by Gabriel Smith
A lot has been said about the outrageous ticket price that Manchester City fans had to cough up in order to see their heroes play away at Arsenal. £62 is a disgrace to see just 90 minutes of entertainment, especially when the game is live on TV and can be seen for 3 pints of lager at any nationwide pub. Maybe I’m just drinking too slow? A fact is that City are now a ‘class A’ club in every away game due of their sudden wealth, but unfortunately the fans itself aren’t the ones who got rich as well. It is still a working class team, a big loyal ‘family’, who has to dig deep in order to see their beloved club live whenever possible.
City’s origin is about Manchester, and never had to deal with glory hunters swamping in from other parts of the country or overseas, like the sudden flow coming over from Holland who discovered City’s welfare. Those new plastic fans are most happy to pay for any price stated on a ticket, but the real fans – who were there when the team wasn’t winning any honours – are in this way being pushed out of the market.
Money-blind club owners simply want to maximize cash flows from every game and the hell with once-a-season visiting fans. Calls to introduce a cap on ticket prices for travelling fans has my full support. All tickets to be sold directly via the visiting club and no sales on the day itself could see prices drop to ‘normal standards’. I can hear a romantic violin now playing in the background.
There has been a worrying escalation in ticket prices. It was only two seasons ago a ticket for a City fan at Arsenal was £33 compared to £62 – an increase of 87% in only a very short time. No doubt other fans are in the same boat as well, but because of sent back unsold tickets only now it became a public debate.
Let me outline something important to you: Arsenal’s owners want to make a profit, they’re businessmen and refuse to live beyond their means. They want to squeeze out whoever they can. They charge a staggering £985 for their CHEAPEST season ticket, with £1955 for their most expensive. I understand that such a card gives you unlimited drinks in their corporate lounge, but after yet again another season without trophies it’s shandy in comparison.
Arsenal are a team without on-field ambition; they appear to be more interested in generating income off the field. Of course every season is a new one, and the young squad – carefully scouted at low transfer fees – will fancy their chances. Surely this one will be their year? Unfortunately, Arsenal are now a selling club. Big money has been paid for the likes of Kolo Toure, Adebayor, Fabregas, Nasri, Clichy and Van Persie and Arsenal are making a profit this way, with qualification for the Champions League another vital component. Wenger plays his part by achieving that important 4th place each year. His job is safe, even after the home defeat against Manchester City yesterday. There are some people who doubt it, but how else could a manager of a football club remain in his position if you’ve not won any trophy for SEVEN seasons on the trot, with an eight successive season winking from the corner of doom. Wenger is playing it safe with his bosses when he proclaims ‘finishing top 4 is a trophy in itself’ because it means the money continues to flow. He defended the policy, saying people ‘can decline buying a ticket to the theatre’, referring to a home game.
It’s another example of how he seeks to appease his paymaster. People simply need to realise that Arsenal are now a company, a business that is about making a profit, they are no longer a football club. Yes, they play football, but as long as spectators come through the turnstiles paying extortionate prices, the revenue streams will continue and nothing shall ever change.
In the meantime, the odds for Wenger to be the next Premier League manager to be sacked stand at something like 500/1. Nice work if you can get it.
Check out Gabriel’s blog here http://footballfromadifferentview.blogspot.co.uk/
Really dumb blog. Arsenal are trying to compete with the likes of Man C and therefore have to charge high ticket prices. It is clubs like Man C and Chelsea that financially dope spending sugar daddy money that are causing the problem because they pay stupidly high wages and transfer fees which means the rest of the league are forced to pay high prices for players. Only way they can pay these players is through the revenue they get from ticket sales and tv revenue. So Man C fans should blame Man C not have a go at clubs that are financially responsible.
Arsenal have themselves admitted that they have not shown enough enterprise in securing revenue through commercial dealings.
Redressing that shortfall via the highest priced tickets on the planet is unacceptable.
Perhaps it might be different, were the team truly stellar or the club were genuinely challenging for honours each season.
Maybe you should read it again.
You are right. The gunners have become a business. I hope more fans won’t renew their season tickets.
Yes you are spot on to tag arsenal as a business club. It has been evident for far too long now. The manager knows the defense or the back four is completely useless and they never did anything about it. They never really did replace David Seaman with a long term excellent goalkeeper except with Lehman. World class Strikers and midfielders was never replaced like for like. How on earth they can allow players turned mercenaries leave the club after training them and spending much to develop them. Never really had a plan to keep them. Youth development was all to make money for the club and for the Scrooge manager to earn a reputation that’s all. Fans in the end all become suckers and continue to pay high ticket prices to watch crappy games by the ambition less club. Look at how arsenal played 8 years back and now. The club has become a mid table club. They might just end up there this season. Year after year same old stupid excuses. The real truth is they are only interested to make money and without ambition to win anything. Even Swansea seems to play better football than arsenal. The manager and the board should simply get lost before arsenal become a basement club fighting for relegation.
Another idiotic piece of crap from a talentless blogger who thinks he’s a journo.
EVERY club is a business!
“Let me outline something important to you: Arsenal’s owners want to make a profit” …. Really, einstein? Wow! you’re so learned, we never would’ve worked that out with your wisdom!
You think anyone who invests in a club wants to lose money?
£62 – Boo-hoo!
That’s the market! Can’t pay – don’t go!
No mention we paid £71 away at Spurs last season. No – because you have no clue ‘cos YOU DON’T GO TO GAMES! You just sit in your bedsit with your laptop streaming games and writing shit!
Why don’t you mention that category C games – which are far more than A games – are £35 – cheaper than most of the top team? Why not mention that the Arsenal season tickets include 5 cup games – that are NOT included in Chelsea & Spurs – making us CHEAPER than them overall?
You want to celebrate a Capital Cup win? You’re supporting the wrong team! We’re all about being in the elite of Europe. That’s who we are. The ONLY English team to have qualified through the group stages of Champions League in the last two seasons that have seen United Chelsea City get knocked, and one of only 4 teams to qualify since its inception. That’s not ambition? Seriously, go away and write about things you know about, which judging by your ineptly written and inaccurate tripe will be very little.
And by the way, to go along with all the other moronic things you spout, Wenger is the highest ‘top’ manager tipped to be sacked. You couldn’t even get 10/1 if you tried. Stop talking shit and get a real job, Gabriel! You’re embarrassing yourself, son.
Yes, Arsenal are a profit making organisation, but unless your team is fueled by Oil/Mineral rich individuals you need to make a profit or at least break even for fear of ending up like Portsmouth and others…
The reason that premiership clubs without a suger daddy are charging the likes of £62 for tickets has as much to do with the sugar daddies in the game as anything else. Man City are one such club enjoying being top of the tree, this has come at a price, namely paying circa £200k a week to attract some of the best players in the league. These very high wages have destablised the players market and as a result we have become a selling team as we cannot match those salaries.
Arsenal are now being held to ransom by fairly ordinary players (compared to Bergcamp, Henry, Viera) like Walcott demanding higher and higher wages as they see what Chelsea, Man City etc are paying. The truth is the money can only come from one place after your sponsorship and TV deals are done, and that is the paying punter.
All I’m saying is don’t blame everything on money grabing profit making Arsenal, take a look at how the influx of money into the game has made it more expensive for everyone, I for one remember a time when you could watch football on telly for free.
City should enjoy their time at the top, god knows they waited long enough for it! But don’t then blame the resulting ticket inflation in the game on everyone else, they are as much or in fact more to blame than most…
Well, a communist scheme to curb ticket prices is hardly the answer. Clubs without oil daddies have to rely on good old ways to generate cash. That Arsenal are not spending it is a whole different story. But City fans screaming bloody murder is somewhat hypocritical eh?
Why on earth is he selling quality then he replaces with substandard players.
There must be a balance between profit, ambition and trophies. Business is all about making money. For a successful football club the three ingredient as above is necessary. The frustration with arsenal is, the club has become a selling club and too profit orientated. Where has the money gone from the sale of Henry, cesc, Samir Nasir, kolo toure, Gael cliche, adebayor , van Persie. Has the really reinvested the profit from these sales. Now that’s the frustration many fans are feelin and the quality of arsenal’ games these days.? If they can finish sixth these season it will be. Great achievement for Arsene and the board, perhaps.
How are Arsenal trying to compete with City? These fake plastic Arsenal fans who lick Wenger’s back side p*ss me off soo much. Are we competing with City by selling all our world class players and captains and buying Gervinho, Squillaci and Santos as replacement for those world class players?
You deluded fans.
Kroenke is asset stripping Arsenal. How can you charge the highest ticket prices and play mediocre players like Santos and Squillaci? It’s day light robbery.
How is £ 51 for Arsenal fans at City not a disgrace but £ 62 for City fans at Arsenal is?? City fans benefit from some of the lowest season ticket prices in the county – we pay a thousand quid or so for ours AND get hammered on high ticket prices whenever we play away.