Sneaky increase in ticket prices

[Edghill OG]

It’s a business mate and the club will research around the other clubs for pricing structures, ticket pricing etc against our wage bill, turnover, cash flow etc? I have 3 companies and one could sell its products cheaper than it does and still make a profit but when it’s cheaper than other companies then why should it? City also now have a commitment to its other shareholders to give them a return on their investment into the club? There is also FFP to consider as well as us fans eating the Haaland type signings, Bellingham etc? Of course if you don’t renew someone will take your seat but that’s just how it works? If I died tomorrow my companies would carry on and someone else would reap my dividends etc until no doubt my wife sold! Lol. It’s not me having a dog at you or anyone else by the way, just me with the business head on as you state yourself you have never spent money in the club shop, buy nothing at the ground and even blag a free programme? Not something that any business owner wants to hear really is it? It’s basic common sense that if they read that and they have someone who will go to the shop and buy some merchandise, buy a programme or two , grab a beer or soft drinks, eat there etc then that’s who the club wants? The club is now more appealing than ever and to grow further it needs more huge investment and although the owner is richer than we could ever imagine, every investment will be viewed as a long term one but to bring a huge return in the end? We have the best in the world imo but why should they be expected to give things away? Like I said mate, please don’t think I’m being disrespectful to you or anyone on here and maybe the expansion will come with extra benefits but I doubt it and the club is a business and needs to be profitable to be sustainable and the days of being in a run down Maine road are gone and we are the envy of every other club in the UK with not only on the pitch but off the pitch infrastructure.

It's more than a business though. It's a huge part of people's lives.
Why should the club offer cheaper tickets even though it doesn't need the additional income? Because if it wasn't for a lot of fans that are now priced out of going turning up in their droves before the investment there wouldn't be a club at all. In addition if we didn't have that loyal fanbase in the first place the Sheikh would have looked to invest his money elsewhere.
We are blessed to have the team we do but I'd sooner have a few signings less and retain our core support-even if it meant we were less successful as a consequence.

 

[Tim of the Oak]

You're an intelligent guy Timothy I think you could argue all of those points.
If I went to a bar and it was a fiver a pint and a couple of months later it was £7.50 for the same pint I wouldn't be going in there again. Unfortunately the club has it's fans by the short and curlies. Most city fans will just stop going to watch live football altogether if they can't afford to go to the Etihad.
Once upon a time lots of people went to support us almost out of duty... now it's an expensive treat.

Thanks Edghill OG

I don’t like the way ticket prices are increasing after initially offering significantly cheaper prices for the lower profile games.

I think from the way Danny and Roel are managing this that City’s off field leaders have insisted that increasing match day revenue is non negotiable. This is more difficult because we have increasing numbers of fans rightly entitled to discounts for seniors.

There are some potential ways around the price increases:
- Blues buy up the cheaper tickets, issued early.
- Flexible use of season cards, ticket transfer & supporters numbers within trusted networks.
- Buying from the face value or less pages. I’ve just bought a ticket for tomorrow for £30.
- Recognising the intrinsic benefits of being in an OSC Branch for home tickets.
- knowing peole who know the system inside out. I’ve mentioned before how there were a very few season cards available.

Like others, I think the North Stand expansion is a great opportunity to get more younger fans into the ground with affordable prices

 

[Jazzyblue]

Personally I think City does an excellent job with the community and charity side of things, and is working hard to reach out to young fans. But that only goes so far if your pricing policies exclude more and more people at the turnstile every year.

Fundamentally this is about access. And if your pricing policies limit access to only those who can set aside increasing amounts of disposable income in a tough financial environment, then it becomes harder to argue, outside the corporate bubble, that you really have a ‘commitment to sustainability’. And this is an era where business are falling over themselves to do that.

When Spurs prices were raised earlier this season I’ll admit I was one of those who wasn’t worried because cheaper games were available and I expected cup games to stay low. As things have turned out, everything has gone up.

Yes the club has a duty to be financially viable and also faces inflationary pressures. But it also has a duty to the paying, matchgoing fans. Having wealthy ownership with nous shouldn’t just be about striking the best deals. It should also be about having the freedom to be kinder to the fan base.

 

[Brunswick Blue]

I'm a season ticket holder but I'm not going to pay for an extra FA cup match in the middle of winter especially when it's on the BBC, however if someone wants to pay a ridiculous amount of money to sit in my seat they're welcome. The prices of tickets in general are ridiculous for most people now, especially with the cost of living crisis.

 

[richards30]

It's more than a business though. It's a huge part of people's lives.
Why should the club offer cheaper tickets even though it doesn't need the additional income? Because if it wasn't for a lot of fans that are now priced out of going turning up in their droves before the investment there wouldn't be a club at all. In addition if we didn't have that loyal fanbase in the first place the Sheikh would have looked to invest his money elsewhere.
We are blessed to have the team we do but I'd sooner have a few signings less and retain our core support-even if it meant we were less successful as a consequence.

All true mate but the club have also invested heavily in the community? Like I say this isn’t me defending the club or having a pop at anyone in particular here or any fan, my points are about the business and economic side of things? The TV companies and the players are the ones to blame for coatings etc as the premier league is the most commercial in the world so gets the most revenues by a mile but the players know that and want their money accordingly and unfortunately there will always be a team that will do it if you don’t? We all love KDB but apparently he rejected his first contract offer of a slightly bigger weekly pay but alot more bonuses if we were successful to demand more on the guaranteed pay and a slightly higher increase on the bonus side because it’s driven by cash? Don’t forget player attitudes to their salaries in COVID as well? How many millions did even we lose over that time yet the players wouldn’t forego any wages while the fans etc were made redundant or on furlough schemes trying to survive? I can reiterate enough I am not having a pop at any blue past or present about their thoughts and opinions and maybe there will be a bigger hit again on corporate with the North Stand expansion and corporate areas to help with ticket prices and season tickets for the regular goers which will keep the peace but I do agree that season tickets should have been frozen as the increase was beyond minimal and would have meant so much more to the everyday fan off the street.

 

[Stephen230]

I'm a season ticket holder but I'm not going to pay for an extra FA cup match in the middle of winter especially when it's on the BBC, however if someone wants to pay a ridiculous amount of money to sit in my seat they're welcome. The prices of tickets in general are ridiculous for most people now, especially with the cost of living crisis.

100% of people would probably agree that £1 is unrealistically cheap and £100 is far too expensive, so it’s just a personal opinion of where you draw the line in between those figures for a fair price.

My personal opinion is we’ve been a bit spoilt with all these £10 and £15 tickets over the last few years and £25 max. to watch cup games against premium opposition is comfortably on the right side of what’s fair.

 

[Centurions]

If City don't make season tickets available what use are they to those who don't have one. We clearly had the capacity and could have made them available but chose to sell a silver ticket and charge a fortune for the 'big 6' games.

The expansion is 3 years off, are we going to sell no new season tickets for 4 years.

According to a post above yours we already sell 75-80% of capacity as season tickets (I don't know if that's correct BTW), if true then where are these extra seats coming from until the expansion?

 

[Centurions]

...

Hindsight is a wonderful thing, even for Khalddon, Soriano and the other directors. But as I and many others have stated on here, the North stand expansion should have started 3 years ago during Covid. Yes, there would have been issues to resolve like labour, sourcing materials, cost issues, etc. But those issues could have been worked around. If you remember, most construction sites were still open during COVID, with stringent Covid practices in place to keep the construction sites functioning. We’d probably have a 60,000+ capacity stadium by now or by next season. Ready for Pep’s contract extension, and ready for a certain Mr Haaland, that more of our young audience would see and be captivated by.

I'm sure it's yourself that has talked about the massive cranes that need to be used for projects like ours and how they're booked years in advance. If most construction sites were still open then how would they get the necessary heavy equipment in?

 

[Centurions]

I mean proper discounted tickets for that age group. I appreciate there are already discounted tickets. Sort of?

Currently.

Resales.

1 ticket left in that block.

SSL1 - Block 116

18-21 - £40,00.
Under 18 - £30,00.

Fair enough, I'll give you that they're not cheap (at any level TBH).

 

[Centurions]

I’m not an apologist for every decision the club make mate. My guess is they would have preferred offering no new season tickets at all this season. But with all the new interest generated through Haaland, maybe thought they could appease a few newcomers with this silver ticket, without it eating into their limited number of one off high price sales for the big games.

It's also possible that the expansion will mean relocating some fans (temporarily at least) so issuing new ST's will cause more problems. If we really do have that high a percentage of ST's then it gives them little wriggle room.