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Not everybody likes to watch
soccer on screen; many still prefer real action at the arena
complete with cheering crowds, that’s what makes football
exciting. Stadiums will still attract huge crowds but for the
case of Tanzania, the venues are usually empty because people
here don’t like local teams.
Tanzanians love foreign teams
especially English ones and the only way to watch them play is
through television. When local clubs play few watch them, even
on TV.
Othman B.
Mkuta – Sombetini
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There are no true football fans
here; club loyalty is non-existent. For example a person is
ready to shift to another club once the team he or she was
supporting is defeated.
As for stadium attendance I
think for as long as these venues remain few they will still be
filled to capacity. However the live soccer matches being shown
on TV stations only helps to reduce congestion in the arenas.
Abdul Muawia –
Ngarenaro |
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Live football matches are always
shown free of charge and almost everywhere; in drinking pubs,
restaurants, hotels and in street video shacks. However this
doesn’t in any way affect stadium attendances or club earnings.
People who prefer their games on
TV are those who cannot afford to pay their way into stadiums
and these wouldn’t attend even if the matches weren’t shown
live. You see some major soccer games charge premium at the
gates, their fees starting from Tsh 5000 up to Tsh 10,000 are
quite high and few people can afford them thus TV becomes the
best alternative.
Ayoub Mashaka
– Kaloleni
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A real football fan deserving
the title will watch the game at the venue not on TV. Soccer
fans like to see a real game and applaud it with hundreds of
others. At home the whole thing becomes a solitary affair and
even if you gather in a group it will be in crumpled room
without sufficient air.
Soccer should always go with
pandemonium, people jumping up-and-down, some drumming
percussion or blowing trumpets – things that can only be done in
a larger venue. Football is an outdoor sport and should be
enjoyed that way too. Here in Tanzania local teams are still
miles away from displaying real skills, which is why many people
would rather watch foreign clubs.
Omar Mandalu –
Makao Mapya
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