Empty seats.. worsening trend?

[moomba]

Why? Don't you understand market forces, more supply against demand will bring down prices

Because if people give up season tickets there won't be any more gameday tickets available.

Sorry don't inderstand, why not. There will still be 45k seats in the stadium?

People from the waiting list will buy season tickets if they become available.

 

[Deleted member 58678]

I am in a bit of a similar situation to Exeter Blue living 220 miles from the ground having moved from the area for work three years ago. I have made six matches this season and missed the other home matches although occasionally the ticket has been used. To attend those games has generally required three train journeys and for Sunday games using up my holidays to travel back on the Monday.

Do I feel guilty? Not in the slightest. I did my time under the Mel Machin/Peter Reid/Alan Ball/ Frank Clark era when crowds in the mid 20s were the norm. It is great that football is now fashionable but not sure why I should give up my ticket from this mythical supporter who is desperate to go. Many home games go to open sale so the opportunity is there.

But there are very very few games that are not "Sold Out" in the Prem and what that does is drive prices up all the time making it worse for everyone. Prices shoot up at an alarming rate every year and more and more fans, long standing fans, are falling by the wayside when it comes to having SCs or attending games full stop.

 

[Exeter Blue I am here]

I've said earlier in the thread that if people who don't intend really using their season tickets stop buying them then match day ticket prices would have to go down. I read your own contributions in this thread and presumably that would suit your own circumstances better? But I stick by what I said a supporter does exactly that. Not really bothered what you did in the 70's and 80's it doesn't give you the right to leave a seat empty so that some other guy has to pay £50 plus to attend a single game

Sorry but that last sentence is utter bollocks. First of all my seat is seldom empty, and secondly even if it were, if you truly believe that if I (and others like me, who would probably be very few in number anyway) opted not to renew next season, prices for everyone else would suddenly come tumbling down, then you're living in a fantasy world. Two thirds of our home games this season have had tickets on open sale the night before the game (from memory the Stoke game showed availability in over 20 blocks on the club website with less than 24 hours to go til kick off), so if supply and demand were the sole arbiter of pricing policy, then the club clearly haven't got it fully sussed yet. As is evident from the fact that entire 20 strong blocks of seats have been visible in the North Stand at games this season, the club is clearly prepared to wear the embarrassment of a few empties if it means charging the maximum amount they think they can get away with for the rest of the seats. That won't change just because a handful of noble Blues decide to go all Captain Oates with their season card renewals

Of course there's no demand thats because the prices are too high. I think you're arguing my case for me. If the 5000 plus season ticket holders who couldn't be bothered yesterday didn't have season tickets then the club would have a lot more tickets to sell. Prices would have to come down

There were nothing like 5000 empty seats yesterday, and no evidence whatsoever that they belonged to "season ticket holders who couldn't be bothered"

 

[gordondaviesmoustache]

I'm impressed. I can only dream of having an academic sphere.

Dream away. In reality, how could the last six years be described in anything other than those imaginative terms?

An excellent point. I'm off to find PLLK to establish the permissible aspiration level for a minions minion.

No need. To me, you'll always be, at the absolute minimum, a senior minion.

 

[franksinatra]

I am in a bit of a similar situation to Exeter Blue living 220 miles from the ground having moved from the area for work three years ago. I have made six matches this season and missed the other home matches although occasionally the ticket has been used. To attend those games has generally required three train journeys and for Sunday games using up my holidays to travel back on the Monday.

Do I feel guilty? Not in the slightest. I did my time under the Mel Machin/Peter Reid/Alan Ball/ Frank Clark era when crowds in the mid 20s were the norm. It is great that football is now fashionable but not sure why I should give up my ticket from this mythical supporter who is desperate to go. Many home games go to open sale so the opportunity is there.

But there are very very few games that are not "Sold Out" in the Prem and what that does is drive prices up all the time making it worse for everyone. Prices shoot up at an alarming rate every year and more and more fans, long standing fans, are falling by the wayside when it comes to having SCs or attending games full stop.

Yes and I would probably be one of those longstanding fanswho would have to give up if I gave up my season ticket having to book train tickets 4-6 weeks advance. Prices are going up because people are still buying the tickets at the inflated prices. . This includes me, you and everybody else. If you feel so strongly about it make a stand, give up your ticket and hopefully it will make a difference but dont expect me too.

 

[Davs 19]

Dream away. In reality, how could the last six years be described in anything other than those imaginative terms?

An excellent point. I'm off to find PLLK to establish the permissible aspiration level for a minions minion.

No need. To me, you'll always be, at the absolute minimum, a senior minion.

Many, many thanks GDM, I knew I 'd nearly amount to something one day.

 

[Deleted member 58678]

I am in a bit of a similar situation to Exeter Blue living 220 miles from the ground having moved from the area for work three years ago. I have made six matches this season and missed the other home matches although occasionally the ticket has been used. To attend those games has generally required three train journeys and for Sunday games using up my holidays to travel back on the Monday.

Do I feel guilty? Not in the slightest. I did my time under the Mel Machin/Peter Reid/Alan Ball/ Frank Clark era when crowds in the mid 20s were the norm. It is great that football is now fashionable but not sure why I should give up my ticket from this mythical supporter who is desperate to go. Many home games go to open sale so the opportunity is there.

But there are very very few games that are not "Sold Out" in the Prem and what that does is drive prices up all the time making it worse for everyone. Prices shoot up at an alarming rate every year and more and more fans, long standing fans, are falling by the wayside when it comes to having SCs or attending games full stop.

Yes and I would probably be one of those longstanding fanswho would have to give up if I gave up my season ticket having to book train tickets 4-6 weeks advance. Prices are going up because people are still buying the tickets at the inflated prices. . This includes me, you and everybody else. If you feel so strongly about it make a stand, give up your ticket and hopefully it will make a difference but dont expect me too.

I've already made my stand on away games and i'm about to hit the wall with my SC. I might give it one more go next season as long as the price increase isn't too much.

I don't expect you to give yours up, i think the club should take SCs off people who don't come to a certain number of games but until that happens (it might never) i won't expect people to change their habits. But then don't be surprised when people are pissed off that there are hundreds of empty seats and also that many people have been priced out over the years.

 

[franksinatra]

But there are very very few games that are not "Sold Out" in the Prem and what that does is drive prices up all the time making it worse for everyone. Prices shoot up at an alarming rate every year and more and more fans, long standing fans, are falling by the wayside when it comes to having SCs or attending games full stop.

Yes and I would probably be one of those longstanding fanswho would have to give up if I gave up my season ticket having to book train tickets 4-6 weeks advance. Prices are going up because people are still buying the tickets at the inflated prices. . This includes me, you and everybody else. If you feel so strongly about it make a stand, give up your ticket and hopefully it will make a difference but dont expect me too.

I've already made my stand on away games and i'm about to hit the wall with my SC. I might give it one more go next season as long as the price increase isn't too much.

I don't expect you to give yours up, i think the club should take SCs off people who don't come to a certain number of games but until that happens (it might never) i won't expect people to change their habits. But then don't be surprised when people are pissed off that there are hundreds of empty seats and also that many people have been priced out over the years.

To be honest mate five season ago you could get a ticket no problem be it a season ticket or a match ticket and for the majority of games this year I think tickets have been available for home matches. So people are able to buy them if they choose.

Prices have gone up agreed. But like you I commited to a season ticket, we both have signalled to the club we are prepared to pay. So if fans, by our decision-makingbeing priced out, you are as much to blame as myself.

 

[Exeter Blue I am here]

But there are very very few games that are not "Sold Out" in the Prem and what that does is drive prices up all the time making it worse for everyone. Prices shoot up at an alarming rate every year and more and more fans, long standing fans, are falling by the wayside when it comes to having SCs or attending games full stop.

Yes and I would probably be one of those longstanding fanswho would have to give up if I gave up my season ticket having to book train tickets 4-6 weeks advance. Prices are going up because people are still buying the tickets at the inflated prices. . This includes me, you and everybody else. If you feel so strongly about it make a stand, give up your ticket and hopefully it will make a difference but dont expect me too.

I've already made my stand on away games and i'm about to hit the wall with my SC. I might give it one more go next season as long as the price increase isn't too much.

I don't expect you to give yours up, i think the club should take SCs off people who don't come to a certain number of games but until that happens (it might never) i won't expect people to change their habits. But then don't be surprised when people are pissed off that there are hundreds of empty seats and also that many people have been priced out over the years.

Again, there is no evidence one way or the other that the empty seats yesterday were attributable to non-attending season ticket holders. Indeed that huge block of empties toward the East Stand corner of the North Stand was more suggestive of unsold tickets than the unlikely scenario of 40 or 50 season card holders, who just happen to sit right next to each other, all not turning up en masse

 

[TFS]

Whilst I accept the arguments of the "my ticket, my rules" people, there are some genuine knock-on effects particularly in the family stand (which seems to be the area that is under most scrutiny in this thread). I no longer have a season ticket, although I could've bought one at almost any time over the last 5 or 6 years, apart from this season when there was an official waiting list. I let mine go a few years ago for precisely the reason that I was missing a fair number of games. I have enough loyalty points to go to any home game I want, so there didn't seem to be a problem.....Until this season.

The problems this season are mainly due to the hike in ticket prices for individual games plus the limited availability due to the high proportion of season ticket holders. It is now ludicrously expensive to go to a game with kids if you sit anywhere other than the family stand (and it's not exactly cheap in the family stand).

When tickets go on sale, there are only a handful of seats available together in the family stand due to the number of season ticket holders in that area. It is incredibly frustrating to miss out and then see 200 empty seats on a regular basis. Buying a season ticket in this area that you have little intention of using is denying other families the opportunity to watch their team at a half-reasonable cost. It's like the people who stick towels on sunbeds on holiday then don't go to the pool until lunchtime.

I don't pick and choose games based on the opposition, I go when the date and kick-off time suits. I have choked, however, at being asked to cough up £117 for myself + 2 kids for the Stoke game, £91 for me + 1 kid for the derby, and similar £110+ for me + 2 kids for the games over Xmas/New Year. As a result, we didn't go to any of them (instead, we've been to the COC games vs Sheff Wed and Newcastle, and are going to the FA Cup game on Sunday).

I think that people would get slightly less upset about this if the club addressed two things:
1. Offer reductions for children in line with family stand prices in other areas of the ground
2. Have an effective means of allowing season ticket holders to sell their seat if they aren't going to the game. Viagogo is not the answer.

If we could implement the above two suggestions, then it would avoid the need to go down the route of suspending season ticket holders who don't go to enough games. That would seem harsh, but the ticket holders (particularly in the family stand) need to understand that having a seat and not using it is having a significant impact on other families' ability to go to games.