National League attendances over the last few years

[Silasgoldeen]

Ok, got my anorak out again. It occurred to me that with all this talk of increasing attendances, has anyone in the division managed to do anything differently that does lead to higher gates?

This table looks at everyone in the division and their attendances over the last four seasons. It shows their average, the standard deviation (how much it varies year on year) and the highest from the 24/25 season, which we might take as some sort of yardstick for what could be achieved. Then it shows the average as a percentage of the maximum.

Some things that stand out:

Southend's attendances have gone up every season
Halifax's have gone down every season
Barnet added an average of 300 extra per game this season through being excellent
York added over a thousand this year v last
Yeovil's numbers are weird
Most teams are remarkably stable if you look at the standard deviation. The lack of variation is incredible, suggesting that for most teams, there's a core set of supporters and that's who goes, with very little variation

Don't blame me if the data's wrong... (got it from footballwebpages)

Not sure if there are any lessons in here but thought I'd have a look. Winning does seem to help.

[Marcus ex W.Midlands Shot]

Winning does help, but it's not very encouraging for Barnet that their average attendance only increased by 18% in a season in which they were brilliant.

I was talking to a York fan this week; his oldest son is 11 and they are fairweather attendees. He finds their new ground soulless compared to Bootham Crescent, but the logistics of taking your kid along with you are much simpler now it's a clean modern site with plentiful parking.

So by modernising, they have added some fans and the old faithful who used to go to Bootham Crescent won't have dropped their habit - they will still go along.

[Kidderminster Shots]

I get that. I took my 7 year-old with me to the tour of duty game at York a few weeks back. Apart from the result scarring him for life, he thought the experience was great and I'll say it quietly, but so did I. I pre-booked my parking, pre-booked my tickets, had a pre-game drink and wee in Hollywood Bowl next door (which was heaving), got in easily, got out easily, could see everything etc.....

I hated the pre-game music at Wembley, but maybe I'm becoming a modern football convert. As per the fan conversion thread, I can see how the overall experience gets new people to games.

[Red hot shot]

Really interesting thread and observations so far.

What's encouraging is that our attendances over the last two seasons are significantly better than they were in the two before. This is no doubt due to more success on the pitch (generally speaking). Averaging 800 more fans per game in 2023/24 than we did in 21/22 it almost certainly driven by an 8th place finish vs a 20th place finish. Even this season, when we had tough periods, we still averaged almost 20% more than we did two years ago.

Great credit has to go to Tommy for leading us through this period, and bringing some of the feel good factor back to the club. But the main question is, besides winning, how do we attract more fans to the club on a game by game basis? You could reduce prices, but that would impact the quality of squad, and therefore our league position and in turn the attendances.

Also a question for others- if we were top of the league, what level do you think we would have to drop to before our attendances fell below were they are now? I am of the opinion that if we were top of the Isthmian Premier League, we would average more fans than we do now.

[Silasgoldeen]

Also a question for others- if we were top of the league, what level do you think we would have to drop to before our attendances fell below were they are now? I am of the opinion that if we were top of the Isthmian Premier League, we would average more fans than we do now.

is that what's going on at Yeovil? I was too lazy to check but they averaged 3,916 last year while winning the South. Actually that's quite a telling data point isn't it? Many more people watching them win every week in NLS than middle of the road in NL, accepting that there have been other issues.

[chimpster99]

Also a question for others- if we were top of the league, what level do you think we would have to drop to before our attendances fell below were they are now? I am of the opinion that if we were top of the Isthmian Premier League, we would average more fans than we do now.

is that what's going on at Yeovil? I was too lazy to check but they averaged 3,916 last year while winning the South. Actually that's quite a telling data point isn't it? Many more people watching them win every week in NLS than middle of the road in NL, accepting that there have been other issues.

I think Yeovil's figures may be down to ownership. The previous owner was hated by many fans who boycotted, and they returned when the new owners came in during their NLS season.

[Silasgoldeen]

Also a question for others- if we were top of the league, what level do you think we would have to drop to before our attendances fell below were they are now? I am of the opinion that if we were top of the Isthmian Premier League, we would average more fans than we do now.

is that what's going on at Yeovil? I was too lazy to check but they averaged 3,916 last year while winning the South. Actually that's quite a telling data point isn't it? Many more people watching them win every week in NLS than middle of the road in NL, accepting that there have been other issues.

I think Yeovil's figures may be down to ownership. The previous owner was hated by many fans who boycotted, and they returned when the new owners came in during their NLS season.

They hate current ownership though. Hmmm.

[chimpster99]

is that what's going on at Yeovil? I was too lazy to check but they averaged 3,916 last year while winning the South. Actually that's quite a telling data point isn't it? Many more people watching them win every week in NLS than middle of the road in NL, accepting that there have been other issues.

I think Yeovil's figures may be down to ownership. The previous owner was hated by many fans who boycotted, and they returned when the new owners came in during their NLS season.

They hate current ownership though. Hmmm.

Oh ok, I guess they just have issues!! I thought we were hard work but those Yeovil lads are obviously hard to please.

[Noringgoes]

Whilst we laugh at them, and them at us about getting relegated, both us and Woeking need each other to keep the averages and highest gate up

[Old Bob]

Whilst we laugh at them, and them at us about getting relegated, both us and Woeking need each other to keep the averages and highest gate up

We don't need Woking to break our players legs.