Empty seats.. worsening trend?

[squirtyflower]

This thread has served its purpose so hopefully the Club have picked up What needs to be done including
a) Relocate complimentaries from behind the North Stand goal and to ensure these tickets are given to those entitled on request / not just dishes out.
b) Not allowing people to renew season cards who have only pitched up for a few games.

No mention of the only thing the club need to do. Get rid of Viagogo and get a decent ticket exchange going.

Telling supporters they are not welcome is not the way to increase crowds. Especially when we are trying to increase our capacity.

OK Moomba. Yes I should have had a third point:
C) Replace Vianogo "partnership" with a ticket re-sale scheme run by the Club!

There are enough people on the waiting list to justify the 54k capacity we will see next season. We will only increase to over 60k if we need the seats.

We are a great Club with an excellent fan base. 54k will be remarkable growth over the last 10 to 15 years, as other poster have highlighted

Point B is complete bullshit, as has been pointed out by several posters

Might as well tell the owner to sling his hook too as I'm sure I've only seen him take his seat once

 

[Tim of the Oak]

No mention of the only thing the club need to do. Get rid of Viagogo and get a decent ticket exchange going.

Telling supporters they are not welcome is not the way to increase crowds. Especially when we are trying to increase our capacity.

OK Moomba. Yes I should have had a third point:
C) Replace Vianogo "partnership" with a ticket re-sale scheme run by the Club!

There are enough people on the waiting list to justify the 54k capacity we will see next season. We will only increase to over 60k if we need the seats.

We are a great Club with an excellent fan base. 54k will be remarkable growth over the last 10 to 15 years, as other poster have highlighted

Point B is complete bullshit, as has been pointed out by several posters

Might as well tell the owner to sling his hook too as I'm sure I've only seen him take his seat once

The owner's seat is corporate / hospitality so would be exempt.

Yes some posters wouldn't like a requirement for their seat to be used for half of the games. We've also heard from families who couldn't get into games because of the "sold out" signs. Maybe the Bayern approach wouldn't work for us but I would like to see it tried out so we know!

 

[squirtyflower]

OK Moomba. Yes I should have had a third point:
C) Replace Vianogo "partnership" with a ticket re-sale scheme run by the Club!

There are enough people on the waiting list to justify the 54k capacity we will see next season. We will only increase to over 60k if we need the seats.

We are a great Club with an excellent fan base. 54k will be remarkable growth over the last 10 to 15 years, as other poster have highlighted

Point B is complete bullshit, as has been pointed out by several posters

Might as well tell the owner to sling his hook too as I'm sure I've only seen him take his seat once

The owner's seat is corporate / hospitality so would be exempt.

Yes some posters wouldn't like a requirement for their seat to be used for more games. We've also heard from families who couldn't get into games because of the "sold out" signs. Maybe the Bayern approach wouldn't work for us but I would like to see it tried out so we know!

Might I suggest you get a seasoncard there then, instead of trolling the posters of this forum

 

[Tim of the Oak]

Point B is complete bullshit, as has been pointed out by several posters

Might as well tell the owner to sling his hook too as I'm sure I've only seen him take his seat once

The owner's seat is corporate / hospitality so would be exempt.

Yes some posters wouldn't like a requirement for their seat to be used for more games. We've also heard from families who couldn't get into games because of the "sold out" signs. Maybe the Bayern approach wouldn't work for us but I would like to see it tried out so we know!

Might I suggest you get a seasoncard there then, instead of trolling the posters of this forum

I won't be getting a Bayern season card and I don't expect you to be getting one at Old Trafford either! There can be anything up to 60,00 empty seats there!

 

[moomba]

OK Moomba. Yes I should have had a third point:
C) Replace Vianogo "partnership" with a ticket re-sale scheme run by the Club!

There are enough people on the waiting list to justify the 54k capacity we will see next season. We will only increase to over 60k if we need the seats.

We are a great Club with an excellent fan base. 54k will be remarkable growth over the last 10 to 15 years, as other poster have highlighted

Point B is complete bullshit, as has been pointed out by several posters

Might as well tell the owner to sling his hook too as I'm sure I've only seen him take his seat once

The owner's seat is corporate / hospitality so would be exempt.

Yes some posters wouldn't like a requirement for their seat to be used for half of the games. We've also heard from families who couldn't get into games because of the "sold out" signs. Maybe the Bayern approach wouldn't work for us but I would like to see it tried out so we know!

And if it doesnt work do we give people their season tickets back?

We'd be one of the few businesses in the world to tell people that want to spend £600+ on its product to spend their money elsewhere.

Most of our games go to open sale, so I'm going to call bullshit on the hordes of our"families" desperate to get in but can't get a ticket.

 

[twosips]

If i'm being honest I find the current trend from fans and pundits alike of criticising empty seats worrying to be honest. It's weird and poisonous - especially when the actual issue should be why are fans not turning up? And as we know it's mainly because it's so bloody expensive and it's about time the media started to draw attention to that. Fans of all clubs should have each other's backs too - cos we're all being fucked over by the same thing. Money.

Using relative poverty as a stick to beat someone with is pretty low in my opinion and we should stop it.

The real issue is the atmosphere in the ground, not a few hundred empty seats.

 

[Tim of the Oak]

If i'm being honest I find the current trend from fans and pundits alike of criticising empty seats worrying to be honest. It's weird and poisonous - especially when the actual issue should be why are fans not turning up? And as we know it's mainly because it's so bloody expensive and it's about time the media started to draw attention to that. Fans of all clubs should have each other's backs too - cos we're all being fucked over by the same thing. Money.

Using relative poverty as a stick to beat someone with is pretty low in my opinion and we should stop it.

The real issue is the atmosphere in the ground, not a few hundred empty seats.

This discussion is about seats that have already been sold mate so your "relative poverty" stick isn't the issue. In fact as others have pointed out, the minority of season ticket holders who don't go on a regular basis may well be inflating ticket prices for everyone else.

You are confusing the issue with the Scholes / Wio bollox who are to ignorant to realise that the big cost of extra cup games is pricing out a lot of fans!

 

[moomba]

In fact as others have pointed out, the minority of season ticket holders who don't go on a regular basis may well be inflating ticket prices for everyone else.

Absolute crap, there is no justification for saying that.

And pricing does have an impact. Transport to games even if you've paid for your ticket, food/drink, parking etc

 

[HelloCity]

Games sold out but lots of empty seats.

These are the reasons why.

Problem 1: Club staff and certain youth players/families get complimentary tickets. These tickets are mostly based in tier one of the family stand and often aren't used since the beneficiaries are not all City fans. This means lots of empty seats behind the goal.

Fix 1: Put all complimentary tickets in the new third tiers. Have staff/youth/families have to apply for the tickets, so that they are only activated if they will make the game.

Problem 2: Viagogo get a batch of tickets to go with their ticket exchange deal. These tickets don't get sold as many fans refuse to pay the extra costs unless it is a big game.

Fix 2: End the Viagogo deal and have an in house ticket exchange site. More fans will use it to buy and sell. The batch originally given to viagogo can then be sold through the club.

Problem 3: Many complimentary tickets are given to our large number (& growing) of sponsors. These often don't get used unless the games are big.

Fix 3: Similar to fix 1, put these tickets in the new third tiers. This is what they do at Utd. Nobody notices if they don't get used.

Problem 4: Some season ticket holders can't/dont attend every game.

Fix 4: That's life. Make it easier for them to sell their ticket for the day with an official easy to use ticket exchange.

 

[Tim of the Oak]

In fact as others have pointed out, the minority of season ticket holders who don't go on a regular basis may well be inflating ticket prices for everyone else.

Absolute crap, there is no justification for saying that.

And pricing does have an impact. Transport to games even if you've paid for your ticket, food/drink, parking etc

Your talking absolute crap by denying the basic laws of supply and demand.