[Albion] Still 2,000 season tickets to be sold for next season

[AZ Gull]

Im sure if the trains improved no bus replacements etc more would renew and penalties the club impose for not using ST doesnt help. That said early days i expect more will renew once season ends.

The renewal deadline was six weeks ago.

 

[Brovion]

Granny weatherwax, pitbull, Dies Irae to name a few

He was 'Dave in Mile Oak' when I first started posting regularly!

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

We've been so bloody unlucky with our injuries.

It's not just the number of them, it's the concentration across the back four.

Losing both natural right-backs - Veltman and Lamptey, also the ultra-flexible Ferdi, the solid Milner, the long-term loss of Igor and then Dunk and Webster playing tag-team with their availability.

Hindsight is great, but I don't think it was entirely unreasonable to look at the squad and consider we had decent cover.

Good points. Going forward I think Lamptey's contract is up at the end of the season so we will need to do something about this, not sure what the situation is with Milner both contract and injury.....there's a need to start looking at Dunk's successor if this hasn’t already started.....but maybe this is all that's required in defence?

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

He was 'Dave in Mile Oak' when I first started posting regularly!

I can see why he might want to distance himself from the name Mile Oak

 

[Change at Barnham]

We've been so bloody unlucky with our injuries.

It's not just the number of them, it's the concentration across the back four.

Losing both natural right-backs - Veltman and Lamptey, also the ultra-flexible Ferdi, the solid Milner, the long-term loss of Igor and then Dunk and Webster playing tag-team with their availability.

Hindsight is great, but I don't think it was entirely unreasonable to look at the squad and consider we had decent cover.

Great post.
It is for these reasons that I feel the stick Fab has received from some fans is so unreasonable.
I honestly feel that Slot or Guardiola would not have produced any better results with the decimated squad he has had to juggle.
Fab is getting a 'B' on his report from me for his first season in what is a new country and a new league for him.

If we can keep Baleba, van Hecke and Mitoma, and get in a quality central defender I will be feeling very positive.
(Four big 'ifs' there!)

 

[sahel]

The renewal deadline was six weeks ago.

I think the club should worry about a general drop in interest. It is now very expensive for any groups/families to go ,
the changes in kick off time are very irritating and disruptive, and in winter times at least the whole experience of attending can be rather unpleasant especially as you get older. Better to stay at home and watch in comfort at a distance. All this means the enthusiasm threshold required to attend rises each year and a number of people give up. I cant see why things would reverse unless clubs do something about it like radically drop prices especially for family groups .

 

[timbha]

Amazing how many times I see “I’m only renewing because ……” when the writer has previously claimed “that’s it I’ve had enough”. I’m sure some posters have made this threat a number of times

Just go if you don’t like it.

 

[sahel]

I think the club should worry about a general drop in interest. It is now very expensive for any groups/families to go ,
the changes in kick off time are very irritating and disruptive, and in winter times at least the whole experience of attending can be rather unpleasant especially as you get older. Better to stay at home and watch in comfort at a distance. All this means the enthusiasm threshold required to attend rises each year and a number of people give up. I cant see why things would reverse unless clubs do something about it like radically drop prices especially for family groups .

Amazing how many times I see “I’m only renewing because ……” when the writer has previously claimed “that’s it I’ve had enough”. I’m sure some posters have made this threat a number of times

Just go if you don’t like it.

If it were your business and your money invested I doubt you would be quite so cavalier !

 

[Wozza]

I think the club should worry about a general drop in interest. It is now very expensive for any groups/families to go ,
the changes in kick off time are very irritating and disruptive

Can’t disagree on the latter. And of course it’s expensive for families - PL football generally is.

But most games sell out, so “general drop in interest” doesn’t stack up.

The biggest problem, as the club has acknowledged, is the aging fanbase.

Club could do with more 20- and 30-somethings, with money to spend. But do they even exist?!

 

[Jackthelad]

.

Club could do with more 20- and 30-somethings, with money to spend. But do they even exist?!

Have they ever existed?!

 

[Wozza]

Have they ever existed?!

Yep, when housing was much cheaper.

 

[sahel]

Can’t disagree on the latter. And of course it’s expensive for families - PL football generally is.

But most games sell out, so “general drop in interest” doesn’t stack up.

The biggest problem, as the club has acknowledged, is the aging fanbase.

Club could do with more 20- and 30-somethings, with money to spend. But do they even exist?!

the key issue here is "with money to spend". I reckon the club gets about 1m to £1,5m per match from attendance. Over the season that is a maximum of about £30m .If they halved prices they would lose say £15m - the cost of a promising academy player. Hardly that significant balanced against the many many people being able to afford to go. And so you protect the future by making some small sacrifice in the present

 

[Dibdab]

the key issue here is "with money to spend". I reckon the club gets about 1m to £1,5m per match from attendance. Over the season that is a maximum of about £30m .If they halved prices they would lose say £15m - the cost of a promising academy player. Hardly that significant balanced against the many many people being able to afford to go. And so you protect the future by making some small sacrifice in the present

Absolutely my take on ticket pricing. It would be radical and refreshing if the club targeted making attending the games really affordable for families and younger adults and buy one less Adrian Mazilu who will spend eternity in overseas loans. It would mean the stadium was always full and easier for less affluent young people to attend, and secure the support base for years to come. There must now be thousands of families in the Brighton/Sussex area who's kids support their local team but spending £100+ to attend is far beyond their means. The main issue is to a Billionaire who never has to worry about Money and a very commercial CEO and target driven ticketing team its just numbers on spreadsheets and a total disconnection to the reality of the challenges of the supporter base.

 

[Wozza]

the key issue here is "with money to spend". I reckon the club gets about 1m to £1,5m per match from attendance. Over the season that is a maximum of about £30m .If they halved prices they would lose say £15m - the cost of a promising academy player. Hardly that significant balanced against the many many people being able to afford to go. And so you protect the future by making some small sacrifice in the present

But why would a business halve prices when it’s selling out most weeks?!

It’s really not as simple as pricing.

We sold f*ck all Chelsea cup tickets and they were just £15. Decent opposition, and not on a school night.

Reality is, we lost a generation of fans in the dark days. I think there’s a big hole in our demographic.

 

[Home and Away]

Some of the major reasons for people not going/renewing:

- Financial pressure ie. Cost of the season ticket if you're not sure if you'll attend games and not being certain that the ticket exchange will resell your ticket. Also, it's not just the ticket... it's the beers, burgers/pies, sweets, etc.
- Transport, getting to the Amex and especially leaving has become so frustrating experience, many have probably decided that it's not worth it. And, I'm not only talking about trains, it's a b*ll ache by car/bus too.
- Kick Off times. This links to the previous as well. The Kick off times are changing and it's become more challenging organising around other commitments and the transport from and away from the stadium can be a nightmare on particular days/nights.
- Team success
- Premier League (and everything that comes with it): 1. VAR, 2. "Game's gone" ie. foul for a shoulder to shoulder, yellow for a strong legal tackle and red for an aggression (but not hitting) or dissent, stupid handball rules 3. players diving, wasting time and rolling on the floor for nothing 4. Boring football (at times) or no passion/fire in the belly mentality
- Access to streams (legal or otherwise)

Once you get there it's always good to be there, but I can understand why some do not renew and that obviously is their choice and no one else's.

 

[Wozza]

There must now be thousands of families in the Brighton/Sussex area who's kids support their local team but spending £100+ to attend is far beyond their means

They could have come to the Chelsea cup game. Loads of space.

Shame the club's marketing team forgot to tell anyone about it...

(Does the club actually have a marketing team?!)

 

[Bozza]

It's going to be interesting to see what happens this week when the exchange opens for Saturday, which I think it will, sooner or later.

There have been reasons/excuses for low take-up for most recent games - evenings, Valentine's Day and school holidays which are all known to suppress demand and/or willingness to attend.

This week we have an eminently winnable (I know, I know!) Saturday, 3pm in the spring, with no obvious mitigating factors to keep people away.

How many tickets have been listed already and how well will they sell?

 

[sahel]

Absolutely my take on ticket pricing. It would be radical and refreshing if the club targeted making attending the games really affordable for families and younger adults and buy one less Adrian Mazilu who will spend eternity in overseas loans. It would mean the stadium was always full and easier for less affluent young people to attend, and secure the support base for years to come. There must now be thousands of families in the Brighton/Sussex area who's kids support their local team but spending £100+ to attend is far beyond their means. The main issue is to a Billionaire who never has to worry about Money and a very commercial CEO and target driven ticketing team its just numbers on spreadsheets and a total disconnection to the reality of the challenges of the supporter base.

Well said. The only thing I would take issue with is your view of Paul Barber and Tony Bloom. I dont know either of them but they appear to be intelligent and clear sighted. They must be looking at pricing all the time and it would be interesting to hear that thinking. I think the issue is one for the whole of the Premier League. The rewards of its success, it seems to me, are currently far too weighted towards the players which may be a poor longer term strategy.

 

[timbha]

Shame we didn’t win 4-2 on Saturday

 

[Paulie Gualtieri]

It's going to be interesting to see what happens this week when the exchange opens for Saturday, which I think it will, sooner or later.

There have been reasons/excuses for low take-up for most recent games - evenings, Valentine's Day and school holidays which are all known to suppress demand and/or willingness to attend.

This week we have an eminently winnable (I know, I know!) Saturday, 3pm in the spring, with no obvious mitigating factors to keep people away.

How many tickets have been listed already and how well will they sell?

Shirley people aren’t going to give up the opportunity to see a returning old friend this Saturday?