Last Nights SOO had good TV ratings. "A national average audience of 3.865 million viewers tuned in across the Nine, WIN and NBN networks, the second largest audience in Origin history after Game 1 of this year’s series (3.957m). Across the five capital cities on Channel Nine, 2.495 million average viewers tuned in – again the second highest in Origin history after Game One of this year’s series (2.515m). Across regional Australia, the match was also the second highest rating Origin match ever, with an average audience of 1.370 million. The match was the most watched in Origin history in Melbourne, with a record average audience of 370,000 viewers, and the highest rating Game Two in history" Link www.nrl.com/origin-breaks-tv-rec ... fault.aspx

Last Nights SOO had good TV ratings. "A national average audience of 3.865 million viewers tuned in across the Nine, WIN and NBN networks, the second largest audience in Origin history after Game 1 of this year’s series (3.957m). Across the five capital cities on Channel Nine, 2.495 million average viewers tuned in – again the second highest in Origin history after Game One of this year’s series (2.515m). Across regional Australia, the match was also the second highest rating Origin match ever, with an average audience of 1.370 million. The match was the most watched in Origin history in Melbourne, with a record average audience of 370,000 viewers, and the highest rating Game Two in history" Link www.nrl.com/origin-breaks-tv-rec ... fault.aspx

Imagine if SL got those ratings Eddie and Stevo would die by w@nk1ng too much!

These figures are extrapolations from minute samples and the margin of error is huge.

Are Channel 9 a free to air broadcaster or subscription?

The trick now is to get those people of the couch and into the grounds on a weekly basis.

FTA, but you also have to remember that Australia has a population a 3rd the size of ours.

Yeah I'm not decrying the figures, they're obviously very good, just it's obviously much easier to get those figures on FTA than subscription so a comparison to SL is daft. Its better to compare it to the Challenge Cup Final to see the differences in popularity in the 2 countries.

It is those same ratings that determine the TV ad pricing, the shirt and game sponsorship and more importantly have a huge bearing on the next TV deal dollar values.

So they are hardly not important or so inaccurate that big companies throw millions at a game based on those figures hoping there is some truth in them.

Pretty all of the SOO games are sell outs and getting tickets can be very difficult and expensive.

At Club level the single Team Cities do pretty well for Crowds, Sydney is a big City but it has to support nine teams within its boundaries.

Average crowd figures this year are 16,500
Brisbane gets 35k
Canterbury 24k
Newcastle 20k
Saints 20k
Warriors 20k
Parramatta 15k and are coming last with 2 wins from 12.

What are the crowds like in Melbourne and the capital?

The Storm are 14k
Canberra 10k

Melbourne had 370,000 viewers, the highest SOO number for Melbourne in the history of that city.





No figures yet from Canberra, Paris, Toulouse, Lyon, Avignon, Montpellier or Perpignan.

I understand that the SOO and NRL Grandfinal viewing figures regularly put them in the top 10 of the most watched programs that year and certainly top of the live sports event viewing figures.

I'd say that's a better barometer of how popular the game is over there rather than the bare viewing figures alone.

On a slightly different note, having watched both games so far this season, any annalysis as to why England/GB are unable to beat the Aussie test side need go no further.

I am in a minority, but I thought the games were poor and badly ref'd, with far too many high shots unpunished

Do you understand how statistical sampling works? Remarkably small samples can produce very reliable figures - increasing the sample size has minimal impact on expected reliability.

I was in Melbourne last month and I can tell you that the crowds and atmosphere there are fantastic. In fact the game which I went to 76,000 turned up and that was just a regular round fixture. Melbourne is also a big city which has to support 9 clubs in the competition but that doesn't stop it from generating huge attendances. You know? Where fans actually turn up and place bums on seats?

It's called Aussie Rules and unlike Rugby League it doesn't need to obsessively waffle away ad nauseam about TV ratings as if somehow that makes up for the embarrassment of rows upon rows of empty seats and zero atmosphere at NRL games in Sydney and elsewhere.

There's a few minor factors that contribute, but you are indeed correct.

What amazes me that with these massive tv ratings rl has over afl who has the biggest tv deal?

Keith you should look for an Aussie Rules forum if that is how you feel mate, you will get plenty of bites I am sure.

I am not really fussed on what AFL does to be honest or the culture Melbournites have watching
their game, maybe it suggests they have little else to do on a weekend compared to other places.
They average 60k and that is a huge number, its -6 % down this year so far and it was -6% down last year.

Good TV ratings for Rugby League is a positive for our code any way you look at it, TV ratings translate to revenue. Those same ratings will be what sees more English players moving to the NRL and staying in the code rather than moving to Union (or AFL)

Most Clubs do not have rows and rows of empty seats unless you think a Club team should fill the Olympic Stadium or the Football Stadium, that's hardly realistic.

That TV deal is about to change though Sheldon, its been locked in on a long term deal since 2005 with channel nine.
It should be around double that amount this time, 1 billion or there abouts.

I know mate, if the nrl gets 1 billion that's 200 million behind afl.

More has to be done about membership and attendances, all i see on tv is adverts for afl and I have never received any info in the mail about membership for any of the 3 surrounding nrl clubs.

Anyway I'll leave it all here, i've done it to death on these boards before.

The Crowds have never been massive for Rugby League in Sydney, they are as high now as they have been for a long time.

Times are tough everywhere.
If you can hold on with what you have in most Sports today you are doing ok, there are so many other things competing for your time and money.
A family of 4 at the Broncos in a reasonable spot at the ground is $120, throw in $50 for a drink each and a Pie or Burger, its not a cheap family day out, you could go to one of the big Theme Parks on the Coast for the same amount. (or buy a weeks groceries in some cases)

And this is why clubs should promote their membership packages better.

A family of 4, in the good seats, for 14 games at souths is $855 they'll even let you pay monthly at $71.25.

Now if you want to sit in the cheap seats, and imo theres no bad seats in the suncorp or anz, you can pay for 2 adults and UP TO 4 kids $500 for the 14 games, $41.67 A MONTH.

Members also get a discount on food and drink.

That is a great deal, Souths have been active in promoting memberships more than most.

Brisbane don't really do any great deals as being a one team large City they don't have to, they can fill the place with young males having a night out with their mates.

The "family tickets" are for 1 Adult and 1 child to sell them at a higher rate.

I think it maybe a Sydney thing due the smaller crowds.

Roosters were doing a $100 season pass for this season but I didn't see it advertised, anywhere.

Quadrupling the sample size will only halve the error,

Once you get to sample sizes of about 3,000 there is really no need to increase it any further (Assuming your sample is random)