Some Horsesh1t About Our 'global Fanbase'

Discussion in 'The Hornets' Nest - Watford Chat' started by Moosegasm, Jul 25, 2020.

  1. Moosegasm

    Moosegasm Reservist

  2. wfc4ever

    wfc4ever Administrator Staff Member

    Well we won't keep "growing" if we go down.

    Probably find the numbers decrease.

    The family stand will hardly be filled.
     
  3. Robert Peel

    Robert Peel Squad Player

    folkestone orn likes this.
  4. The Voice of Reason

    The Voice of Reason First Team Captain

    If we go down and Gino does not spend big to try and get us back up. Then I might have to consider adding to the Brentford fan base if they get promotion, or possibly even if they don't, as I have always had a bit of a soft spot for them.

    Having said that it is very hard to change your team allegiance even if they are ****. I know this because I gave it a try once when I moved to Plymouth in 1986 and lived just a fifteen minute walk from "Home Park" I even went to a few games, but I just could not do it........

    THE 'ORNS ARE IN MY BLOOD​
     
  5. Moosegasm

    Moosegasm Reservist

    Great to hear 1 fan from China came to see us in the cup final thats an impressive 0.00000007% of the Chinese population in the bag. I pity the poor b**tard who flew from China to see us humiliated at Wembley. No doubt the whole thing was yet another failed attempt at marketing us in Asia.
     
  6. Smudger

    Smudger Messi's Mad Coach Staff Member

    Propaganda piece. It would be nice if we were genuinely growing a fan base abroad in the new PL markets. But despite what the article says it's the usual suspects that have the most fans. If the club bothered to organize a tour to the subcontinent or US they may pick up a few but generally there would not be that much interest. Perhaps if we were owned by a company from those countries like Leicester has a huge following in Thailand that may bring some fans. Part of the reason is the way television companies wink themselves over the big six. Their presentation is geared to maximizing coverage of those clubs over the rest and the rest is the herd mentality.

    It's sad and disheartening to see the number of shirts from the so called big six in the local area being worn by kids. The club needs to do more to grab hold of these and get them down to Vicarage Road. Part of the bigger connect to fans in general which would be helped by staying in the PL.
     
    Last edited: Jul 25, 2020
  7. Smudger

    Smudger Messi's Mad Coach Staff Member

    Football fans who flit from one club to another are not genuine fans. Even if were in the National League I would still be Watford through and through. It is as they say in the blood. Especially when you have been born next to the ground and stood on a milk crate with your dad on the old Vicarage terrace. I have a soft spot for a couple of clubs but that is about as far as it goes. It's a shame most of the players don't have the same connection anymore. The depression of relegation and elation of promotion. There is nothing like it.
     
  8. a19tgg

    a19tgg First Team

    I like the logic that fans in India like a player and then follow them to different clubs, that explains why we only appear to have the one fan in India.
     
  9. Lloyd

    Lloyd Squad Player

    Members of our exciting global fan base living in Rotherham will get a chance to see us next season
     
  10. WillisWasTheWorst

    WillisWasTheWorst Its making less grammar mistake's thats important

    Correct. The club doesn’t do nearly enough marketing in the local area to attract potential fans to Vicarage Road. (By local area I don’t just mean Watford but wider Herts and NW London suburbia.) The stadium is not that big of course but that’s chicken and egg: create more demand and increasing capacity is justified.
     
    Smudger likes this.
  11. Steve Leo Beleck

    Steve Leo Beleck Squad Player

    If we went bust, think I'd stop watching football other than the odd World Cup or Champions League game. Certainly wouldn't be able to support another club with any kind of enthusiasm.
     
    Eastcoastorn, Knight GT and Smudger like this.
  12. Smudger

    Smudger Messi's Mad Coach Staff Member

    UEA will no doubt pick me up on this but one of the very first things GT worked on was to get more people to the ground. And get the club more involved in the community of course. To build that link. Not just by playing attractive attacking football which entertained and was successful but by being a central part of the identity of the town. Something the townsfolk could be proud of. And he was also concerned with the future support. Who would replace those that sadly have gone to the terrace in the sky ? That was part of the philosophy of the family enclosure and going out and about in local schools.
     
    WillisWasTheWorst likes this.
  13. Knight GT

    Knight GT Predictor extraordinaire 2013/14

    I have always had a soft spot for Torquay so would follow than but no to the extent I follow Watford
     
  14. Smudger

    Smudger Messi's Mad Coach Staff Member

    Same here. Apart from watching us the little enthusiasm I have left for football is watching international tournaments. Not even invested in the CL or EL. Just a money making scheme for the big clubs to get even richer and more powerful. I always hope our entrants lose but then at the later stages you see the G14 clashing you dislike them both. Cesspool v Farcelona. Only watched to see what Messi could do. Both are despicable clubs. Rooting for Ajax as they have been out of the spotlight for such a long time although other Dutch team fans would also have been rooting for them to lose as they cradle snatch as well inside Holland.
     
  15. Knight GT

    Knight GT Predictor extraordinaire 2013/14

    It’s actually quite a nice article but we seem hell bent on being miserable at the moment
     
  16. Robert Peel

    Robert Peel Squad Player

    Same. I'd save my money up and go and watch some the teams I've been to watch abroad when on holiday more. The English football could go and f*ck itself sideways if we went bust.
     
  17. Smudger

    Smudger Messi's Mad Coach Staff Member

    Well Udipt Kukreti if you are reading this we are very pleased to have you as a fellow Hornet. Spread the word. :) We need all the fans we can get.

    Mariappa being part Fijian might explain why he likes a rugby tackle now and then. :D
     
    El distraído likes this.
  18. Moosegasm

    Moosegasm Reservist

    The point is its marketing horseshit. Apart from a tiny handful of demented freaks we have 0 local fans in China or India. We have 2 fans in Vietnam, cos I shagged them for several months and kept going on about Watford. I've recruited more Vietnamese Watford fans with my kn0b than the whole marketing department! Thats the way forward, spread the faith with your sword!
     
  19. Carpster

    Carpster Squad Player

    I used to regularly nail my Mrs with a Hornet bobble hat and scarf on. Oh the Joy's of alcohol. Now she's more critical of the inept ****s than I am. But one more Norwegian fan :eek:
     
  20. a19tgg

    a19tgg First Team

    If Watford didn’t exist I’d definitely not bother with football. Pre Covid I’d tend to have any non Watford games on in the background, but only really kept my toe in for chat with mates and work colleagues.
    I’ve watched more post lockdown just because of o ur situation and there are just so many games on, but I’ve not enjoyed them.
     
    folkestone orn likes this.
  21. GoingDown

    GoingDown "The Stability"

    I've always noticed a couple of far-flung overseas fans on Twitter. The ones the club send free shirts and merchandise to. Also the ones that have popped up on the shockingly bad 'watching from home' segments.

    Not heard a peep from them since the City defeat. I'm sure we'll get a good luck message on Sunday and then they'll be off to support another club they can get twitter and Instagram followers from.
     
  22. Moosegasm

    Moosegasm Reservist

    If this is true u r an absolute boner fide 100% watford legend. Statue incoming...
     
  23. Moosegasm

    Moosegasm Reservist

    Probably Bangladeshi kids with fake accounts working for $2 a day in a 'likes' sweatshop in Chittagong.
     
  24. Lloyd

    Lloyd Squad Player

    Non-league is the answer. I started going to Kings Langley and Wealdstone (now playing in Ruislip). You can drink a beer in the ground while watching the match and the standard is quite decent. Usually one or two ex-Hornets on the pitch too.
     
    StuBoy likes this.
  25. CarlosKickaballs

    CarlosKickaballs Forum Picarso

    I'm always surprised we bother selling to these markets when we have nothing to offer them - no success to sell (as he's too busy at Bailey's), no Asian players, and aren't even a particularly East Asian part of the country. The obvious choice for the club is clearly Africa if we are to do this given that we have players representing countries no other team has, a yellow kit (like a lot of African teams), and that Africans don't need to be convinced to watch football over NBA/MLB/NFL as football is already part of the culture - and we can't afford to compete with those American corporate entities like United can (and the PL won't help us to do that like they do with those clubs as they want our existence swept under the rug).

    But as with most things on the corporate side of the club they just follow what a management consultant has told them is the flavour of the month (China, bantz on social media and an NFL badge) instead of actually looking what the club uniquely offers. Which is ironic given 'da pozzi modewll' is supposedly to look where nobody else has.
     
    jrmich9 likes this.
  26. CarlosKickaballs

    CarlosKickaballs Forum Picarso

    Looking purely commercially-I have always thought they could do this by selling the Anglo-Italian angle to attract first/second/third generation living around London. Even to non-Italians that kind of MATCH DAY EXPERIENCE (TM) is marketable as we've seen with Palace

    Worst case scenario we make Palace appear as the inauthentic Dominos Pizza ultra club and drag them down with us
     
    jrmich9 likes this.
  27. a19tgg

    a19tgg First Team

    There is no doubt these are huge potential markets, but how many shirts would we actually have to shift to make some meaningful revenue? I just can’t see it happening. And even if we did start getting a load of followers from India and the Far East how many of them would be bothered enough to buy genuine shirts?
     
  28. Moosegasm

    Moosegasm Reservist

    Africans love football but they support the big teams like in Asia
     
  29. Heidar

    Heidar Squad Player

    Think this was summed up nicely when we had Layun, who had far more supporters than the club he was at. The number of social media followers more than doubled. Sure, they've now heard of Watford but once he left, none are going to give a cent to the club.

    As for the Brazilian angle... no chance. They like Neymar and David Luiz.
     
  30. Hogg-DEENEY!!!

    Hogg-DEENEY!!! Squad Player

    It's nice hearing about our global fanbase, and I'm sure we do have the very occasional overseas fan who really does care, but there will only ever be a handful of them, it's not something we should put all our eggs into (especially when we've not even fully tapped into our 'natural' market yet)
     
  31. Hogg-DEENEY!!!

    Hogg-DEENEY!!! Squad Player

    Not massively invested in non-League, but I do keep an eye on all the local teams' scores (big game for Boreham Wood today). Intend to go to St Albans a bit more whenever it's possible next season and whenever I won't be at Watford, as they'll definitely need the support
     
    Lloyd likes this.
  32. Carpster

    Carpster Squad Player

    She even wore the shirt to try and cheer me up after the FA cup final disaster. She's informed that's never happening again :confused: couldn't help my aim being off after all that stella.
     
  33. Hogg-DEENEY!!!

    Hogg-DEENEY!!! Squad Player

    Think he's Indo-Fijian, so not sure he's interested in rugby (unless the Saracens got in his blood ;))
     
  34. Hogg-DEENEY!!!

    Hogg-DEENEY!!! Squad Player

    Football is great, I'd still watch loads of it if we went bust (without the attachment of course, which might actually do me some good! :D). Watched a lot of Atalanta this season, what a team to watch, would be nice to see a team with the budget of Reading win the Champions League. One thing I definitely wouldn't give much more than a casual glance to if we went bust is the Premier League, my word it's been a grim watch this season. ****, I'm probably not going to watch much of it next season even with us 'alive and well'
     
  35. Moosegasm

    Moosegasm Reservist

    U r a legend!!!!!
     

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