Get Ready For The January Sales!

A round-up of the offers we have spotted so far for the opening month of 2014.

1 January: Bolton play Middlesbrough in the Championship with adult tickets reduced to £15 and concessions to £5. The same prices apply three days later when Bolton host Blackpool in the FA Cup. Sunderland are offering £1 tickets to under-16's with a full paying adult as they host Aston Villa.

Also on New Year's Day, Warrington Town have designated their derby clash with Northwich Victoria as a 'pay what you want' fixture with the added bonus that fans will be helping to raise money to send local teenager Georgia Rankin, a sufferer of rare condition, Skeletal Dysplasia, on the holiday of a lifetime to Florida.
 
4/5 January: It's 3rd Round weekend in the FA Cup and adult tickets are priced at £10 for the games at AFC Bournemouth, Charlton Athletic, Sunderland,
Doncaster Rovers (with the chance to win England tickets as well) and Birmingham City.

Birmingham are scheduled to play their 3rd Round tie on Tuesday 7th January as they await the winners of the postponed 2nd Round replay between Crawley Town and Bristol Rovers. Tickets for the rescheduled game at Crawley on 4th Jan have been reduced to £5 and £3.

Adult tickets are priced at £15 for the games at Barnsley, Brighton & Hove Albion (£10 in certain parts of the ground) Fulham, Ipswich Town, Middlesbrough (£10 for season card holders until 5pm Jan 3rd)

7 January: Sunderland host Manchester United in the Capital One Cup semi-final first leg with adult tickets £20 and concessions £5.

11 January: Albion Rovers home game against Montrose has been designated as a 'Pay What You Can' fixture with a minimum of £1 to be handed over at the turnstiles. The initiative will also be open to visiting supporters.

24 January: As Brentford's game against Gillingham has been selected for live TV coverage and moved to a Friday night, the Bees have reduced prices to £15 (adult seating), £10 (adult standing), £10 for seniors and £1 for juniors if purchased in advance.

Throughout January: Barnet are running a promotion whereby fans can see all three of their home games during the month for £30 (adults) and just £5 for under-14's.

Details of all offers can be found on the official club websites of the relevant home teams.

See Posh For Less Dosh And A Festive Update

Peterborough United entertain Swindon Town in the Southern Area Final first leg of the Johnstone's Paint Trophy on Wednesday 5 February and with the game being screened live on TV, Posh have opted to keep ticket prices affordable in order to attract a big crowd to London Road with Wembley on the horizon.

At £10 for adults and £5 for concessions when purchased in advance and with a 7:15pm kick-off, a good family night out looks to be on the cards.

A reminder that tomorrow (Saturday 28th December) is free entry at Berwick Rangers as they host Peterhead, thanks to the club's Supporters' Trust with donations more than welcome on the day.

With only a handful of Premier League games as competition, meanwhile, why not try and get to a non-league game in England on Saturday?

Swindon Supermarine have reduced admission prices for their home game against Paulton Rovers at the Webbswood Stadium to £5 and £3 as Swindon Town are not in action.

Vauxhall Motors FC are at home to Harrogate Town on Saturday and this game has been designated as a 'Pay What You Want' fixture with a minimum of £1 to be passed over at the turnstiles.

Alfreton Town have reduced ticket prices for their match against Southport and Under-16's can gain admission for free while, also in the Conference, Hereford United have two upcoming offers. Under-15's will pay just £1 for Saturday evening's game against Forest Green while adult tickets brought at the same time for both that match and the New Year's Day clash with Kidderminster are available for £20.

Full details can be found on the official club websites of all the sides named.

Affordable Football aims to bring you the special offers, reduced ticket prices and family deals that make catching a match anywhere in the country more affordable. You can tweet us @affordablefooty or email affordablefootball@yahoo.com if your club are doing something worth hearing about.

Sunderland’s Ticket Stance Is Just Capital!

The draw for the Capital One Cup semi-finals may have set up a ‘dream’ final between the two Manchester clubs but Sunderland’s stance on making the competition an affordable one for their supporters should ensure a great atmosphere at the Stadium of Light on Tuesday 7th January when they play the first leg of their tie against Manchester United.

It will be the fifth consecutive home game in the competition for the Black Cats and ticket prices of £15 and less to date have been rewarded with combined attendances of 73,815 coming through the turnstiles (the tie against Southampton was re-scheduled at short notice as Newcastle were also at home in the competition at that stage).

Faced now with a big game against the champions, Sunderland have resisted the temptation to hike up prices at this stage and instead will charge £20 for adults and £5 for supporters aged under 16 and over 65.

Merry Christmas to everyone reading the blog and enjoy your football over the festive period. Tweet us @affordablefooty, especially if you are going to Carlisle United on Boxing Day dressed as Santa for free entry, heading to Berwick Rangers on Saturday 28th where the game is free entry thanks to the Supporters Trust (donations welcome) or paying what you want at Vauxhall Motors on the same day!

Look To Non League For Some Affordable Christmas Football

Saturday 28 December provides a good opportunity for non-league clubs to pull in some healthy attendances as there is a full programme of games without competition from the Premier League and Football League where the majority of fixtures this year are taking place a day later.

So keep an eye on your local club if you fancy watching a game on this day.

We'll try and put any offers we see on to our twitter page but Alfreton Town have reduced prices for their home matches on both December 21st and 28th, Swindon Supermarine have cut tickets to £5 and £3 on the 28th with Swindon Town not in action and Corby Town have a 3-for-2 offer for their trio of home matches over the festive period (21st, 28th and 1st Jan).

Affordable Football aims to bring you the special offers, reduced ticket prices and family deals that make catching a match anywhere in the country more affordable. You can tweet us @affordablefooty or email affordablefootball@yahoo.com if your club are doing something worth hearing about.

The Forecast For Affordable Football Is...

Wednesday night's torrential downpours put paid to two matches that were into the second half as Sheffield Wednesday against Wigan Athletic and Crawley Town against Bristol Rovers were abandoned.

The Owls fixture was the subject of a ticket promotion from the home club with adults able to attend for £10 and, although their customer charter allows them to levy a 50% charge for the rescheduled game, Wednesday will honour all tickets held as a'gesture of goodwill'.

Reasonably enough, the £10 offer is unlikely to be repeated when the match is replayed as that was done specifically to tie in with Christmas and the fact that Wednesday have another home game this weekend.

Crawley and Bristol Rovers will replay their FA Cup tie on 3rd round day and have reduced prices to £5 for adults and £3 for concessions. The club say this is due to FA guidelines as 75 minutes of the original fixture had been played. Anyone with a ticket stub from the game can also get £2 off food or drink in the ground.

Birmingham City's home game with the winner of the Crawley tie has now been put back to Tuesday 7 January and ticket prices for that game have been reduced to £10 for adults, £5 for students, over-65's and 13-18 year-olds with under-13's paying £1.

Leave The Christmas Shopping Until Sunday!

A recap of the reduced price ticket offers available this Saturday (21st December), usually one that sees crowds drop off slightly across the country as games are close enough to Christmas that people are out preparing without attracting the families that attend a Boxing Day game together.

Starting at 12:15 and Queens Park Rangers season ticket holders and members can purchase up to six additional tickets for the game against Leicester City for just £10 each. The tickets must be assigned to a fan at point of purchase and must be brought prior to matchday.

Birmingham City's Championship clash with Nottingham Forest is priced at just £10 for adults with the offer extended to visiting fans and ensuring a sell-out from Forest supporters.

Notts County's 'Christmas Cracker' against Bristol City is priced at £12 for adults and £2 for concessions while a special family ticket is available for Plymouth Argyle against Bury in League Two.

In the Conference, Alfreton Town have reduced prices for both of their Christmas fixtures, on Saturday and also one week later. Halifax Town have cut the admission fee for children for their game against Forest Green to £3 for under-16's and free for under-12's.

Ending with the 5:30 kick-off between Millwall and Middlesbrough. This has been designated as a 'Back To The Eighties' game for which all tickets are priced at £5. 

Big Turnouts North & South At Harrogate & Chelmsford City

Two successful initiatives that ran at the weekend in the Skrill North and South divisions respectively drew good crowds to the homes of Harrogate Town and Chelmsford City.

After a gate of 547 against Altrincham in their previous home game, Harrogate's offer of £1 entry for over-18's (free for anyone under that age) saw 1,428 through the turnstiles. A big promotional push from the club around the town and lots of family-friendly activities on the day made it a successful weekend on an off the pitch as Harrogate defeated Gloucester City 4-2.

Harrogate's game at Vauxhall Motors on December 28, meanwhile, has been designated as a 'Pay What You Want' fixture by the home side with a minimum admission fee of £1.

Chelmsford City increased their attendance of 561 against Basingstoke the week before to 718 against Hayes & Yeading on Saturday by having their own 'Pay What You Want' game and praised a 'fantastic turnout' on their official website.

Staying with non-league and Alfreton Town have reduced prices for their two Christmas home games, on 21 and 28 December while Halifax Town have cut children's prices for this Saturday's game against Forest Green to £3 for under-16's and free for under-12's.

Affordable Football aims to bring you the special offers, reduced ticket prices and family deals that make catching a match anywhere in the country more affordable. You can tweet us @affordablefooty or email affordablefootball@yahoo.com if your club are doing something worth hearing about.

Back To Back Sheffield Wednesday Deals

From the end of the road where I write the Affordable Football blog I can see the Hillsborough home of Sheffield Wednesday FC and with a workplace dominated by Owls fans it is a club whose fortunes I always keep an eye on.

A number of those workmates are occasional rather than regular visitors to the S6 home of their team so hopefully a couple of pre-Christmas offers will tempt a few of them along. Wednesday's home gates are consistently good, of course, given the struggles they have had over the past decade but with a cavernous stadium to fill it does take some imagination to ensure fewer empty spaces.

Handed a rescheduled home game seven days before Christmas by Wigan's earlier participation in the Europa League, the Owls have done exactly the right thing by reducing all ticket prices to £10 for adults and £5 concessions especially as there is another home fixture against Bournemouth just a few days later.

That has been designated as a 'Kids For A Quid' game while Season Ticket Holders can bring a friend for £10.

http://www.swfc.co.uk/news/article/ticket-office-christmas-news-1229487.aspx

In the interests of fairness, Sheffield United also have a deal on over Christmas whereby a ticket purchased for the Boxing Day clash against Oldham Athletic means one can be brought for the game against Tranmere Rovers on Sunday 29 December for £10.

http://www.sufc.co.uk/news/article/20131108-christmas-ticket-offer-548854.aspx

Affordable Football aims to bring you the special offers, reduced ticket prices and family deals that make catching a match anywhere in the country more affordable. You can tweet us @affordablefooty or email affordablefootball@yahoo.com if your club are doing something worth hearing about.

FA Cup: £10 Tickets At Brighton, Blues & Sunderland, Praise For Derby

FA Cup 3rd Round ties will be played on the weekend of 4/5 January and for those home clubs without a plum draw they have proved to be difficult sellers in the past few seasons. To try and combat that there have already been a number of offers announced.

Brighton & Hove Albion continue to go from strength to strength as a club, the opening of the Amex Stadium the obvious catalyst for bringing together a large potential fanbase.

Last season's average gate of 26,236 was the highest in the Championship and the Seagulls are again leading the way with 26,767 this year. Despite not always featuring among the cheapest teams to watch, the club have argued that they offer an all-round experience to supporters at the public transport-friendly Amex, opening bars early and late and offering entertainment after the match.

For the upcoming FA Cup game against Reading, adult tickets start at £10 in the north and south stands, chief executive Paul Barber hoping that 'potential first-time visitors' are attracted to Falmer.

Birmingham City have an attractive ticket offer for their Championship game game against Nottingham Forest next weekend and have also cut prices for their 3rd Round tie against either Bristol Rovers or Crawley. Adult tickets will cost £10, concessions £5 and under-13's £1.
Sunderland have cut prices for all of their home cup ties this season, including, to their credit, the upcoming League Cup quarter-final with Chelsea at the Stadium of Light. Adult tickets will cost £10 in all areas of the ground for the FA Cup game against Carlisle on Sunday 5 January.

Just as Sunderland have tried to keep prices realistic for an attractive cup game against Chelsea, so Derby County have also drawn praise for doing the same for their season ticket holders, who will pay a maximum of £19, when they entertain Jose Mourinho's side in the FA Cup.

Middlesbrough season ticket holders can also pay £10 for an adult ticket for their game against Premier League Hull City.

All details are on the official websites of the various clubs, more on our twitter page @affordablefooty

Update: Tickets for Charlton Athletic's home game against Oxford United are also priced at £10 for adults, and £5 for concessions.

Back To The Eighties With Millwall!

Having seen their home game against Middlesbrough on the final Saturday before Christmas (21 December) moved to a 5:30pm kick-off time for live television coverage, Millwall have come up with a great offer to persuade fans to watch the game in person.

The Lions have rolled back prices to 1988/89 levels with admission pegged at £5 for all including travelling Middlesbrough fans.

Traditionally gates on the last Saturday before the Christmas have been lower as last-minute shopping takes precedence but Millwall are one of a number of clubs who are making an effort to change that.

Tranmere Rovers are also charging just £5 for their game on Friday 20 December at home to Gillingham (7:45pm) while the following Saturday there are also offers at Birmingham City and Notts County.

Blues are charging £10 for all areas of the ground against Nottingham Forest and by extending the offer to away fans have seen Forest already ask for more tickets on top of their 2,007 allocation.

Notts County's 'Christmas Cracker' against Bristol City has seen them reduce prices to £12 for adults and £2 for under-16's in home areas of the ground.

http://www.millwallfc.co.uk/tickets/Next-Home-Game/

Will Bolton Extend The Spirit Of Christmas To Boro?

On Affordable Football previously we looked at Middlesbrough's special ticket offer for Aitor Karanka's first game in charge as manager of the club and the fact that reduced prices were not available to visiting fans from Bolton Wanderers.

A Middlesbrough club statement at the time read: ' Away supporters will be charged at our standard matchday rate. This also reflects the expected ticketing price level that will be set for our supporters when they visit the Reebok Stadium on New Year’s Day.'

Now, Wanderers have announced reduced prices for the return fixture on New Year's Day with adult tickets available for £15 and concessions (under 23's and over 65's) at £5. As of Monday there are no details about whether this will be extended to away fans.

Will Bolton extend the spirit of Christmas into 2014 and offer reduced prices to visiting fans?

Update: The Bolton News reports that the reduced ticket prices are available to all, home and away so a decent gesture from Wanderers.

http://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/sport/wanderers/wanderersnews/10865546._/

50 Up For Affordable Football!

Our half-century of posts on Affordable Football has come quicker than expected since starting the blog at the end of July, a few weeks after we began tweeting @affordablefooty about the various ticket offers and deals that can make watching the beautiful game a more affordable experience.

The 50 mark has been reached so quickly because of the sheer depth and reach that football has across the UK and the hard work of so many people in keeping clubs alive and vibrant at all levels.

So, while we have highlighted affordable deals at Sunderland and an interesting loyalty scheme at Aston Villa, we've also found free football at Berwick Rangers thanks to sponsorship from the supporters trust, free entry to Carlisle United on Boxing Day for anyone dressed in full Santa outfit and a non-league club in Suffolk paying all spectators 5p each for coming to the match!

Here's to many more posts!

Latest offers we have seen this week include two reduced price Football League games on the Saturday before Christmas, traditionally a tough time for crowds as the nation indulges in one of its other favourite pastimes, shopping.  

Tickets for Birmingham City against Nottingham Forest are priced at a maximum of £10 for adults while Notts County host Bristol City on the same day with prices reduced to £12 for adults and £2 for under-16's.

Swindon Supermarine have reduced admission prices to £5 for their home game on 28 December against Paulton Rovers with Swindon Town not in action that day and Chelsea's youngsters play Dartford in the FA Youth Cup at Aldershot FC on Thursday 12 December at 7:35pm with admission free for all.

Affordable Football aims to bring you the special offers, reduced ticket prices and family deals that make catching a match anywhere in the country more affordable. You can tweet us @affordablefooty or email affordablefootball@yahoo.com if your club are doing something worth hearing about.

Santa, Enjoy Boxing Day With A Free Carlisle United Ticket!

An offer from Carlisle United to bring a bit of fun to the festive season means that anyone attending the game at Brunton Park against Preston North End on Boxing Day in full Santa costume can obtain a voucher from the club which will allow free entry to either that day's game or a match later in the season.

The key condition is that the FULL Santa outfit must be worn, no half-measures with just a hat, beard or santa sack thrown over the shoulder!

These are difficult times for United who attracted their lowest crowd for a decade at the recent FA Cup replay against Boreham Wood and have experienced a general drop in attendances amid a worsening financial situation.

An excellent recent column by Jon Colman in the Carlisle News & Star sheds some more light on the current predicament of the club and doubtless fans have had their concerns about decisions made in the past.

On this specific issue then, it is fair play to Carlisle for putting a bit of fun back into football on a day when clubs generally experience a boost in attendance anyway.

http://www.newsandstar.co.uk/carlisle-united/jon-colman/these-numbers-only-add-up-to-one-thing-1.1102052

http://www.carlisleunited.co.uk/news/article/boxingdaysantaoffer26dec13-1215577.aspx?

Scottish Special

Our look at upcoming matches in Scotland starts with February's League Cup semi-final fixtures for which tickets have been pegged at a very reasonable price of £20 for adults, £10 for under-16's and £5 for under-12's.

The competition is wide open with all four teams (Aberdeen play St Johnstone and Hearts take on Inverness Caledonian Thistle) in with a great chance of lifting some silverware after Celtic's surprise defeat at the hands of Greenock Morton earlier in the season.

SPFL Chief Executive Neil Doncaster told his organisation's official website: "The SPFL believes that this is very competitive pricing for national cup semi-finals and takes into account the time of year and the economic challenges facing many supporters.

"In addition, the initial allocations announced today have taken on board supporter feedback from previous seasons and they also follow consultation with all four clubs.

"Last year's Scottish League Cup semi-finals produced two memorable ties and, with upwards of 37,000 tickets available, we look forward to more of the same in February in front of two big crowds and the fantastic atmospheres they will help generate."

A positive move with only one (quite big) negative attached and that is the timing of the second semi-final, when Hearts play Inverness at Easter Road, the home of Hibernian in Edinburgh, at 12:15pm on Sunday February 2. For Caley Thistle fans that means a very early start for a long and potentially treacherous journey to the capital.

Speaking of Caley Thistle they have introduced a £60 ticket for their three home fixtures over the festive period, a trio of games that their supporters probably look forward to more than any others as it takes in the matches against Aberdeen (21 Dec), Celtic (29 Dec) and Ross County 1 Jan).

And staying in Scotland, Berwick Rangers game against Peterhead on 28 December has free admission for all supporters thanks to the Berwick Rangers Supporters Trust while Albion Rovers first home game of 2014 against Montrose is a ‘pay what you can’ fixture.

http://spfl.co.uk/news/article/league-cup-semi-final-prices-announced

http://ictfc.com/news/club-news/1087-big-ticket-offers

Affordable Football aims to bring you the special offers, reduced ticket prices and family deals that make catching a match anywhere in the country more affordable. You can tweet us @affordablefooty or email affordablefootball@yahoo.com if your club are doing something worth hearing about.

Building Bridges Continues At Leeds United

One of our very first posts here at Affordable Football came at the beginning of the current Football League season as we looked at the efforts being made by the new owners of Leeds United to build bridges with supporters after the Ken Bates era had left many supporters of the Whites feeling disenfranchised with their club.

A simpler pricing structure with more games classed in the lowest-priced tier in addition to ticket offers has produced an average attendance to date this season of 25,721, below only Brighton & Hove Albion’s in the Championship and compared to last season’s figure of 21,572.

Leeds will be hoping to boost that average gate figure even further when Wigan Athletic come to Elland Road on Wednesday night with all 12,500 season ticket holders entitled to bring a friend for free.

Billed as an 'early Christmas present' the offer comes on the back of Saturday's game at Blackburn, where a huge Leeds following made the journey to Ewood Park, and amid talk of significant investment being made in the club.

Managing director David Haigh said: "Our motto this season is that the past is the past, and here is our present for Season Ticket Holders. We hope our loyal Season Ticket Holders will take advantage of this offer.

"Our Season Ticket Holders are the lifeblood of the club, and it’s important we recognise that. This is our way of saying thank-you, and hopefully we will see another good crowd at Elland Road. The 30,000 plus for the games against Brighton and Middlesbrough created a fantastic atmosphere, and there’s no doubt that it helps the team.

"This is also an opportunity for some new faces to come to Elland Road to see what we are trying to create here."

Affordable Football aims to bring you the special offers, reduced ticket prices and family deals that make catching a match anywhere in the country more affordable. You can tweet us @affordablefooty or email affordablefootball@yahoo.com if your club are doing something worth hearing about.

December’s Affordable Football

What we have found so far for the month ahead.

2 December: The UEFA Women's Under-17 European Championship continues with four group games at Burton Albion, Hinckley, Telford and Chesterfield (where a very healthy crowd of over 2,000 watched England’s game on Friday night). Group stage and semi-final tickets are priced at £3 for adults. Semi finals take place on the 5th with the final on the 8th at Chesterfield (£5 for adults).

3 December: Students can take a break from their books and watch Cambridge United’s FA Cup replay with Bury for £6 from the Abbey Stadium terraces

5 December: Gateshead versus Oxford United finally replay their FA Cup 1st Round tie after an earlier postponement. Tickets are available priced at just £5 for the game for which the home side are hoping to break the 2,500 crowd barrier. Exciting times are ahead, it seems, for the North East club who also reduced prices for Saturday’s FA Trophy game and are pushing for a return to the Football League.

9 December: Manchester United play Shakhtar Donetsk at Leigh Sports Village in the UEFA Youth League, kick off 7pm, admission £3 (free for Under-16’s and United season ticket holders).

10 December: The Johnstone's Paint area semi-finals take place with reduced prices on offer at all four games (Swindon Town, Newport County, Fleetwood Town and Oldham Athletic are the host clubs) and £10 adult tickets available at both the Fleetwood and Oldham matches.

15 December: Under a reciprocal price deal agreed between the two clubs, tickets for Norwich City's game against Swansea at Carrow Road are priced at a maximum of £20 for adults. A similar price will be in place for the Canaries trip to South Wales in March in a bid to ease the cost of one of the most arduous journeys in the football calendar.

26 December: Buy a ticket for Sheffield United's home game against Oldham Athletic on this date and a ticket for the Bramall Lane clash with Tranmere Rovers on 29 December will cost you just £10

28 December: Thanks to sponsorship of the game by their supporter’s trust, Berwick Rangers home fixture with Peterhead is free to all fans. A donation of at least £2 is asked for to help the trust continue their excellent work.

There’s lots more out there. We try and keep things updated as much as possible on twitter @affordablefooty, please do get in touch.

Free Football Thanks To Berwick's Supporters Trust

The work of supporters trusts up and down the country, at many levels of the game, has been one of the more positive aspects of football over the past few years and an initiative from the Berwick Rangers Supporters Trust is well worth highlighting here.

Currently 240 members strong and having donated £50,000 to the club since its inception, the trust is sponsoring the league fixture against Peterhead on Saturday 28 December (3pm) to the tune of £1,000 plus the anticipated gate receipts in exchange for allowing all spectators into the game free of charge.

A suggested donation of £2 into buckets at the match will then be used to boost club funds so hopefully a bumper crowd can be attracted to Shielfield Park.

http://www.berwickrangers.org/trust-to-sponsor-peterhead-match-free-admission-for-spectators/

Premier League Under-21 Cup Takes Shape

The Premier League Under-21 Cup continues into December with the round of 16 ties scheduled to take place.

In September we wondered whether the new competition could fill a competitive gap for younger players while also offering a family friendly way of attending matches with early evening kick off times played in a club’s main stadium.

The early rounds have not quite lived up to that expectation with ties often played during the afternoon or switched to smaller or training grounds at short notice.

On Tuesday night, however, Reading offered free entry to their game against QPR at the Madejski Stadium while Aston Villa charged just £2 to adults (free for season card holders) for a 7pm kick-off against Fulham at Villa Park. Hopefully the latter stages of the competition will catch the imagination as the chance of silverware draws closer.

It's Cheaper Up North (In The JPT)

The Johnstone's Paint Trophy has reached the area semi-final stage with ties set to take place in the week commencing Monday 9th December and all four host clubs having reduced their prices.

Newport County take on Peterborough United with adult tickets purchased in advance costing either £13 or £15 and then varying reductions for concessions.

Swindon Town's game against Stevenage is priced at a maximum of £15 for adult tickets.

In the Northern Area, meanwhile, both Oldham Athletic and Fleetwood Town have capped priced at £10 for adults as they prepare to take on Chesterfield and Rotherham United respectively.

http://www.oldhamathletic.co.uk/news/article/20131121-chesterfield-1187096.aspx

http://www.fleetwoodtownfc.com/news/article/jpt-ticket-news-1183300.aspx

Gateshead, meanwhile, are hoping for a 3,000+ crowd for their re-arranged FA Cup 1st Round replay against Oxford United on Thursday 5 December for which ticket prices have been cut to £5. In the meantime, the club are also offering tickets priced at £10 for adults, £5 for concessions and £2 for under-16's for their FA Trophy home clash with Hednesford this Saturday.

Affordable Football aims to bring you the special offers, reduced ticket prices and family deals that make catching a match anywhere in the country more affordable. You can tweet us @affordablefooty or email affordablefootball@yahoo.com if your club are doing something worth hearing about.

Cross County Trek Eased By Norwich And Swansea Deal

One of the longest and most tortuous of awayday journeys in football must be that between South Wales and East Anglia but supporters of Swansea City and Norwich City making the trek to their team's games at the opposition venue this season will be cheered by the latest reciprocal price deal to be announced by Premier League clubs.

Tickets for the games at Carrow Road on Sunday 15th December and the Liberty Stadium on Saturday 29th March will be priced at a maxium of £20 for adults with various reductions for concessions.

http://www.canaries.co.uk/news/article/swansea-h-1314-1162007.aspx

An Affordable Double Bill Of Sunderland Versus Chelsea

Rejuvenated by the appointment of Gus Poyet as manager recently, Sunderland face a crucial month in December as they try and climb out of the Premier League relegation zone while also aiming to reach the semi-finals of the Capital One Cup.

Poyet's former club Chelsea visit the Stadium of Light twice before Christmas and the Black Cats have introduced some special offers for both games.

SAFC season card holders can buy up to two extra tickets for the league encounter on Wednesday 4th December for £10 each, a positive move given that such deals are often introduced for the more unattractive fixtures and not the visit of such a star-studded side.

Just under two weeks later, on Tuesday 17th December, Jose Mourinho's side again make the journey north for a League Cup quarter-final. In keeping with their policy in this competition to date this season, Sunderland have reduced tickets for this game to £15 for adults and £5 for concessions in all areas of the ground with a priority period for season card holders to get a seat for just £10 if they buy before 5pm on Wednesday 27th November.

http://www.safc.com/news/ticket-news/2013/november/feast-of-festive-football-on-wearside

Middlesbrough Reject Bolton Request To Extend Offer

The last post on Affordable Football was about the reciprocal price agreement reached between Barnsley and Derby County for away ticket prices in the respective Championship games between the two clubs that are coming up over the Christmas and Easter periods.

That spirit of co-operation between clubs hasn't spread to everyone. We highlighted Middlesbrough's second cut-price ticket offer of the season recently after they announced prices of £12 for adults and £7 for concessions for what will be Aitor Karanka's first home game in charge against Bolton Wanderers on 30 November.

In response to a complaint from Bolton that such prices will not be available to away supporters, Boro have issued the following statement: "We felt it was appropriate to arrange a special promotion for the Bolton game as it will be the first home match for our new head coach Aitor Karanka.

"As such it has particular significance for our own fans.

"Under Football League rules, each club is is entitled to run up to four ‘local’ promotions each season in which home supporters are offered a discounted ticket price.

"Away supporters will be charged at our standard matchday rate. This also reflects the expected ticketing price level that will be set for our supporters when they visit the Reebok Stadium on New Year’s Day."

You can see Boro's point of view on this one. They are keen to whip up a positive atmosphere for the new manager and Bolton presumably wouldn't have been keen to reduce prices for a game held on a day that traditionally attracts a decent crowd.

But would charging the same price to away fans have made a huge difference to the number of Bolton fans who travelled to the Riverside? Maybe a little claiming of the moral high ground could have been done in this case.

Reciprocal Pricing Moves Into The Championship

Following the first successful agreements between Premier League clubs on the prices they charge to away supporters, fuelled by the Football Supporters' Federation's 'Twenty's Plenty' campaign, two Championship clubs have now announced a reciprocal ticket offer for their games against each other this season.

Barnsley and Derby County have pegged prices for their meetings on Sunday 29 December at Oakwell and Easter Monday at the iPro Stadium (Pride Park) respectively with the fact that both games fall during holiday periods a factor in the move.

Derby County President & Chief Executive Sam Rush told his club's official website: "I know Ben Mansford (Barnsley’s Chief Executive) very well and I would like to thank him and Barnsley for being so open to what is a great initiative to benefit both sets of supporters in following their team away from home."

Updates On Alfreton and Affordable Football At Christmas

Two updates from earlier posts here on Affordable Football.

Alfreton Town gained an excellent victory over Braintree in the Skrill Premier this weekend, backed by a crowd of 904 against 496 for the corresponding fixture last season.

Prices had been cut for the game in a bid to determine whether Alfreton had the potential fan base to compete at the top level of the game outside the Football League and a 'bumper crowd' was the verdict on the official website although the club had been hoping for 1,000+ through the gates.

http://www.alfretontownfc.com/news/ALFRETON%20TOWN%203,%20BRAINTREE%20TOWN%201-2203.htm

Following on from our post about Affordable Football at Christmas, meanwhile, Tranmere Rovers have designated that tickets for their home game on Friday 20th December against Gillingham will be available for just £5 in all home areas of the ground.

Tranmere Chief Executive Mick Horton said: “It’s the last home game before Christmas and we want to make it as easy as possible for our fans to come to the match so we are pleased to be able to reduce admission to just £5."

http://www.tranmererovers.co.uk/news/article/gillingham-offer-181113-1180264.aspx?

Affordable Football aims to bring you the special offers, reduced ticket prices and family
deals that make catching a match anywhere in the country more affordable. You can tweet us @affordablefooty or email affordablefootball@yahoo.com if your club are doing something worth hearing about.

All I Want For Christmas Is Affordable Football!

The 'hectic' festive period of football is nearly upon us, one that draws disbelief from those in the Premier League experiencing it for the first time but one that is looked forward to by the majority of supporters.

Looking at the fixture lists, most clubs who are at home on Boxing Day are also at home on Sunday 29 December with the other sides at home on Saturday 21 December and New Year's Day and facing a harder task to maximise attendances and revenue over what should be a busy period. That said, it is good to see club's already promoting their festive fixtures and not just banking on people, fed up of staying in the house on Xmas Day, coming out in force.

Little snippets we have found so far for the festive season include the following:

Oxford United are promoting their Boxing Day game against Plymouth Argyle extensively (players were in the city to promote it recently) in a bid to sell-out the Kassam Stadium. Discounted tickets were sold to season ticket holders on Tuesday and to other supporters on Wednesday with over 1,600 shifted by a club on the up after they hit the top of League Two this weekend.

Marketing manager, Gerald Kelly told the official club website: "The really interesting thing was seeing the full range of tickets purchased; families are bringing children, students, adults and over 65’s. This shows it really is going to be a great family occasion.”

Sheffield United are offering fans who buy a ticket for the Boxing Day game against Oldham Athletic one for the fixture versus Tranmere Rovers on 29 December for £10.

And family tickets for Plymouth Argyle's game against Bury on 21 December (traditionally a hard sell for clubs just before Christmas) are available for £15 in the family zone for 1 adult and 1 under-18 with additional children able to attend for just £1 each.

http://www.oufc.co.uk/news/article/00141113-big-match-1174563.aspx

http://www.sufc.co.uk/news/article/20131108-christmas-ticket-offer-548854.aspx

http://www.pafc.co.uk/news/article/a-very-merry-bury-christmas-1170456.aspx

Affordable Football aims to bring you the special offers, reduced ticket prices and family deals that make catching a match anywhere in the country more affordable. You can tweet us @affordablefooty or email affordablefootball@yahoo.com if your club are doing something worth hearing about.

Prices Cut Again As Middlesbrough Welcome New Boss

Just weeks after the successful 'Spirit of Teesside' event drew a season's best crowd of nearly 22,000 to the Riverside Stadium for Middlesbrough's game against Doncaster Rovers, the club are repeating their cut-price ticket offer for the visit of Bolton Wanderers on Saturday 30 November.

Adult tickets will cost £12 and concessions £7 in a move that is timed to coincide with the first home game in charge of new manager Aitor Karanka.

Head of supporter services Anthony Emmerson said: “Aitor has made it clear how delighted he is to be here and now it’s our turn to show how happy we are to have him.

“We’re hoping our fans will take advantage of this offer and get behind Aitor and the players to give him a really warm welcome as he looks to begin his home reign with a win.

“We know we can count on our loyal supporters to give the team fantastic support, but we hope this offer will also encourage those who haven’t attended games in recent years to come back and be part of what we believe is an exciting future for the club.”

It is quite unusual for an offer such as this to be repeated so soon and I imagine season ticket holders may have one or two grumbles but Boro have a big stadium to fill and if they can generate another good atmosphere and result like the 4-0 win over Doncaster then it will have been well worth it.

A Quick Plug For Gateshead FC

The Skrill Premier club have reduced prices for their televised FA Cup 1st Round replay against Oxford United next Wednesday night to just £5 for adults, concessions and students (£2 for under-16's).

Tickets must be purchased before 7pm on Tuesday 19th November.

A great offer indeed on what is a big night for Gateshead, one that will hopefully draw plenty of interest from the local population.

http://www.gateshead-fc.com/4672/oxford-cup-tickets-a-fiver

Arsenal And Birmingham Set To Progress In UEFA Women's Champions League

Birmingham City Ladies take on Russian side, FK Zorkiy Krasnogorsk in the UEFA Champions League round of 16 second-leg, staged at St. Andrew's this Wednesday (13th Nov, 7pm) with Blues holding a 2-0 lead from the first-leg.

Arsenal Ladies, meanwhile, take a 3-0 advantage to Scotland for their second-leg game at Glasgow City and both English clubs will be confident of putting a quarter-final place in the bank with the competition taking a break until March before concluding with a one-off final played two nights before the Champions League Final and in the same host city, Lisbon.

As we have highlighted with women's football at all levels this season, from England games through the WSL to the upcoming UEFA Under-17 Championships, games are attractively priced to get families and children attending.

The game in Glasgow is heading towards a sell-out with only standing tickets (£5 and £3) remaining while there are some excellent special offers on for local teams wanting to go to the game in Birmingham and experience what should be a good night of football under the floodlights.

http://www.birminghamcityladiesfc.co.uk/news/fantastic_group_ticket_bundles.html

http://www.glasgowcityladiesfc.co.uk/

'Pay What You Can' Moves North To Scotland

On Affordable Football we have posted a couple of items recently about Brentford's 'Pay What You Can' initiative for the recent game against Shrewsbury and the positive outcomes it generated for both fans and club.

Now, a link between the Bees' chief executive and Albion Rovers' chairman John Devlin has seen the Coatbridge side adopt the idea for their first home league game of 2014 when Montrose are the visitors.

A minimum of £1 must be handed over at the turnstiles but obviously the club are hoping that, in addition to increased numbers coming through the gate, those who can will pay a bit more.

“The initiative will also be open to Montrose fans and hopefully that will encourage more of them to attend,” Devlin told his club's official website while, responding to a tweet on the subject he said: ‘Gate receipts not the reason behind this. Recognition of our community position more important.’

Good stuff and good to see Albion rewarded for their Scottish Cup win against Deveronvale recently with a plum home tie against Motherwell which will easily see a season’s best gate through the Cliftonhill doors.

http://albionroversfc.com/?p=4242

Alfreton Town Cut Prices And Challenge Supporters

In an extremely open and honest statement on their official club website, Conference club Alfreton Town have detailed in full the reasons behind a cut in prices for their next home fixture against Braintree on November 16.

It gives an interesting background to previous price rises and asks the question of local fans who feel the pricing structure is wrong to ‘back up their argument’ and help the club decide on their future plans as they look to maintain their current status or even push for the Football League.

Adult prices will be £12 for the game, Concessions £10, Young Adults £5 and Under-16’s free when accompanied by an adult.

http://www.alfretontownfc.com/news/FANS-TO-HAVE-SAY-IN-FUTURE-OF-CLUB-2189.htm

Affordable Football aims to bring you the special offers, reduced ticket prices and family deals that make catching a match anywhere in the country more affordable. You can tweet us @affordablefooty or email affordablefootball@yahoo.com if your club are doing something worth hearing about.

November’s Affordable Football

An update for the month ahead…

The UEFA Women’s Under-17 final tournament kicks off on November 26, lasting until December 8 with games taking place at Burton Albion, Chesterfield, Telford and Hinckley and prices pegged to a maximum of £3 for the group stage and semi-finals and £5 for the final.

More games of an international flavour include England ‘C’, the national team for players outside of the Football League, taking on the Czech Republic Under-21’s at Woking FC on 19 November at 6pm with admission free for all.

One day before that, Yeovil Town utilise Gary Johnson’s connections for a friendly with the Latvian national team which takes place at Huish Park at 7:30pm with tickets £5 for adults.

The FA Cup reaches the 1st Round stage this weekend and Preston North End have cut prices to the maximum allowed by the FA for their home game with Barnet.

Speaking of Barnet, buy any ticket for one of their November home games against Welling United or Cambridge United and get one for the other game free.

And sticking with the Bees, they host Arsenal Ladies against Glasgow City on 9 November in the UEFA Champions League with prices £5 for adults and £2.50 for Under-16’s and Bees members.

Brentford Boosted By 'Pay What You Can'

Last weekend's game at Griffin Park between Brentford and Shrewsbury attracted over 9,000 home supporters after the Bees repeated their 'Pay What You Can' initiative following its success last season.

Tickets were available from as little as £1 but, despite that, the club exceeded their revenue target for what ordinarily would have been a low-key fixture.

Some interesting comments from chief executive Mark Devlin appeared this week in which he said that spending in the club shop was higher than any other game apart from the season opener against Sheffield United while catering revenue was the best of the season to date.

“We were pleased with the numbers and the plan is to look at the people that we’ve added to the database and come up with some offers to try and attract them again to Griffin Park.”

As a one-off this offer seems to have ticked all the boxes (including a donation to charity) and the innovative nature of it may not have upset season ticket holders too much, especially as Mr Devlin has been quite clear in outlining the benefits that it has brought to the club.

Preston Prevented From A £5 FA Cup Offer

The draw for the 1st Round Proper of the FA Cup was made at the weekend and threw up the usual selection of intriguing ties with banana skins aplenty for some struggling League One and Two clubs.

Bishops Stortford against Northampton Town has already been chosen for live television coverage and the Skrill South side will be hoping to cash in at the gate and on the box. Elsewhere, Shortwood United against Port Vale and Grimsby Town versus Scunthorpe United catch the eye.

But for clubs who are at home to lower league opposition, the early rounds of the cup can be a hard sell so there should be plenty of reduced prices on offer to try and boost attendances at these games.

Preston North End have announced their thinking for the tie at home to Barnet and, in keeping with much of the positive work done on ticket prices by the Lilywhites this season, it is attractively priced at £10 for adults, £8 for PNE ambassadors and £1 for under-16’s.

Indeed Preston were keen to match their recent Johnstone’s Paint Trophy offer for the game against Oldham Athletic and peg adult prices at £5 but have been prevented by doing so by the FA guidelines that set a minimum price for matches in the world’s greatest cup competition.

At first glance that does seem strange, after all the lower the price then the more people will go but the FA will argue strongly that, as a percentage of all gate receipts go into the pool which is then distributed among all clubs who participate in the competition, there is a limit they cannot really go below.

Bristol City are also offering tickets at the lowest possible prices to their season ticket holders for the clash with Dagenham & Redbridge as are MK Dons who host Halifax.

http://www.pnefc.net/news/article/barnet-ticket-details-announced291013-1142303.aspx

Affordable Football aims to bring you the special offers, reduced ticket prices and family deals that make catching a match anywhere in the country more affordable. You can tweet us @affordablefooty or email affordablefootball@yahoo.com if your club are doing something worth hearing about.

International Football Comes To The Midlands

Thursday saw the draw being made for the UEFA European Women's Under-17 Championship Finals which will take place at grounds across the Midlands this winter.

An expanded eight-team tournament will see hosts England take on Italy, Austria and Portugal in Group A while Scotland, Germany, France and Spain are in Group B.

Telford, Hinckley, Burton and Chesterfield are the host venues with the final scheduled for Chesterfield on Sunday 8th December.

£3 is the maximum price for the group stage and semi-finals, £5 for the final with lots of offers for juniors, schools and clubs.

http://www.uefa.com/womensunder17/ticketing/index.html

Forest Held But A Healthy Crowd

Nottingham Forest’s game against Bournemouth on Saturday, promoted as a ‘Kids For A Quid’ fixture at the start of half-term, saw an attendance of 28,070 at the City Ground, just shy of the season’s best to date which came, unsurprisingly, in the local clash with Derby County at the end of September.

There are always a few grumbles from season ticket holders and regulars when a club runs a promotion like this with comments on Twitter from Forest supporters about ‘17-year-old’s pretending to be under 16’ and ’15-year-old Man U fans’ and perhaps the blanket nature of the offer means a lot of people taking advantage of it who won’t be back for the rest of the season.

Ultimately, however, a crowd of over 28,000 for one of Forest’s lower-profile Championship games cannot be argued with and if only a small percentage of first-timers come back again or spent some money in the club shop then it would have been worthwhile.

Some of the comments, about people gaining discounted entry which they were perhaps not entitled to, reminded me of Coventry City’s game against Oldham in the 1991/92 season which the Sky Blues billed as ‘Ladies Day’ with all women entitled to free entry. Long before David Walliams had the idea for a sketch it was rumoured that some of those taking advantage may not have been all that they seemed!

Sheffield United, the bottom club in League One at the start of the day, also drew a healthy attendance of over 18,545 (a season’s best) with an offer for their game against Port Vale for season ticket holders to bring a friend for free.

Rewarding season ticket holders for their loyalty is part of the balance that needs to be struck when offering one-off deals to others. I blogged earlier in the season about Aston Villa’s ‘Villa Cash’ scheme which operates on a similar line to the supermarket loyalty cards we are all so familiar with now.

'Twenty's Plenty' Gathers Pace

An update on an earlier post about the 'Twenty's Plenty' campaign by the Football Supporters' Federation and a very welcome one too.

Reciprocal deals have been agreed by Newcastle United with both Swansea City and West Bromwich Albion and also by the Swans with Hull City. Under the deals, no away fan will pay more than £20 for their ticket when such an arrangement is in place (the deal between Newcastle and West Brom is actually for £15 adult tickets).

Full details can be found on the FSF website but all the clubs involve deserve praise, especially Newcastle who haven't always had the best of press during the Mike Ashley era.

http://fsf.org.uk/latest-news/view/newcastle-swansea-and-wba-agree-twentys-plenty

An October Update

Our twitter page @affordablefooty is where I try and collate all the special ticket offers that I have found but a quick update today on what is coming up over the next couple of weeks.

On Saturday (19 October), Sheffield United season ticket holders can take a friend for free to the game against Port Vale where the Blades are hoping to have a new manager in place and also climb off the bottom of the League One table.

With half-term approaching, Nottingham Forest are offering a ‘kids for a quid’ deal for the game against Bournemouth on Saturday.

Monday 21 October sees Everton Under-21’s take on Manchester United U-21’s at Goodison Park (7pm) in a fixture that the Toffees are offering free admission to in a bid to help youngsters experience the feeling of going to the famous old ground.

Middlesbrough’s ‘Spirit of Teesside’ fixture against Doncaster Rovers on Friday 25 October hopes to celebrate some of the unsung heroes of the region as well as attracting a big gate to the Riverside Stadium for the televised game. Tickets are priced at £12 for adults and £7 for concessions.

A day later (Saturday 26 October), Tranmere Rovers are offering all current and ex-servicemen and women as well as all Over-65’s, entry to their game against MK Dons for just £5.

Charlton Athletic are running their successful 'Football For A Fiver' initiative again this season with the fixture against Wigan Athletic on Sunday 27th October the chosen game.

A big crowd attended last season's corresponding game and the Addicks are again hoping for a near sell-out. All tickets are £5 plus a compulsory £1 donation added which will go to the club's chosen charities.

The last weekend in October is a good one for football fans in London looking for affordable ways to catch a match as the day before Charlton v Wigan it is Brentford’s ‘Pay What You Can’ fixture against Shrewsbury at Griffin Park with the minimum price of a ticket set at just £1. Again, there is a charitable element to this as Sport Relief will benefit from it.

Also in the Capital that weekend, England’s Women will take on Wales in their latest World Cup qualifier, this time at the New Den home of Millwall. The games at Bournemouth and Portsmouth recently were very successful and tickets are again priced well with £5 the maximum and lots of offers for concessions, Lions season ticket holders and groups.

Links to all of these offers are available on the various club websites. Any others? Please let me on twitter @affordablefooty or by email affordablefootball@yahoo.com.