Red Faction - walking out on 30th minute

Soutra said:
If that's the case perhaps he'll divide up the £120 million of losses from the last decade and send all season ticket holders a bill.

I don't get the reason for the sense of entitlement so many of you have.

You (plural) want the club to bring in good (expensive) signings and make the stadium look great and have loads of good quality merchandise at cheap prices. But plenty object to paying increased season ticket prices or >£30 for shirts.

How do you square the circle?

There's always plenty of criticism for Steve Gibson when the team is losing but it's never based on commercial reality. Apparently he should "invest" more (ie lose more) yet lots of fans moan about season ticket prices going up.

Isn't it as straightforward as - buy a ticket if you want to watch matches, and don't buy a ticket if you can't afford it or don't like the chairman or don't want to go.
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nobody has said they don’t like the chairman so your just making that up.

For most people it’s not about the £30.

It’s the hike this year and last so we’ve some of the most expensive tickets in England apart from the mega clubs.

We’re not getting great players that you talk about so that argument is lost.

And the alright jack, but a ticket don’t buy a ticket is exactly what’s wrong.
What do you think will happen when they don’t buy a ticket? Do you thinks fans who can’t afford to come this season, or who don’t want to come this season, will pay even more to start coming next season.

Football is different to other luxuries because it a way of life, a lifetime commitment, a bond with your town and fellow fans.
It’s not like picking waitrose v aldi
or ford v bmw. Once your in your in, tattoos and all.

The walk out is for the ST price. It’s also for the walk up price, the early bird v newcomer price and the communication put out.
It’s about saying as fans, we’re not happy, we want better from you.
It’s certainly not a personal vendetta against gibbo who will always be held in high regard for what he has achieved.
 
One thing worth noting - to those who say if you don’t want pay for a ticket then don’t, or if you can’t afford one then tough sh*t, you do realise that when those people aren’t going any more and putting their money into the coffers, that they will increase the price of your ticket next? And then what, do you just keep paying and paying and paying until we’re charging £55 to watch us draw 1-1 with Gillingham in front of 5,000 supporters?

Everybody has a limit. This latest round of increases appears to have pushed quite a lot of people beyond theirs. Some are being actively and aggressively priced out of watching their football team. I don’t blame anyone for being annoyed enough to protest. I applaud it.
 
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Alzi said:
Why?

Good on them for expressing their views in a peaceful and clear way.

Bit worrying some just think we should “suck it up”. Or maybe “I’m alright Jack” attitude which is even worse and why we have had 14 years of the tories in a nutshell.
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I’m not alright. I might not renew, it’s getting a bit much for me but I’m not going to cry because I can’t afford it. The club’s losses year on year are there for all to see. Every single thing in the world is going up so it just seems obvious to me that ticket prices will go up as well.

There must be a better way to do it than boycotting the majority of a game. Maybe make it clear there is a mass agreement to not renew until it’s looked at? That would hit them harder than walking out on a game we have already paid to attend anyway.
 
Paulroddam7 said:
I’m not alright. I might not renew, it’s getting a bit much for me but I’m not going to cry because I can’t afford it. The club’s losses year on year are there for all to see. Every single thing in the world is going up so it just seems obvious to me that ticket prices will go up as well.

There must be a better way to do it than boycotting the majority of a game. Maybe make it clear there is a mass agreement to not renew until it’s looked at? That would hit them harder than walking out on a game we have already paid to attend anyway.
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Mate, people are bitching over missing 60 mins of a single game, you think we can get all of our fans to sign that they won't renew until the club looks at it?!
 
I won’t be walking out, it’s just performative nonsense. Gibson knows people aren’t going to pay for a walk-up ticket and then leave 30 mins in. So it’ll be season card holders, who will all be back next game the vast majority will renew.

What actually is the goal of the protest? To get them to cancel the increase? I completely agree their approach was tone deaf and a PR disaster, the early deadline just showed zero consideration to supporters.

But an extra £30 over 23 games is not a big increase. Anyone who travelled to Leicester at the weekend can afford to pay it, they just don’t want to pay it. There’s a key difference there. Nobody wants to pay more, but what’s the alternative? People are comparing these increases to other utilities increasing in this country but the difference is Gibson isn’t profiteering from this like the energy, water or rail companies. There’s no huge shareholder dividends getting paid out, football clubs are a money pit.

For a protest to be effective there needs to be a clear objective, so what’s the goal of this one? The season cards are good value, if the goal was cheaper walk-ups to allow those who cannot commit to season cards to access live games I would have no objection to paying £30 more for a season card to make that happen.

Gibson does need to get back around the table with fans groups and discuss options, everything from season card increases to selling the stadium naming rights should be on the table to fix the massive disparity between season cards and walk up prices.
 
Facefuzz said:
nobody has said they don’t like the chairman so your just making that up.

For most people it’s not about the £30.

It’s the hike this year and last so we’ve some of the most expensive tickets in England apart from the mega clubs.

We’re not getting great players that you talk about so that argument is lost.

And the alright jack, but a ticket don’t buy a ticket is exactly what’s wrong.
What do you think will happen when they don’t buy a ticket? Do you thinks fans who can’t afford to come this season, or who don’t want to come this season, will pay even more to start coming next season.

Football is different to other luxuries because it a way of life, a lifetime commitment, a bond with your town and fellow fans.
It’s not like picking waitrose v aldi
or ford v bmw. Once your in your in, tattoos and all.

The walk out is for the ST price. It’s also for the walk up price, the early bird v newcomer price and the communication put out.
It’s about saying as fans, we’re not happy, we want better from you.
It’s certainly not a personal vendetta against gibbo who will always be held in high regard for what he has achieved.
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Absolutely.
It hits a raw nerve when the early bird gets earlier with an email as welcoming as your latest gas bill.
Telling us, the fans, that prices and costs have gone up [!] — We hadn't noticed ! We have to live as well, and the more things go up, the more we trim what we can and can't afford.
Don't keep squeezing fans, expecting us to blindly pay some of the highest prices in the Championship, year after year and squeezed again the following year; with no incentives, no idea what plans the club has for the next season.......nothing. It's a “pay up now, or you'll have to pay even more after March”(n)
 
Facefuzz said:
nobody has said they don’t like the chairman so your just making that up.

For most people it’s not about the £30.

It’s the hike this year and last so we’ve some of the most expensive tickets in England apart from the mega clubs.

We’re not getting great players that you talk about so that argument is lost.

And the alright jack, but a ticket don’t buy a ticket is exactly what’s wrong.
What do you think will happen when they don’t buy a ticket? Do you thinks fans who can’t afford to come this season, or who don’t want to come this season, will pay even more to start coming next season.

Football is different to other luxuries because it a way of life, a lifetime commitment, a bond with your town and fellow fans.
It’s not like picking waitrose v aldi
or ford v bmw. Once your in your in, tattoos and all.

The walk out is for the ST price. It’s also for the walk up price, the early bird v newcomer price and the communication put out.
It’s about saying as fans, we’re not happy, we want better from you.
It’s certainly not a personal vendetta against gibbo who will always be held in high regard for what he has achieved.
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100% nailed it
 
The £510 with free drink is reasonable for a working age adult, but this does noty apply to many applicants - why not just every applicant a free drink - it would cost the club less than £1 a drink say another £12k a home game. or £276,000 a year on a turnove that about 1.25% of the clubs revenue.
 
Facefuzz said:
Football is different to other luxuries because it a way of life, a lifetime commitment, a bond with your town and fellow fans.
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But its only because people choose to treat it like that, and all the romance that goes with that, that the commercial entities who run it exploit it. Economically speaking, its no different to buying anything else that costs c.£500.

I do get all the arguments about our tickets being expensive but the only way to halt is to stop paying, and most people won't do that.

I suspect that after this walkout (if it actually catches fire, feels a bit early in the match for me especially if we score early or whatever) the club will make some kind of 'gesture' to the fans, purely for PR management purposes. And then next season they'll be a bit more cautious with their approach. Probably still be a hike but they'll explain it better and cover their 'losses' this time round.

I'm pretty sure there was an explanation in the Gazette last week that Championship clubs matchday costs are through the roof and that dwindling attendances will actually benefit them. Plus they'll be able to revisit the 3pm blackout debate.
 
Just out of interest those that are fine with the price increase how many Season Cards will you be purchasing?

I ask because if I was in my early twenties with no kids or had grown up kids and was buying a ticket for myself then in my head I could probably also justify the increase (whilst also appreciating why other people find the increase to steep). But in my current situation (having a 15 year old son and living away from the area) there is no way I could even contemplate getting one at the prices as they are now.
 
BoroMad87 said:
This is the same every season then we start to do well or push for the play offs or have a little cup run and everyone is back on board, I think it is the same for every club to be honest.
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I will always be on board I will scrimp and save to watch my club but some can’t and are priced out that’s my point
UTFB
 
indeedido said:
The club have spent 2 seasons outside the top two tiers and were promoted automatically both times.
Why would MFC be scrapping around league two when it never has been in it's history and when lots of clubs smaller than us are not either?
This narrative that without Gibson we can't survive, let alone thrive is simply not true.
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I assume the latter scenario is the one where we weren’t saved from liquidation in 1986. The way it felt at the time, it was absolutely apparent that the football authorities were going to make us the example. The one they were prepared to sacrifice after a succession of smoke and mirrors liquidations. given the noises that were being made there is no way a phoenix club would have been allowed to stay in division three or in the football league at all in my view.

In that context, it is highly improbable that we could’ve kept hold of the ground. That’s a game changer. It would have been a huge slog back up the leagues. I wouldn’t like to say for certain whether we would have found a lower level of league football, but I wouldn’t like to say a certain we would have got back at all either.
 
atypical_boro said:
But its only because people choose to treat it like that, and all the romance that goes with that, that the commercial entities who run it exploit it. Economically speaking, its no different to buying anything else that costs c.£500.

I do get all the arguments about our tickets being expensive but the only way to halt is to stop paying, and most people won't do that.

I suspect that after this walkout (if it actually catches fire, feels a bit early in the match for me especially if we score early or whatever) the club will make some kind of 'gesture' to the fans, purely for PR management purposes. And then next season they'll be a bit more cautious with their approach. Probably still be a hike but they'll explain it better and cover their 'losses' this time round.

I'm pretty sure there was an explanation in the Gazette last week that Championship clubs matchday costs are through the roof and that dwindling attendances will actually benefit them. Plus they'll be able to revisit the 3pm blackout debate.
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Problem is mate, they know most won’t stop paying. They’ll see that early bird renewals are something like (my guess) 80-90% every year. They know they have you over a barrel hence - money in 4 weeks or pi55 off.
We have a loyal fan base and that shouldn’t be exploited.
And, if Steve and the team think dwindling attendances will benefit the club then that will be the daftest mistake they’ve made, and there’s been a few.

And are you telling me it’s not a way of life? And we’re exploited.

The club represents the town and the fans represent both. It’s been like that since it cost a shilling to get in.

To quote the Boro - ITS IN THE BLOOD.
 
Facefuzz said:
Problem is mate, they know most won’t stop paying. They’ll see that early bird renewals are something like (my guess) 80-90% every year. They know they have you over a barrel hence - money in 4 weeks or pi55 off.
We have a loyal fan base and that shouldn’t be exploited.
And, if Steve and the team think dwindling attendances will benefit the club then that will be the daftest mistake they’ve made, and there’s been a few.

And are you telling me it’s not a way of life? And we’re exploited.

The club represents the town and the fans represent both. It’s been like that since it cost a shilling to get in.

To quote the Boro - ITS IN THE BLOOD.
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Of course it is a way of life, hence why fans are so vulnerable to it.

But economically it’s a transaction like any other. Football clubs are no different to Coca Cola, Apple and Amazon. They’ll charge you the most you’re likely to part with. Gibson isn’t running a charity and he’ll always be able to make the argument that he is putting in far more than anyone else. MFC also has very little competition when it comes to sports clubs in the area to go and watch. Unlike rugby league counties, London etc.

Fans will always be their own worst enemies on this stuff. A protest may bring about a short term, PR driven “concession” (which won’t do us any harm) but if football fans want long term change they have to stop making themselves commercially vulnerable. Asking a ruthless business owner to feel sorry for us, when he himself has put in hundreds of millions, won’t achieve anything long term I’m fairly sure.

I’m not against a walkout by the way, not at all, but I fully expect nothing more than the throwing of a bone in response. We’ll still be paying £500+ next season unless we all say no.
 
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