Ticket prices are now a problem at City

[Didsbury Dave]

The questions I forgot to mention in my post was this.

Who at City is responsible for ticket pricing?
Do the club actively engage with supporters,supporters clubs etc in relation to the issue of ticket pricing?

The Sheikh is responsible. Khaldoon and Soriano implement his strategy. And his strategy has always been to make the club self-sustainable as soon as possible. We are still miles off that I'm afraid.

I'm not saying it's right, but that's how it is. The Sheikh's the boss, and has a right to stop heamoraging his cash.

The "engagement" you talk about would be pointless because there's not a single fan in the country wouldn't say they wanted cheaper tickets. It wouldnt change anything. This is driven from the top, not Danny Wilson or anyone else.

There is a bigger issue to debate, and that's the question as to why we aren't expanding our fanbase as quick as we should be.

 

[blueparrot]

Schalke played Dortmund in the Ruhr derby, the biggest game in Germany last weekend .
some tickets cost 15 euros ( about 12 quid ) , ............ and you can drink a pint watching it .

surely things have to change in English football ?

You'd be hard pressed to find a single supporter in the country who wouldn't embrace the German model. .

As far as a match going experience then yes, but can anybody in Germany provide any sustained competition for Bayern, Dortmund did for a couple of seasons but had their team cherry picked by Bayern and are now 12th and 7 points off the top. So yes maybe a great atmosphere, but not a system that allows clubs to compete with Bayerns finances.

 

[LoveCity]

Schalke played Dortmund in the Ruhr derby, the biggest game in Germany last weekend .
some tickets cost 15 euros ( about 12 quid ) , ............ and you can drink a pint watching it .

surely things have to change in English football ?

You'd be hard pressed to find a single supporter in the country who wouldn't embrace the German model. .

As far as a match going experience then yes, but can anybody in Germany provide any sustained competition for Bayern, Dortmund did for a couple of seasons but had their team cherry picked by Bayern and are now 12th and 7 points off the top. So yes maybe a great atmosphere, but not a system that allows clubs to compete with Bayerns finances.

Yes, but look at the TV money in England. Everyone has money, though some choose not to spend it, and it's fairly evenly distributed. The brand of the Premier League also allows clubs to tie up good commercial deals if they have an able man in charge.

<a class="postlink" href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2167000/Oil-giant-Sunderlands-20m-shirt-deal.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/footba ... -deal.html</a>

Just absolutely no need to be ripping off fans with the amount of commercial and especially TV revenue clues are making. The recent spike in TV money was incredible. Bottom of the league made more than we did in 11/12 for winning the league.

And look at this...

<a class="postlink" href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2770769/Cardiff-earned-DOUBLE-Bayern-Munich-received-domestic-TV-rights-year-La-Liga-giants-Barcelona-Real-Madrid-Europe-s-earners.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/footba ... rners.html</a>

 

[moomba]

Until the supporters say enough is enough and refuse to pay ridiculous prices clubs will continue to take the piss.

Maybe we're just starting to see some signs that our core support is being pushed about as far as it can be.

The club will have stats on the number of people that have stopped going/renewing and they'll be able to compare that to industry averages. They probably don't care if its on the high side as long as there is a steady stream of new supporters.

FWIW the Pearce era wasnt so bad. Football was shite, we had no real prospects but I had a real feeling of belonging, and being a part of the club back then. It was real.

The current era is also great but in different ways.

 

[FanchesterCity]

This is where UEFA really SHOULD be stepping in and making improvements....

Helping to create new intiatives (and possibly rules) that encourage clubs to keep prices down, or even lower them.
Why not say to wealthy clubs... "ok so, every million you spend over your 40m allocation, you must reduce your ticket prices by 25p. So if you want to spend 10 million more, fine, you can, but then you have to reduce your ticket prices by £2.50 etc. The figure is arbitrary, merely an example... but they COULD do something.

Instead, they choose to fine clubs, and distribute the money to the other clubs (not to fans, not to grass roots, but amongst the other top clubs).

They could also mandate that away fans only pay (max) the same price as home fans.

They could insist that 10% of tickets to any CL game be allocated to local schools and obviously ensure that only schoolkids can use those tickets.

They can do a lot of good things, but they choose to feather their own nests instead.

UEFA COULD act in the best interest of football at large, which obviously includes the fans. But they act on behalf of top clubs only. The consumer (fans) struggle to act as a group and defend their position. Yes, we all have a choice, and if we don't like it, we don't have to pay, but sometimes, a governing body needs to set out rules to protect fans (and the clubs) for their own good. This is what UEFA should be about. Sadly, we can all see that's not the case.

 

[Shirley]

The questions I forgot to mention in my post was this.

Who at City is responsible for ticket pricing?
Do the club actively engage with supporters,supporters clubs etc in relation to the issue of ticket pricing?

The Sheikh is responsible. Khaldoon and Soriano implement his strategy. And his strategy has always been to make the club self-sustainable as soon as possible. We are still miles off that I'm afraid.

I'm not saying it's right, but that's how it is. The Sheikh's the boss, and has a right to stop heamoraging his cash.

The "engagement" you talk about would be pointless because there's not a single fan in the country wouldn't say they wanted cheaper tickets. It wouldnt change anything. This is driven from the top, not Danny Wilson or anyone else.

There is a bigger issue to debate, and that's the question as to why we aren't expanding our fanbase as quick as we should be.

Perhaps one reason our fan base is not expanding is even with all our recent success the British football public are fed on a regular basis such utter bullshit and lies when the rag media report on anything Manchester City.
It may not be an agenda, it maybe simply bias but being drip fed such bullshit for so long will eventually take its toll.
We have all witnessed once again this week what they, the rag media are capable of doing.

 

[CatMan]

This is where UEFA really SHOULD be stepping in and making improvements....

Helping to create new intiatives (and possibly rules) that encourage clubs to keep prices down, or even lower them.
Why not say to wealthy clubs... "ok so, every million you spend over your 40m allocation, you must reduce your ticket prices by 25p. So if you want to spend 10 million more, fine, you can, but then you have to reduce your ticket prices by £2.50 etc. The figure is arbitrary, merely an example... but they COULD do something.

Instead, they choose to fine clubs, and distribute the money to the other clubs (not to fans, not to grass roots, but amongst the other top clubs).

They could also mandate that away fans only pay (max) the same price as home fans.

They could insist that 10% of tickets to any CL game be allocated to local schools and obviously ensure that only schoolkids can use those tickets.

They can do a lot of good things, but they choose to feather their own nests instead.

UEFA COULD act in the best interest of football at large, which obviously includes the fans. But they act on behalf of top clubs only. The consumer (fans) struggle to act as a group and defend their position. Yes, we all have a choice, and if we don't like it, we don't have to pay, but sometimes, a governing body needs to set out rules to protect fans (and the clubs) for their own good. This is what UEFA should be about. Sadly, we can all see that's not the case.

Your exactly right. UEFA FFP has almost forced clubs to disenfranchise historical core support by seeking the nouveau riche to replace them.

Farcical.

 

[ped]

Why does the above have to be a rag/wum? I think a lot of Blues are thinking like this. Ok maybe not back down to the third tier but at least pre money. There will come a point when Manchester City are not Manchester City anymore.

You preferred the 'City experience' under Stuart Pearce ?

Crazy isnt it.

People would rather watch us do fuck all for 34 years because its not "Manchester City" it only isn't your Manchester City now because we are no longer doing fuck all and now challenging for trophies.

this ,plus if we were shit,we would still be paying,the same prices as hull,west ham,ect, just think,£40,but it will stil be,"Your city"

 

[FanchesterCity]

The questions I forgot to mention in my post was this.

Who at City is responsible for ticket pricing?
Do the club actively engage with supporters,supporters clubs etc in relation to the issue of ticket pricing?

The Sheikh is responsible. Khaldoon and Soriano implement his strategy. And his strategy has always been to make the club self-sustainable as soon as possible. We are still miles off that I'm afraid.

I'm not saying it's right, but that's how it is. The Sheikh's the boss, and has a right to stop heamoraging his cash.

The "engagement" you talk about would be pointless because there's not a single fan in the country wouldn't say they wanted cheaper tickets. It wouldnt change anything. This is driven from the top, not Danny Wilson or anyone else.

There is a bigger issue to debate, and that's the question as to why we aren't expanding our fanbase as quick as we should be.

Perhaps one reason our fan base is not expanding is even with all our recent success the British football public are fed on a regular basis such utter bullshit and lies when the rag media report on anything Manchester City.
It may not be an agenda, it maybe simply bias but being drip fed such bullshit for so long will eventually take its toll.
We have all witnessed once again this week what they, the rag media are capable of doing.

Our fanbase IS growing, clearly so. The amount of young kids I now see wearing City shirts is heartwarming.
As long as we are winning, we will attract a large percentage of young kids. However, those kids will be the type of kids that choose to support already winning teams, whilst in the past a lot of City fans chose City as underdogs. Personally I believe there's a distinct character difference between the two, but it's an inevitable consequence of winning things - you'll attract fans that want to support winners.

Abroad, the same. We are starting to be known now, where previously the casual football follower would never have heard of us. But they don't all become fans overnight, it's a gradual process and one that I believe we are doing well in.

One thing we shouldn't forget is that we are relatively late to the market, and so an awful lot of foreign fans have been captured by other clubs. But still, there are plenty more fish in the sea in new emerging markets where we can hope to grab a good share of support - the USA being one of them, and the Middle East being another.

We mustn't kid ourselves and think we are in the United or Liverpool league. We're not. But we have grown significantly in a very short space of time. If we continue to be a top 4 club and winning trophies regularly, We will have a whole new generation to win over - which is where we will make huge gains (I believe).

We just need to be mindful that whilst we're venturing all over the world to win new fans, we mustn't lose sight of those on our doorstep. Those that will be the lion's share of matchgoers and visible supporters. A club can have millions of followers all over the world, but they are all represented by just 60K in a stadium when we are televised to the masses. It's critical to keep those 60K happy, warm, content and passionate.

 

[BigJoe#1]

The questions I forgot to mention in my post was this.

Who at City is responsible for ticket pricing?
Do the club actively engage with supporters,supporters clubs etc in relation to the issue of ticket pricing?

The Sheikh is responsible. Khaldoon and Soriano implement his strategy. And his strategy has always been to make the club self-sustainable as soon as possible. We are still miles off that I'm afraid.

I'm not saying it's right, but that's how it is. The Sheikh's the boss, and has a right to stop heamoraging his cash.

The "engagement" you talk about would be pointless because there's not a single fan in the country wouldn't say they wanted cheaper tickets. It wouldnt change anything. This is driven from the top, not Danny Wilson or anyone else.

There is a bigger issue to debate, and that's the question as to why we aren't expanding our fanbase as quick as we should be.

A better question would be.... Why are we expanding the stadiums capacity when we can barely sell out right now. We should create the demand before expanding.

 

[dobobobo]

The questions I forgot to mention in my post was this.

Who at City is responsible for ticket pricing?
Do the club actively engage with supporters,supporters clubs etc in relation to the issue of ticket pricing?

The Sheikh is responsible. Khaldoon and Soriano implement his strategy. And his strategy has always been to make the club self-sustainable as soon as possible. We are still miles off that I'm afraid.

I'm not saying it's right, but that's how it is. The Sheikh's the boss, and has a right to stop heamoraging his cash.

The "engagement" you talk about would be pointless because there's not a single fan in the country wouldn't say they wanted cheaper tickets. It wouldnt change anything. This is driven from the top, not Danny Wilson or anyone else.

There is a bigger issue to debate, and that's the question as to why we aren't expanding our fanbase as quick as we should be.

A better question would be.... Why are we expanding the stadiums capacity when we can barely sell out right now. We should create the demand before expanding.

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Ay5GqJwHF8[/video]

 

[squirtyflower]

The questions I forgot to mention in my post was this.

Who at City is responsible for ticket pricing?
Do the club actively engage with supporters,supporters clubs etc in relation to the issue of ticket pricing?

The Sheikh is responsible. Khaldoon and Soriano implement his strategy. And his strategy has always been to make the club self-sustainable as soon as possible. We are still miles off that I'm afraid.

I'm not saying it's right, but that's how it is. The Sheikh's the boss, and has a right to stop heamoraging his cash.

The "engagement" you talk about would be pointless because there's not a single fan in the country wouldn't say they wanted cheaper tickets. It wouldnt change anything. This is driven from the top, not Danny Wilson or anyone else.

There is a bigger issue to debate, and that's the question as to why we aren't expanding our fanbase as quick as we should be.

A better question would be.... Why are we expanding the stadiums capacity when we can barely sell out right now. We should create the demand before expanding.

a view
but a moronic one

 

[LoveCity]

The demand is there for league games, just not other games.

Surely 7,000+ on the waiting list (have all paid the £100 deposit?), the majority of whom Glick has said are *not* existing holders wanting to relocate, justifies an expansion. That puts our ST holder count up to around 45,000 minus those who won't renew or those who are on the 7,000 and relocating/after cheaper seats.

However, many of those will be the people who right now are buying individual tickets so if they keep the stupid prices like £45 vs. Stoke and £56 vs. Liverpool (barely sold out) then the rest of the seats will be a struggle to fill because many of those who had previously bought them will now have a season ticket.

League Cup + Champions League in a 54,000 seater is going to be a sight for sore eyes though. They may have to close the entire third level from the start except for cup schemers up there, fill the lower sections, then reopen the third level if the lower areas fill. A strategy they are already using sometimes, but didn't against Roma.

For us fans, an expansion and failure to sell it out may be a good thing. When demand outstrips supply, prices go up. When supply outstrips demand...............?

 

[LoveCity]

City appear to have responded... kids for a quid. This is affordable for almost anyone, so let's fill the Etihad!

<a class="postlink" href="http://www.mcfc.co.uk/News/Tickets-and-Travel/2014/October/City-v-Newcastle-Capital-One-Cup-ticket-information" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.mcfc.co.uk/News/Tickets-and- ... nformation</a>

Manchester City v Newcastle United
Wednesday 29th October 2014
Kick off – 7.45pm

Colin Bell and East Stand Level 2
Adults: £20.00
16-21s / Over 65s: £15
Under 16s: £5
Disabled: £15

Family Stand and South Stand Level 1
Adults: £15.00
16-21s / Over 65s: £10
Under 16s: £1
Disabled: £10

All other areas
Adults: £15.00
16-21s / Over 65s: £10
Under 16s: £5
Disabled: £10

 

[squirtyflower]

Half term as well, expect thousands of high pitched voices

 

[dobobobo]

City appear to have responded... kids for a quid. This is affordable for almost anyone, so let's fill the Etihad!

<a class="postlink" href="http://www.mcfc.co.uk/News/Tickets-and-Travel/2014/October/City-v-Newcastle-Capital-One-Cup-ticket-information" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.mcfc.co.uk/News/Tickets-and- ... nformation</a>

Manchester City v Newcastle United
Wednesday 29th October 2014
Kick off – 7.45pm

Colin Bell and East Stand Level 2
Adults: £20.00
16-21s / Over 65s: £15
Under 16s: £5
Disabled: £15

Family Stand and South Stand Level 1
Adults: £15.00
16-21s / Over 65s: £10
Under 16s: £1
Disabled: £10

All other areas
Adults: £15.00
16-21s / Over 65s: £10
Under 16s: £5
Disabled: £10

Responded to what? That's pricing for the League Cup.

(For the record I aint complaining about City.)

 

[LoveCity]

Half term as well, expect thousands of high pitched voices

I think it's a chance to prove to them that lower tickets = full house. I'm not saying it'll be Hamburg, but a full house and good atmosphere could convince them to do it more often. We could also respond to the critics by creating a warmer atmosphere. Bananas anyone?

But our fans need to respond to City's response. Another 32,000 gate and City will say, "We could have had that charging a bit more anyway..."

Responded to what? That's pricing for the League Cup.

(For the record I aint complaining about City.)

The kids for a quid deal I'm talking about, this offer wasn't present last time. And with it being so cheap for kids, it could encourage more adults to go at the cheap prices (same as SheffWeds but against Premier League opponents) and take their kids.

 

[FanchesterCity]

Half term as well, expect thousands of high pitched voices

Yes, I'm another who tends to shriek at the thought of kids!

 

[gordondaviesmoustache]

A better question would be.... Why are we expanding the stadiums capacity when we can barely sell out right now. We should create the demand before expanding.

If you had a restaurant that was turning customers away at the weekend would you put plans to increase the number of covers on hold because you were quiet on a Monday and Tuesday?

 

[dobobobo]

Half term as well, expect thousands of high pitched voices

I think it's a chance to prove to them that lower tickets = full house. I'm not saying it'll be Hamburg, but a full house and good atmosphere could convince them to do it more often. We could also respond to the critics by creating a warmer atmosphere. Bananas anyone?

But our fans need to respond to City's response. Another 32,000 gate and City will say, "We could have had that charging a bit more anyway..."

Responded to what? That's pricing for the League Cup.

(For the record I aint complaining about City.)

The kids for a quid deal I'm talking about, this offer wasn't present last time. And with it being so cheap for kids, it could encourage more adults to go at the cheap prices (same as SheffWeds but against Premier League opponents) and take their kids.

But the £1is just for the family stand.