salfordblues
Well-Known Member
We've only been allocated 25,000 tickets for the final according to the M.E.N:
How can almost half the ground be filled with fans who possibly have no affinity to either team playing on the pitch.
FA= Joke.
Thousands of City fans will miss out on the FA Cup final in a scramble for precious tickets.
The Football Association has announced the Blues will be given just 25,000 seats for the Wembley showcase next month.
That means 11,000 of City’s 36,000 season-ticket holders will be forced to watch their club’s first cup final for 30 years on television – or join a scramble for tickets on the black market.
Under-fire FA officials have defended the allocation, which a spokesman described to the M.E.N. as ‘fairly good’.
They own the 90,000 capacity stadium and see the match as their ‘showpiece event’.
In an attempt to reward what they call the ‘football family’, Soho Square bosses dish out 23,000 tickets to ‘full member’ clubs at all levels across the country.
A further 17,000 seats are designated for corporate ‘Club Wembley’ members leaving 50,000 to be split between the competing sides.
City’s allocation is around 7,000 less than they were given for the all-Manchester semi last weekend and is the same as opponents Stoke City.
Comment: Tickets, tension and the FA 'family'
Eastlands bosses will operate a loyalty points system to decide who gets tickets, which are priced from £45 to £115. More details will be released by the club later this week.
Tickets are already circulating on the internet and black market. On one website prices for a seat in the City section start at £399 with others going for more than £900.
A spokesman for the FA defended the allocation.
He said: "The final is our showpiece event and we use it to reward those who have contributed to football, be it parents, volunteers or coaches.
"The 17,000 Club Wembley members are those who fund the stadium and who have allowed it to be built. I would say 25,000 is a fairly good allocation. I would say the complaints are louder this year because we have two teams who have not been to a final for a long time."
Stoke City have only 21,000 season ticket holders – but chairman Peter Coates has already called on the FA to up the allocation for each club.
Officials from both clubs met with FA bosses in London yesterday to discuss arrangements.
Because the Blues’ name comes first in the alphabet the match will be declared as Manchester City v Stoke City.
The Blues will also use the home dressing room and their fans will be situated in the western half of the stadium.
Both clubs will wear their home kits with the May 14 match kicking off at 3pm. Martin Atkinson, from Wakefield, West Yorkshire, will referee the match.
The new Wembley was opened in 2007 at an over-budget cost of £798m.
The amount of tickets for the "Club Wembley" and "FA family" is a disgrace.
How can almost half the ground be filled with fans who possibly have no affinity to either team playing on the pitch.
FA= Joke.