Nearly two thirds of Manchester United supporters are unhappy with the club’s ownership under Sir Jim Ratcliffe, a survey has revealed.
The survey by the Manchester United Supporters’ Trust (Must) found that 65 per cent of fans are “unhappy with the ownership and management of the club”.
Their frustration stems largely from a hike in ticket prices, suddenly imposed last month when the club announced that members would be charged a flat £66 fee for tickets, and that concessions for children and pensioners would be removed.
Ticket prices at Old Trafford previously started at £40 for adult members and £25 for children. The survey of more than 4,000 fans also revealed that 97 per cent believe the changes will “alienate the next generation of fans”.
More than two thirds said they “will attend fewer games, one way or another”, while only three per cent were “understanding” of the decision.
The price hike is part of Ratcliffe’s plans to transform the finances of the club, with aggressive cost-cutting measures including a raft of redundancies, having posted losses before tax of net losses of £113.2m for the 12 months ending 30 June 2024, and £312.9m over the past three seasons.
But it has been met with anger among the fanbase, with some protesting against Ratcliffe during the recent Premier League home game against Everton.
“The recent hike in member ticket prices, particularly for children, is by far the most unpopular decision the club has made since the partial ownership change earlier this year,” Must said in a statement. “It has created a significant rift with the fanbase and the club must act urgently to repair the damage.”
Must have complained at a lack of consultation over the move. Manchester United initially emailed supporters to tell them about the ticket price changes, saying: “As a club, we have been focused on cost saving to put us on a stronger financial footing. This means having to make very hard decisions, including a significant reduction in our staff numbers.
“It also means looking for opportunities to increase our revenues so we can continue to invest in football and infrastructure. We have now sold over 97 per cent of tickets this season, many of which were at a discounted rate. We are implementing some policy changes for matches that have already sold out, where only small numbers of tickets will be released.”