Tomorrow, once again, supporters are expected to pay up to £40 for a ticket to watch their football club, on top of the cost of travel due to the “bubble” arrangements.
As with last year, we encouraged Portsmouth Football Club to seek a reciprocal pricing arrangement with Southampton, whereby the clubs would jointly agree a lower matchday ticket price for visiting supporters. This approach has been used successfully by other clubs in the Championship to help reduce costs for travelling fans.
This offer was again put forward by Portsmouth Football Club. Our understanding is that, whilst progress was made in discussions, no agreement could ultimately be reached.
Whilst it is positive that discussions took place, it is disappointing that, particularly in the current economic climate and with the additional cost of travel arrangements for this fixture, no agreement could be reached to reduce the financial burden on supporters.
As a Supporters’ Trust, we will continue to work with the Football Supporters’ Association to campaign for a cap on away ticket prices in the Championship, an approach that has already been successfully implemented in the Premier League.
The South Coast Derby is the most anticipated fixture of the season for Portsmouth and Southampton fans. We are disappointed that, for some, it has once again become an opportunity to squeeze the loyalty of supporters for more money.
Football supporters deserve better.