Football Supporters Europe, its network of Fans’ Embassies, and representatives of the ‘Fans Welcome 2024’ project, run by our partners Koordinationstelle Fanprojekte (KOS), will meet in Hamburg on 1st and 2nd December to finalise plans for their cooperation ahead of UEFA EURO 2024 next summer.
Continue reading “UEFA EURO 2024: FSE FANS’ EMBASSIES JOURNEY BEGINS IN GERMANY”Author: FSE
FSE ANALYSIS DEMONSTRATES NEED FOR FURTHER ACTION ON UCC TICKET PRICES
Inconsistency in ticketing policies mean away fans continue to have their loyalty exploited.
Analysis of ticket price data collected by Football Supporters Europe (FSE) from across the Champions League, Europa League, and Europa Conference League from season 2022/23 shows that despite much welcomed recent changes in ticketing regulations, further improvements are needed.
Prices for away fans vary enormously and a significant number of clubs continue to systematically charge the maximum allowed without consideration of the effect it will have on supporters. Average ticket prices across all UEFA club competitions remain stubbornly high, while the availability of standing sectors in Germany had a notably positive impact.
Every season, FSE monitors away ticket prices in UEFA’s club competitions with the assistance of our members and wider network of stakeholders across Europe. The work helps us understand the trends and changes faced by away supporters and provides concrete data with which to make recommendations on more fan-friendly ticketing regulations at all levels of the game in Europe. Any confirmed breaches are raised with UEFA.
Two very welcome amendments in UEFA’s ticketing regulations were introduced after consistent lobbying by FSE in the past few years. After clubs charged fans as much as €119 for away section tickets during the 2018-19 season, in August 2019, UEFA introduced a price cap across its existing club competitions (Champions League – €70; Europa League – €45).
Despite these improved regulations coming into effect, the average price for an away ticket in the Champions League last season was €47 – which is quite a financial hit alongside the price of travel, accommodation, and other trip expenses.
The €47 average prices also hides that a significant number of clubs are regularly charging at or close to the price cap.
The Europa Conference League, launched in 2021-22, originally had a price cap at €35. Following a revision of UEFA regulations, it was reduced to €25 from the beginning of this season, with several additional exemptions and loopholes closed.
During the 2022/23 season, 18% of all Champions League games, 25% of all European League and 9% of all Europa Conference League away tickets were at the price cap. In the Champions League, twelve out of the 32 participating clubs charged the maximum away ticket price of €70 at least once to their visitors last season, with eleven of those matches being group stage matches.
- The average away ticket price per country revealed that only four countries averaged below the average price across the UCL, showing a big inconsistency in pricing.
- Overall, German clubs averaged away ticket prices more than €20 cheaper than the competition average. Away standing sectors were a strong contributor to this, with some tickets priced as low as €15. Unfortunately, a significant number of visiting clubs also declined the away standing option, resulting in higher prices for their fans.
Similar trends were seen for the Europa League and European Conference League.
Based on the data, as well as with emerging trends so far this season, FSE will continue discussions with UEFA and the ECA to update the regulations that govern away ticket prices across UEFA club competitions. Progress in the coming weeks is vital ahead of the new cycle of UEFA Club Competitions which means even more away games for supporters.
FSE Executive Director Ronan Evain said “it is FSE’s firm position that clubs have a responsibility to reward the loyalty of travelling fans and to facilitate affordable pricing, especially considering the increase of revenue for all clubs during the next UCC cycle. We will be monitoring this season’s away ticket prices closely, and continue to drive this message with UEFA and stakeholders.”
SLO STANDARDS IN FOCUS AS TPDS PARTNERS MEET IN FRANKFURT
Football Supporters Europe’s latest SLO (Supporter Liaison Officer) development project Towards the Professional Development of SLOs (TPDS) held its launch meeting in Frankfurt earlier this month, hosted by Koordinationsstelle Fanprojekte (KOS). The event saw the partners entering two busy days of meetings furthering the project’s objectives, in addition to experiencing an immersive introduction to supporter liaison with Eintracht Frankfurt’s SLO during a Bundesliga match.
Continue reading “SLO STANDARDS IN FOCUS AS TPDS PARTNERS MEET IN FRANKFURT”EURO 2032: FSE expresses concerns about Italy & Türkiye hosting
FSE expresses concerns about Italy & Türkiye hosting EURO 2032. Both countries have infamously poor track records in hosting visiting supporters, and the distance between them will have a substantial environmental and financial impact on match-going fans.
Continue reading “EURO 2032: FSE expresses concerns about Italy & Türkiye hosting”Introducing FSE’s new National Team Fans Coordinator
Football Supporters Europe is delighted to introduce its newly appointed National Team Fans Coordinator, Jussi Hartikainen. He joins just in time to enhance preparations for EURO 2024 hosted in Germany next year and will be leading on all matters relating to national team fans.
Continue reading “Introducing FSE’s new National Team Fans Coordinator”2030 & 2034: It’s the end of the World Cup as we know it
FIFA continues its cycle of destruction against the greatest tournament on earth.
FIFA has encouraged two rival bids for the 2030 and 2034 World Cups, South America (Uruguay, Paraguay and Argentina) and Europe & Africa (Spain, Portugal and Morocco), to combine into one bid for 2030. In doing so, FIFA narrowed down the confederations eligible to bid for 2034 to countries from Asia and Oceania only. This leaves just one country within these regions with expressed public interest in hosting the 2034 edition, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
The 2030 format announced on 4 October 2023 will be horrendous for supporters, disregards the environment, and rolls out the red carpet to a host for 2034 with an appalling human rights record. End to end, the 2030 tournament will cover six countries, six time zones apart and could feature round trips of over 20,000km. All to allow Saudi Arabia to bid for 2034 uncontested. FIFA has since reportedly given Australia (and any other interested parties) a meagre 25 days to compile a rival bid.
The announced plan for 2030 shows no consideration for match-going supporters The costs for fans will be astronomical should their team be drawn to play in South America for one game, only to then set course for Europe and/or North Africa for the remainder of the tournament.
FIFA totally neglects the impact the proposal will have on the planet and its own commitments to environmental sustainability. The unnecessary air travel that teams, national associations, journalists, tournament staff and supporters will be forced to take will significantly impact the tournament’s carbon footprint.
It’s not a “celebration of the beautiful game” as FIFA claims, it’s a slap in the face of match-going fans and a mockery of its own sustainability strategy.
FIFA also demonstrates it has no interest in learning from Qatar or holding bids to human rights criteria by giving Saudi Arabia an uncontested platform for 2034. Back in February 2023, Human Rights Watch wrote to FIFA asking for information about the due diligence on human rights ahead of awarding hosting rights for major tournaments, for which they received no response.
If the World Cup has grown so cumbersome in its competition design that FIFA’s only choice is between Saudi Arabia and spreading it across six nations, then the model needs to be reconsidered, because it is clearly not fit for purpose.
FIFA is chasing the illusion of a forever growth: more teams, more games, more countries, more World Cups. Hidden behind opaque bidding processes, FIFA is turning every World Cup into a dystopia, and football and supporters will directly suffer because of it.
It’s the end of the World Cup as we know it.