On Wednesday, June 19th 2013 I joined a few hundred fans from clubs across England and marched from Regent’s Park to the Premier League’s headquarters in Gloucester Place. The march and subsequent protest outside the league’s HQ was organised by Liverpool supporters’ union Spirit of Shankly to demonstrate fans’ anger at the ever increasing price […]
Fans Fight Back
On Wednesday, June 19th 2013 I joined a few hundred fans from clubs across England and marched from Regent’s Park to the Premier League’s headquarters in Gloucester Place. The march and subsequent protest outside the league’s HQ was organised by Liverpool supporters’ union Spirit of Shankly to demonstrate fans’ anger at the ever increasing price of watching football.
This isn’t something I normally do. I haven’t been a part of a demonstration in over a decade. Not since my teenage flirtation with left-wing politics, when I thought I was Berkshire’s answer to Che Guevara, have I taken to the streets for a bit of ‘direct action’. So what is it about this issue that got me to rediscover my radical side, put partisan differences aside and march side by side with Chelsea, West Ham and even Woolwich fans?
Firstly, let’s look at the numbers. The price of the cheapest ticket at Spurs has risen by over 500% since 1989. This season alone the cost of the cheapest season ticket has risen again. To buy a ticket in the Park Lane Lower, where Tottenham’s most ‘affordable’ seats are located, will cost you on average £39 (not including booking fees!). This comes at a time when the Premier League is awash with money from the new television deal, worth collectively £5.5billion to English football. This is enough to reduce the cost of every ticket to every game in the Premier League next season by £51. Essentially all clubs could give away all tickets, and be no worse off than they were last season.
So rather than rewarding loyalty of fans who continue to pay into the Club despite going through the toughest financial climate in living memory, Tottenham Hotspur rise prices again. Even Woolwich and Chelsea froze theirs and they’ve got form for ripping off their fans.
I don’t hate capitalism or the free market and I understand that demand affects prices. I get that the Club needs to make money to help us progress on and off the field, but does this need to be done by bleeding the most dedicated fans dry?
The German model shows that you can be successful on the pitch and profitable off it without charging fans the earth for tickets.
[linequote]This is enough to reduce the cost of every ticket to every game in the Premier League next season by £51. Essentially all clubs could give away all tickets, and be no worse off than they were last season.
[/linequote]
Maybe I naively refuse to accept that Tottenham Hotspur is just a business, that I am simply a consumer and the game I love is nothing more than a ‘product’. Maybe it’s a bit quaint to view a football club as something that exists for the benefit of its members and the local community, and that those who regularly go and support their team should be viewed as more than just a revenue stream.
As one of the banners on the march proclaimed; “Football without fans is nothing”, I think Spurs, and football clubs in general, need to appreciate this. We’re not just a cash cow – we’re the heart and soul of the club.
I’m sure some will argue that if I and others who attended the protest don’t like the prices we should just stop going, that the best protest of all is to stop handing over our money. I can see the logic in that, but that probably gets to the heart of why I was out last Wednesday. I can’t stop going. I love football.
To be precise, I love going to the football. Meeting friends and family in the pub before the match, the buzz I feel as I walk up the stairs and the pitch comes into view, the unbridled joy when we score, the standing, the singing, everything that goes with being at the game. Not going just isn’t an option, especially as my absence would no doubt go unnoticed by the club as somebody wealthier than me takes my place.
At this moment I’m lucky enough to be able to afford the prices at Tottenham. I make a choice to spend to pay. Eventually, as prices continue to rise beyond that of inflation, as they have done in the last 20 years, that choice, like that taken from others before me, will no longer be mine to make.
Until then I’m going to stay and fight. I’m just not prepared to give up. We may not win this fight and football may become the preserve of the rich, but if it does, I want to be able to say I did everything I could to stop it happening.
[author name=”Paul Head” avatar=”https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/1500524670/n532720102_2385269_1646.jpg” twitter=”PaulHead83″ tag=”PaulHead[/linequote]
All views and opinions expressed in this article are the views and opinions of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of The Fighting Cock. We offer a platform for fans to commit their views to text and voice their thoughts. Football is a passionate game and as long as the views stay within the parameters of what is acceptable, we encourage people to write, get involved and share their thoughts on the mighty Tottenham Hotspur.
8 Comments
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25/06/2013 @ 1:01 pm
Well said, Paul. I was there too, last Tuesday, and it was great to be with a group fighting to keep our great game within the reach of those who made it what it is. My time began at a cost of 1/9d in the Boys’ enclosure. It’s a bit different now, sadly.
25/06/2013 @ 1:13 pm
Were it is try the prices are high, but were Spurs are concerned, you have to take into account that the capacity of the stadium is only 35,180 so that reduces the revenue compared to other clubs and thus you have to increase the ticket price to be able to compete with them. This doesn’t mean I like the price hike but I understand the reason and would rather pay a bit more so we can compete with the other teams.
25/06/2013 @ 2:44 pm
I can assure you Dennis, that as soon as our new stadium has been completed and the capacity has increased up to 60k, the ticket prices will remain the same or be even higher!!
The club have a waiting list for season tickets of over 30,000, I know because my son and I are on it, so with all these potential customers waiting inline there is no way the club will reduse ticket prices. The Gooners gate receipts for a sell out game is around £3m, I think Mr levy would like a slice of that action don’t you?
25/06/2013 @ 1:20 pm
The clubs don’t themselves make much money, the profits for most are tiny. As Alan Sugar said many years ago when the Sky money started rolling in, there was a danger it would be pissed up the wall in players’ wages and that’s exactly what has happened. And the fans demand the best players who want the most money.
How many of us object to Bale getting £170K pw (or whatever it is) to make sure he stays?
25/06/2013 @ 4:35 pm
Perfectly stated Iain.
I’m a traditionalist and emphasise with the pure sentiments of keeping ticket prices within the reach of true fans (I’m in that category). But, comes down to supply and demand and as it stands, there is more demand than supply of seats at WHL, and I have no doubt the new stadium will not change this dynamic.
So, much as I hate the ongoing tix increases, I look at it as the only viable way to remain remotely competitive and build the Spurs ‘brand’ into the future.
25/06/2013 @ 5:51 pm
A point I am in agreement with. However, are we really spending the money we get in on new players etc? I’m sure that among you there is a person who has the basic knowledge of business, more importantly, the business of running a football club, to inform us of the facts of the figures.
COYS!!
25/06/2013 @ 7:20 pm
Sure Justin, that is the point of running a business. In Spurs case, try and balance the books as we do not have a sugar daddy (although I suspect Enic are loosening the purse strings ahead of next season). A case of optimising all possible revenue streams (match day tickets, merchandise, tv rights etc) to invest in better players to get to CL (worth many millions in additional revenue), build a new stadium and no doubt eventually sell out to a huge benefactor (see Chelsea, Citeh, Donask, PSG, Monaco). Apparently a 30,000 member waiting list, so demand is exceeding supply. As much as I am an old guy and love the quaint ideal of remaining a family club, the football business world dictates we compete financially or become a mediocre mid/lower table club. I for one do not want to be left behind as much as it pains be to see the corporate dollar rule. Just facing the hard facts of reality mate.
Dazspur.
26/06/2013 @ 12:35 pm
The question is – with a combination of FFP and the runaway player inflation induced by equity input from Mansour and Abramovich – will Spurs ever be able to spend enough on players to compete on a level playing field? i.e. What chance do Spurs have of ever winning the league?
Now take that chance and apply it to Everton, Stoke or West Brom.
If football is a business can it ever truly be an exciting competition watched by a live ‘audience’ in these conditions?
So what exactly is your ticket price paying for?