Big batches of empty seats at Hill Dickinson Stadium

Everton's season opener was billed as a full-house sellout but a persistent issue seems to be preventing use of a significant block of premium seats  held by Seat Unique. 

The reported attendance at Hill Dickinson Stadium yesterday was 51,820, so that's 949 shy of the published stadium capacity 52,769. Apparently it's not a new issue this season, as the piece I'm getting this from states:

Pockets of empty seats were visible again at Hill Dickinson Stadium during Saturday’s win over Crystal Palace

Now I can understand a reasonable number of no-shows — tickets sold but individuals or small groups unable to show up for one reason or another. That's perfectly understandable. But the clue there would be the random distribution of those empty seats around the stadium.

These seats at issue are all in a group at the back of the East Stand lower tier, sold as part of Everton’s Club View premium package through Seat Unique, the club’s official hospitality partner, at prices reported to be around £200 a ticket.  

The article goes on to state:

The issue isn’t demand; Saturday’s fixture, like most since the move from Goodison Park, was sold out well in advance. It’s that a portion of those premium tickets simply go unused, and with resale for no-shows restricted, there’s no easy way for the seats to reach fans who’d actually turn up.

I don't think that's quite true. They say resale is restricted but surely this is a problem created by blocks of tickets that are promised well ahead of the match to resale outlets and not getting sold on, probably because the price is too high, partly because many fans don't want to use resale outlets.

So the issue, I believe, is more about supply or at least the restricted supply of premium tickets that are priced very high, especially when compared to the median price of most tickets for club members in the ballot. That, I assume, remains the cheapest way to buy tickets for matches. 

When is a sell-out not really a sell-out?

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