How the pandemic affects attendance for Bradley basketball, other Peoria teams

PEORIA — The Bradley Braves are building momentum off the court in the attendance game.

Bradley drew 6,902 for its win over Illinois State on Saturday, and it was a welcome sight in the grandstand. The Missouri Valley Conference team drew 5,109 for Drake the game before that, and 4,450 for Loyola on Feb. 9.

The trend is upward. And that's no small thing when trying to figure out the impact of a pandemic on the sports culture for Peoria teams like Bradley, the Rivermen and Chiefs — and nationally at the college and professional minor league levels.

Bradley basketball: How Bradley's young basketball team is growing into a Valley contender

"First thing, our community is tremendous in its loyalty and faithfulness in supporting us," said Chris Reynolds, Bradley's vice-president for intercollegiate athletics. "Attendance is down everywhere in the country. As people become more comfortable being in crowds again, I think it will return. But the in-venue experience has to be re-imagined.

"You have to remember, people have been in quarantine in this pandemic for 18 months now. Professional and college teams have to enhance what they do. We not only want to provide a great performance on the court, but we need to provide one off it, too."

Bradley led the Missouri Valley Conference in attendance three straight seasons before the pandemic hit, averaging 5,651 in 2019-20. The Braves are second this season at 4,250 — only 32 behind the 4,282 of Southern Illinois — as the State of Illinois and sports venues begin to loosen COVID protocols and vaccine levels rise and spectators become more comfortable with attending sports events amid a pandemic.

Peoria Chiefs: Orange Barrels and Pork Tenderloins? How these new Chiefs identities were born

The sports culture might never be the same. And that means the way teams operate will need to change, too.

"This is an era in sports where you have to think outside the box, look for other revenue streams," Reynolds said. "I don't think teams in any sport can just go back to what they were doing before the pandemic."

2020-21 was a tough journey

Like so many other teams in a wide range of sports from college to professional minor leagues, the Braves were hit by state and venue protocols during the pandemic in 2020-21.

Bradley had no spectators permitted at Carver Arena for most of its games. The Rivermen opted out of their SPHL season entirely. The Chiefs saw their 2020 season cancelled by Major League Baseball. They came back in 2021 with attendance limits at Dozer Park in the early going.

Analysis: Minor league sports didn't get COVID relief funding. How Peoria teams hope to change that

Chiefs attendance went down 58% after their return in 2021.

"We were the poster child," Chiefs general manager Jason Mott said. "Would have preferred not to be, believe me. But we learned from it.

"Thinking outside the box is crucial now. We have a young front office, a lot of passion. It's got to be different. You can't do the same thing you did in the past. Our approach is, 'What can we try new to draw fans?'

"Game entertainment is big."

Will the fans come back?

There are all kinds of variables that impact attendance, from market size and ticket prices and favorable event dates, to protocols enforced at each venue and health restrictions in place in various states.

But the pandemic is a common denominator.

The Missouri Valley Conference averaged 4,116 per game in 2019-20, the last season before the pandemic. This season, the league is at 3,052 for a decrease of about 25.8% over pre-pandemic levels.

The Rivermen were at 3,514 per game in 2019-20. This season — their return from opting out in 2020-21 — they are at 2,638. That's a decline of 24.9%.

The class-A level SPHL operated at 3,136 per game in 2019-20. This year, the league is at 2,795. That's a decrease of 11%. Those numbers might improve as the league is still in the midst of the part of the calendar annually the best for attendance.

The Chiefs drew 2,920 in the 2019 season. When they returned in 2021, they drew 1,223 for a drop of 58%.

The league, known as the Midwest League in 2019, averaged 3,612. In 2021, with fewer teams and re-named the High-A Central League, it drew 2,899 for a decrease of 20%.

A national minor-league, like the class-AAA American Hockey League, has seen a 24% decline in attendance this season compared to 2019-20. AHL Rockford is down 31.7%. AHL Chicago is down 25.3%.

Peoria Rivermen: How a garbage can helps this Rivermen player, plus playoff outlook, roster changes

"I think a lot of places will tell you that attendance is starting to pick up, people are coming back," Rivermen co-owner Bart Rogers said. "That's the case with us, and it's exciting to see it. Our corporate partners and our season ticket holders have been at our side throughout this pandemic, most of them didn't even want a refund when we had to opt out of the season in 2020-21.

"Those of us who operate teams in the college and (minor-league) pro levels, we hope the sports culture hasn't changed because of the pandemic.

"But we've always approached it as yearly challenge to entertain, to adjust, and we won't be afraid to try innovative things."

Dave Eminian is the Journal Star sports columnist, and covers Bradley men's basketball, the Rivermen and Chiefs. He writes the Cleve In The Eve sports column for pjstar.com. Reach him at 686-3206 or deminian@pjstar.com. Follow him on Twitter @icetimecleve.

This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Pandemic impacts attendance for Bradley basketball, other Peoria teams