I’ll give Arsenal one more season (19/7)

[gooner.ed]

Usual thread starter. Can’t blame the writer really. I really think the answer to the problem of atmosphere is the re-introduction of standing sections. And lots of them. Some people want to stand at matches and some people want to sit. So let’s separate them. I believe it is time for a sea-change in the culture at football matches. The Taylor Report addressed the safety issue, but I am not 100% sure it discounted the concept of safe standing areas. And frankly in a genuine emergency, exiting the stadium would be a lot easier from such areas. There is no comparison between the atmosphere at matches in Latin America and the Premiership. But then again attending certain matches in Argentina is positively dangerous from what I’ve heard. Hopefully we can find a balance whereby no-one fears for their safety (and there were games in the 1980s when that was definitely a factor on the terraces) and yet feel they can sing their hearts out and jump up and down without being threatened with ejection.

[highburyJD]

do they not have turnstile limited safe standing areas in the Bundesliga? Clubs like Leverksuen, Dortmund and Schalke seem to have great attendances and atmosphere.

[All_Arsenal_1886]

I'm only 20 years old and started going to watch the arsenal in march 1998 so i have never been to a match in the premier league where you can stand, however i do to watch Malaga fc alot in spain and although its all seating there is standing areas which was reali good although they don't havebig crowds like arsenal it was an amazing atmosphere and i love it, i heard they are trying to legalise terraces again in the top flight football in britain, i hope they do im sure there is a safe way to control standing fans at football matches

Bringing back terraces = bringing back the atmosphere

[bookanengineer]

Everyone loves a great atmosphere, but lets get it straight, this is football, it's an entertainment, we're paying top dollar and we want to be entertained. When you go to the theatre, or the cinema, you don't rip your shirt off and scream like a maniac in order to produce a better performance on the stage/screen.

That's why the atmosphere is lacking, people pay to be entertained now, we sit in nice chairs, we watch great players, we want great football. It's not the 80's any more, we're not paying a tenner to get in, and thankfully, we're not hurded like cattle any more by the police.

There's a misconception that the louder and more stupid the fan, the better the fan. Oh Newcastle, they're brilliant aren't they, shirts off, great big bellies and tits hanging out, drinking 20 pints before the game, brilliant. Much better fans than us. And yeah, the idiots at Arsenal that shout absolute bollocks, get there 10 minutes late cause they've had a few too many pints, leave 10 minutes before half time to get to the front of the queue for more pints. These aren't great fans, these are toss-pots.

So if Argentinian fans are jumping up and down, hidden under flags and letting off fireworks, great, if that's what you're into, but that's not being a football supporter, if you're not watching the game, I don't know what you're doing there. Personally, I go to the game to watch the team, I want to see every single second of action, I'm sick with nerves, I can't drink alcohol in case it breaks my concentration and I lose my enjoyment of the match.

As for Arsenal being any quieter than any other ground, it's not true. The fans support the team entirely when they need it, but when we're strolling through a game and there's no competition from the opposition, the crowd are going to be pretty much silent, how else could it be? It's the same for Man Utd, Chelsea, and any other team that complete outclasses the opposition - it's called boredom. Instead of debating how we can improve the atmosphere, we simply need more teams competing and willing to play football, the atmosphere will take care of itself, as it always does when we're in a big game.

[MK Gould]

Atmosphere comes at a price. Truly great atmosphere means letting in the scum of the earth at rock bottom prices and not worrying overly about little things like crowd safety.

We charge top prices and a large % of the people who can afford to pay that on a regular basis throughout the season are just too well bred to make much noise.

But its a balancing act. Part of the entertainment is the atmosphere, so there always needs to be someone to create it. That's true whether you are watching a game on Sky, or in Club level, or a corporate box.

At Highbury (in the days before it became all seater), 90% of the noise came from the ends. It was accepted that "the seats" didn't generally join in, but you knew where to go if you wanted to sing. And because you were with like minded people there was no reason to feel self conscious about it.

Now we have blurred the boundaries. The RedAction area is a start in redressing the balance, but it needs expanding and maybe re-siting out of the corner of the ground. There does also need to be a way of reducing SOME ticket prices - but keeping the overal revenue generated the same. Sounds like a terrace to me!

[Cus Geezer]

"Everyone loves a great atmosphere, but lets get it straight, this is football, it's an entertainment, we're paying top dollar and we want to be entertained"

Well the football world seemed to have managed to combine the two for a long time before the Taylor Report.

"When you go to the theatre, or the cinema, you don't rip your shirt off and scream like a maniac in order to produce a better performance on the stage/screen. "

Firstly I don't go to the theatre because I couldn't care less for the theatre or going to the theatre, maybe a few of our Joe post-90 fans should fuck off back to 'the theatre'.

Secondly maybe the reason people don't shout and jump up and down at the theatre is because....

(a) the script is already written, the audience cannot effect the outcome

(b) the theatre goer wishes to hear what's being said on stage, when you can hear what's being said on the pitch you know something is wrong.

And if you wanted to sit in dispassionate Odeon Cinema-like silence, there was a place for you lot in the seats (yes they did exist prior to the Taylor report), now we have an entire stadium of people like you.[/quote]

[Cus Geezer]

[quote="MK Gould"]Atmosphere comes at a price. Truly great atmosphere means letting in the scum of the earth at rock bottom prices . quote]

Do enlightment me as to why people who can't afford to pay £40+ every week are 'scum of the earth'?

[MK Gould]

...and how many people attend the theatre twice a week to see the same play? And how many theater goers only ever attend just the one theatre, or only follow one company or actor?

Yes, they are linked by the term "entertainment" but its a bit tenuous to try to draw parallels between the two audiences.

[MK Gould]

[quote="Cus Geezer]Do enlightment me as to why people who can't afford to pay £40+ every week are 'scum of the earth'?[/quote]Please don't misquote me.

It's surely an undisputed fact that most of the arseholes who infected football in the 70-80s have now been priced out (except at SHL) - along with a good many genuine fans who supported the team without feeling the need to make monkey chants or throw bricks through train windows.

Reducing ticket prices will allow these genuine fans to return, but beware that you are also likely to get some of the arseholes returning to. I've noticed that some of our Carling Cup games have had a great atmosphere (and reduced prices have given me the opportunity to bring the whole family!) but have also had an increased level of "threat".

[Cus Geezer]

I think that's non-sense, I've been to numerous Carling Cup matches and haven't noticed any level of threat whatsoever, with a better atmosphere.

[Cus Geezer]

That's why the atmosphere is lacking, people pay to be entertained now

Because in the old days they obviously went with the intention of being bored shitless for an hour and a half

[MK Gould]

I think that's non-sense, I've been to numerous Carling Cup matches and haven't noticed any level of threat whatsoever, with a better atmosphere.

Maybe I've just been unlucky. I've only been to 3 in recent years - Rotherham, Reading & Spuds - and at each there was a great atmosphere, but also an increased feeling that trouble wasn't far away, especially outside the ground. At the Reading game there was a guy behind us that was out of his head, and managed to empty most of a pint over my wife when we scored. That sort of behaviour used to be common place (and I should know, I was like it every week!) but something I've rarely experienced at a FULL priced Premiership game!

[Cus Geezer]

I was at two of the three you mentioned and also noticed the better atmosphere, but didn't experience anything noteworthy in the anti-social behaviour department. I was at the Everton game where our kids smashed the third placed side in the PL with two black kids of my ex-girlfriend and didn't get bothered all evening, plus a better atmosphere. One of the better matches I've been at for reasons on and off the pitch.

I'm also surprised that your wife got beer thrown over her at the Reading game, as the stewarts are usually officious enough to stop you taking beer to the stands.

[AccidentofBirth]

To the writer: Melbourne Victory were formed in 2004. Arsenal's badge was launched in 2002. What is your point about the badge?

[Cus Geezer]

To the writer: Melbourne Victory were formed in 2004. Arsenal's badge was launched in 2002. What is your point about the badge?

Probably that it's characterless and identikit.