Third Of Man City Away Tickets Left Unsold

9 January 2013, 11:17 | Updated: 30 March 2016, 13:50

More than 900 tickets for Manchester City's game at Arsenal this weekend have been sent back - because they're too expensive

An away ticket for the match at the Emirates cost £62 each.

City's increased status within the Premier League means they've joined Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham as clubs who - due to their attractiveness - routinely get charged the highest prices for tickets.

So, whilst Stoke fans must shell out £35.50 for their visit to the Emirates next month, Blues supporters were asked to dig much deeper.

Football Supporters Federation chairman Malcolm Clarke's urging football authorities to wake up to the growing resentment at massively inflated ticket prices or risk huge numbers of fans turning their backs on the game.

He said:
"We have not done the final calculations but we estimate clubs could cut £32 off the cost of every single ticket purely from the increase in the TV pot this time around.

I know the clubs make the argument of needing the money to attract the biggest stars but I think I know what even Manchester City fans - with their large and enthusiastic following - would go for if they were given the choice of lower ticket prices or slightly worse players than they have now.

There are many ways of measuring what is the best league. But if you look at the Bundesliga, where fans can attend matches for 15 Euros, stand up, have a pint if they wish, and even get a ticket for the metrolink, it seems the Premier League is short changing its own supporters.

If it is far cheaper to spend the afternoon in the pub, where is the incentive to attend matches? And once people get out of the habit of going to games, it is not easy to get it back.'' 

Clarke believes there is a risk of an entire generation being lost to the game.

For whilst many clubs cater for junior fans with lower ticket prices, those at school leaving age usually have to pay prices which make attending matches on a weekly basis impossible.