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Empty stands should teach everyone a lesson
SC Villa chief executive officer William Nkemba. PHOTO/COURTESY
What you need to know:
- The issue: Sports fees
- Our view: Clubs have to create sustainable brands that can attract corporate sponsorship to back their programmes.
SC Villa believed the club was right to charge Shs50,000 for their Caf Champions League match with Central Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) on Saturday at Mandela National Stadium, Namboole.
Anything less, Villa believed, would be akin to “giving out this product for free as we do in the league”.
The club chief executive officer, Mr William Nkemba, argued that if Villa charged Shs10,000 per match for 15 home games and say five cup games – if you include this Champions League and Uganda Cup - then for 20 matches, a fan would be giving the team Shs200,000 a season.
Namboole was empty and deserted as Villa lost 2-1 to CBE on the former’s return to continental football after nearly a decade away.
During that decade, Villa, who won their first league title this year after 20 years, ceded a lot of ground as one of the biggest in Uganda and the region. We will deal with it later on in this space.
Is Shs50,000 too high a price to pay to watch a football game? Yes it is. Fans have to make choices and that fee is a sacrifice amid the economic strife that has affected most households.
Remember, the bulk of fans are youths trying to make ends meet. To spend Shs50,000 on a ticket and more on transport and at least one meal implies spending almost Shs100,000 in one day.
That money is equivalent to rent, food for several days and paying utility bills. Someone needs to deeply understand the reasons that guided Villa in pricing because those given are far from satisfactory.
What are fans even paying for? Had Villa created the appeal that matches the sacrifice fans are supposed to make to part with a portion of their meagre incomes?
There is a lot of history around the club but not often do they live in the present. Over the past 20 years, Villa has been overtaken by KCCA and Vipers in terms of appeal with the younger population, call them Gen Z.
In fact, many who can relate with or support Villa are older folks on the other side of 30 or 35. These have to forego a family engagement, work or an expenditure to pay for a match.
This also includes having to choose to watch an Arsenal or Manchester United match at their wooden kiosk for Shs1,000.
In addition, football and sport can no longer live off gate collections. Clubs have to create sustainable brands that can attract corporate sponsorship to back their programmes.
Only a few fans, 40,000 to be exact, can be granted access to a stadium. How do we tap into the millions who do not come to the stadium? On all measures, SC Villa errored and everyone needs to learn.
