Red balloon over the stadium

I have had the fortune of wining a ticket to the Oman - Australia match before the holidays, through Mr.Sythe's blog. For my first time seeing Oman play live I had great fun and enjoyed the atmosphere.  For a country where football is so popular and with so much potential for change, there is a whole lot more that could be done to improve the experience and the show.  (I noted that the Omani Football Association OFA has launched a few new initiatives like the Super Fan Program or the Support the Shirt Program. These are all good initiatives and merit attention, but they mainly focus on the online sphere less on the show itself. I also noted that the FunZone section of OFA website is still empty).  I thought to put down a few ideas myself, perhaps they will be useful for the OFA and whomever else has a say in the Omani Football.

1. Improvements of the fan experience:

• Place more, much more (temporary) signage around the stadium to direct to parking areas and different stands (VIP, Media etc.)
• A half time raffle or anything similar with perhaps a short half time show will do a lot of good for the overall experience and spice up the idle time   
• Install giant LCD screen capable of the live showing TV footage
• Besides vending table/points, engage walking vendors on the stands, it increases the sales and make experience more comfortable especially if you need a bottle of water every 20 minutes
• Instead of one-sip small water cups, better use water in 300ml plastic bags with a straw that is equal safe and no need to buy 6 or 10 to temper your thirst.

2. Commercial ideas:

• Design an OFA polyester or artificial silk shals/masars, much better in this climate than the knitted scarfs which are hot, heavy and less appealing. Adding on OFA designed funky hand fans for cooling can also be a practical merchandise gadget.
• Create larger merchandise points, not just for shirts but also other items (hats, fans, full gear with name printing on etc.)
• Consider creating a large red hot air balloon with OFA sign on (or any other head sponsor if not FIFA rules apply) that can be lifted over the stadium on each match day. It would be seen from many areas of Muscat (including Expressway and SQ HW traffic) informing that its a match-day. In case of Oman victory 11 smaller red hot air baloon can be released at the end of the match so everybody in Boshar, Khuwair and Ansab Seeb would know about the triumph without even being there. It also can be done in a bit of a ceremonial way (player of the match releasing the balloons etc.)

The idea of charging for the entry to most matches (tickets from RO 2) will probably justify more the case for an improved fan experience.  These are relatively low cost ideas (with the exception of the LCD screen) and can have a nice impact.

Next time you can see the Reds will the their match against Ireland on the 11th of September in London (Fulham stadium).