[Official Site] 2018/19 Season Matchday Pricing Confirmed

I see your point and I agree with it. My point is different however.

My point is why do fans expect football clubs to spend lots of money, but then complain when the club expects the fans to provide this money?

We all know what happens when a football club tries to live within its means and only spend the income they have. They end up in League 1, because other clubs are spending money they don't have.

 

I don't understand that either. Time will tell I suppose.

 

You seem to be ignoring what I'm saying which is that empty seats are lost revenue and that lowering the price may increase overall income. I'm not saying that fans should contribute less, I'm saying that in the long run surely it is better to have more fans contributing than fewer. I don't actually believe our prices are too high this season I'm just saying that hat people who think they should be slightly lower aren't automatically saying the club should receive less money from the overall fanbase

 

I see what you mean and I agree. My point was a different one but I can't be arsed to discuss it as it's far too hot...

 

It comes from ridiculously lucrative TV deals and rich owners doesn't it. We are continually being told that football clubs don't need spectator income any more.

 

Totally agree. We need to increase season ticket prices.

 

The scary thing for me is what they'll do if we start making a loss.

 

Come on then, Bradford aside how many clubs of comparable status charge considerably less?

We were amongst the cheapest in the championship and I bet there’s not that many cheaper in league one. I really don’t think they could make it that much cheaper realistically.

When I started coming on my own from donny as a kid it cost me 33p bus fare on the x19, £5 in, 33p home on the twatting 212 as there wasn’t an x19 after 4:30 on a Saturday in them days, I got change for a tenner including a program and chippy dinner. It was only £8 for adults then too as i recall. This is just prior to the ponty being reopened as the ora stand or around that time.

Ticket prices - even for kids - went up quite a bit quite quickly from then but it’s never been what you’d call ‘dear’ - when compared to other football clubs and pastimes. But football is an expensive hobby these days across the board, don’t be blaming Barnsley FC.

But anyway what hobbies are cheap?

How much is it for a ticket to a gig? North of £50 quite often if it’s someone folk have heard of.

It’s over a tenner each for the cinema.

More if you pay when you get there (Vue say on their website ‘always cheaper online’) - why is it wrong that a football club offers the same benefit? Folk might not know if they’re available to go watch mission impossible 27 until the day and so might pay a couple of quid more. So it’s not just football with an on the day premium.

The reason there is an increase in price for matchdays I’d say isn’t really to milk extra income, it’s to discourage folk from leaving purchase to the last minute if they don’t have to, so plans can be made for the staffing for the game. The club has a duty of care and is legally obliged to provide the appropriate level of stewarding, security, policing and first aid etc based on the numbers anticipated to attend. It also will want to have the appropriate amount of food, beer and so on ordered (I think they do the catering in house now but even when it was subcontracted out, the club had to provide numbers to the catering folk - if it’s still contracted out then they still need to do that).

People are too quick to blindly shout out criticism without for one second actually thinking about it from another point of view than their own ideals. It’s viewed far too simplistically. We’re talking about a huge business with a turnover of millions annually, who has to manage the risk of having thousands of members of the public turn up once or twice a fortnight, try to ensure none of them get hurt or hurt anyone else, and make sure they can get fed and watered if they so choose. In the modern day this is against a backdrop of fear of litigation for such things as falling down some concrete steps (even when pissed), and constant whinging and moaning on public forums that it’s too dear or the food is crap. Wanting to have a clue as to the total number attending prior to the match is not really an unreasonable request, a token £2 premium means the thrifty folk of this and near parishes will buy in advance where they can, and they can then work to a decent estimate of walk up numbers as they will be limited.

Given all the things that need to be in place, charging mainly under £25 seems pretty reasonable as well. It’s a game where a non-league side has just signed a forward from the Scottish premier league - and given him a significant pay rise. There will be plenty of sides in league two and the national league, maybe even lower tier than that, that will charge what we do - probably a fair few charging more.

The next thread will be a moan we’ve not bought anyone or that we might sell someone. Stop thinking that because the owners have money that means Barnsley FC have. They aren’t in it for glory. They won’t fund it like a toy. The club needs to pay for itself.

 

I agree, this is the one thing that still hasn't been sorted!! I have people a few times rock up before at say 2.45, they maybe don't come often and don't know about this! Box office has about 50 people waiting, and they don't look happy about paying £20 for a young kid.....and rightly so.....so they might not come back often!!

 

Surely down to advance tickets make it easier to plan a number of things from catering volumes, staffing etc. So it makes sense offering an incentive to do so.

 

I just don't know why it all has to be so complicated.

Just set a price - I'd like sub £20 but would take anything up to £25 - and charge that much, for all stands, whenever you buy a ticket. Kids can get in for a fiver, or a pound, or whatever. Commission an in-house ticketing system that works for advance payments, and fit tablets and portable card readers at the turnstile along with cash tills so people can pay however they want to.

The club have got one product to sell, and it's about 90 minutes of football. Just sell it at a reasonable price, and make it as easy as possible for people to buy it.

I mean, I guess that's true to some extent. But the wage of an extra member of staff for three hours is more than covered by a single additional ticket sold - that's not a huge deal. As for stock, the vast majority of what's sold will keep for at least a week, and I'd be surprised if refreshment sales volumes differed massively from week to week anyway, no matter how many people turn up.