Posted on 5th July 2019
Supporters from the men’s and women’s game who have been locked out of their team’s cup finals have taken to virtual ticket sales to raise money for good causes.
© PA Images
Posted on 5th July 2019
Supporter groups from the four finalists of the Champions League and Europa League are calling on fans across the continent to campaign for more supporter-orientated finals.
This year’s Champions League and Europa League finals, like many before them, were marred by low allocations for the competing finalists, eye-watering ticket prices and travel problems.
Now fans of Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur have submitted a motion to the European Football Fans Congress (EFFC) calling for a cross-European campaign.
The motion, submitted by Arsenal Supporters’ Trust, Chelsea Supporters’ Trust, Spirit of Shankly (Liverpool) and Tottenham Hotspur Supporters’ Trust, calls on UEFA to increase allocations for fans of competing teams, with fewer tickets going directly to corporate sponsors.
All four groups are affiliated to the Football Supporters’ Association.
It also calls on fans to push for more affordable ticket prices and appropriate final venues – the latter brought about by UEFA’s decision to host the 2019 Europa League final in Baku, a host city inaccessible to large numbers of supporters in Western and Central Europe.
The fan groups said: “Under our proposals supporters of the competing finalists would receive a greater allocation of tickets, a fairer pricing model, a stadium in a sensible location with an appropriate capacity and with an infrastructure in the host city suitable for a major influx of fans.”
The motion will be voted upon by fans and supporter group representatives attending the EFFC in Lisbon from Friday 4th to Sunday 7th July.
Motion to the EFFC:
Football Supporters Europe (FSE) notes that the existing processes for staging and selecting the two European finals (Champions League and Europa league) does not give enough consideration to the supporters of the teams who have reached the Finals.
These two finals are the culmination of competitions that are played over several months. Throughout this time fans turn out to support their teams through buying tickets; travelling overseas to games; filling stadiums and creating passionate support.
It cannot be stressed enough that this supporter engagement is vital to creating the pictures and atmosphere that TV companies and sponsors relish.
The supporters of the clubs who reach the finals have sustained the competitions over the full season. These supporters deserve much better when the finals are played.
With this in mind FSE adopts the following policy proposals that it will then make representation to UEFA on for their implementation
Thanks to PA Images for the image used in this article.
Supporters from the men’s and women’s game who have been locked out of their team’s cup finals have taken to virtual ticket sales to raise money for good causes.
UEFA announced today that supporters of teams competing in the Champions League and Europa League final will be offered a substantial number of free tickets as a gesture of thanks for their support of European football during the COVID-19 pandemic.
News that the Premier League plans to broadcast around 270 of its games, up from 200, is unwelcome but not entirely unsurprising for matchgoing supporters.
The two organisations that represent and work on behalf of football supporters at European level have begun working together this week following an agreement to merge earlier this summer.