Man Utd fans condemn 'offensive' price rise for members & announce protest

Manchester United have triggered outrage among their fans after setting ticket prices at £66 and abolishing concessions.

In a hugely controversial move – the latest measure in Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Ineos’s ongoing drive to cut costs and increase revenues – the Premier League club have delivered eyewatering increases for the rest of the season.

United say that only three per cent of supporters will be affected as 97 per cent of tickets for all remaining matches have already been sold. And officials are adamant that nothing has yet been decided for next season.

However, the Manchester United Supporters’ Trust hit out at the club for providing ‘zero consultation’ over the staggering hike and claimed they are being asked to pay for the mistakes of majority owners the Glazer family in what is an ‘offensive’ act.

Prices had started at £40 for adults and £25 for children but tickets will now be charged at the highest category, A, regardless of where they are located in Old Trafford.

‘There is a risk that this is only the opening salvo of what will surely be massive pressure to implement a significant price rise for next season,’ a MUST spokesperson said. ‘Once they have got used to charging £132 for a parent and child to come to OT, will they really go back to the old pricing levels for next season?’

Fans were informed of the increase at a forum on Tuesday night, the same day the club announced their figures for the first quarter of the financial year which showed a loss of £6.9m and revenues down across the board thanks to a lack of Champions League football.

Since the arrival of part-owner Ratcliffe and Ineos in January, a series of drastic cost-saving measures have been implemented.

As Mail Sport revealed, 250 staff have been made redundant and, as this paper also reported, the club is considering cutting its annual budget to its Disabled Supporters Association in half, from £40,000 to £20,000.

United say the move, which will come into force after ballots for the Arsenal and Manchester City matches, was a ‘difficult decision following recent changes at the club’.

They believe the increased revenue, which is thought to total in the low millions, will go towards the club’s efforts to operate more efficiently and will ‘support investment in the team and contribute to football success’.

Future cup matches will continue to have age and location discounts.

The MUST spokesperson added: ‘We fans have done everything we have been asked. We have cheered the players on even in the face of substandard performance. We have gone to matches and abided by the new usage rules for tickets. We have taken on a price increase this year. This is in addition to the hundreds, even thousands loyal fans pay to follow United home and away.

‘We have objected to this action in the strongest possible terms, both for the action itself and the complete lack of consultation, which is a step backward based on the process we had agreed with the Club before INEOS’ arrival.

‘Over the coming days MUST will be seeking urgent discussions with the Club to get them to listen to fans' concern at this policy. United fans have sucked up a lot. We will not be silent on this and we need to be prepared to resist any attempts to further drive up ticket prices.'