AFR - The facts of the world cup

[MoffOnTou]

During my daily readings of the AFR, i came across a pearler yesterday

The article, by a Mr Neil Shoebridge, is titled 'seven already a world cup loser'. The article went on to highlight that World Cup matches have produced mediocre ratings and that seven are barely managing to maintain a hold on second spot in the ratings.

The Oz/Romania match had 918,300...which is down on the 2.5m that watched the opening ceremony. So over 1.5m people have switched off in one week

Rugby clubhouse has already been shafted and put back to 1030 at night due to crap ratings. Last Tuesdays episode had just 260,000 viewers


Predictable really. When the product was put under the gun it didn't stand up. I just await the main stream papers (ie: Herald and Telegraph) to report these figures

Cheers,
Moffo

 

[Pantsless]

I'll hazard a guess and say Seven might have had a thought that this would be the case.

I'm not surprised by the ratings either, but I reckon Seven are surpised about Rugby Clubhouse rating so poorly. I bet there'll be a TV producer without a job come December!

I think they're banking on the ratings for the qtrs onwards. The ratings will be much better for those games.

 

[Hicham]

The Oz/Romania match had 918,300...which is down on the 2.5m that watched the opening ceremony. So over 1.5m people have switched off in one week

In my opinion, part of this problem is to do with O'Neil & Co.

This is what he and his organisers have told us about the Union World Cup:

*An audience of 4 billion - Sorry, India, China, Uncle Sam wont be watching in huge numbers.

*This World Cup is like the 2000 Olympics and everyone is getting into it - Somehow, I really dont think so.

*The Wallabies will flog League Tests with ratings - Typical, enough said.

*Minnows will fiercly compete and there will be desperatley close margins in some intances. We already have an excellent record for upsets in the history of the World Cup - 20 odds games, aint seen one yet. Geez 90-8, edge of the seat stuff that one, but oh no, you had to see it, they played really well (yeah right).

Officials should stop telling people what the event will be like and let them make it for themselves. It doesnt have to be a masive event. It doesnt have to compete with the Olympics and Soccer. It doesnt have to be this that and the bloody other. They should let the teams and the fans make this World Cup, not O'Niel and his gloryfying statements.

Cheers,

Hicham.

 

[billy big ears]

CH 7 overall didnt have ONE program in the top 20 last week that David Leckie (ex CH 9 boss) is sure doing a great job.

 

[TigerCraig]

The actual viewing numbers don't matter - what matters is the demographics. Rugby has a suit, higher income demographic. Working in corporate banking I know that it is huge amongst my clients.

If you are wanting to sell Mercs, Heineken, overseas airline trips etc it is what you want, and you will pay big for the sponsorship & TV rights.

 

[dj21]

One of the problems is that it is only played on weekends which means people who don't normally watch RU lose interest during the week because there is nothing new happening. How long is this world cup going to go for? The olympics and soccer WC only go for about two weeks I think.

I hope the finals aren't played over too many weeks because that is where all the general interest will be.

 

[MoffOnTou]

Mike Gibson had a top reply today....

Rose-coloured spectacle
By Mike Gibson
October 22, 2003

WILL someone please wake me when it kicks off? The Rugby World Cup, I mean.

What we have seen so far has been nothing short of silly.

Sure, we've got to have minnows to make up the numbers.

But how can anyone get serious about this stuff?

Hey, here we have allegedly knowledgeable rugby types now telling us that the Wallabies are looking much better to retain their world championship.

Why? Because we beat Romania 90-8.

What sort of yardstick is that?

Thrash a mob of part-timers, who would be no good things to beat an egg, and suddenly we're in line to make it World Cup No.3.

That's the difference between rugby supporters and those who follow other sports.

Rugby fans are so besotted with their beloved game that they watch it through rose-coloured glasses.

While only 18,532 spectators could be bothered turning up over four days to see Australia crush Zimbabwe in the second Test at the SCG, 46,796 rugby fans packed Suncorp Stadium on Monday night to watch Scotland play USA.

The most generous description I can apply to the game is to say it was scrappy.

But because good games of rugby are so few and far between that disciples come to accept the ordinary as the norm, they flock to it in their droves.

For rugby supporters, the World Cup is not so much a game of football. It's an occasion. A happening. An event.

A chance to celebrate the game of rugby and bond with others of similar persuasion.

When Matthew Hayden set a world record by scoring 380 in the first Test against Zimbabwe, there were those who questioned the merit of his innings on the grounds that the opposition were hardly world class.

When Elton Flatley scored a try 18 seconds after the kickoff against Romania, rugby enthusiasts reached for the record books and hailed it as a remarkable feat.

Unlike ARU chief executive John O'Neill who yesterday chose the success of the World Cup as an opportunity to respond to critics by sniping at rugby league's Kangaroo tour, I am not about to rain on anyone's parade.

I am delighted that all the hard work by Mr O'Neill and the ARU is paying off, and that record crowds are turning up to see the professionals of world rugby crush the amateurs by record scores.

But if what we are witnessing is the cream of the crop, if these are the best rugby teams in the world, even the most one-eyed fanatic would have to admit that the game falls away sharply once you go past the top four or five.

Rugby might be played in 180 nations around the world.

But so is draughts.

Watching these minnows being lapped in the opening weeks of the tournament is like watching Ian Thorpe lap Eric the Eel.

Like I said, rugby isn't so much a game.

It's a mindset. A culture. A genetic disposition. A social gathering where like-minded tragics assemble to worship the game that they assure us is played in heaven.

Rugby reminds me of a bloke walking down the street with the plainest-looking woman you've ever laid eyes on.

"We're getting married," he says. "Isn't she gorgeous!"

"Absolutely," you reply, patting him on the back.

"I'm sure you'll both be very happy."

The Daily Telegraph

Cheers,
Moffo

 

[Michigan]

Originally posted by dj21
One of the problems is that it is only played on weekends which means people who don't normally watch RU lose interest during the week because there is nothing new happening. How long is this world cup going to go for? The olympics and soccer WC only go for about two weeks I think.

I hope the finals aren't played over too many weeks because that is where all the general interest will be.

well dude games actually are played during the week but i can understand why you couldnt tell because no one cares about these games and they arent even shown on tv. Instead we get shown "club house" and "highlights". More proof about how much people care about this world cup.

 

[DaveW]

Maybe they should show the matches live.

 

[dj21]

Originally posted by Michigan
well dude games actually are played during the week but i can understand why you couldnt tell because no one cares about these games and they arent even shown on tv. Instead we get shown "club house" and "highlights". More proof about how much people care about this world cup.

My mistake. When I looked at the schedule for melbourne they were all on weekends and I don't usually watch channel seven to know what they have got on (or don't).

 

[Mint Condition]

Moffo, you're normally better than this rubbish. Did John O'Neills cracking excite you so much you forgot to think properly?

Comparing a hyped up opening ceremony against decent opposition in prime time compared to a much, much, much less hyped game, where the result is already known, at 4.00pm on a Saturday afternoon is real fair.

Lets see how the semis and final go before any judgement is made. It couldn't possibly be hyped up any more than the opening game, and the people would have been subjected to the games for 6 weeks and everyone would have at least seen something. Lets see if the product can sustain numbers by comparing those shall we?

What about the crowds? Why don't you post articles on them? 670 000 or so have watched 21 games so far, pretty impressive. 34 000 for Argentina v Romania last night, and 99% of the empty seats were in the members area. I think that if the product wasn't 'standing up' that those sorts of figures wouldn't be there, and if you say they're all rugby tragics you're only upsetting yourself.

 

[MoffOnTou]

o'neill had an unprovoked go at league

he can go and get stuffed. He is one guy that i have absolutely no time for

The slanging game of insults that has followed is unfortunate. But it was O'Neill who started it with his ridiculous comments

Cheeers,
Moffo

 

[noodnuts]

i too cant wait for the ruwc quarter finals to begin.......because that's when the kangaroo tests begin!!