Play-Off Prices: The Questionable Value of a £41 Ticket

A single adult ticket for the Blue Square Premier play-off final will cost £36. Add a £3 booking fee and a £2.25 postage charge from the broker, See Tickets, and the price for entry to English football’s fifth-tier showpiece becomes a staggering £41.25.

This is the figure facing supporters of the four clubs still in contention for the 21 May final at the City of Manchester Stadium. The Football Conference’s pricing policy has already drawn a sharp response from Luton Town, who confirmed they “have made a challenge to the Football Conference on the pricing policy that has been released” via their club website. AFC Wimbledon, perhaps cautious not to presume their place in the final is secure, have so far remained silent.

The pricing seems particularly aggressive given the likely finalists. After strong away leg victories, few would be surprised to see a final contested between AFC Wimbledon and Luton Town. This sets up the logistical oddity of thousands of fans from the south-east travelling to Manchester, while supporters of Manchester City and Stoke City head in the opposite direction for the FA Cup final a week earlier. While booking a large stadium months in advance is an understandable necessity, the timing of the price announcement has not been so well received.

A Question of Value

The Football League announced its play-off final prices back in February. By waiting until the semi-final first legs were complete, the Football Conference has left itself open to the accusation that it held back until the two clubs with the largest fanbases seemed destined for the final, before attempting to extract the maximum possible revenue from their supporters.

The intrinsic value of a match ticket is whatever someone is willing to pay for it. The die-hard supporters of either Wimbledon or Luton will almost certainly find the money. A one-off trip to a Premier League stadium with promotion at stake is a powerful draw, even when the cost of travel and other expenses are factored in. The same commitment would be expected from fans of Wrexham or Fleetwood Town, should they manage to overturn their first-leg deficits. They would face lower travel costs, but their presence would not necessarily guarantee a higher overall attendance.

The real issue is the casual or less-committed fan, the very people who turn a big match into a major event. Last weekend’s FA Trophy final between Darlington and Mansfield Town drew almost 25,000 people, a significant number of whom were not season ticket holders. This is the lifeblood of a cup final atmosphere for clubs outside the top divisions. How many of those floating supporters will be put off by a price tag of over £40? The cost for a family of four to attend, with children’s tickets at £18 plus fees, will easily exceed £100 before they have even left home.

An Own Goal on PR

Luton Town’s allocation, should they qualify, is 22,500 tickets. It is a large number. Two years ago, they sold 40,000 tickets for a Football League Trophy final, but it is hard to believe they can shift their full allocation this time, given the price and the long journey north. The core question many will ask is simple: “Thirty-six pounds for a non-league match?”

This pricing directly undermines any attempt to position non-league football as an authentic, affordable alternative to the Premier League. The cheapest seats for the League One and League Two play-off finals are considerably less expensive, and the Football League also offers wider concessions. The Conference offers none beyond the under-16s price.

If the game is played out in front of vast banks of empty seats at Eastlands, the Football Conference will have nobody to blame but itself. Its decision looks like a miscalculation of what the market will bear, and it risks alienating the very people it should be trying to attract. Supporters of the clubs involved may pay up, but they will do so reluctantly. The ill-will generated could long outlast the memory of the match itself.

The final is a week on Saturday. Whether it will be a showcase for the non-league game or a testament to a pricing misstep remains to be seen.