iFollow Changes for 18/19 Season

[originaltrueblade]

Don’t suppose £10 is bad per game outside the restrictions, hopefully will be able to see more of my Blades...better get signed up then

It’s between £10-14

 

[originaltrueblade]

Depends how many people buy a match pass who weren't going to the game doesn't it?

If 1,000 people who would never have gone to the game buy a pass at £10 but 500 people decide not to buy a ticket at, say, £30 and buy a match pass instead - how are the club better off?

They are better off because people that wouldn’t go to the game owing to distance will pay to watch it will far outweigh the loss

 

[BridBladesman]

It’s between £10-14

Apologies for my dumbness, but will we be able to see the away games as I’m a season ticket holder anyway?...I realise that not all the EFL clubs are in it

 

[More Bladier than thou]

They need to fix the 2nd half video stuttering. This was an issue for most of us. Il probably just use fb until ifolllw get on top of things, but things are moving in the right direction.

 

[Cassius Kray]

I would expect it to have a very significant impact on away support (£10 to watch it at home versus £30ish a ticket + travel). I also think there will be home fans who decide staying at home is a better option.

Not sure how the voting works for bringing in things like this but I struggle to see how a lot of Championship clubs won't be financially worse off.

We get something like twenty times more fans at home games than follow the Blades away, partly because of the cost. That's a significant number of people who support the club and enjoy watching the games, but can't afford to travel to away matches. I suspect quite a few of them will find it easier to justify spending £10 and therefore the club wil be making money that they wouldn't have already. It's also the case that away games, especially midweek, can be difficult to get to.

On the other hand, watching on iFollow is a poor substitute for being at the game. I suspect that most of those people who choose to go already do so because they can afford it and because they enjoy watching live football. I'm not convinced that a lot of them will give that up now that they can watch it on an iPad.

That's certainly my situation. I'll happily pay the £10 for Brentford on a Tuesday night, which I would never have gone to, but there's no way I'll choose iFollow over e.g. a local derby.

 

[cooperblade]

There will have been a rights payment to the clubs somewhere along the line, it isn’t as simple as the lost revenue of a match ticket versus the revenue of match ticket. Clubs would never have agreed if it cost them money, philanthropy is not a well known trait of football club chairmen.

I understand there will have been a rights payment. I'd be interested to know how big this was and how it will be distributed. I'm just trying to get my head round someone running the commercial side of a Championship club saying it's a big concern and the fact that clubs voted for it.

Maybe the distribution of the rights fee benefitted the smaller clubs more leading to them all voting it through? Maybe club chairman haven't thought it through properly? Maybe clubs have underestimated how easily some fans will be persuaded to watch at home with a few cans? Maybe the person I heard from is worrying about nothing?

It'll be very interesting to see how midweek crowds hold up across the EFL.

 

[cooperblade]

They are better off because people that wouldn’t go to the game owing to distance will pay to watch it will far outweigh the loss

I wonder how the payments are structured for away fans watching the game. Let's say we play a team who would normally bring 2,000 fans. They only bring 1,000 because the others have decided to watch through their club's ifollow. I'd guess we don't benefit from that at all?

Sure the figures will never be publicised but I bet there'll be plenty of United fans in Sheffield watching home games on ifollow when it gets cold.

 

[S5Blade]

I wonder how the payments are structured for away fans watching the game. Let's say we play a team who would normally bring 2,000 fans. They only bring 1,000 because the others have decided to watch through their club's ifollow. I'd guess we don't benefit from that at all?

Sure the figures will never be publicised but I bet there'll be plenty of United fans in Sheffield watching home games on ifollow when it gets cold.

You should actually email the club and ask them, I emailed Dave McCarthy and Paul Reeves last year about iFollow with a load of feedback and questions and got answers to almost everything and where they couldn't answer, they got the person (or one of) at the EFL to respond and confirm. I am sure they could answer most of your questions without going into detail but considering almost all of the 72 clubs signed up too it, I imagine there is a bigger benefit than any impact on away followings.

 

[originaltrueblade]

Apologies for my dumbness, but will we be able to see the away games as I’m a season ticket holder anyway?...I realise that not all the EFL clubs are in it

Yes mate midweek games at a cost between £10-£14 if not being shown on Sky Sports No games Saturday unless you are overseas

 

[originaltrueblade]

I wonder how the payments are structured for away fans watching the game. Let's say we play a team who would normally bring 2,000 fans. They only bring 1,000 because the others have decided to watch through their club's ifollow. I'd guess we don't benefit from that at all?

Sure the figures will never be publicised but I bet there'll be plenty of United fans in Sheffield watching home games on ifollow when it gets cold.

Not Saturday games as these are blacked out

 

[BridBladesman]

Yes mate midweek games at a cost between £10-£14 if not being shown on Sky Sports No games Saturday unless you are overseas

Cheers mate...I’ve not used ifollow before that’s why I asked the dumb question

 

[Mad Mick]

I bought a seasons pass from Portugal last year. This year I'll by match by match with VPN. If it don't work then so be it.

 

[Pollingtonblade]

Dunno why folk would pay £10 when you can watch it on a well known social media site for free.

 

[JJ Sefton]

So, commentary, on screen graphics, multiple cameras and UK people can watch too for games outside of the Saturday Blocked hours......

Decent!

Glad I forgot to cancel it now.

 

[Dkc]

Dunno why folk would pay £10 when you can watch it on a well known social media site for free.

He got banned by FB

 

[BridBladesman]

Dunno why folk would pay £10 when you can watch it on a well known social media site for free.

Not everybody is on FB

 

[S5Blade]

I emailed the EFL for clarifications on the new features and if all clubs were getting them or only clubs who decide to invest in it.

They confirmed that all clubs will get the proper scoreboard, commentary synced with video, improved quality and the majority of clubs will change to the 4 camera setup but didnt specify if we would be.

Looking forward to it now!

 

[Isaw Joeshaw]

It all sounds very interesting but my main reservation is that their technology is shit , and has been since day one.

Last season , there were a number of occasions when I couldn't get the audio commentary and, even today , I went on to look at replays of the Inter match and the videos would not play . I never had any such problems with Blades Player .

I've also found that even signing in can be a problem , in that it often accepts this then the screen goes blank and it asks you to do it all over again.

GRRRRRRRRRR !!!!!!

 

[DaddyDozy]

I emailed the EFL for clarifications on the new features and if all clubs were getting them or only clubs who decide to invest in it.

They confirmed that all clubs will get the proper scoreboard, commentary synced with video, improved quality and the majority of clubs will change to the 4 camera setup but didnt specify if we would be.

Looking forward to it now!

Really happy to hear that. I'm assuming it will be similar to the Inter match. I just wish the picture quality was higher. On 720p "HD" it looks pretty garbage, and there is no option for 1080p (for me at least)

 

[NotFallowfieldBlade]

Dunno why folk would pay £10 when you can watch it on a well known social media site for free.

A guy stood with an iPhone recording isn’t the same as full coverage is it

 

[ThatJa]

A guy stood with an iPhone recording isn’t the same as full coverage is it

Wrong group.

And no, I'm not banned by Facebook.

 

[Sirius]

I would expect it to have a very significant impact on away support (£10 to watch it at home versus £30ish a ticket + travel). I also think there will be home fans who decide staying at home is a better option.

Not sure how the voting works for bringing in things like this but I struggle to see how a lot of Championship clubs won't be financially worse off.

For us lot living far far away, whilst TV coverage is more than acceptable, being there is so much better Are we moving to a day where the Blades are faced with very little support in the ground? I do hope not

 

[Sirius]

Sky are not showing all the games in midweek this coming season that starts in season 2019/2020

Fuck me My last match at the Lane cost ten quid to get in How sad is that

 

[AWetFlannel]

Wonder how long it will take for the EFL and prem to start subsidising away fans to bring back the atmosphere lost through people staying at home to watch.

 

[Cerberus Blade]

Thats a really positive step.

However, when will football realise that its ok to show matches on TV between 1445-1715 on a Saturday.

Unless it's Mansfield Town v Sheffield Wednesday, in which case it should only be shown after the 9pm watershed when all the kids are safely snuggled up in bed.

 

[Bladesman]

I emailed the EFL for clarifications on the new features and if all clubs were getting them or only clubs who decide to invest in it.

They confirmed that all clubs will get the proper scoreboard, commentary synced with video, improved quality and the majority of clubs will change to the 4 camera setup but didnt specify if we would be.

Looking forward to it now!

Commentary is sorted:

 

[kop_blade9]

So, commentary, on screen graphics, multiple cameras and UK people can watch too for games outside of the Saturday Blocked hours......

Decent!

All it means is that you can get a stream for the odd Tuesday night.
All for £10 per match. You can get a Nowtv Skysports pass for £7.99 I think.
Disappointing for me.
Needs to be every match for the season or its not worth bothering with.

 

[S5Blade]

All it means is that you can get a stream for the odd Tuesday night.
All for £10 per match. You can get a Nowtv Skysports pass for £7.99 I think.
Disappointing for me.
Needs to be every match for the season or its not worth bothering with.

Not if you live abroad though. 110 quid for me for the year, only the swansea game on sky until the end of October, will probably watch it on ifollow anyway for far less annoying commentary

 

[Blade56]

Dunno why folk would pay £10 when you can watch it on a well known social media site for free.

Not bothering unless Jason can't run his superb service. Not paying £10 but he just asks for donations, if I watch I make a donation. If he's being naughty they'll stop him, until then fingers crossed I'll be there for the Middlesbrough game.

 

[Foxy]

If he's being naughty

There's absolutely no question on that, which is why I've not been doing it.