It’s become a huge issue for many fans. The price of a season ticket at Premier League clubs can equate to a full months wage for the average earner. At the Emirates you can pay over £2000 for the privilege, with a match day ticket costing up to £97.
To put things in perspective, you will find that Bayern Munich and Barcelona – arguably THE top two clubs in Europe at the moment – offer fans season tickets at a lower price than all but one club in the English Conference. Eastleigh is the only club where supporters can get hold of a season ticket for less than the £109 price tag at the Allianz Arena, but it is still more expensive than the cheapest asking price at the Camp Nou.
The price of football in England today is simply unaffordable.
It means even the most die heard of fans can not show their beloved clubs support week in and week out because of capitalism’s grasp on the sport. Do the fans not matter anymore?
Bayern President Uli Honess has revealed the philosophy shared by German clubs which makes the Bundesliga a much more affordable prospect for supporters:
“We could charge more than £100, let’s say we charged £300. We would get £2million more in income but what is £2million to us? In a transfer discussion you argue about that sum for five minutes, but the difference between £100 and £300 is huge for a fan.
“Football has got to be for everybody, and that is the biggest difference between us and England.”
In Germany clubs feel like it is their obligation to make football affordable for fans – the people who really make the game what it is. Without fans football is just 22 men kicking a ball around a field. Fun, but the £billions of football rights should be used to drop ticket prices.
So, clubs of England, appreciate the fans. Sharing is caring.
#mmlove