The Mail Bag
Ticketing Problems
Comments (19)
With Everton's most successful season probably in the last 5 years, getting to Wembley, giving us a reward for our loyalty... But spare a thought for the guy who sat next to me for 5 years or more but lost his job and therefore could not afford his season ticket.
Unfortunately, this season, Everton's points system is basically telling us we should not go to away games. I mean, I got tickets for the Bolton away game with 225 points, similar to a fan who had gone to 6 away games and had a season ticket. After waiting as usual at Everton for 10 minutes to be told I could not get tickets, then a man next to me was given an under-21 ticket... which does not exist at Bolton — it's under-18.
It dawned on me about last May, seeing a lot of the coaches in Wembley car park from miles around with only about 19 I'd guess coming from Merseyside, eagerly anticipating my first FA cup final. As I was waiting for the coach to arrive, I was in front of about 80 drunken loons confessing to have somehow had a friend who got tickets for them — 1 season ticket for 5 people.
Also, looking round, it looked like half of these people were not there at Spurs on a Sunday... or Newcastle ditto. But also we have sold out of tickets for Benfica away... Many times I have gone to Goodison to be told tickets have sold out, only to go later on and be given a ticket.
Also, on our most prestigious day in 14 years, I was unfortunate to sit by, on one side, to be fair a kind mid-40s fans who said he'd gone to 12 away games and 14 home games this season. On the other side a 15-year-old shy lad and a 15-year-old girl who'd had one too many.
Being a shy lad, I wasn't particularly confident talking to either as kick off approached, but as my dad was on the lower tier, I had no-one to talk to... neither did my neighbours. Then as the attractive girl next to me broke the silence, how I'd got down here etc... I then asked where her season ticket was? to be the met with the answer she hadn't even been to Goodison this season!
I asked did she go the semi-final? Yes. Thinking she must have moved elsewhere, I asked whereabouts do you live? Met with the response: Walton. Many of my freinds and family never got tikcets but while in the queue for the semi, people were getting extra tickets for family members that do not have a season ticket. <> As someone who sits near a fan from Bosnia each week, and I have seem him at away games, along with fans traveling from Scotland and Wales that make an effort to go to every home game. Also I have known for Euro away games people who haven't stepped foot in Goodison all season getting tickets from Everton.
It was not just me who witnesssed the same thing — some people at the semi and final hadn't been to a single Everton game this season or last but had got tickets by just asking for family members.
I feel Elstone's and Everton's complaint about lack of tickets for Wembley is ridiculous considering so many undeserving fans ended up with tikcets for the semi. Also witnessing two morons at Wembley, either insane or completely drunk, falling over people, swearing, generally making people feel uncomfortable... these two go to away games and do the same thing each week — even after numerous complaints about them.
Everton need to find a way of rewarding the fans who went to Chelsea, Newcastle, Sunderland, Boro, and Spurs... who are more loyal than fans who just have season tickets, often missing regular games then going to two key cup games.
Chris Butler, Posted 11/10/2009 at 14:03:23
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However, I think the ticketing policy for the semi and final was fair. Everyone I know that qualified for either got a ticket.
Are you upset because a couple of fans got sozzled?
Why says who is more deserving of a ticket?
"So many undeserving fans ended up with tickets for the semi" Why are they undeserving? Because they get drunk? Because they are loud? You have confirmed that they are fans that go to both home and away games so I would suggest they are more deserving than I, as I only go to the home games.
As Brian said, the ticketing policy was well handled, it was the dopes who knew they should not have been there that caused the delays and were arguing with the ticket staff when they knew exactly what the criteria per day was.
In the past we have been farcical with ticket allocation but they got it spot on last season.
There are a lot of fans who can't get to home games, with many now being played on a Sunday and Thursday nights, as they have to travel from all points of the country.
I have many friends who can't come to the midweek games as they can't either get here or get home. Liverpool isnt exactly the best place to get to or from if you have to come by train. Let's remember those fans please.
However, I do think the club should allocate tickets based upon the individual purchase history & a season ticket should entitle you to 1 ticket only, if your friends/family want a ticket then they need to have invested in their own season ticket.
I’m no expert, but my understanding was that this is the direction the club is moving in with the new points scheme.
Home games, the old man would always sort.
Regarding the lout behaviour lark, I recall seeing similar at every away game - the "no visible means of income" brigade, joints in mouth etc. Every club has them I’m afraid.
I do miss the banter from those games. Meeting up in pre-determined boozers, catching up with how people are. Almost every time, we were invited back by the landlords — sometimes 25-30 people, no loutishness, just a lot of beer consumed, and a lot of laughs.
Until the morning after, when you realised what it’d cost!
You could have 1 person who goes to all 19 league games at Goodison, and 1 that goes to all 19 away. 1 person will have spent hundreds of pounds at Everton, the other nothing. No less of a fan, but EFC as a business would have more reason to be loyal to the home match-goer.
Maybe it's because of our own personal circumstances but I get to Goodison about 5 times a season but loads more away games yet I do not have a sniff of a chance. There are loads of people like me and I understand supply and demand but over the season I will have been to more games than a number of ST holders that do not travel, more expense too.
I think it's too simple to say EFC should reward home fans, what if no fans travelled away, no support for Everton on away games, the team would maybe suffer too?
I believe Everton should reward fans that go to the most games home and away, maybe a points system that gives them equal weight.
It's all irrelevant anyway though, as EFC is a business... but it's sad to think of it that way!
Whilst a lot of regular away fans are those who live away from Merseyside, there are still plenty who travel from the area, as there are those who live away but go to all games, home and away (even from places like Brussels!).
The only regulation is that clubs cannot charge differential pricing (to prevent away fans getting tickets for the home area). Whilst we may fill out our allocation at, say Fulham (as a lot of Blues are based in the South), it’s not "their" fault that Fulham don’t sell out theirs at Goodison, and "deprive" the club of revenue.
By that token, most of these away fans are usually wearing replica shirts. Should spend on merchandise count? Subscription to EvertonTV? It’s all revenue...
Tickets should always go first to those that have been to games and obviously season ticket holders. End of.
You have included no reason or sound argument. End of.
If you feel so strongly, why didn’t you offer anything in reply? Because you haven’t got one and there isn’t an argument against that — unless of course you’re a part-time supporter who thinks you have a right to tickets ahead of real fans. End of.
Only someone has hasn’t got a season ticket think they have a right to a ticket ahead of a season ticket holder just because they’ve been to a few random away games and only 5 (yes 5) home games. How totally pathetic.
When my brother-in-law was living away, he still had a season ticket (went when he came home and gave it to his Dad when he got couldn’t get back). If you don’t go to enough games that's your own fault you don’t get a ticket.
If you want to pick and choose random games to go to during a season, that's your prerogative but don’t whinge when you haven’t qualified to get a Cup Final ticket. Maybe our run last season will encourage your type of fan to make more of an effort to get to games on the off chance we get to another final.
ps: Did you work in Marconi or Sainsburys?
My point was that I don’t think that ST should be the be-all and end-all, surely it should go on total number of games rather than just home ones. The effort and expense that I have gone to will have exceeded some ST holders — my gripe is that they are prioritised ahead of me which I don’t think is correct — explain why, just because they are an ST holder does not suffice?
You’ll probably reply with a load of nonsense again so don’t know why I bothered... I don't live anywhere near Liverpool but my type of fan is the sort that goes to SK Brann & Florence without a ticket so you can do one!
I don’t work in Sainsbury's, I have a decent job and a family which means that I cannot get to every game so I do pick and choose, generally the away ones.
Just out of interest, what is your scenario and did you berate your brother-in law for his lack of support.
A season ticket holder who qualfied for an FA Cup ticket didn’t need to have been to 22 games during the season. You say you went to 5 home games so are you saying you went to at least 17 away games. I doubt it very much and if you did, you have no excuse to have only been to 5 home games.
So you went to Brann and Florence — big deal. If you can make such an effot for these how come you only get to 5 home games?? Exactly cos you pick and choose the ones you fancy, whereas a season ticket holder makes a commitment and always provide our club with such much needed revenue.
My type of fan is one who has always had a season tciket and goes to at least 10 away games a season including at least one European trip.
You got what a part-time supporter deserves — nothing. Most supporters and the club agree with that. The only people that don’t are the part-time supporters themselves. My brother in law is a proper fan cos even though he lives away he still has a season ticket.
Now wind your neck in and do one. If we get to another final you don’t deserve to be there.
Neck wound in, you’re clearly an idiot. I was at both the SF and Final and for the record (again because you obviously have trouble taking this in), my issue is not anything to do with more loyal fans above me getting tickets — it's a system that rewards ST holders that never travel that get a ticket for a final when they never ever go away at all.
By your rationale, as long as I have a ST then I am a loyal fan, even if I give it away most weekends.
As for pick and choose, of course I do that, I never disputed it; I prefer the away games and I have family and job commitments.
Anyway, at Goodison Saturday for the mighty Wolves (of course the pick of the season fixtures!).
Don’t worry, when we get to the Final, I will be there, hope you don't use up your one Europa away game if we get to Hamburg.
You failed to answer the question? Did you go to more than 17 away games? Thats the only way you would have been to more games than a qualifiying season ticket holder last year. No, you obviously didn’t — that's why you ignored it. I’m sure our penny-pinching club are grateful for the 5 games you attend each season.
Secondly, you may have gone to the semi and final but you didn’t get them from the club as you can't have qualified. That's the whole point of this discussion.
Are you sure you want to go to Wolves? You don’t want to use up your 5 annual Goodison games a year before we play Man Utd, Liverpool, the knock out stages of the FA Cup and Europa League. You actually sound like a kopite whinging about ticket allocations when you’ve got no right to one.
Don’t worry about Hamburg, mate — I’ll have no problem getting a ticket from the club — just like for Benfica (and in fact any away game), which I collected from the club today. But, in your own words, you’re the type of fan who travels to away European games without a ticket. See you outside with your cardboard sign.
Wool.
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1 Posted 12/10/2009 at 09:55:19
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Being a season ticket holder, I have found no issues with our ticketing policy and have to say that, for a club who regularly sells its allocation of away tickets, we do have a pretty good system.
You are always going to get people at any club who get tickets without going to or queing up for hours at the ticket office. Everyone who I know that goes regular went to the Semi and the Final without any issues.
Also in regards to the couple of ’Morons’ you mentioned, I assume they aren't like this when they buy their tickets? At this point it need some strong stewards to eject them from the away clubs. You can't blame Everton for selling them tickets.