The Swansea City Supporters’ Trust note the release of the new season ticket pricing for the 2023/24 season announced HERE earlier today.
Season tickets will increase in price across each category for next season and the club has also introduced a new Young Adult category.
Just as there will be different opinions on these price increases within the fanbase, we aren’t afraid to say that there were different opinions within the Trust Board on the proposed increases. As a representative of the supporter base, we aim to ensure that fans are being provided with the best prices possible and that football is accessible and affordable for as many as possible; as a co-owner, we have a duty to ensure the club is commercially successful, and that pricing is both competitive and increases in line with inflation.
Whilst there were different opinions on the increases, we are all delighted at the introduction of the new 18-21 category, which should help foster a new fan base for many years to come. We are also very happy to see that Season Tickets for PAs who support our disabled fans will continue to be free.
In the past four seasons, the cost of a season ticket at Swansea City has been one of the cheapest available in the Championship, something which the Trust has continually endorsed. This has been a way to bring football to the most amount of people, and season ticket numbers have been strong for a number of years. This is something that should be applauded, especially as it has come at a cost to the club in how much money they have been able to generate each season through season ticket sales.
It is clear that the club have faced (and will continue to manage) extreme rising costs to maintain and run a successful football club. These costs include staffing, stadium management, security and two state of the art training and coaching facilities. All of these are essential for us to remain competitive in our current division, both financially and with performances on the pitch.
Many current season ticket holders have been delighted with the cost structure for attending matches over the past decade. In 2012 the price of an Early Bird season ticket was £429. The price for the 2023/24 season will be £370 during the Early Bird window, which is a full £59 less than a decade ago. It is also very fair to say that, with the help of previous Trust boards, the club led the way in looking after its fanbase during the Covid related lockdown and with the subsequent pricing of season tickets.
Therefore the prices announced today are not what the Trust would ideally have liked to see, especially at a time when the cost of living crisis is affecting so many of us. The increases are above what we would recommend, because our position as a representative voice of the fans is that they shouldn’t rise beyond current inflation levels. We have shared this position with the club over the past fortnight.
However, the price increases are a reflection of the increased costs that the club is incurring as well as detailed work done to benchmark pricing against other championship clubs and especially those from regions with similar economic backgrounds. This research identified areas where increases were required to ensure that the club can move closer to financial sustainability; despite the increases, the price of a new season ticket will still be one of the lowest in the Championship.
We thank the club for early sight of the research and the opportunity to provide input and challenge to the evaluation in advance of today’s release. We are regularly in discussion with the club’s majority owners and Senior Management Team about ticket pricing, food and beverage costs, and other costs associated with the matchday experience. We will continue this dialogue throughout the remainder of this season and for as long as the cost of living remains high.
This continues to be an extremely difficult time for both individuals and businesses, and sensible compromises and shared empathy are critical if we are to get through this together. We know that football is a sanctuary for so many, and there is an obligation to ensure it is accessible and affordable for as much of the local population as possible. This is a message we continually stress.
Early Bird Window
We are pleased to see the return of the Early Bird window, which will run for approximately eight weeks from Friday 16th December 2022 to Friday 17th February 2023. During this period, price increases are more closely aligned to inflation and we would encourage all season ticket holders to purchase their tickets here if at all possible. Early Bird prices are as follows:
Adult — £370
Senior (65+) — £240
Student — £240
Under 21 — £240
Under 18 — £119
Under 12 — £79
Actions we have taken
As part of our own assessment of the price increases, we have held a number of discussions with the club as well as in our own internal sub-groups, engaged with a sub-section of supporters, reviewed the materials shared by the club, and issued a number of questions and challenges to the club’s Senior Management Team. Earlier this week, we submitted the following requests & challenges to the club:
Ensuring that there are flexible payment options for tickets to allow fans to pay in a way that is suitable and convenient for them (inc. a longer Early Bird window, recognising that December & January can be an expensive time of year);
Encouraging the club to be as transparent as possible about why prices are increasing, including some of the benchmarking work that had been completed; and,
A commitment to continue identifying and implementing new ticketing initiatives that reduce costs for fans for both Home and Away games (e.g. the £20 initiative for away ticket prices that we have agreed with some clubs such as Reading);
We are pleased to see that some of these have been considered and adopted during the development of the pricing models and the way in which they can be purchased.
Final reflections
One thing we do know from our involvement in club operations is that there is a difficult balancing act when considering the financial levers that can be used to bridge the gap between income and outgoings. There are three core levers that the club can exercise:
Finding new ways to increase revenue (sponsorship, player trading, increased ticket pricing);
Bringing in further investment (either from the existing ownership group or through new investors, typically in the form of Convertible Loan Notes or equity purchases); or,
Reducing spending across the club (such as reducing the spend on the Academy, facilities, playing squad, or in other areas of operations).
We recognise that there will be different opinions on how any financial gap should be filled, but our view remains that the club should operate as efficiently as possible without sacrificing the quality of facilities (such as the Academy) or the quality of the playing squad and management structure. The club should be able to target new investment at improving the playing squad or facilities, rather than being used to fill holes in the operational budget — we know that the club has not yet achieved true financial sustainability, but we will continue to engage in meaningful and constructive discussions on how this can be achieved.
The challenge of financial sustainability is a one that a majority of clubs in the football pyramid are grappling with, and is a core piece of the recommendations of the Fan Led Review, which we hope to see implemented in full in the coming year. In our first sit-down TrustCast interview with co-owner Jake Silverstein, he provided his view on the challenges of sustainability in football and the work going on within the club to manage this.
The Trust exists as a fan’s voice in boardroom discussions, and we have been doing this for 20+ years. We are committed to providing an oversight on how the club is run, participating in meaningful dialogue on all issues that affect the fans, and working to ensure the club is as successful as possible on the pitch and in the community.
Whilst the current Trust board has varying opinions on the new season ticket pricing strategy, we can fully understand all of the commercial reasoning behind it. We look forward to seeing you next season and to cheering the side on in our march for promotion in the remainder of this season.
For comparison purposes we have prepared a simple game calculator illustrating the price per game differences between this season and the 2023/24 season ticket prices here>> Season Ticket — Game Calculator
If you have any questions or concerns about the prices revealed today, you can always email us on info@swanstrust.co.uk and we will take these to the club on your behalf.
Once again a direct link to read the club’s full statement and understand the season ticket options is available HERE
Swansea City Supporters’ Trust
16th December 2022 |  |
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