It pays to be a good sport

Source: Manchester Confidential

FC United's ‘pay what you can afford’ season ticket campaign pays off

FC United has always tried to do things differently. Since forming in 2005, the Red Rebels have fought to maintain a club lead purely by its supporters and the sport, rather than sponsors and the boardroom execs.

It's to that end that the Unibond Premier Division team took the unprecedented and dutiful decision of allowing fans to pay however much they could afford for their season ticket. The campaign was introduced to take account of the current recession in the knowledge that some supporters will be finding it more difficult to make ends meet.

Now, on the eve of the new season FC United have announced that their good will has paid off. They have hit their £125,000 cash target and by passing 1000 sales, have sold more season tickets than at the same point last year.

On behalf of FC United, Jules Spencer said: “A lot of people said we were brave and ambitious to introduce such a scheme, some questioned whether we were being foolish, but we said right from the start that we trusted supporters. Why shouldn’t we? It’s their club after all.

“It’s very pleasing to hit our cash target, but the success of the campaign cannot be measured in purely monetary terms. The success of the campaign is measured by the fact that we have fulfilled our commitment to providing affordable and accessible football. And it is measured by the fact supporters have been empowered to be able to influence the future of their club.

“It has worked exactly as we’d hoped it would. Some supporters who could afford to pay a bit more than they did last year, have done. But importantly those who could not afford to pay as much as the season before have been able to renew their tickets, by paying less. We were the first to introduce such a scheme and it’ll be interesting to see if any other clubs follow suit.”

FC United will begin their Unibond Premier Division campaign at home to Boston United on Saturday 15 August.