Comments on: Melbourne Fans Win a Victory For Supporters’ Culture

By: Rulo Vinello

Rulo Vinello — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 11:00:09 +0000

Very good written. I’ m loving reading these articles , it is such a rich topic, and a great chance for fans to share their knowledge & passion!

R.Vinello

By: Socceroos

Socceroos — Thu, 22 May 2008 00:56:13 +0000

Just read this article and laughed. This was ridiculous treatment from the Telstra Dome. What kind of sport do they think this is?

Drums = sense of tribalism….well derr. And what is the big deal about that.

You also have to have a go at MV footy club for not speaking up in defence of their supporters earlier.

By: MCF

MCF — Sun, 18 May 2008 09:32:12 +0000

When are we gonna hear the racist attitude towards the VPL fans by the federation and police?

By: Poll: Why did Melbourne home attendances drop last year?

Poll: Why did Melbourne home attendances drop last year? — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 21:29:00 +0000

[...] comment left on my Pitch Invasion article about the conflict between Melbourne Victory supporters and the Telstra Dome sparked my [...]

By: Lok

Lok — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 08:24:45 +0000

Good article.

The conflict between the organised MVFC fans and Telstra Dome seems to have eased somewhat, but it has significantly slowed (or somewhat undone) the momentum of support for the club generated from Season 2. A mistake for a club that, being in its infancy, should be trying to attract as many supporters to their games as they can.

Many football supporters who were not members of the organised groups, including me, ended up supporting the Terrace groups because we saw it as an attack on football supporters in-general (something which is not alien to an Australian football supporter given the history of the sport in this country).

Had the club backed its supporters from the outset instead of appearing to back the stadium management, the supporter groups would not have protested as they did, and the crowds would not have dropped off as much as they did toward the end of Season 3.

By: Tunna

Tunna — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 00:57:41 +0000

Eric,

Its refreshing to read an article which has been well researched and by a person who has lived the experience first hand.

We’ll get there.

Keep up the great work. BWB is behind you all the way.

By: Active support: Tunna talks about the Telstra Dome

Active support: Tunna talks about the Telstra Dome — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 23:26:10 +0000

[...] week, I published an article on football blog Pitch Invasion about the conflict between Melbourne Victory fans and Telstra Dome [...]

By: Guido

Guido — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 14:24:30 +0000

Thanks for the link! Interestingly there is now a purpose built rectangular stadium for soccer and rugby being built in Melbourne right now. This is a major achievement in this Australian Rules Football obsessed city. A group of fans has created a group called the Melbourne Victory Fans Stadium Action Group (VFSAG) to lobby for designated safe standing areas as those present in German stadia to be built there.

This is important because it would signify that soccer support is different and needs to be seen to be different.

The website of the VFSAG is here if interested:

http://www.vfsag.org

By: Eric Daams

Eric Daams — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 07:34:18 +0000

@ Ian #1. The first quote in my article was taken from the Northern Terrace eZine, from an article written by Tunna. Tunna is the leader of the Blue and White Brigade fan group and has been one of the key people in negotiations between the club, Telstra Dome and fans. So he is certainly high up in the echelons of the supporter groups. And according to him, “no documentary evidence relating to Telstra Dome has been provided that suggests that standing on Level 3 is unsafe.”

@ Ian #2. Glad you liked the article.

By: Ian at Stadia

Ian at Stadia — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 10:29:59 +0000

Eric, Nice piece on the fan issues v stadium management. Good outcome too. I will link to your article from our stadium management pages on EVMI (European Venue Management Institute) – we train stadium managers globally and your insights are a timely reminder that stadiums serve several different customers – the team, the sponsors, the owners, the city council etc – but not least of which are the fans! Best of luck with the new supporter-centric opportunities.

By contrast to your experiences in Australia, the owners of Toronto FC (a new MLS franchise, part of the MapleLeafs Sports Group) embraced fan groups and encouraged new identities/flags/songs from the new team’s supporter groups when they constructed the team’s home ground of BMO Field last year. The result? The first sellout season for a MLS team… Torontonians love the noise and spectacle of Toronto FC home games (now one of the ‘hot’ tickets in the former hockey-only town!)

Ian Nuttall
Founder – Stadia magazine
Board Member – EVMI