Football Kits Rip Off

[Demented Zebra]

You pay £300 for 17, possibly 18 or 19, games of football throughout the winter months. If the rest of Falkirk thought the product was good value for money you'd have a third stand already with desperate appeals to the council to allow you to build a fourth. Your club would also be raking in the cash and you'd have nothing to worry about with your club having the ability to buy out the JVC eliminating fears that the stadium you play at might fall into the hands of some "undesirable".

People will attend football matches if you

1. Charge a more realistic admission fee, particularly to kids.

2. Provide a good standard of entertainment in comfortable surroundings.

3. Don't rip people off through high prices for sub standard food, or ridiculous mark ups on merchandising.

Kids love playing with a ball. It was easy to witness on holiday too BTW. When one kid entered the swimming pool with a ball all of a sudden he had loads of new friends. Kids would play football in the park if parents could be convinced that the park isn't full of broken glass, junkies needles and that their kids won't get assaulted or kidnapped while playing there. Like the rest of us kids love watching the events live rather than on telly - it's just that prices dictate that parents cannot afford to use the football as a family afternoon out.

Cheap admission prices don’t work.

You live near Motherwell don’t you ! ? ! ?

[Law Stud]

Cheap admission prices don’t work.

You live near Motherwell don’t you ! ? ! ?

In what way do they not work LS? Motherwell's recently discounted match against Aberdeen was very well attended. Last season the discounted match against St Mirren at Fir Park was very well attended. The fact that Motherwell continue to use discounted prices and free ticket giveaways to local school kids tends to suggest that John Boyle believes that discounting tickets has some kind of positive effect. Certainly it's helped make me far more likely to visit Fir Park than I am to attend NDP or indeed Love Street.

[minijc]

Florida is amazing. usually stay on International drive where it is easier to get around and that if you don't drive.

As for prices for strips it is a complete rip off, we should maybe follow suit, Aberdeens new top can be baught for £15 without a badge, just shows how much they make off of the tops.

[Demented Zebra]

In what way do they not work LS? Motherwell's recently discounted match against Aberdeen was very well attended. Last season the discounted match against St Mirren at Fir Park was very well attended. The fact that Motherwell continue to use discounted prices and free ticket giveaways to local school kids tends to suggest that John Boyle believes that discounting tickets has some kind of positive effect. Certainly it's helped make me far more likely to visit Fir Park than I am to attend NDP or indeed Love Street.

Oh you’re talking about one off games.

Here was me thinking of when Motherwell introduced it for a whole season and failed.

Sorry

[chipie1983]

Actually they are not.

Nobody is really being ripped off by anyone if you consider it philosophically.

That's because you have the ultimate weapon against it - personal choice.

You can easily walk away.

The only possible reason to get annoyed is when it is something you actually want.

None of this stuff is NECESSARY to live and that's the problem with society today in general.

There's simply too much consumption of all kinds.

Consider this:-

Petrol prices have gone up by about 30p a litre recently but my petrol bill has decreased to half the value it used to be. Why? Because the high prices have persuaded me to walk locally. I'm fitter and healthier and I've decided to plan things better instead of allowing myself to be ripped off by the petrol people. When I start needing my car for daily runs again in September I'm going to either buy a moped or a smart car. The latter does about 60-70 mpg in all traffic and the former does dozens of miles to the litre !!!!

Energy prices have gone up by god knows how much recently but again I've halved my bill?

How? By turning off all unnecessary electrical items and switching off my heating altogether.

If it gets cold I add a jumper. The heating will only go on for an hour in the morning and we'll use the fire in the front room at night. We just don't get really cold weather here anymore.

Actually camping helped here as it acclimatised me to cooler temperatures so I find this no problem.

Last week the news showed a classic struggling Mr and Mrs Sad who complained that they were now paying £80 per MONTH to heat their one bedroom flat?????? It's that sort of extravagant waste replicated in households all over the country which has caused all sorts of problems.

We've also just planted some apple cores in the ground and put some old potatoes and other veg in a few old plastic drawers from the shed and left them in the garden to see if we can:-

a)Grow a small amount of our own veg for free in a tiny garden.

and / or

b)Attract Felecity Kendall.

I agree that these prices are laughably high but the root problem is that people are extravagant and wasteful and confuse want with need.

Chill out dude. The best medicine is to watch a greedy business fail.

To be fair, this sounds like a post Alistair Darling would make. Yeah Green Taxes etc.

You win on both counts;

1) Cause you are a model energy / climate aware citizen.

2) Cause if this was a wind up post it gave me a great laugh!

No offence if it wasn't meant to be a laugh like! See point.1

[chipie1983]

Speaking of greedy business can i post a link to Hearts Debt Equity swap!?

[Football Nation]

A reply to Stuart Dickson.

I would like to make a couple of points on this topic and quantify them by saying as far as replica shirts go, I am an expert and on world economics, I am not.

Without a doubt, replica shirts are expensive items of clothing. Compared with a t-shirt from River Island, the price difference is quite large for an almost similair product. The main reason for this is the cut that goes to the football clubs when the shirt is sold in shops like ours. The manufacturer such as Adidas has to pay the club a certain amount each season which is built into the price. Hence the average price of around £40 for a shirt in the UK although I have noticed the UKs largest sports store has now increased shirt prices to £45.

Now there are three types of club. One is your Liverpools or Real Madrids of this world another would be your St. Mirrens and your Raith Rovers and finally your Albion Rovers etc. In the first category, Adidas and Nike etc. fall over themselves in an attempt to pay the club to have the right to make and distribute their shirts. In the second category, the clubs work hard to find local suppliers/sports shops who will do the same but the deal will barely cover the cost of kitting out the clubs teams for the season. In the third category, the club has to buy all their shirts, for use and retail, from a sports kit supplier. With the exception of about 5 clubs, Scotland's teams fall into the last two categories.

Now here is a fact you may be unaware of. The price that the major manufacturers charge retailers for replica shirts generally provides a very low margin, probably the lowest margin of anything they sell. This is also the same story for the majority of clubs in Scotland. It is also a major money earner for all of these clubs which is why I find it disappointing that Stuart Dickson suggests that some form of protest boycott would wake these clubs up. Given the fact that almost every club in Scotland barely breaks even, I'm afraid this would have the opposite effect that you desire. As one revenue stream dries up, prices elsewhere would have to rise to compensate.

With regards to pricing of shirts worldwide;

Barcelona £41

AC Milan £55

Bayern Munich £55

Ajax £55

Lyon £55

MLS £32

Now to suggest that we in the UK are charged more than the rest of the world is patently wrong. We are in fact amongst the cheapest in the world, not something that happens very often. The prices above were taken today at the current exchange rates and all items are from official club shops

What your Adidas Executive didn't mention, or you didn't mention is that Adidas signed off on an exclusive deal with every single MLS club to be the official suppliers of their shirts. I am fairly certain that due to the infancy of the MLS in terms of US sport, the price is almost certainly "promotional".

Now I am no expert in world economics but I am aware that many commodities are cheaper to purchase outwith the UK than within. This does not apply to football shirts and football fans in this country, if they want, can be proud that they are amongst the best value in the world. Furthermore, by buying them from official club shops or high street retailers, you will continue to help support your chosen club who hopefully provide you with some form of entertainment all year round.

[Swampy]

£40.00 for a Hummel St Mirren shirt this season, compared to $30 (£15.38) for the latest Adidas MLS tops in the Festival Bay shopping mall in Orlando.

I was at the FC Dallas shop, where the new strips are going for $80. This price is not unusual - $65 seems to be the general RRP.

[craigkillie]

To buy a Real Madrid strip in their official shops in Madrid costs around 70 euros. The same goes for Atletico and Spain strips in other shops.

Compared to that, our strips are pretty reasonably priced.

[Disco Duck]

Mod, close this thread, print it, laminate it, frame it and sell it at Sotheby's. SD is wrong - surely that's a rarity!

[flyingscot]

One think to remember is at the moment we have a favourable exchange rate making stuff in America a bit cheaper- most of the times I've been the dollar has been between $1.40 and $1.60, which makes a huge difference.

Despite America being 'cheaper' for a lot of things the cost of living there is massive, take ill and you'll need to re-mortage your house to pay for the prescription! £5 prescription was a bargain compared to the typical $50 for some pills! Paying insurance medically is expensive too, and houses/rent is higher. Swings and roundabouts over-all!

[Stu]

I'm just back from a trip to Florida which included two days at the beautiful and exclusive Disney Resort at Vero Beach. There we spent a small part of the evening in the Green Cabin Room chatting away to a couple from New York where the lady is a senior executive for Adidas in the US. Very quickly the conversation turned round to how expensive it was in the UK and how cheap everything is in the US. We gave some comparisions like petrol, $3.85 per gallon in the US, compared to the UK equivelent at £1.20 per litre or $9 per US gallon - or like the cost of a box of Pringles - £1.20 per packet in the UK, while Walmart sell them at $1 per box, or 51p in sterling - or like the cost of a football shirt - £40.00 for a Hummel St Mirren shirt this season, compared to $30 (£15.38) for the latest Adidas MLS tops in the Festival Bay shopping mall in Orlando.

Perhaps I'm looking at the wrong bit on http://www.mlsgear.com/ but the cheapest game shirts (as opposed to training tops) are $60 - and those seem to be old ones that are reduced!

I also love the fact that the latest of your imaginery friends is a senior executive in Adidas

[Slip Digby]

Indeed

Welcome to the world of Fatty Dickson. When facts are laid in front of him, like a salad, he ignores it and goes on to something else

[Reynard]

Perhaps I'm looking at the wrong bit on http://www.mlsgear.com/ but the cheapest game shirts (as opposed to training tops) are $60 - and those seem to be old ones that are reduced!

I also love the fact that the latest of your imaginery friends is a senior executive in Adidas

You can just imagine the poor woman standing there while some fat bloke in a shell suit with ketchup stains down the front talks utter shite about the exchange rate.

"Ah'm a pipe fitter by the way doll".

[Demented Zebra]

A reply to Stuart "I've eaten too many cakes" Dickson.

I would like to make a couple of points on this topic and quantify them by saying as far as replica shirts go, I am an expert and on world economics, I am not.

Without a doubt, replica shirts are expensive items of clothing. Compared with a t-shirt from River Island, the price difference is quite large for an almost similair product. The main reason for this is the cut that goes to the football clubs when the shirt is sold in shops like ours. The manufacturer such as Adidas has to pay the club a certain amount each season which is built into the price. Hence the average price of around £40 for a shirt in the UK although I have noticed the UKs largest sports store has now increased shirt prices to £45.

Now there are three types of club. One is your Liverpools or Real Madrids of this world another would be your St. Mirrens and your Raith Rovers and finally your Albion Rovers etc. In the first category, Adidas and Nike etc. fall over themselves in an attempt to pay the club to have the right to make and distribute their shirts. In the second category, the clubs work hard to find local suppliers/sports shops who will do the same but the deal will barely cover the cost of kitting out the clubs teams for the season. In the third category, the club has to buy all their shirts, for use and retail, from a sports kit supplier. With the exception of about 5 clubs, Scotland's teams fall into the last two categories.

Now here is a fact you may be unaware of. The price that the major manufacturers charge retailers for replica shirts generally provides a very low margin, probably the lowest margin of anything they sell. This is also the same story for the majority of clubs in Scotland. It is also a major money earner for all of these clubs which is why I find it disappointing that Stuart "I've eaten too many cakes" Dickson suggests that some form of protest boycott would wake these clubs up. Given the fact that almost every club in Scotland barely breaks even, I'm afraid this would have the opposite effect that you desire. As one revenue stream dries up, prices elsewhere would have to rise to compensate.

With regards to pricing of shirts worldwide;

Barcelona £41

AC Milan £55

Bayern Munich £55

Ajax £55

Lyon £55

MLS £32

Now to suggest that we in the UK are charged more than the rest of the world is patently wrong. We are in fact amongst the cheapest in the world, not something that happens very often. The prices above were taken today at the current exchange rates and all items are from official club shops

What your Adidas Executive didn't mention, or you didn't mention is that Adidas signed off on an exclusive deal with every single MLS club to be the official suppliers of their shirts. I am fairly certain that due to the infancy of the MLS in terms of US sport, the price is almost certainly "promotional".

Now I am no expert in world economics but I am aware that many commodities are cheaper to purchase outwith the UK than within. This does not apply to football shirts and football fans in this country, if they want, can be proud that they are amongst the best value in the world. Furthermore, by buying them from official club shops or high street retailers, you will continue to help support your chosen club who hopefully provide you with some form of entertainment all year round.

Good post and well done for the home-work.

Stuart "I've eaten too many cakes" Dickson the above is an example of how to get your fact’s right. Something you really should take onboard as nearly every thread you start is full of made up stories and lies.

I just bought Saints new away top. Very nice indeed. I put No 7 on it and St Mirren FC. It ended up well over £50.00.

My choice and it is nice to know that some of that money goes to my beloved club.

[SON76]

I would hazard a guess that most Scottish clubs operate at a loss...

[The Real Zippy]

Really.

Ok here goes...we went for dinner at an exclusive restaurant, the California Grill in the 5 star Disney Contemporary Resort. It was probably the most protentious place I've eaten in for a few years. We each has Sushi, then a starter, then more sushi, a main course of halibut, two bottles of 1978 Reisling, polished off with a dessert and the standard latte coffee to finish. Meal for four cost $150 including the tip - so approx £75.

On the way back from Manchester yesterday we stopped at a pizza place just off the M6 motorway. We had a cheeze pizza where the cheese part was apparently heavilly rationed, had some soft drinks and a small side salad that looked as withered as my feet do after two weeks hard walking. Total cost £67.95.

Disney resorts are only rip offs if you are willing to compare the price of their fine dining against a Ponderosa or Cracker Barrel outlet two miles away. Ofcourse that's like comparing the Ivy with your local McDonalds but hey some folk aren't that fussy...

And after that little snack you are trying to kid us on that you've lost a 'load of weight'

That coronary is approaching faster than you think, fatty.

[The Real Zippy]

You can just imagine the poor woman standing there while some fat bloke in a shell suit with ketchup stains down the front talks utter shite about the exchange rate.

"Ah'm a pipe fitter by the way doll".

f**k sake, the material needed to fit that fat c**t would resemble the marquee at Billy Smart's circus.

[Law Stud]

Oh you’re talking about one off games.

Here was me thinking of when Motherwell introduced it for a whole season and failed.

Sorry

Motherwell have never discounted prices for a full season - at least not to my knowledge. They did try price reductions for selected matched during Billy Davies time in charge at the club where it boosted gates for specific matches before they fell away again. The club then went into administration, something more down to paying silly wages to shit players rather than playing the odd match infront of 8,000+ fans paying £10 a head.

[Reynard]

Motherwell have never discounted prices for a full season - at least not to my knowledge. They did try price reductions for selected matched during Billy Davies time in charge at the club where it boosted gates for specific matches before they fell away again. The club then went into administration, something more down to paying silly wages to shit players rather than playing the odd match infront of 8,000+ fans paying £10 a head.

They went into administration because Boyle didn't want to pay his players the agreed wage anymore.

Boyle is a complete helmet. I wouldn't use that w**k as any sort of example of how to run a football club.