In reality the actions that are available to the fans to reduce ticket prices are very limited. The main obstacle, being that even at the extortionate price of the current ticket, there are enough people able and willing to pay for a seat. For every fan who decides to boycott the match, another will gladly take his place.
The sad thing of course, is that for many years football was the salvation of the poor, a means by which they could escape the mundane existence they were dealt, even if it was for only 90 minutes every Saturday. In the main, the rich were not interested. The other thing being, in those days most of the fans were all local to their stadiums and simply walked to the match from their homes.
Nowadays, we are told Liverpool have a worldwide fan base of 580 million people. So if all of them turned up every week we would have about 14,000 people for every seat.
I was reading that in 1989 it cost approximately 4 pounds to watch a Liverpool match, and I believe the average price is now 40 pounds, about 10 times higher. Of course prior to the all seater stadiums, brought on by safety issues, the capacity was much greater. I believe Anfield used to fit more like 55,000 inside or even a few more. On my reckoning ticket prices have gone up by 10 times the amount, in a period where wages have only increased by about 3 times.
So now football clubs have become big business, the playthings of the rich. The stadiums have become more comfortable, appealing to a wider category of people. They are no longer the salvation of the poor.
From what I have read and seen, the club are claiming that they have consulted with fan groups, and that the overall changes have 'something for everyone'. They say there are going to be free tickets for school children, 9 pound tickets, and that only a small number are increasing.
I agree in principle to any action taken by the people to try and influence the rich owners of the club to reduce the ticket prices. The sad shame of it is that it did not happen in a bigger way many years ago, before the real damage was done. The lower class patrons who originally found salvation by going to watch their football team play every Saturday, have long ago been priced out of that possibility.
They are the ones I feel sorry for.
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