Don’t Blame Fans For The Empty Seats

cyberblue

Well-Known Member
Joined
24 Dec 2005
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9,489
While every set of fans take the mickey when grounds are not full, lets look at the reason why it happens. At the swamp the other night by all accounts there were thousands of unsold Unit*d tickets. Many of those were £50 plus, while its great to take the piss, coming just after Christmas you cant blame fans who just cant afford to go. Many clubs including City at times get their pricing horribly wrong. For Port Vale & the Rags it and Fulham it was spot on ,for Real Madrid its barmy. Clubs up and down the country are struggling to fill there grounds week after week. The days and times of games are a big factor, fans are fed up of making plans then the game gets changed. The "Match Day Experience" isn't always up to expectations as fans can que up for ages then get treated like 2nd class citizens. Clubs don't appreciate loyalty anymore they just want to make as much money as possible and if that means excluding local, loyal fans so be it. Being a Football Fan is a dear do so no doubt more & more will pick and chose which games to go to. Flexibility in ticket pricing would be a big boost to fans everywhere, but clubs are reluctant to sell tickets cheaper for less popular games. Clubs and players may be rich but ordinary fans aren't. So next time we see a club with loads of empty seats at a game remember it is probably not because the fans don't want to go but they just cant afford to
 
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Not the full picture. Old Trafford Derby prices were no more expensive than normal for them, so the fact that 5,000 of them didn't show is down to disillusionment with what is going on at their club. It's got nothing to do with Utd fans being priced out although no doubt that has happened.

City attendances are on the up.

CL group games averaged 50k. FA Cup v Port Vale was 52k. All our league games are sell outs.
 
I think there's always been a specific issue with the first Leg of the League Cup Semi final, essentially because it's surrounded by other games, and there's too little time and money to make adequate travel arrangements.

The big difference this time was that unlike previous seasons (when City were ridiculed for empty seats against Liverpool/West Ham/Bristol/Burton), it was United who were fighting against time.

However, it was also noticeable that United were defended by the same commentators who last year mocked City for the identical issue.
 
I wrote this in September 2014:

"I got my season ticket in 1999. It wasn't until 2006 that City got to the quarter finals of a cup competition. So for many years you had your 38 league games, and without exaggerating, you probably had 4 cup games at most. All in all, about 42-44 games a season. And this was when City were category C for most clubs and football all round was a lot cheaper. Compare all this to how many games a season we have now, and how many times we're the category A game. Was over 50 last season, and probably will be the same going forward."
 
I think there's always been a specific issue with the first Leg of the League Cup Semi final, essentially because it's surrounded by other games, and there's too little time and money to make adequate travel arrangements.
The higher up empty seats at the swamp are so well 'camouflaged' to avoid the viewers seeing them that perhaps the commentators can't see them either.?

What am l saying? It is just another example of the media deliberately misleading their own customers.

'What seats? I see no seats' ss a famous admiral once said


The big difference this time was that unlike previous seasons (when City were ridiculed for empty seats against Liverpool/West Ham/Bristol/Burton), it was United who were fighting against time.

However, it was also noticeable that United were defended by the same commentators who last year mocked City for the identical issue.
 
Here are some fcats from 1976.

Typical football admission price ( rags v Arse ) was 70p. Typical cinema entry 72p. Average weekly wage was 70 pounds.

So, in 1976 going to the pictures and going to the footy were comparable admission costs and was 1% of your average earnings.


Here are some facts for 2019.

Typical admission fee is £40 for footy, cinema is $10 if you get lucky. Weekly wage is £570. Going to cinema costs you 1.75% of your weekly wages. Footy costs you 7%.


In summary. Football now costs you 7 times more in real terms than it did 35 years ago. I guess you have to pay to watch the best and in comfort but 7 times more?
 
Here are some fcats from 1976.

Typical football admission price ( rags v Arse ) was 70p. Typical cinema entry 72p. Average weekly wage was 70 pounds.

So, in 1976 going to the pictures and going to the footy were comparable admission costs and was 1% of your average earnings.


Here are some facts for 2019.

Typical admission fee is £40 for footy, cinema is $10 if you get lucky. Weekly wage is £570. Going to cinema costs you 1.75% of your weekly wages. Footy costs you 7%.


In summary. Football now costs you 7 times more in real terms than it did 35 years ago. I guess you have to pay to watch the best and in comfort but 7 times more?

Throw in the fact that PL clubs make their money from tv revenue, corporate and packages and that the 7% they fleece from fans least able to afford it makes barely any difference to them financially.

7% of your wage, 3 times a week, 8/9 months of the year.

Its simply not sustainable.
 

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