Have you ever taken your sorry soul to Rabindra Sarobar? Those concrete seats were as horrible as they were in Eden Gardens. Atleast the steps in YBK could lead you to stretch your legs, they didn't look pretty but were more convenient that the concrete tombstones.
I know you guys will blast/LOL me for this post . Why can't ATK play in the merged league as a seperate franchise rather than merging with MB . I mean they got everything . Rich owners, ATM tie up who will help them with the academy setup and running of the club . AndNow a small stadium . I mean comeon they can attract 15_16k for their matches and with more success they can build a respectable fan base.This can only be good for Indian football . If u guys are going to say something about this,please do it logically.
It would leave the league with 11 teams first of all, also split the fanbases even more between Atletico de Kolkata, East Bengal, and Mohun Bagan. Atletico de Kolkata would go from the main show in ISL for Kolkata to the red headed step brother (3rd wheel) with East Bengal and Mohun Bagan being much, much more established and popular.
It would not be a good image basically for Atletico de Kolkata and its brand.
I still feel ATK will have a decent support base consisting of Mohammedan fans and glory hunter European football followers. R Sarobar will have 10,000-12,000 in each match day. Min 8000-9000
That is a dramatic drop from what Atletico de Kolkata got at the Salt Lake Stadium of 40,000-50,000 to maybe even 60,000 1-2 times a season. Honestly if we were to allow a third Kolkata team I would want them to at least average 20,000-30,000 to convince me to allow them. 10,000-12,000 is nothing unless you are FC Pune City.
You also got to think about it from a sponsorship angle. Again, ATK could potentially go from the main show to the 3rd most followed team, that can affect the team from a sponsorship angle and ya, you can say the owners have enough money but sponsorships are still a major part of a teams finances and they could take a dent. Also increasing the number of teams from 8 to 11 would mean less central sponsorship revenue to all the teams since it is divided equally.
Also the loss of fanbase would work against what Atletico Madrid is in India for. They co-own ATK to increase their brand, now that Indian/Spanish brand gets cut heavily in fanbase and exposure. Why would they be happy with that?
R Sarobar which ATK will probably make their home can hold up to 16000 only considering safety and comfort. Sadly I have many young Bengalis do not have that passion and feeling for EB MB. They like the glittering of ATK. So, ATK has potential I think.
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It would not be a good image basically for Atletico de Kolkata and its brand.
You also got to think about it from a sponsorship angle. Again, ATK could potentially go from the main show to the 3rd most followed team, that can affect the team from a sponsorship angle and ya, you can say the owners have enough money but sponsorships are still a major part of a teams finances and they could take a dent. Also increasing the number of teams from 8 to 11 would mean less central sponsorship revenue to all the teams since it is divided equally.