WC 2010 sold out?

[edemire]

Oops - you're right. The main WC 10 forum does seem to include WC 06 and Olympics 08 posts - mea culpa! Nice call with the Philipines.

[Khalid80]

There were 7,170 posts about the '06 WC, 9,882 posts about the 08 Olympics and so far 17,514 posts about these 10 WCs. Why is this? Is it solely attributable to the growth in popularity of this Web site? If not, and basketball has just become much more popular in that part of the world since 2006, then maybe Turkey's venues will be crowded than expected.

Here in IBN I do believe that this website and forum members have been continuosly been increasing throughout the last couple of years (I'm sure the mods here can tell you more about this since i've just been here for 2 years while they've been here for much longer)

I do believe the popularity of bball on a global level has been continuously increasing as the level and competition has risen as well.

By the way are you sure that the 17,514 doesn't include the posts from the 06 WC and 08 Olympics?

I can't imagine what the number of posts would have been if the Philippines qualified to such an event

[edemire]

Why are there so many more posts about this WC than in the past?

There were 7,170 posts about the '06 WC, 9,882 posts about the 08 Olympics and so far 17,514 posts about these 10 WCs. Why is this? Is it solely attributable to the growth in popularity of this Web site? If not, and basketball has just become much more popular in that part of the world since 2006, then maybe Turkey's venues will be crowded than expected.

[JGX]

Recent history of WC attendance:

1998: "FIBA: Low Attendance hurting sport's image"

http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-19569087.html

2002: "Poor Attendance at World Games"

http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-67148690.html

2006: "Not so big in Japan: World championship fails to draw fans"

http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-127961320.html

Hopefully Turkey is breaking the trend.

[daniel050]

sold out already?

you gotta be kiddin me!!

[zik013]

guys, what do you think.. me and my mates missed the tix in last sale...
We want to come for the semifinals and finals... should we book our flights and hotels now and worry about the tix when we are in Istanbul ??
the arena is quite big, when were were in Eurobasket 2009, there were a lot of spare tickets sold outside the palace.


Or is it possible to buy the tickets in Turkey NOW ?? have some friends there, maybe they can get the tix for us. Anybody knows ?

thanks

[daniab]

I figure there are a lot of Lebanese fans going to Turkey (even if they can't watch the games in the arena). Correct?

I'm curious though about the other teams. Would Greece bring a lot of fans since it's close to Turkey as well as Iran and Jordan? I know that basketball isn't significantly popular in Iran and Jordan. But would this be a different case since WC is happening so close to their countries?

why wouldnt they watch it in the arena ? most of our fans are buying packages

[Franz]

I figure there are a lot of Lebanese fans going to Turkey (even if they can't watch the games in the arena). Correct?

I'm curious though about the other teams. Would Greece bring a lot of fans since it's close to Turkey as well as Iran and Jordan? I know that basketball isn't significantly popular in Iran and Jordan. But would this be a different case since WC is happening so close to their countries?

[daniab]

there's an important fact here is that Turkey is in the middle of all continents.
As an exemple a lot of Lebanese are going to turkey to support our team since its close and less expensive while they wouldnt be that interested to go to US (not anything against US , again its abt geographical and economical considerations).

[Levenspiel]

You probably tried to purchase the package tickets right? To watch all the game of a NT.

I have been trying to buy separate tickets just for 1 game (you know which) for the past few days and all it says a 3rd wave will follow, tickets not available for the moment etc.

So if the tickets would be sold out they would announce it in the past days. Otherwise no tickets have been sold in the past few days, so why announce it now?

Probably a trick to combine the 100 days countdown with pressure to the fans to get their tickets "before it's too late" and to remind them the tournament is getting close.

By the way, which city you are going to?

Yes, I was doing that. Though my intention is watch all the games in the group. Let's see. I will look into this more closely through my friends in Izmir. So, I'm gonna be in Izmir first, then in Istanbul for the next phase (with 90% certainty).

[Victorious]

Don't take your heats off just yet. People are buying packages to watch all group games, but usually only attend their favorite team. As a result, many empty seats are left open.

One thing is for sure though. International basketball popularity has risen tremendously during the last decade. I remember that the website of the 2006 WC in Japan crashed several times. It's been going upward ever since.

[JGX]

Don't take me off my soapbox, dude.

How was I supposed to know, when you didn't use the soapbox smiley?

[mvblair]

That's rather harsh. IIRC only the 1994 WC in Canada had a higher total attendance at the time (dunno if the 24-team WC in Japan was also higher, lots of empty seats there too). Attendance for the later stages was disappointing as ticket prices were too high.

To have packed arenas you need matchups that appeal to neutral fans (or really small arenas), and the unfortunate reality is that most matchups just aren't appealing to large numbers of fans.

Don't take me off my soapbox, dude.

[JGX]

Indianapolis hosts great sporting events and is the US capital of amateur sporting events. When they host high school tournaments or NCAA tournaments, the city is always packed. But 2002 was pathetic. The US/China game probably had the highest attendance. They did nothing to promote the WC. And this is Indiana, the supposed heart of basketball!!

That's rather harsh. IIRC only the 1994 WC in Canada had a higher total attendance at the time (dunno if the 24-team WC in Japan was also higher, lots of empty seats there too). Attendance for the later stages was disappointing as ticket prices were too high.

To have packed arenas you need matchups that appeal to neutral fans (or really small arenas), and the unfortunate reality is that most matchups just aren't appealing to large numbers of fans.

[mvblair]

That's excellent news for both the event organizers and FIBA. I can still remember how embarassing the half-empty arena looked game after game in 2002 when Indianapolis hosted it. It wasn't just a bad showing by the US National Team, but it was one of the worst organized and publicized WC in recent memory.

Indianapolis hosts great sporting events and is the US capital of amateur sporting events. When they host high school tournaments or NCAA tournaments, the city is always packed. But 2002 was pathetic. The US/China game probably had the highest attendance. They did nothing to promote the WC. And this is Indiana, the supposed heart of basketball!!

If Turkey has sold out, or is close to selling out, that's fantastic. It shows that basketball is growing in Europe because there are probably a lot of travelers planning vacations around these games.