City Fans Leaving Early/Empty seats

[Indaparkside]

There were also expensive matchday tickets before last season, don't remember much wailing from bluemoon posters when I paid £50 5 years ago, there seems to be a few that want to blame Soriano , firstly for increasing matchday prices, which isn't true and then blaming that for empty seats, when the real reason is an expanded stadium with more cheaper s/c. As you say there were empty seats before, there are a few more now, and when we expand again there will be yet more. Does it matter ? No.

Said in an earlier post we have a loyal fan base which came from Maine road, and we have to except that apart from the derby, Liverpool, Chelsea etc it will be what it is

 

[Man_City_Loyal]

Brainwashed by the media consistent mention of it when in reality every ground has empty seats even the scum have and shut tiers but it doesn't get the continual mention of it.

its like a point scoring system from the rich (media pundits) pointing out were sh*t because people can't afford to go.

Seems more opposing fans are bothered about how many empty seats there are compared to actually winning the game.

 

[MadchesterCity]

this clip Im in there somewhere in 218,it was a Monday night only 2012 five years ago,a lot of it is habit but why do people stay some games others not ? It was an incredibly important game etcbut to me every single premier league game is important,simple as.

That was title winning game so anyone who left that match would have been braindead, hate the early leavers

 

[Prestwich_Blue]

I don't care that we have empty seats per se as there will always be people who don't turn up for whatever reason. And it's also better to have a stadium where demand can almost always be met rather than one where casual match-goers can never get tickets.

But what does annoy me is that we could fill many of those seats by better pricing and that we clearly give away far too many tickets. We make hundreds available to staff, players etc at the CFA whether they want them or not. If they want tickets, they should put an order in and pay for them, even if it's £20. And stick them up in the third tier.

It also annoys me that there are empty seats every game in 93:20 and other premium seats yet the club are refusing seats in those area to loyal fans of many years standing who are being moved from Block 125 for the Tunnel Club.

But at the end of the day, the demand will be there if the pricing is reasonable enough. The club needs to seriously decide whether it wants to prioritise a full, noisy house over a few extra quid, empty seats and a flat atmosphere.

 

[jrb]

You're completely making things up now.

There were empty seats before last season. Please don't kid yourself and re-write history.

In fact, we were mocked for expanding because we apparently couldn't fill the ground as it already was.

One again. How many times? Are you just being stupid on purpose? Long before the expansion, during it, and now, I have constantly stated City need to expand the stadium. The support is there to fill any stadium expansion as long as season tickets and matchday tickets are priced correctly.

No I haven't 'mocked' City for expanding the stadium. Liar! Check back on my numerous posts on the topic. I've been taking part in the discussion, just like you.

There weren't any empty seats when Mancini was in charge. And when we were battering everyone. When tickets were much more affordable. And when it wasn't an absolute ball ache getting into and leaving the stadium. Etc. And if there were any empty seats they were very few indeed. Perhaps Pellers last season in-charge, and the clubs holistic approach began contributing to the apathy amongst the fans and the growing number of empty seats? How many fans stayed behind after Pellers last home game?

Since the club has expanded the stadium it has slowly but surely eroded our matchday going fan base with increased season ticket and matchday prices bar the limited £299 season tickets in SS level 3, which replaced value gold, which has now strangely been brought back to plug the gaps and and empty seats in other parts of the stadium. Coincidence? Not to mention tiered block pricing. Moving fans to cater for corporate sections. Add to that a ridiculous Citizen card fee, so you can buy a ticket.(than you City) Increases in food, drink, parking , etc , prices. And now security queues before the game, along with over zealous stewarding.The stadium should be full. Or at least look full with only a few empty seats, not 100's of empty seats.

Whether you care to admit it or not, those things and more are putting City fans off from coming to the matches. Rather than falling attendances and more empty seats, our attendances should be increasing with Pep in-charge, the players we signed last season, better priced tickets, and well thought out and well implemented security checks, if they really are necessary?

Financially the club is heading in the right direction. But that shouldn't be at the expense of our loyal and hardcore support that has stuck by the club for well over 30 years of winning f*** all.

Yes, the club has to make money and drive revenue. It's now a business after all. But to do that the club doesn't have to piss off and alienate the very people that keep the business, or the club in our eyes, going.

Regardless of how much money Sheikh Mansour put into City, and how much he eventually get's back, without us and without our continued support, the club would be nothing.

Done!

 

[tolmie's hairdoo]

My logic has always been to expand the Etihad. Where did I state otherwise? "Your grounds too big for you!"

But there weren't empty seats before we expanded the stadium. Apologies, there were. When Pearce and Beenie wiped 4000 fans off our attendances with shit football. Mancini brought those fans back again. Every game was all but sold out, or sold out. And because of the matchday attendances and demand from City fans who couldn't get a ticket, the club decided to expanded the SS stand.

But there is one very important point to remember. When the stadium was full, and demand for tickets was going through the SS roof, ticket prices were much more affordable. There was no tiered block pricing. Getting to and away from the stadium was easier. And there weren't 1000's queuing up to get in to the stadium 10 minutes before kick off. See my picture on the Queues thread.

Slowly these things and more have chipped away at our matchday going support. Yes, we are still averaging 52,000-53,000+. But games aren't selling out regardless of how the club and some fans want to spin it. But much more importanly and sadly, the club are pricing City fans out of watching the team.

Here you go.

If the seats in the 3 away bocks in the SS level 3 weren't £20 each. Reduced to clear. And were priced like the other blocks all over the stadium. Mid-£30's. And if it wasn't Zab's final game. Would the match have sold out, or have been close to selling out. No!

It also correlates simply with a team that has declined and not competed for the major titles for a couple of seasons.

Fair weather fans - if we were going for the title, you wouldn't see a blue seat in sight.

 

[Marvin]

I don't care that we have empty seats per se as there will always be people who don't turn up for whatever reason. And it's also better to have a stadium where demand can almost always be met rather than one where casual match-goers can never get tickets.

But what does annoy me is that we could fill many of those seats by better pricing and that we clearly give away far too many tickets. We make hundreds available to staff, players etc at the CFA whether they want them or not. If they want tickets, they should put an order in and pay for them, even if it's £20. And stick them up in the third tier.

It also annoys me that there are empty seats every game in 93:20 and other premium seats yet the club are refusing seats in those area to loyal fans of many years standing who are being moved from Block 125 for the Tunnel Club.

But at the end of the day, the demand will be there if the pricing is reasonable enough. The club needs to seriously decide whether it wants to prioritise a full, noisy house over a few extra quid, empty seats and a flat atmosphere.

It's always the corporate blocks that have a few empty seats in them for games like WBA and Leicester. Really agree with your point about prioritising a full noisy ground. That is what makes football exciting so if the noise and atmosphere isn't there, then the corporates wont go anyway.

I remember there being some protests by staff a couple of seasons ago when there was a suggestion that complimentary seats for staff would be reduced / lost. Not sure what happened with that.

 

[PragueBlue]

It also correlates simply with a team that has declined and not competed for the major titles for a couple of seasons.

Fair weather fans - if we were going for the title, you wouldn't see a blue seat in sight.

I suspect the same. I'm not convinced that cheaper tickets would make much difference in this case.

 

[Marvin]

The amount of empty seats around the ground are a joke and incredibly difficult to explain. There is no way that all those empty seats are Season ticket holders who aren't attending. The problem is, the seats that are empty never seem to go on sale anywhere? The North Stand/Family Stand experiment needs sorting too.

And should we continue to expand? Absolutely not. Not until this issue is sorted

I think there are 3 explanations for sell outs but a small number of empty seats:

1) Corporate areas where they don't attend unless it's a big game
2) Absent City season ticket holders - especially apparent at inconvenient times. It only takes 2% of season ticket holders to miss a game and you have a thousand empty seats and the fact that these empty seats are dotted all over, rather than whole blocks being empty suggests it is absent season ticket holders and not unsold seats. If City say a game is sold out, and quote a full-house attendance then all the tickets will have been sold. They should promote the Ticket Exchange because it works really well, and is very convenient. Potentially a solution to this problem.
3) Some fans double up in the standing areas. Seen it myself, and I also sold my own seat through Ticket Exchange a few games back, and I know they did not use my seat so where did they go? Standing?

We should extend the North Stand as we're averaging 54,000 and selling all the away fans tickets so I don't understand why you say we should not do that. Price it right with sub £400 season tickets and it would be full, and we'd probably sort out the atmosphere problem, and end all this resentment about ticket prices and corporate seating in one go

 

[Prestwich_Blue]

It's always the corporate blocks that have a few empty seats in them for games like WBA and Leicester. Really agree with your point about prioritising a full noisy ground. That is what makes football exciting so if the noise and atmosphere isn't there, then the corporates wont go anyway.

I remember there being some protests by staff a couple of seasons ago when there was a suggestion that complimentary seats for staff would be reduced / lost. Not sure what happened with that.

The 93:20 blocks in the Colin Bell were no more than 60% full on Saturday but there were even about 30 or so empty seats for the derby.