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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Football on TV in a pub...

87 replies

JennyBlake · 24/05/2021 09:37

So yesterday for the 1st time in like 6 months I went to a pub to watch football. I don't have the money to pay for SKY/BT so most of this season I have just listened to radio commentaries.

Its about 3.30pm and check Sky football is on, it is: the Liverpool vs Crystal Palace game is the match, (which is important in the race for top-4) with news from all the others... ok that will do for me.... sit down, sorted.

First half I'm very animated - its quite obvious I wanted a Palace win (basically to help Leicester who are a small team and deserve to get into the European cup I think). It's obvious I'm following the game.

Anyway, as the second half is about to start I go to the loo and order another drink - which they bring to my table (corona rules). Look at telly and its now BT Sport: Leeds vs WBA with Leeds 2:0 up! This is a pretty meaningless game as Leeds are in the middle of the table and West brom have already been relegated.

I just took my drink to the bar, asked for my money back and left. The bar staff tried to get me to stay saying they would speak to the other people (e.g. the big guy in the W.B.A. top) they said "you are as much a customer as the others" - but I said no, forget it. To be fair, they probably didn't know the Leeds vs West Brom game was meaningless whilst on Sky things were still interesting. If I had stayed and the staff had put the Liverpool game back on.... well how awkward would that have been?

Are people finding other people are acting strange/selfish as we come out of the pandemic or has it always been the case?

I was really, really annoyed. AIBU?

OP posts:
newnortherner111 · 24/05/2021 09:40

Changing the game at half time seems strange and YANBU to be annoyed. However, not knowing the pub and who the regulars are, or the place, not much more I can add.

Againstmachine · 24/05/2021 09:42

Yep people are acting strange yourself included.

HunterHearstHelmsley · 24/05/2021 09:44

Changing the game at half time was odd but I don't agree with calling the game meaningless. Its important to their fans in an ideal world i would have liked Leeds and Baggies to somehow both lose

I watched the Villa game in the pub. We were finishing 11th regardless. It was still important to me. I'm in the Midlands and would have gone home to watch it if the Palace game was on.

Pedalpushers · 24/05/2021 09:57

Someone, presumably someone who wanted to watch it, asked the staff to put the Leeds game on - so they did. You could have equally asked for the Palace game or discussed it, instead you threw your toys out of the pram when they even offered to let you have your own way. If you are that desperate to have control of the TV on a day when many games are being played, watch it at home. Otherwise you might have to share with others. Plus the outcome of the Palace game was rendered pretty much meaningless after half time by the Leicester and Chelsea games, neither of which were being shown either?

Sn0tnose · 24/05/2021 10:00

I don’t think the ‘big guy’ was being any more selfish than you were. Both of you thought that your game was more interesting than the other person’s game. Neither of you appear to have cared whether there were other people who wanted to watch something else. And, probably, you both thought that the other was the rude, selfish one.

And asking for your money back on your drink because you didn’t want to stay in the pub is beyond weird.

Pedalpushers · 24/05/2021 10:01

Oh and Leicester are one of the 20 richest clubs in the world...hardly a small team...

Shoxfordian · 24/05/2021 10:04

Yeah you were being unreasonable to ask for your money back because they changed the channel

GoldenLabbie · 24/05/2021 10:06

Leicester a ‘small team’? They won the Premier League five years ago. The FA cup a fortnight ago and consistently quality for Europe, either the CL or the Europa. They always challenge for the top four and as others have said they are one of the 20 richest clubs in the world!

sparepantsandtoothbrush · 24/05/2021 10:11

He was obviously a WBA fan if he was wearing a team shirt. You just wanted to watch what ever football was on and don't actually support either of the teams. I love watching any football so wouldn't have minded either way (none of those are "my" team 😁)

Dollywilde · 24/05/2021 10:11

This is I think why it’s so important that pubs advertise who they’re showing and stick to it, so punters can make an informed decision and it’s not swayed by the individuals who turn up. I remember our local advertising a Euros game but an Andy Murray game had gone over at Wimbledon... 50 people turned up to watch the football to be told that two old ladies were watching the tennis still and they wouldn’t be turning the channel over. There was nearly a riot Grin one girl shouted ‘you don’t go to the pub to watch the fucking tennis’!! They did change the channel Wink

Original poster
JennyBlake · 24/05/2021 10:19

OK - these replies are fair.

I will be back there on Wednesday (for the Man Utd vs Villareal match) and I shall apologise to the staff for my behaviour.

I ain't paying for my undrank drink though, lol!

P.S. Sorry if I upset Leicester fans, that was not my intention - I was actually cheering for C. Palace in the hope that Leicester got into the top-4 and it is so sad they didn't, but wel done with the FA Cup and 2016 was amazing.

Well done Phil Mickleson also.

OP posts:
AlmostSummer21 · 24/05/2021 10:26

I'm glad you've seen the error of your ways! 🤣

They offered to put your game back on, you should have let them! It wouldn't have been at all weird! Not all the staff are interested in football nor which game is in, someone asks fir a different game & when they look no one appears to be watching what's on, so they turn it over. Then you complain to someone who knows you were watching the other match & they offer to turn it back... you demand a refund & storm off. 🙄🙄. That's far more 'weird' and rude! Glad you're going to apologise for it. Enjoy the game on Wednesday 🍺

Brefugee · 24/05/2021 10:49

it was an important enough game for someone to turn up in a WBA top, so in that respect YABU. AFAIK normal etiquette would have been for them to ask before changing the game, but if you were the only one bothered and you weren't there, they wouldn't know.

You weren't particularly supporting the teams you were watching so - difficult but bad luck to you, i think in this case. Sorry.

Againstmachine · 24/05/2021 10:50

I ain't paying for my undrank drink though, lol!*

You ought to ordering something then asking for money back because you were acting like a child is wrong especially after year hospitally has had.

Shoxfordian · 24/05/2021 10:57

There was nothing to stop you staying to finish your drink. Not sure they’ll welcome you back

Grizalda · 24/05/2021 11:07

You threw your toys out of the pram because they changed the channel, they offered to change it back but you flounced?

AND you cost them money because they would have had to throw your drink away after they refunded you?

They aren't the problem.

Shamoo · 24/05/2021 11:09

OP you are getting an oddly hard time here.

Wanting Leicester to get top four instead of Liverpool or Chelsea is of course supporting the smaller team. It’s all relative and it isn’t open to debate that Leicester are the underdogs when compared to Liverpool and Chelsea.

It isn’t reasonable to turn a football match over in a pub at half time if there are people clearly following the first game that was on.

And the West Brom v Leeds game was largely meaningless compared to some other games yesterday - West Brom relegated, Leeds safe and couldn’t get Europe. Of course the fans care but it’s meaningless in terms of wider league implications!

Demelza82 · 24/05/2021 11:12

YABU for giving a toss about football

Smartiepants79 · 24/05/2021 11:15

You shouldn’t have asked for your money back! Shock
You ordered that drink and the they’ve had to throw it away, literally money down the drain for them! You don’t order consumables and then not pay for them just because YOU are choosing not to consume them.
Extremely unreasonable.
Especially when they were very accommodating and offered to do exactly what you wanted them to!

slashlover · 24/05/2021 11:33

I will be back there on Wednesday (for the Man Utd vs Villareal match) and I shall apologise to the staff for my behaviour.

You realise that the staff will ALL know what happened and will have discussed it?

Blueemeraldagain · 24/05/2021 11:42

I am not a football fan by any means but my DP and some friends take a keen interest. I don’t think I have ever been to a pub that has changed the match being watched far half time, that is seriously weird. Most of the time my DP or friends will pick the pub based on which game/sport they advertise they are showing. If they arrived to find a different game on or it was changed at any point, they would ask for the channel to be changed back and would definitely leave if the staff refused. Probably would down the pints first though.

Was the pub advertising which game was being shown or was it first come first served (which seems like a recipe for arguments to me...)?

DelBocaVista · 24/05/2021 11:46

I can't believe you asked them to refund your drink.

melj1213 · 24/05/2021 11:50

Who do you actually support? If you don't actually support either of the teams playing then I think it's highly selfish for you to complain because they changed the channel to a different game when there are actual fans of one of those teams present.

I am a Real Madrid fan (lived there for over a decade and attended games pretty much every week) but I follow Man Utd in the EPL (my brothers were fans growing up so I gravitated towards them). If Utd aren't playing or their game isn't televised then I will still watch whatever game is on but I won't have the same kind of investment in the result as I would do for a RM or Utd game.

In this case they probably had the LFC v Palace game on because it just happened to be the one on the main channel and so they didn't actively change it. Once someone asked them to change it to a specific game then they obliged.

Comefromaway · 24/05/2021 11:54

Usually pubs put on a noticeboard which games they are showing that day.

It's a bit unusual to change it at half time.

SlipperyDippery · 24/05/2021 11:58

@Shamoo

OP you are getting an oddly hard time here.

Wanting Leicester to get top four instead of Liverpool or Chelsea is of course supporting the smaller team. It’s all relative and it isn’t open to debate that Leicester are the underdogs when compared to Liverpool and Chelsea.

It isn’t reasonable to turn a football match over in a pub at half time if there are people clearly following the first game that was on.

And the West Brom v Leeds game was largely meaningless compared to some other games yesterday - West Brom relegated, Leeds safe and couldn’t get Europe. Of course the fans care but it’s meaningless in terms of wider league implications!

I agree. Of course the Liverpool Palace game was objectively more important than the Leeds/WBA game. The race for Europe depended on it. Nothing depended on Leeds/WBA except pride. So for the neutral, Liverpool palace is more important, and I would have thought the pub should be looking at it objectively.

Quite apart from that, whichever match they chose to show, changing it at half time was unreasonable. The WBA guy could legitimately have been upset if they switched from that game at half time.

I don’t think you should have asked for a refund though, sorry!

Also @HunterHearstHelmsley I’m a Villa fan too and I watched the Villa game - we were playing Chelsea and the outcome was very relevant to the champions league qualification! Had it not been, I might have watched something else. I love my team but I love the game and excitement of final day too!

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