Manchester United Supporters Trust (MUST) is one of the world's largest supporters of the "Red Devils". They have just described the team's ticket price increase as "a kick in the mouth" to true fans.
MUST said that the ticket price for members of the association for the upcoming matches in the Premier League will increase by at least 50%. In March, Man United announced a 5% increase for most season ticket holders. The elderly face a higher increase.
Currently, the cost of going to Old Trafford for individual ticket buyers has been announced. There will be about 20,000 single tickets per match and the prices have been fully listed. There are 6 A-class matches (against Liverpool, Manchester City, Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur, Newcastle United) and 11 B-class matches. The cheapest ticket prices for these types are 57 pounds.
Last season, the average ticket price for those with seasonally ticketed tickets was 41.41 pounds. The most expensive seats for those 17 matches cost from 86 to 97 pounds. Only 2 matches are classified as C-class (against Wolves and Sunderland), with ticket prices ranging from 37 to 60 pounds. United said the categories were selected based on past ticket demand.
D-class matches are reserved for cup matches (FA Cup and League Cup), where opponents can come from lower divisions, with ticket prices ranging from £32 to £52.
Must is angry at rising ticket prices but the club has not had any negotiations with fans. The club's CEO, Omar Berrada, admitted that Man United made a mistake last season when they offered a £66 ticket price but did not announce it in advance in the middle of the season.
"We have not implemented this activity well. The club did it (increasing ticket prices) too suddenly in the middle of the season. This is a lesson Man United need to avoid in the future. After that, the team worked closer with the fan club and everything was quite good. However, besides that, there are still many initiatives of the club that are opposed by fans" - Omar Berrada shared.
Man United said that the average cost of a ticket to the gate for next season, including seasonal ticket owners, will be 46.51 pounds, compared to 41.41 pounds in the previous season. This figure is less than 1% of the total number of tickets with the highest price of £97.
