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Rattlers guarantee fans playoffs or money back
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GLORY DAYS: Fans cheer at the start of ArenaBowl XVIII in 2004 in Phoenix. The Rattlers made the title game that year but are 19-28 in the three seasons since then.
The Associated Press
The Rattlers are going to extreme measures to win back fans. Managing partner Brett Bouchy said Tuesday the team has guaranteed its season-ticket holders the Rattlers will make the playoffs in 2008 or receive a full refund.
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“If you don’t make the playoffs the fans should get their money back,” Bouchy said. “This should be the stance for all pro teams.”
Twelve out of 17 Arena Football League teams make the playoffs.
The Rattlers went a franchise-worst 4-12 last season, missing the playoffs for just the third time in their 16-year history. The season-ticket base, which Bouchy said topped out at about 11,000 or 12,000 during the team’s heyday in the 1990s, dwindled to between 5,000 and 6,000 last season.
But Bouchy’s confidence has been buoyed by the addition of former Austin Wranglers quarterback Lang Campbell, acquired in last weekend’s dispersal draft, and Monday’s free-agent addition of receiver Siaha Burley. Burley, a Mesa Westwood High School graduate, led the AFL in receiving yardage (2,129) and receptions (166) last season. He was third in the league with 48 receiving touchdowns.
“One of the things that we battle here in Arizona is relevance,” said Bouchy, a Mesa Dobson High graduate. “I think you have to do something to earn back the confidence of the fans and show them you are committed to winning.”
In Bouchy’s tenure as president in Orlando, the Predators qualified for the playoffs 11 straight seasons and won two ArenaBowls in 1998 and 2000. He joined the Rattlers in the offseason during a front-office shake-up that included the firing of coach and general manager Gene Nudo and the hiring of new coach Kevin Guy.
Bouchy said his research indicates this is the first time a professional team has offered a full refund to season-ticket holders. The average cost to watch a Rattlers home game is around $29.
While Bouchy acknowledged the risk of giving fans back their money — the team could lose between $2 million and $5 million in season-ticket sales, depending on how many are sold — he believes the rewards outweigh the risk.
“Let’s say we end up giving up $4 million,” he said. “We’ll still have high renewal every year because the season-ticket holders know they won’t have to pay anything the next year.
“This may hurt us in the short term but I think it will really help in the long term.”
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