The situation
Arsenal have always been known as a club that likes to keep its books in order and show off bountiful revenue margins at the end of each financial year, however some have recently queried the methods of making these ends meet. From tickets to merchandise, it is hardly a cheap day out to go and support your team, with prices on everything rising each year to an even more extortionate rate.
It is not just Arsenal that have some disillusioned fans regarding the way they are treated by their club, but it is no secret that the Gunners are leading the way in pricing fans out of attending matches. With some matches costing upwards of £100 per ticket, is it any wonder that the nickname of ‘Prawn Sandwich Brigade’ exists? The cost of a burger and drink at these matches then pushes this price up further and a programme can be just as dear to the pocket. The death of family trips out to the football is surely upon us. Even lower league teams are now charging well above their value.
The Great Ticket Price Hike
The decision
The most recent financial decision to cause uproar throughout the ranks of fans is the one to charge £132 for some tickets to see the Champions League last-16 first leg against Bayern Munich. Having been described as being not dissimilar to “having a girlfriend that doesn’t love you back,” Arsenal really have some work to do.
Besides the hyperbole and cringe worthy analogies, this could be a real problem. There is already talk of protest and even boycotts to really stick the point to the board – the fans are the lifeblood of the club, not the profit margins. Of course, when fans boycott, there is always others who take their place at games, but it will return Arse
nal to the crypt-like atmosphere that they have finally been breaking free from this season.
Season tickets at Arsenal are already the highest across the globe, with some costing £2,000. In contrast, their opponents, reigning European champions Bayern Munich, charge just £650 for their most expensive season tickets. One of the most exciting clubs in the world charges less than a third for their best seats, whilst a club without a trophy for almost nine years still has board members smirking at the fools that line their pockets.
As of yet, very little is being done about lowering these prices. With the Emirates selling out each week, it is no surprise. From a business point of view, it is extremely shrewd by following supply and demand, but from a football club view, it is nothing short of exploitation and bordering on daylight robbery.
The verdict
Ivan Gazidis (or Ivan the Terrible, as Piers Morgan refers to him) has a lot on his plate over the next couple of seasons if he is to turn this around. The backlash from fans could reach tipping point if ticket prices aren’t at least frozen, but investors and the board will be pushing him to squeeze every drop from the already out-of-pocket fans.
The decision to turn the tie against Bayern into a cash cow, instead of making it a reward to fans, is the straw that broke the camel’s back for so many. There is Twitter talk and pub chat already to discuss boycotting a match at some point, although this is in its very early stages at the moment, and could quite possibly not happen.
The fact that this is being talked about should be setting off alarm bells at Arsenal, but instead it is going unnoticed. Gazidis, Wenger and the board should be feeling very ashamed. All of them have some sway over how ticketing is done, and each and every one should be campaigning for the fans, not least because of poor showings in recent years.
An awful decision could go on to be rectified, with the club having many avenues to explore, or it could set off a chain of events that sees the 60,000-seater Emirates become a pit of consumption – taking the club away from fans, not just their money.
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