect you from the wind and rain like you have in say a lot of the stadiums in England for example. I’m a TFC season ticket holder and I’ve stayed home many times when there was rain wind and cold in the forecast, that fake roof at BMO doesn’t protect you from anything it’s useless. Anyways, when you look at CPL attendances the weather in a country like Canada plays a big factor in an outdoor league sport.

[Watchmen]

54 minutes ago, SoccMan said:

We are at a disadvantage when we try to compare CPL attendances to similar type leagues like that Canadian basketball league, or that Lacrosse league or even to a certain extent Major Junior Hockey league . These other leagues play in indoor arenas and especially when it comes to junior hockey in nice smaller venues where 3 to 5 thousand in a small indoor stadium the atmosphere will be second to none . But the most important factor that the CPL has to deal with is the weather . If it’s cold or raining these indoor leagues are not affected it will not affect attendance. No one going to say a pro lacrosse game in Canada is going to stay away if it’s raining or it’s cold or there is the threat of rain , but for the CPL unless it’s a nice warmer sunny day the weather will have an effect on people going to games . Moreover , our stadiums in Canada are all wide open no real cover over the stands to really protect you from the wind and rain like you have in say a lot of the stadiums in England for example. I’m a TFC season ticket holder and I’ve stayed home many times when there was rain wind and cold in the forecast, that fake roof at BMO doesn’t protect you from anything it’s useless. Anyways, when you look at CPL attendances the weather in a country like Canada plays a big factor in an outdoor league sport.

Conversely, outdoors can also be an advantage.  In Vancouver, there's no end to complaints on a hot summer day about having to go "inside" to watch the Whitecaps.  The Vancouver Canadians minor league baseball team has basically built it's entire marketing campaign about "enjoying the sun and outdoors", and you'll get a ton of casual fans out not really for the baseball but for something to still do outdoors.  I will say I think that's part of the problem for Langley though - the lack of a roof means that not only is it bad when it rains, there's no shade when it's overly hot/sunny.

[shermanator]

Attendance for York vs Forge: 2654

[shermanator]

2 weeks into the 2024 season and I think this picture speaks volumes

[Watchmen]

22 minutes ago, shermanator said:

2 weeks into the 2024 season and I think this picture speaks volumes

I think this belongs in the "questioning the attendance" thread.

[BearcatSA]

7 hours ago, Watchmen said:

I will say I think that's part of the problem for Langley though - the lack of a roof means that not only is it bad when it rains, there's no shade when it's overly hot/sunny.

Or it's a long weekend, or it is weekend afternoon game, or it's an evening game so too late for the kids, or it is a weeknight school night so that won't cut it, and so on.

Look, as I have brought up on here many times before, there is a lot more competition for individuals' and famiĺies' summer recreation time and money than ever before.  You can't afford to go to everything nor may you have the time to do so, either.  People prioritize, one of those prorities being watching/supporting a winning team.  But you inevitably have summer "dog day" lulls in attendance but hopefully come the fall things pick again for most teams.

Vancouver is off to a great start, hopefully will keep it going, and hopefully that translates into an improved gate from last season.

[Kent]

8 hours ago, SoccMan said:

We are at a disadvantage when we try to compare CPL attendances to similar type leagues like that Canadian basketball league, or that Lacrosse league or even to a certain extent Major Junior Hockey league . These other leagues play in indoor arenas and especially when it comes to junior hockey in nice smaller venues where 3 to 5 thousand in a small indoor stadium the atmosphere will be second to none . But the most important factor that the CPL has to deal with is the weather . If it’s cold or raining these indoor leagues are not affected it will not affect attendance. No one going to say a pro lacrosse game in Canada is going to stay away if it’s raining or it’s cold or there is the threat of rain , but for the CPL unless it’s a nice warmer sunny day the weather will have an effect on people going to games . Moreover , our stadiums in Canada are all wide open no real cover over the stands to really protect you from the wind and rain like you have in say a lot of the stadiums in England for example. I’m a TFC season ticket holder and I’ve stayed home many times when there was rain wind and cold in the forecast, that fake roof at BMO doesn’t protect you from anything it’s useless. Anyways, when you look at CPL attendances the weather in a country like Canada plays a big factor in an outdoor league sport.

To add to what Watchmen said, soccer has an advantage over those other sports in that the ceiling for attendance is much, much higher. The field is much bigger and therefore the stadiums tend to be much bigger as well. It's how a league like MLS can have higher average attendance than the NHL and NBA, despite not being nearly as popular a league. If teams like Valour, Atletico Ottawa, and Forge could fill their huge stadiums, it would be a no contest between CPL and the leagues you mentioned in terms of average attendance. The reality is that it's not popular enough yet to take advantage of this advantage.

I wasn't able to make it to the York season opener, but just finished watching it on OneSoccer. I gotta say, I like that they didn't have that (frankly, pathetic) supporters section bleacher behind the south goal. Having nothing there actually looks better than having a few people in that stand all by itself. And I would guess that having the more boisterous fans over with the others could maybe help bring a bit more life to the non-supporters in the stadium. I'm looking forward to seeing if that is actually the case or not. I hate to give it to them, but on the broadcast I could hear the Forge supporters, not the York fans. I was hoping York could get at least one goal to get a sense of how much noise the home fans could make.

[Kingston]

9 hours ago, Kent said:

I wasn't able to make it to the York season opener, but just finished watching it on OneSoccer. I gotta say, I like that they didn't have that (frankly, pathetic) supporters section bleacher behind the south goal. Having nothing there actually looks better than having a few people in that stand all by itself. 

Ottawa did the same thing.  They used to have a dedicated bleacher out in the field.  Frankly, it looked like a place to sequester "special" fans where they couldn't harm the normal people.  Now the supporters' section is part of the general population and both the optics and the positive crowd noise impact are much better.

[JamboAl]

1 hour ago, Kingston said:

Ottawa did the same thing.  They used to have a dedicated bleacher out in the field.  Frankly, it looked like a place to sequester "special" fans where they couldn't harm the normal people.  Now the supporters' section is part of the general population and both the optics and the positive crowd noise impact are much better.

Also because the metal bleachers were so close to the field turf, a comfortable 25 C day felt like about 35 C.  It was the most unpleasant experience. 
EDIT: to clarify, this was the USL days of the Fury

[Kent]

Here is my updated week to week attendance graph. 2023 edges out 2024 for the opening week title of highest average attendance. But week 2 goes to 2024.

[Unnamed Trialist]

1 hour ago, Kingston said:

Ottawa did the same thing.  They used to have a dedicated bleacher out in the field.  Frankly, it looked like a place to sequester "special" fans where they couldn't harm the normal people.  Now the supporters' section is part of the general population and both the optics and the positive crowd noise impact are much better.

Yes, but that is exactly what the Southsiders were at Swangard. It was an even longer way away from the main stand because of the track, but when you were out there it felt great. The Southsiders legitimately led cheers for the entire stadium, the call and replies, and also had an impact on players (there was banter from both teams, heckling rivals). Even though thinking back, it was the way it is being described here for York Utd or Ottawa: we were not treated that well. They perfectly well could have put a proper long stand with more than a couple rows of seats, and not just bleacher seats either. 

A little positive detail was that the beer garden was often just beyond, so many fans ended up going out that way, or with their kids to play games on that end. 

To my point: I don't agree about York Lions stadium. I would much prefer to see a stand with capacity for 250-300 fans out there, it'd be a better look, it'd make the entire image more lively and engaged. If you build it they'll come. For me it's a lost opportunity (just like that waste of the grassy knoll at Cavalry, which looks dumb as hell). 

[masster]

3 hours ago, Unnamed Trialist said:

Yes, but that is exactly what the Southsiders were at Swangard. It was an even longer way away from the main stand because of the track, but when you were out there it felt great. The Southsiders legitimately led cheers for the entire stadium, the call and replies, and also had an impact on players (there was banter from both teams, heckling rivals). Even though thinking back, it was the way it is being described here for York Utd or Ottawa: we were not treated that well. They perfectly well could have put a proper long stand with more than a couple rows of seats, and not just bleacher seats either. 

A little positive detail was that the beer garden was often just beyond, so many fans ended up going out that way, or with their kids to play games on that end. 

To my point: I don't agree about York Lions stadium. I would much prefer to see a stand with capacity for 250-300 fans out there, it'd be a better look, it'd make the entire image more lively and engaged. If you build it they'll come. For me it's a lost opportunity (just like that waste of the grassy knoll at Cavalry, which looks dumb as hell). 

That scenario was a little bit different though. It wasn't just a separate stand, but the whole end was open which allowed people to congregate along the entire touchline. If you recall, there were years where there never were bleachers at all. It was just people standing along the fence. It was only when the critical mass of people increased to a point when a stand was required that they brought one back.

In addition, bleachers on the east side of the pitch were on the track, so there was a continuous connection between the south and east sides.

The scenarios discussed above in Ottawa and York were much more isolated.

[Aird25]

I personally prefer supporters to be given their own section. I've already paid additional money to move our seats farther away from the vuvuzelas and dog whistles that were moved closer to our section this season. I love me a good song, tifo, smoke etc but I personally don't want to be near 90 minutes of incessant noise from a handful of people. I think an engaged crowd has more life without that but I suppose that makes me one of the normal people being harmed

Edited April 22 by Aird25

[Unnamed Trialist]

46 minutes ago, masster said:

That scenario was a little bit different though. It wasn't just a separate stand, but the whole end was open which allowed people to congregate along the entire touchline. If you recall, there were years where there never were bleachers at all. It was just people standing along the fence. It was only when the critical mass of people increased to a point when a stand was required that they brought one back.

In addition, bleachers on the east side of the pitch were on the track, so there was a continuous connection between the south and east sides.

The scenarios discussed above in Ottawa and York were much more isolated.

I never felt connected to those few rows on the east side of the field. And rarely felt that was used right. We all know what could have been (those of you who saw the U-20 WC matches there).

I don't know how much folks here spent in the main stand, I did when my kid was little, or with guests, and the Southside seemed an awfully long way away regardless. The image does not seem that different from what we saw with York.

As for the touchline, asking as I don't know: were the York Utd followers not allowed to stand behind the ads, was that prohibited? Were they forced to stay in that crappy metallic stand they set up?

I am hoping the new owners rethink this entirely, as having a presence on an end, or even two ends, would give a lot more character to the games. 

Edited April 22 by Unnamed Trialist

[Stanley]

1 hour ago, masster said:

That scenario was a little bit different though. It wasn't just a separate stand, but the whole end was open which allowed people to congregate along the entire touchline. If you recall, there were years where there never were bleachers at all. It was just people standing along the fence. It was only when the critical mass of people increased to a point when a stand was required that they brought one back.

In addition, bleachers on the east side of the pitch were on the track, so there was a continuous connection between the south and east sides.

The scenarios discussed above in Ottawa and York were much more isolated.

Yes, originally it was 86ers fans who decided to congregate in the south end to be less policed by staff and soccer moms, which led to the southsiders being formed.  Self segregation as it were.  Numbers increased when they put the beer garden in that end.

[narduch]

1 hour ago, Unnamed Trialist said:

I never felt connected to those few rows on the east side of the field. And rarely felt that was used right. We all know what could have been (those of you who saw the U-20 WC matches there).

I don't know how much folks here spent in the main stand, I did when my kid was little, or with guests, and the Southside seemed an awfully long way away regardless. The image does not seem that different from what we saw with York.

As for the touchline, asking as I don't know: were the York Utd followers not allowed to stand behind the ads, was that prohibited? Were they forced to stay in that crappy metallic stand they set up?

I am hoping the new owners rethink this entirely, as having a presence on an end, or even two ends, would give a lot more character to the games. 

In 2019, York 9 did have a decent bleacher stand at half of their North end. The other half was hospitality box type things.

Take a look at the highligts from the Voyageurs Cup highlights v Montreal. 

The south end had a bunch of track and field stuff they eventually removed.

Plus another bleacher stand at the far end.

That match v Montreal had an attendance over 5,000. Its too bad they could never convert those fans into consistent returnees.