The drawbacks of being on TV

Coventry City's 2-1 win over Colchester United on Monday was watched by a crowd of just 16,178 at the Ricoh Arena, well down on the average for the season and on what could have been expected if the game had been played on a Saturday.

Clubs do well out of the Sky TV deal in terms of the money they receive in a lump sum every year but when it comes to the matches themselves, the timing often means that any money received is cancelled out by lower crowds, programme sales, food sales etc.

It happened for the Leicester game and has happened to other clubs in the Championship and doesn't do City much good when the TV viewers can see rows of empty seats and a lack of atmosphere (although the club did try and entice more people to this game with some good offers).

Moving a game at relatively short notice to a Monday night also alienates those fans who live away from the Coventry area but buy season tickets in the summer and discourages away fans (the away game at Plymouth for instance has now been moved to a weekday evening meaning far fewer City fans at the game).

TV money is crucial to the clubs but the Coca-Cola League has been going through a prosperous period and is a good 'product' for want of a better word.

The clubs do not have to sell themselves so short and agree to every single request for a fixture change. Games moved to weekday evenings should be local derbies only.

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