A reasonable assessment of why crowds are down:

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/20...covid-to-blame

Here’s author Matthew Crawford on the “attention economy”: “Lately, our self-appointed disrupters have opened up a new frontier of capitalism, complete with its own frontier ethic: to boldly dig up and monetise every bit of private head space by appropriating our collective attention. In the process, we’ve sacrificed silence — the condition of not being addressed.”

Max Gawn of the Demons and Luke Ryan of the Dockers compete for the ball during last week’s match at the MCG.
AFL mid-season report card part one: premiership fancies to guilty pleasures
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At football games, you’re constantly being addressed, constantly being shouted at, constantly implored to make some noise, have a punt, buy a jeep, kiss your partner, stuff your face, or sink some piss. You’re at the mercy of the ground announcer, music blaring after goals, and the incessant, ear perforating prattle. As a result, it’s virtually impossible to have a conversation with the person next to you. For all you kids, this is what half-time at the football used to sound like.