Who are the best supported teams???
Obviously Dublin have the biggest attendances due to population. I
always felt Kildare seemed to be a well
supported team. In hurling Cork and
Limerick seemed to have big followings.
Forgive me if Im wrong those were my
perceptions.

REDANDBLACK30 (Down) - Posts: 1619 - 10/06/2016 10:53:14    1864637

yew_tree (Mayo) - Posts: 11248 - 10/06/2016 11:10:37    1864654

REDANDBLACK30 (Down) - Posts: 1619 - 10/06/2016 11:17:29    1864664

yeah id go along with that - limerick tend to get decent crowds for minor and 21 hurling championship too

janesboro (Limerick) - Posts: 1502 - 10/06/2016 11:28:11    1864669

Dublin and Mayo are the only two counties who have sold out their season ticket allocations long ago as far as I am aware.
Indeed their are waiting lists on both.
Both counties typically outnumber the home support at away league games. Indeed we usually vastly outnumber Galway fans in Salthill.

But youse are succors for hurt and pain down in Mayo yew_tree - Croagh Patrick in the bare feet, walking round and round a basilica reciting a rosary, going year after year to a semi or final in Croke Park. I sometimes think the only reason the wife married me was so that she could be with someone who knows more hurt and suffering.

Offside_Rule (Antrim) - Posts: 4058 - 10/06/2016 11:29:35    1864671

niallpak (Kildare) - Posts: 35 - 10/06/2016 11:38:28    1864673

Kildare, Cavan, Roscommon, are counties with great support, despite falling on lean times over the years.
I think a lot of the Dubs support is based on the occasion/ success in recent years, there are still a lot of genuine fans who will turn out regardless.
Some counties attract support when they are winning, but these fans usually revert to type when the success dries up.

thelongridge (Offaly) - Posts: 1757 - 10/06/2016 11:42:34    1864678

Football:

In general, the successful teams at the minute seem to get a big following - Dublin, Donegal, Monaghan, Mayo. Kerry don't get as much tho and Cork's seems to have dwindled the last couple of years. Meath is usually pretty good.

Always thought Armagh and Tyrone traveled well also. Was impressed with the number of Armagh fans in Breffni a couple of weeks ago.

We (Cavan) have always had a good following, even in recent unsuccessful years (probably because all we really have is football and silage).

I know in the late 90s, Cavan v Tyrone would have sold out Clones or come very close. Be interesting to see if it does next weekend!

cavanman47 (Cavan) - Posts: 5028 - 10/06/2016 11:50:07    1864683

TheRightStuff (Donegal) - Posts: 1688 - 10/06/2016 11:53:26    1864687

REDANDBLACK30 (Down) - Posts: 1619 - 10/06/2016 11:58:09    1864692

yew_tree (Mayo) - Posts: 11248 - 10/06/2016 12:11:19    1864705

Think the best measure of support would be league games, home and particularly away. Championship games like alot of things in modern Ireland are seen as events to be seen at rather than a game of football. As far as league support goes I think that Tyrone and Mayo would have a consistently large away support. I know that Mayo have travelled in large numbers to Cork and Kerry in recent years. Dublin obviously as well. Having sold out season tickets and supporters clubs will mean that large numbers will attend games. Wouldn't know alot about hurling attendances unfortunately. Did notice that Munster u21 hurling games tend to attract large crowds. Looked like fantastic games. Like u21 football. Crazy to get rid of them

Weary (None) - Posts: 249 - 10/06/2016 12:28:32    1864719

I think every county have a core group of supporters who follow the team in good times and bad. When the team is doing well you get another cohort who come on board and when the team is doing very well you get the group who wouldn't be seen dead at an FBD match but want to be at a final in case they win. Mayo have always had a fairly good support because the team have usually been competitive and have rarely been complete underdogs. It's very difficult to travel to support a team that you know are going to lose by ten or fifteen points. These are the really genuine supporters and have my complete admiration. I was talking to a lad last week who said he had only missed one Mayo League and Championship game in the last twenty five years and that was for his sisters wedding. I think he's borderline masochist!!

Llaw_Gyffes (Mayo) - Posts: 1113 - 10/06/2016 12:28:43    1864720

Depends on if you count the bandwagon or not , league or championship? Who has the most die hards is a tougher question to answer.

Damothedub (Dublin) - Posts: 5193 - 10/06/2016 13:13:53    1864792

niallpak (Kildare) - Posts: 35 - 10/06/2016 13:20:09    1864794

People must remember Donegal and Kerry ain't connected with these wonderful motorways that the country possess.

Great point, in a good proportion of South Kerry is approximately 2 hours from even entering a motorway and about 6 hours to Dublin by car. I'm lucky that I'm only about an hour away from Limerick and only face a 4 hour journey!

Using public transport is even more complicated and essentially impossible for a lot of people who would be very interested in football so when people criticise Kerry supporters they are usually very misinformed and don't understand the realities we face.

I'm not saying we have the best supporters but people who don't know the facts should be aware and not spout vitrolic nonsense.

KYTitletown (Kerry) - Posts: 816 - 10/06/2016 14:17:17    1864837

If Kildare were reaching All Ireland semi's most yeas like Mayo have done recently they would have a huge support. Mayo's support has increased in numbers in recent years and once they finally achieve the holy grail it will drop off too.

TheWestIsAwake (UK) - Posts: 529 - 10/06/2016 14:51:16    1864853

MesAmis (Dublin) - Posts: 13725 - 10/06/2016 14:51:34    1864854

If you are just talking about numbers of supporters I would say after Dublin you have Mayo, Cork (for hurling), Waterford, Tipp, Limerick and any Northern county thats going well.
However if we want to ask who are the 'best' supporters I would say that the most knowledgeable , unbiased, and least deluded supporters are what I would call the 'hard core' supporters of Kerry, Galway and Cork.

Condorman (Dublin) - Posts: 983 - 10/06/2016 15:43:51    1864886

Seeing as Leitrim has a population of 30,000 people and say on a championship day in Paic Sean MacDiarmada at least 8000 people would be in attendance and half are Leitrim supporters. That's 1 in every give or take 8 Leitrim people are in there supporting the team. More people in the stadium than in the rest of the town of Carrick-On-Shannon, best supported team in my opinion. Pity we don't have to much to shout about

leitrim4sam (Leitrim) - Posts: 645 - 10/06/2016 15:45:41    1864889