Casual fans help and hurt the sport

[powerpuncher]

I have come to realize that casual fans are what makes a sport popular or not. There will always be diehard fans of any sport or activity which will allow it to survive. In some ways, that’s actually better for the sport. It keeps it more pure. Once a sport gets popular, money gets involved and things become corrupt. I think that it’s great that these fighters or athletes are getting paid what they bring in, but a lot of problems come with this.

Anyway, my point is that I have seen so much of Loma being overrated and never being that good. This is mostly from the casual fans. Most real fans know that Loma was and still is a very good fighter. Because of this, the whole “don’t lose your 0” era has been created. Once you lose, casual fans stop caring about you.

So just like in all popular sports, diehard fans get the shaft because they don’t get to dictate the sport. The casuals dictate where it goes and how it is run. They care more about the pageantry and the “coolness” of it rather than the sport itself. It’s all just an unfortunate reality.

[Memphis]

'Casual' fans are what keep any sport going. They're far more important than you or I who fancy ourselves as proper boxing fans, hardcore fans whatever you want to call it. It's an interesting turn of phrase 'casual' and I laugh at it all the time when it's the go to line for someone trying to belittle another's argument, generally on Facebook boxing pages which are for the most part full of absolute wankers. There are a few that are decent and respectful with knowledgeable posters, but for the most part, they're full of utter cunts.

It's funny though. How many time have we heard here 'have you ever boxed?'. Like that's some divine right to speak with authority. How much do I have needed to box? Do I need to have been a pro? Having some experience on a subject isn't going to hurt, But my argument beats yours because I've done it more, or I watch it more? Mental.

I've seen countless people saying they knew Loma was a bum all along. All hype......exposed..... Exposed is another good one. Everyone who ever loses is 'exposed'. The people saying those things, given that slapping them upside the head is generally a non starter, best ignored.

[Beanz]

I think the line between casual fans and what ever you call fanatics...Saddos i suppose is one people are a bit too quick to draw. The time you can devote to following any sport is going to fluctuate and with that your knowledge and love of current fighters with it. Unless you start young as a fighter yourself then most people will have started as casual fans and like you say casual fans keep the sport going. Those PPV's and ticket sales made by casuals do a lot to keep promoters, managers and fighters going (even lower down the card) when a lot of hardcore fans (myself included) may be content to watch the exact same fight the next day or on a free platform.

The closest analogy i can think of is Football or what the Americans would call Soccer. That has been largely ruined by casuals who in their millions will claim to support a team not even in their own country when the football league itself will have teams with thousands of loyal supporters who actually attend the games going under because they simply can not compete with foreign owned franchised playthings of the Premiership.

Yes Lomanchenko is not suddenly a has been because of one result, and the same annoying casuals will always be first to offer their opinions when big heavyweight fights or other fights that are 'events' in themselves are televised. But what are you going to do? However annoying they are, you can't just dump your family out on the street mid fight

[imp]

We need casuals for every sport.

They’re the majority.

Lomachenko never lost his 0 to Lopez.

He already had a loss.

He will come back stronger from this loss but the blueprint is already laid.

[Fenster]

All the "casual" fans that hate on Loma or Inoue or Canelo or whoever are self-proclaimed hardcores. The most popular boxing channels on Youtube - earning serious money, populated with tens of thousands of subscribers - are full of "hardcore" fans shitting over fighters they've never seen based on ethnicity, networks and promoters.

True casual fans, ones who buy fights or tune into big ones, are far more bearable and knowledagble than these clowns. They genuinely have respect for fighters and the "sport." And just want to enjoy an hour or two of entertainment.

I said before the fight - the very same clowns shitting all over Loma would be calling Teo a "novice," "proved nothing," "hype job," had he lost. The majority of self-annointed "hardcores" are just thick as shit really. That's all it is. Everyone thinks they're a perfect scorer. Everyone knew the winner of every fight. Everyone knows how to run the business.

[X]

generally on Facebook boxing pages which are for the most part full of absolute wankers. There are a few that are decent and respectful with knowledgeable posters, but for the most part, they're full of utter cunts.

So, exactly like being on here you mean?

[powerpuncher]

All the "casual" fans that hate on Loma or Inoue or Canelo or whoever are self-proclaimed hardcores. The most popular boxing channels on Youtube - earning serious money, populated with tens of thousands of subscribers - are full of "hardcore" fans shitting over fighters they've never seen based on ethnicity, networks and promoters.

True casual fans, ones who buy fights or tune into big ones, are far more bearable and knowledagble than these clowns. They genuinely have respect for fighters and the "sport." And just want to enjoy an hour or two of entertainment.

I said before the fight - the very same clowns shitting all over Loma would be calling Teo a "novice," "proved nothing," "hype job," had he lost. The majority of self-annointed "hardcores" are just thick as shit really. That's all it is. Everyone thinks they're a perfect scorer. Everyone knew the winner of every fight. Everyone knows how to run the business.

Some hardcore fans are passionate about certain fighters so there is definitely bias and feelings put into their opinion, but I generally see real fans being understanding. Just look on here. How many people have said that Loma just got exposed and was never good? I don’t think I’ve seen anyone say it. People have had discussions about his limitations, but I haven’t seen anybody completely dismiss his previous accomplishments.

YouTube channels are mainly for show. People who make those are trying to be controversial. That’s how they get views. I’m assuming most of them don’t believe what they are selling. Just like with networks. You have analysts whose schtick is to be annoying and controversial.

I have run into casual fans during major fights. Most all have a fairly strong opinions on fighters that they have maybe seen fight once. I have a hard time watching fights with people like that.

[Mark TKO]

I’m a casual fan these days from being a die hard one 25 years ago.

I’d seen Loma fight just a couple of times and had never heard of Lopez before this weeks fight.

Casual fans bring in a lot of revenue and every sport needs them.

I guess we’ll never watch a fight together though which is a shame.

For the record I predicted Lopez to win by KO in the first round.

[SlimTrae]

I have come to realize that casual fans are what makes a sport popular or not. There will always be diehard fans of any sport or activity which will allow it to survive. In some ways, that’s actually better for the sport. It keeps it more pure. Once a sport gets popular, money gets involved and things become corrupt. I think that it’s great that these fighters or athletes are getting paid what they bring in, but a lot of problems come with this.

Anyway, my point is that I have seen so much of Loma being overrated and never being that good. This is mostly from the casual fans. Most real fans know that Loma was and still is a very good fighter. Because of this, the whole “don’t lose your 0” era has been created. Once you lose, casual fans stop caring about you.

So just like in all popular sports, diehard fans get the shaft because they don’t get to dictate the sport. The casuals dictate where it goes and how it is run. They care more about the pageantry and the “coolness” of it rather than the sport itself. It’s all just an unfortunate reality.

Good topic. IMO Boxing is the one sport where the die-hard fans are 1. smallest group of any sport & 2. as a result will allow shit to happen that other sports fans won't tolerate.

In NFL Football when bad officiating happens-scandals to cheats the uproar is great enough to make headlines. fines & suspensions happen on the regular I think of Bill Bellichick of the Pats. Spygate, deflate gate. Not that problems always gets solved, but enough that when I browsed their suspension list, one can tell that even though sports will always have cheats, bad conduct some sports can address it better than others. I truly think it is the result of diehard NFL fans that make it happen.
https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/fines-suspensions/
Roughing the passer, unsportsman like conduct & something I just learned looking at this link: fines & or suspensions for conduct detrimental to the league. Just imagine if boxing would fine for multiple headbutts, combos to the nutsack. If detrimental conduct occurred a young Floyd Mayweather would've had mad fines to pay! And Mike Tyson? Instead we focus on drug/PED fines alone. IMO-Not good.

We diehards in boxing IMO are too small of a demographic to impact our sport for the better. So I think casual fans do us the most disservice, for example: all of us fight fanatics KNEW Mayweather Pacquiao happened way too late. But we couldn't stop the tsunami of PPV buys per casuals as a result, we get stuck with shit fights, shitty cards and shittier PPV costs.
When casual fans tune in for the superbowl, there is no price to force the diehard fan to come out the pocket. The worst for them is the casuals turning the 1/2 time into a 45 minute freakshow.

Those PPV's and ticket sales made by casuals do a lot to keep promoters, managers and fighters going (even lower down the card) when a lot of hardcore fans (myself included) may be content to watch the exact same fight the next day or on a free platform.

The closest analogy i can think of is Football or what the Americans would call Soccer. That has been largely ruined by casuals who in their millions will claim to support a team not even in their own country when the football league itself will have teams with thousands of loyal supporters who actually attend the games going under because they simply can not compete with foreign owned franchised playthings of the Premiership.

I think many of us will watch a PPV the next day because we know of every single one. Casual fans only know of the major PPVs I know quite a few lovers of sports and had no clue who the hell Charlo Brothers are, so that PPV IMO would only be bought by hardcore fans.

I'd love to disagree with you on the Soccer analogy. Wow millions are casuals? But I can't disagree cause I dont know a damn thing about soccer! I always assumed that those stories of soccer stadium stampedes, collapsing and fights were because they were all diehard!
I just wiki'd soccer stampede and was blown away to see how many occurred. Damn they be killin mofos by stampede?! I always assumed that was the depth of their loyalty to the sport. Liverpool/Manchester are like arch enemy fans?
Only a movie, but I've always envisioned this is how loyal fans are in football (soccer) outside USA.