Wooing the Fans Back into the Stadia

During the 1980’s and early 1990’s, the interest of sports fans in the local league was almost at its dizzying heights, similar in most proportions, to the religious zeal with which many local football fans now follow the English Premier League.

The Nostalgia of the Past

Specifically, I recollect with a slightly dim memory but unfaded nostalgia a Champion-of-Champions grand finale between the then team of the moment, Okwawu United or the Asaase Aban Boys and Kumasi Asante Kotoko at the Accra Sports Stadium in the late 1980’s. I had forsaken going to church that Sunday. In those glorious days of local football, the competitive nature of local soccer encounters, along with the presence of tried and tested stars - the Mohammed Odoom's, C.K Akunnor's, Alhaji Bello’s, Abdul Razak's, Opoku Nti's, Raf Iddi’s etc- were perhaps, far stronger attraction than the ‘opium’ of religion among the mass of Ghanaian soccer fans. If not, how can one explain the mad aggression with which some lady supporters of the two teams, scaled the walls of the stadium in order to savour the excitement and drama that usually accompanied such duels?

Despite, arriving at the stadium gates at about 10am in the morning, I had not been able to gain entry as late as 3pm. When I finally managed to get squeezed into the soccer theatre, almost every inch of space was literally covered!

Low Patronage

It is over two decades now, and a lot of changes have taken place since then. Ghana’s population has nearly doubled; the conditions at some of our stadia have improved significantly; there has been a massive exodus of local talents to seek greener pastures; globalization and rapid advancement in technology have created more attractive offerings for football fans; and Football has graduated from a profession then perceived as being fit for drop-outs to one that is now highly respected. Now, some of professional footballers earn in a month what many professionals in other sectors will not get after their entire working life! Sadly, the net effects of these changes have had a negative impact on the interest in the local league, culminating in very low levels of patronage.
The dwindling interest of fans has, without doubt, become a nagging problem for Ghanaian football clubs, fans, administrators and media practitioners. The Chairman of the Premier League Board (PLB), Mr. Welbeck Abra-Appiah recently lamented thus: ‘’That all the initiatives taken in the past to promote attendance at matches have so far not yielded the desired impact"
(GNA, 6TH Jan, 2011).

Ironically, the factors which have contributed to the present low levels of patronage are very well-known – Lack of star players/poor performance, low levels of remuneration/rewards for players, poor officiating, poor infrastructure, low levels of sponsorships, hooliganism and violence at soccer centres etc.

Some analysts have even suggested that, reducing gates fees could help induce fans back to the stadia. Yet, while it is tenable that income levels in Ghana are generally low, it can be said that the current range of fees charged at the various stadia are reasonable and within the reach of most soccer fans. The over subscription for tickets during the CAN 2008 in Ghana as well as the over demand for other Black Stars matches in Ghana, do lend further support to this view.

Retaining Star Actors & Performance

To all intents and purposes, the key reason for the low patronage at our stadia in recent times is the absence of star performers and consequential sub-standard performance. This mainly explains the reason for many fans, thronging the various pubs, hotels and restaurants dotted around the country during weekends and week days to watch English and Spanish league matches. Of course, globalization and technology are culpable conspirators - The increased and easy access to various media (mobile phones, Cable TVs, internet) for watching foreign matches also contribute immensely to the low attendance at local football encounters. I bet many of us would prefer watching Arsenal play Chelsea or Manchester to watching a match involving Kotoko and Hearts Oak!

It cannot be gainsaid that the demand for football like, all theatrical performances, hinges on the quality and brand equity of the actors or key actors as well as the quality of their delivery or performance. In the nostalgic years of Ghana football, tried and tested talents remained in the local league for long and became iconic models. Today, aside of burgeoning players leaving the country ‘too soon’, many of those who remain have little or no incentives and motivation to perform.

Besides, many local players do not have professional managers who can support and help build their personal brands. The iconic brand of David Beckham is underpinned much by his unique skills in taking free kicks but also by a deliberate marketing and branding strategy which informs what he does on and off the field, such as the type of teams he signs for, what he wears, where he hangs out and even what the Beckham family do in their private life!

Given the liberalized market in which football finds itself, it will be difficult to completely halt the exodus of our local players to seek greener pastures. Hence creative solutions have to be found to the frequent export of our budding talents if we are to succeed in rekindling interest in the local league. For example, the GFA can reward up-and-coming stars who stay for a specified period of time before exiting the local scene by imposing lower levies on their contract fees.
Arguably, the most important antidote to stemming the mass exit of emerging footballers is to offer adequate remuneration and incentives. It is, however, regrettable that after over a decade of professional football in Ghana, most players in the local premiership earn less than GHC 200 per month (excluding other allowances), while players in less prestigious football countries like India, Cyprus, Israel, Afghanistan and Vietnam earn above $1,000 per month!

Given the right management structures and practices, it is difficult to justify why an average player in the local should not earn, at least, $1,000 each month? – If we can do this, it will go a long way to drastically curb the premature departure of local budding stars. With the right management structures, it will also be possible for us to attract back into the local league accomplished Ghana players who have gained valuable experience abroad - Renowned Brazilian star, Ronaldinho, recently declined an offer from Blackburn of England but chose to return home to play for his hometown team Gremo.

Higher Sponsorships
The level sponsorships must also be scaled up to help cushion the finances of local teams – The average sponsorship amount of about GHC145,000 for clubs in the GLO Premier league is nothing to write home about. Elsewhere in England, premier league clubs earn on the average £5million for just wearing the branded jerseys of companies! We need more support from Ghana Club Hundred companies in this direction. At least, each of these companies can purchase tickets for their staff and customers to watch matches at various league centres.

Other measures

But improving remuneration and finances of local clubs cannot rest entirely on the sponsorship: We can maximize gate proceeds if general conditions and safety are improved at the various stadia – What stops us from say, selling VIP tickets in advance? Seating arrangements must be properly segmented, positioned and priced – It is a shame to note that less than two years after the renovations at Accra Sports Stadium, the urinal facilities at the VIPs of places, emit such an offensive smell which permeates into some portions of the stadium.
Moreover, in view of the proven effectiveness of consumer-oriented sales promotion schemes (sweepstakes, raffles, coupons, gifts etc) in inducing consumers to purchase goods and services, these techniques can also be creatively employed to target the lower priced segments.

Innovative Management

Indeed, the problems militating against attendance at local football matches are numerous - Poor officiating; poor infrastructures, hooliganism, low sponsorship, and weak management structures. But by far, the biggest challenge relates to the lack of star performers and its resulting lacklustre performance.
Attractive corporate sponsorships and improving club finances can go a long way to address the vicious cycle of low remuneration/motivation, mass exodus of budding stars and performance. But I am afraid, without innovative, efficient and transparent management, we will continue to lose our fans to the more exciting top European leagues!

Dr Kwabena Frimpong, is a Lecturer in Services Marketing and International Business at GIMPA Business School, Achimota, Accra.
Email: Kwabenafrimpong@gimpa.edu.gh