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The World Famous City Ground - Home of the PROPER WORLD‘S OLDEST LEAGUE CLUB

Future of the WFCG? What‘s your preference?


  • Total voters
    256

Flaggers

May not be the best moderator on LTLF, but he's...
LTLF Minion
This is because the football club has - for many years - been run by a team of inept commercial „professionals“, who are seemingly incapable of organising a piss-up in a brewery.
Ftfy
 

Morpeth

John Robertson
I don’t really care how good or bad a pie is at the ground as anything more than ‘a bit rubbish’ is fine for a football pie.

But the fact that they are probably a fiver and the same size and shape as a packet of fags is the reason I’ll never buy one. If I want a substandard pie, I’ll get one from Morrisons for £1.50.
 

Strummer

„There can be only one King“
LTLF Minion
That's not difficult though. Providing good food on a smaller scale is far easier. You can easily get batter food and drink in non-League football in England too. And the beer from local breweries will be tastier than anything the Germans serve up :)

Catering for masses is challenging. Forest aren't remotely good at it, but they're far from being alone.
It really isn’t.

Economies of scale, if you do it properly, arguably makes it easier for bigger numbers. You just scale-up the staffing.

When I go to watch my local side in the Bundesliga, I’ve a choice between a traditional roasted wurst in a bun, Currywurst with a bread roll (in a proper sauce), pizza, Gyros, bread treats including Brezeln, fries & chicken nuggets, and all that with a decent selection of soft drinks, locally brewed bier (far better than the bollocks the City Ground serves up) and also, decent coffee, which is something Forest haven’t managed in at least the last 25 years.

And this is a stadium twice as big as the City Ground, and sold out every home match.

How can they do this? Because they take it seriously, and make sure to invest money in a decent setup.

It’s not rocket science!
 
There is no excuse to serve up such appalling slop.

I can tell you, if a Bundesliga football club attempt to pass-off such rubbish to its fans, the club members would justifiably kick off. Fortunately, such things are actually a source of pride for the vast majority of German clubs, who make a decent effort.

Especially with the bier, although this is helped because there are of course sensible rules around the drinking of bier in German stadia, which means you can actually enjoy a bier in your seat whilst watching the match.

I posted this last week, but the food and drink on offer so my local amateur side, the seventh-tier of German football, is better than what Premier League Forest offer, and it’s cheaper too.

Totally agree.

It wouldn’t be accepted in a school or even a prison. Not at a festival, a travelling fair or a service station. I can’t think of any other environment where the operator would try to get away with serving such muck.

And as for the toilets…how can it be that 2,000 years after the Romans arrived, we still
don’t have running water and the toilet has no seat? I assume the dressing room and the offices have proper plumbing; why don’t the customer toilets?
 
There is no excuse to serve up such appalling slop.

I can tell you, if a Bundesliga football club attempt to pass-off such rubbish to its fans, the club members would justifiably kick off. Fortunately, such things are actually a source of pride for the vast majority of German clubs, who make a decent effort.

Especially with the bier, although this is helped because there are of course sensible rules around the drinking of bier in German stadia, which means you can actually enjoy a bier in your seat whilst watching the match.

I posted this last week, but the food and drink on offer so my local amateur side, the seventh-tier of German football, is better than what Premier League Forest offer, and it’s cheaper too.

There seems to be little correlation between club size and quality of catering. Up here in Manchester; Altrincham, Salford City and Lancashire CC all have a far better offering than Forest, whilst Man Utd’s is just as bad.
 

Cloughie1975

John Robertson
The last time I went the pies were better than the performance for sure. Wearing our Brazil kit for the first time, all hopeful we'd walk league one. It was a painful watch
So was the abysmal 4-1 defeat at the same venue in 2003.
Truly pathetic (as the gloss from Paul Hart’s play-off season started to wear off).
 

Notcher

Stuart Pearce
Honestly, I bet the club sometimes wonder why they bother at times.

On top of the gym complaints, the players have been told they have to use headphones now, there's complaints about noise from the water silo which now has had the application rejected because of noise.

Interestingly the club are seeking additional 5 years temporary planning for the gym and hope it's the final temporary consent application. This would indicate that they would will probably be relocating within the next few years.

 
Last edited:

TrentEndDr

2 Weeks Away
Honestly, I bet the club sometimes wonder why they bother at times.

On top of the gym complaints, the players have been told they have to use headphones now, there's complaints about noise from the water silo which now has had the application rejected because of noise.

Interestingly the club are seeking additional 5 years temporary planning for the gym and hope it's the final temporary consent application. This would indicate that they would will probably be relocating within the next few years.

Just wait until they start complaining about youths playing football near their back gardens - only to find it's the under 21s
 

Strummer

„There can be only one King“
LTLF Minion
Tuesday Playlist:

f***ing Hell, it’s Fred Titmus! - Half Man, Half Biscuit
Up From The Skies - The Jimi Hendrix Experience
Cause We’ve Ended As Lovers - Jeff Beck
Kashmir - Led Zeppelin
The Eton Rifles - The Jam
Over And Over - MC5
Trash City - Joe Strummer and The Latino Rockabilly War
On Trial - Minutemen
Negative Creep - Nirvana
 

Berkshire Red

Jack Armstrong
It really isn’t.

Economies of scale, if you do it properly, arguably makes it easier for bigger numbers. You just scale-up the staffing.

When I go to watch my local side in the Bundesliga, I’ve a choice between a traditional roasted wurst in a bun, Currywurst with a bread roll (in a proper sauce), pizza, Gyros, bread treats including Brezeln, fries & chicken nuggets, and all that with a decent selection of soft drinks, locally brewed bier (far better than the bollocks the City Ground serves up) and also, decent coffee, which is something Forest haven’t managed in at least the last 25 years.

And this is a stadium twice as big as the City Ground, and sold out every home match.

How can they do this? Because they take it seriously, and make sure to invest money in a decent setup.

It’s not rocket science!
It's amazing everyone on the planet doesn't want to live in Germany.

But back to catering, on a small scale it is easier to provide good, consistent, quality. With money, anything can be achieved but most football clubs don't see the extra mile (or million) being worth it.

Forest could make some simple changes. Folk generally are happy to pay a little more for something that is actually good. Follow the Sheffield Wednesday model with beer, they have Thornbridge*, no reason why Forest couldn't have Castle Rock* provide them with beer. The biggest sticking point is probably that they literally contract the whole lot out to one company, who then find other large companies to work with. It's called taking the really easy route. Now Forest are a Premier League side I can't believe that they aren't in a better negotiating position for that sort of thing.

*Both Thornbridge and Castle Rock brew stiff far superior to anything coming out of Germany.

And, don't talk of currywurst as though it's some sort of culinary delicacy. It's bizarre stuff.
 

Lady Penelope

First Team Squad
Derby used to serve Hollands pies, vastly superior to Pukka imo. A few other grounds I went to did as well. I have eaten Hollands pies but not at a match, and they are nice. We used to get a batch in at work every now and again.

I make my own so I avoid the 'factory' pies but I know a decent pie from a rubbish one. Eating a meat pie is not so unhealthy, just don't do it every day.

If Forest got Hollands pies in, that would be a step forward.
 

Lady Penelope

First Team Squad
It's amazing everyone on the planet doesn't want to live in Germany.

But back to catering, on a small scale it is easier to provide good, consistent, quality. With money, anything can be achieved but most football clubs don't see the extra mile (or million) being worth it.

Forest could make some simple changes. Folk generally are happy to pay a little more for something that is actually good. Follow the Sheffield Wednesday model with beer, they have Thornbridge*, no reason why Forest couldn't have Castle Rock* provide them with beer. The biggest sticking point is probably that they literally contract the whole lot out to one company, who then find other large companies to work with. It's called taking the really easy route. Now Forest are a Premier League side I can't believe that they aren't in a better negotiating position for that sort of thing.

*Both Thornbridge and Castle Rock brew stiff far superior to anything coming out of Germany.

And, don't talk of currywurst as though it's some sort of culinary delicacy. It's bizarre stuff.
There is excellent bier and wine in Germany, and the food whilst often criticised is, in my experience, very good. Currywurst is a weird thing though, I had one outside the football ground in Dresden (not going to a match, just being nosey) and it was so awful I have avoided them ever since.

Wednesday have their own ale from Thornbridge, called 'The Wednesday'. The guy who started Thornbridge is a big Owls fan. It's a good beer.

Forest could involve a local brewer (doesn't have to be Castle Rock, their beer is not what it was imo) and also take a stance to include local businesss in all areas. It's a thing, local provenance, and I am in favour.

Hollands pies, of course, are not local (made in Accrington I think) but beer, sausage, pork pies ... bring it on.
 

Berkshire Red

Jack Armstrong
There is excellent bier and wine in Germany, and the food whilst often criticised is, in my experience, very good. Currywurst is a weird thing though, I had one outside the football ground in Dresden (not going to a match, just being nosey) and it was so awful I have avoided them ever since.
I'm jesting on the German food and wine thing, though currywurst is just weird for sure. I thoroughly enjoy visiting Germany and the food and drink is always excellent, especially the underrated Rieslings and Spatburgunders. The beer is excellent if you like weissbier or lager style beers, as a bitter drinker I far prefer our beers.
 

Lady Penelope

First Team Squad
I'm jesting on the German food and wine thing, though currywurst is just weird for sure. I thoroughly enjoy visiting Germany and the food and drink is always excellent, especially the underrated Rieslings and Spatburgunders. The beer is excellent if you like weissbier or lager style beers, as a bitter drinker I far prefer our beers.
Yes, I am a fan of UK style top fermented ales. There are German beers of the same style but most are, as you say, lager ..... but not in the way most UK folks think of lager. The Germans call that crap chemibier and they are not wrong. Awful stuff. Hugely profitable for the multinationals that make it, unhealthy and unsatisfying for those who choose to drink it.

The food and drink offering at the WFCG offends me.
 
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