Football on TV in a pub...

[JennyBlake]

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?

You managed to get your money back for a drink you'd already ordered and has been poured? Hmmm

@JellyTumble

yesterday the match to watch was the Sky one, because that was the game with something riding on it,

No, that’s just the match you wanted to watch.

It doesn’t matter whether or not there’s something riding on it. The match to watch is whatever a person wants to watch, whether it’s a big game or a small game. No game is meaningless to fans.

You didn’t even support either team

Well, true - but I was clearly cheering for Crystal Palace and not Liverpool, because in the long term Liverpool not qualifying for the Champions League would benefit the team I do support: Man City, they’d lose money and struggle to attract the top players etc.

The more I think about it the more I actually think that the following should have happened: at half-time, the WBA fan or indeed the Yorkshire(Leeds) people could have opened a dialogue with me. I would have argued my case, but if several people wanted the Leeds game on whilst I alone wanted Liverpool, I would have accepted it. It was just the channel was changed when I was in the loo that grates. Perhaps it’s just a pandemic thing and we all need to relearn how to be ‘social’ again after months of having total control of our own TV remotes!

I get annoyed with football on in a pub. Give me music anyday. But the football fans needs always seem to come first.

The more I think about it the more I actually think that the following should have happened: at half-time, the WBA fan or indeed the Yorkshire(Leeds) people could have opened a dialogue with me. I would have argued my case, but if several people wanted the Leeds game on whilst I alone wanted Liverpool, I would have accepted it.

There's every chance they asked if anyone would mind the channel being changed and as the only person who didn't was in the toilet, nobody answered so they changed it.

In every pub I've ever been in, the staff have controlled the remote or had the ability to change the channel.

@slashlover

Of course none of the staff or other patrons knew this & they probably just thought I was some ‘cockney’ who needed to be taken down a notch.

By offering to sort if for you when you and even giving you a refund you probably weren't entitled to?

I was trying to make a point.

What point? That you should have the choice of TV channel?

Oh come on, it’s not about having a choice of TV channel. The match was switched at half time, that’s poor form. Had the Leeds match been on in the first place, it would have been totally different.

And if it was about Leeds being in Yorkshire, that match would have been on for the first half as well. All matches kicked off at the same time yesterday.

Also while Leicester aren’t a small club, when compared to Chelsea and Liverpool they are - and they weren’t involved in the Super League so OP doesn’t really have to justify why she wanted them to qualify for Europe. Lots of people did.

OP overreacted and shouldn’t have asked for her money back, but some people are being really unfair. I actually think it’s to OP’s credit she wants to go and apologise.

The more I think about it the more I actually think that the following should have happened: at half-time, the WBA fan or indeed the Yorkshire(Leeds) people could have opened a dialogue with me. I would have argued my case, but if several people wanted the Leeds game on whilst I alone wanted Liverpool, I would have accepted it. It was just the channel was changed when I was in the loo that grates. Perhaps it’s just a pandemic thing and we all need to relearn how to be ‘social’ again after months of having total control of our own TV remotes!

Did you mention to the bar staff that you were watching the Liverpool v Palace game?
And ask why they’d changed it?

Oh come on, it’s not about having a choice of TV channel. The match was switched at half time, that’s poor form. Had the Leeds match been on in the first place, it would have been totally different.

No hey probably asked if anyone was watching the match before they switched, but OP was in loo.

YANBU to return a drink they then had to pour away (after months of closure) and to call a Leeds game in Yorkshire irrelevant. Barmy!

Sorry that should be YANBU not YANBU !

@ElizabethTudor

The more I think about it the more I actually think that the following should have happened: at half-time, the WBA fan or indeed the Yorkshire(Leeds) people could have opened a dialogue with me. I would have argued my case, but if several people wanted the Leeds game on whilst I alone wanted Liverpool, I would have accepted it. It was just the channel was changed when I was in the loo that grates. Perhaps it’s just a pandemic thing and we all need to relearn how to be ‘social’ again after months of having total control of our own TV remotes!

Did you mention to the bar staff that you were watching the Liverpool v Palace game?
And ask why they’d changed it?

Yes, I did. They immediately offered to turn it back to the Sky channel. I have no beef with the staff, which is why I intend to return and apologise. But as I said, if I’d accepted their offer - if the Liverpool game has been put back on how could I have endured to watch it, there would have been an ‘atmosphere’ so I just came home and listened to it on the radio, which is how I’ve enjoyed most football this season, I just wanted on the very last day the excitement of the top-4 race.

They tried to appease you and you still threw a strop by taking the drink back.

After the past year and what the pubs have been through. I would ban you TBH

I’ve just asked my pub manager husband - he says it’s very bad form to show half a game, in this situation he would not have allowed to TV to be turned over & he would have refunded your drink.
I’m quite surprised, I’d have said you were over reacting a bit but I’ll defer to his opinion on this (an unusual occurrence in itself!)

Think yourself lucky. A few years ago I went to the pub to watch a semi final, in which my team were playing and at half time the landlord turned it off because the pub quiz was starting!!!
We asked ( and there were a fair few fans in watching ) couldn't he just mute it? No, it would be too distracting for the quizzers.
We left en mass for the pub further along, taking around 80% of his trade with us.

Strange that they changed it then at half-time. Maybe they did ask when you were in the loo.

@OhGiveUp

Think yourself lucky. A few years ago I went to the pub to watch a semi final, in which my team were playing and at half time the landlord turned it off because the pub quiz was starting!!! We asked ( and there were a fair few fans in watching ) couldn't he just mute it? No, it would be too distracting for the quizzers. We left en mass for the pub further along, taking around 80% of his trade with us.

That’s reminded me that thinking about it, yesterday was not my worst Pub/TV experience - in 2018 my friend and I went to our local for the England v Serbia World Cup semi-final. It was packed out, obviously, but there were two seats with a view of one tv so we grabbed them and settled down to watch.

A little later the whole pub cheers, England were about to take free kick - bit odd.... then we saw England score! Turned out the several TVs in the place were all on satellite, but the one we could see was not and it was several seconds behind....

I’m cursed when it comes to pubs and football and telly! Oh and England lost.

I just took my drink to the bar, asked for my money back and left.

And you actually got a refund ??

You were in Yorkshire? Bloody hell, Leeds Utd might not be important to you but to many people in Yorkshire, they are. Bear in mind that winning the match ensured a ninth place finish for the club and whilst there were no European matches at stake, ninth place for a newly promoted club is fantastic!

Having said that, I'm a Liverpool supporter who lives in Yorkshire at the moment. I'd have been peeved about the match too but would have understood that LUFC were likely much more interesting to the others. I'd have downed my pint and gone to the next pub.

@TwoAndAnOnion

I just took my drink to the bar, asked for my money back and left.

And you actually got a refund ??

Yes.

People keep hammering on at me about this, but there is a bit more to it actually. I said pub, for simplicity, but it’s actually a working mans club I’m a member of, well technically ex-member & it might not be technically after yesterday’s antics!

Because even though I’d paid my subscription fee last July - which allows you to buy cheaper drinks - I was told the membership had lapsed. I did point out that the place had been shut for five months.... but they said sorry, they need to get the money back, cos of corona.

This is actually part of the issue and another reason why I did not insist on the TV being switched straight back, because if those who had asked for the Leeds game were fully paid up members, whilst I was not.... well you get what I’m saying.

In addition, as soon as I saw what had happened with the TV I decided to go home to listen on the radio, that’s about a ten minute walk for me meaning I’d get back for the last 30-35 minutes. If I’d stayed and drank the beer, well I’m not a down-in-one person so it would have been probably most of the match that I’d miss and all the excitement associated with the top-4 race.

Yes, I could have just left the drink and walked out I guess, But as I said, I was trying to make a point, well two points actually: one about the TV football and the other about how the club has not taken into account the pandemic, as regards its member’s fees. I mean if you pay for a gym for example - 12 months - but the gym is shut for six, would you expect to just lose half the money or hope that once reopened your membership starts up again, not including the time the facilities were unavailable?

Im just astounded they gave you your money back!

TBH that makes you sound even cheekier - you know they've struggled and demanded a refund anyway!

I can't believe you asked for your money back - just drink it or don't. Not sure why they refunded you to be honest

But as I said, I was trying to make a point, well two points actually: one about the TV football and the other about how the club has not taken into account the pandemic, as regards its member’s fees.

You ain't covering g yourself in glory here, most working mens clubs subscriptions arent comparable with gym membershiips and a matter of a few quid.

I think point made was you were a idiot.

I don’t mean to be rude but I think this is all a bit daft.
How could you endure to watch the match with an atmosphere?
Well that’s completely your choice not to watch it!

Yes, they shouldn’t have switched the match over. They made a mistake (you’d gone to the loo, some other patrons asked to watch the Leeds match, a staff member didn’t realise you were just in the toilets - perfectly understandable) which they offered to rectify. If you're cheesed off about the WMC fees, take it up with the committee. These places are dying institutions as it is, so no surprise they’ll be reeling following the pandemic.

If you want matches on your terms maybe save up for sky or another digital service where you can choose to just pay for sport (like Now TV).

When I worked in a pub (Manchester city centre) the rule of thumb was that the people spending the most coin chose what went on the telly. These places are businesses, not just there solely for your convenience.

I'm more shocked that anybody outside Croydon would want to watch the agony that is a televised Palace match.