Re: The Lost Fans : Sun Feb 16, 2014 8:28 pm
BeesKnees wrote:
Why 13 games if not this year
Hughes has ploughed an estimated £13,000,000 into the club t cover debts since 2008. I say "estimated" because I do not have the 2013 figure to hand, but the 5 years 08/12 come to £10,250,000and were apparently paying to the full cap in 2013together with the gazillion pound rent at the Stoop .
He has gone on record more than once saying that he could not and would not sustain that level of investment and the move to the Hive has unloaded about £1,000,000 of the running costs of the club to either the Hive/Barnet FC for an undisclosed fee or by jettisoning all costs associated with the community and local development of the game, whilst also giving up about £500,000 in income.....so in essence, London Broncos have saved about £500,000 in costs.
Some on here would have you believe that the LANDLORD at Underhill and the Hive would love to hang on to the Broncos past this year....and they are right, he would. The problem is, that if fans don't turn up in large enough numbers, then he will have to make further cuts in the costs of running the club and the only place left to do that is the playing roster.....I refer you to the outstanding start to the season made at Widnes for a pointer as to how that would pan out.
So, WHEN Hughes walks, we will need to pay out own way.
If we are in SL, then £4,000,000 is the figure needed......£2,150,000 after Sky money...so about £165,000 per game. Match day revenue in 2008 with a 3,909 average was £387,000 or let's be nice and say £30,000 a game.....and Hughes still had to find £1,800,000 to cover our losses that year.
If we are in the Championship, then those costs significantly come down to nearer £2,000,000 a year, but with that, you will lose a MASSIVE figure in match day revenue and commercial and sponsorship opportunities....Wigan coming to town is not the same as Sheffield!
Either way, there needs to be a concerted effort to get fans not only through the door, but coming back week in week out, regardless of what division we are in. I suspect 600 gates in the Championship will not be to appetising to AK/The Hive.....so we may well find that a top 4 in that division beyond us. BTW, not sure what the rules will be in the 2nd tier on overseas players, but TR pulling aussie rabbits out of his hat will not be an option......and we've already made the executive decision to bin all the hard yards done in development since 2006 on the other side of the stream!