Should fan parks be a regular thing for sport in South Africa?

The recent Nedbank Cup final showcased the passion of South African football fans and highlighted the potential for fan parks to enhance the sporting experience

The site of football supporters filling up the Durban beachfront for the Nedbank Cup final/Soweto derby yesterday was a breath of fresh air for South African sports. 

It showed clearly the thirst for bigger and more accommodating facilities for sporting fans, especially football, given the size of the fan base. The Soweto derby isn't just South Africa's biggest football match, but one of the continent's as well. 

Something for the fans

For the final at Moses Mabhida on Saturday, between Chiefs and Pirates, the PSL opted to sell just over 49,000 tickets, which meant a majority of fans had to watch from outside the stadium. 

But the PSL also opted to set up two “very organised” fan parks in Durban, one at Albert Park and the other at the Durban beachfront, where at least over 10,000 people gathered, according to Independent Media photojournalist Doctor Ncgobo. 

“More than 10,000 people rocked up to the beachfront. It was insane. And it was very organised, no chaos,” Ngcobo explained. 

In all of the images Ngcobo shot yesterday, the look of pure excitement, joy and grief [on the face of Pirates supporters] permeated the crowd as Kaizer Chiefs broke their unlucky streak by beating Pirates for the cup. 

So why not make it a regular experience for fans? Especially bearing in mind the economic conditions a majority of South Africans are faced with. 

Are fan parks better for business?

Fan parks offer supporters a chance to feel as close to the action as possible but while it may be in benefit of supporters, it does kind of go against the end goal of major sporting businesses - turning a profit. 

The tickets, food, drinks and merchandise that is sold at stadiums during large sporting events are a major source of income for businesses involved in that sphere.

Setting up fan parks around the country would be against their end goal but there also may be a way around it. 

The rights to sell merchandise and refreshments at fan parks could be bought by each team so they too can benefit by selling the same items at a fan park. 

For example, if Chiefs and Pirates are playing, then both of those teams can fill up the fan park with their merchandise. 

The broadcasting of the game itself, which is a highly costly affair that Supersport pays for [most of the time] could be compensated through a minute entrance fee to the fan park. This would also give administrators a chance to rope in small businesses as well. 

It gives the league an opportunity to expand their market size and also gives the fans an experience on a budget. 

Sure, it would be a difficult task to pull off administratively, but from a fan perspective, supporting your favourite team wouldn’t have to be confined to a bar, shebeen or a friends house who has DSTV. 

The experience itself would make the game all the more exciting, much like the feeling that swirled around South African fan parks during the 2010 World Cup.