THE club has announced a series of changes to ticketing processes after proposals first shared with the Supporters’ Board earlier this year.

We’ve met regularly with the club to discuss these proposals in detail, using feedback from supporters — including through the recent survey — to help shape our position. Many of the responses reflected our reservations: these changes will affect supporters in different ways, depending on how they attend matches and who they purchase tickets for.

Some changes reflect ideas we welcomed and influenced.

• On the ‘Every Seat, Every Game’ initiative, our feedback saw the club reduce the proposed threshold.
• On access cards, we ensured a route remained open for those who still want one.
• Removing the deadline for adding supporters to your Friends & Family list is also a positive step that will help many supporters.

We also recognise the efforts to improve the members’ sale process and will gather feedback on how it works in practice.

But we have serious concerns about how some changes are being implemented — and their wider impact.

The decision to cap Friends & Family lists at 18 will affect supporters who buy tickets for others — whether regularly or occasionally — across all competitions. It’s not just about who you might pass tickets to, but also who you purchase for. This disadvantages a small but significant number of match-going fans. It’s also unlikely that those you purchase for are the same as those you forward tickets to.

We suggested a separate list for group purchasers, similar to the old linked accounts system, but were told the system does not support this and that it’s not on the club’s roadmap for future changes. We also proposed additional flexibility, suggesting that supporters who purchase for eight or more people across a season could apply to increase their cap. This was not taken up.

Instead, the club will only apply exceptions for those who purchased for 15 or more supporters for away matches last season. These individuals will be contacted directly. No other supporters will be eligible — a decision we believe is unfair and short-sighted.

On the distribution change, the club has removed a benefit that members with 13+ league home credits have used for years — one introduced by supporters working with the club following previous changes in 2022.

Distribution was brought in to reflect that not every supporter can attend every match, and to offer flexibility for those with modern life demands or when fixtures change. It enabled supporters to pass on tickets and retain the credit for two games, acting as a safety net.

This change also affects matches moved at short notice — the club has said it will decide how those are handled, but has not confirmed any firm policy.

We proposed compromises, including limiting distribution to those on a Friends & Family list, or reducing the number from two tickets to one. These were declined. The removal feels like it unfairly punishes loyal, long-standing supporters without addressing the real issues around misuse.

The club told us around 300 supporters would have fallen below the 13+ threshold if this policy had applied last season. We suggested phasing in the change to protect those supporters — but this too was rejected.

Distribution, however, remains available to seasonal hospitality ticket holders.

We’re also concerned about changes to ticket forwarding. The club told us that if a ticket is forwarded to someone who can no longer attend, that person can request to return it — but only in ‘exceptional circumstances’, and the request must go through a manual form and review process.

While forwarding is available until kick-off, the return process depends on club approval, which they aim to give within two hours on matchday. What qualifies as ‘exceptional’ hasn’t been clearly defined.

We’ve asked for a simpler, automated solution — but the club said their system doesn’t support it, and there are no plans to upgrade.

The Friends & Family system itself has flaws. Currently, if someone adds you to their list, they are automatically added to yours — without your consent and without the ability to remove them. We proposed a tech fix, but the club said it isn’t possible. Instead, supporters must manually contact the club if someone has incorrectly added them — creating more admin and more frustration with a system that many already struggle to use.

It is the board’s view that too often, supporters are being asked to adapt to new rules and restrictions when it is not clear that the changes are proportionate to the problem. Suggested compromises are ruled out because the technology doesn’t allow it — or because there are no plans to invest in the change.

Meanwhile, thousands of fans pay nearly £30 a year just to access this system and have a chance of buying a ticket. That cost adds up — and for many, it doesn’t feel like value when the system is clunky, limited, and outdated.

We also suggested the club address alleged misuse at the source by rolling out Fan Update more widely before implementing these changes. While the club has announced that Fan Update will now be rolled out starting with 13+ members, they have only said they “hope” to integrate it fully across all ticketing journeys.

We understand that change may be necessary. We haven’t opposed that in principle. But we’ve consistently pushed for practical solutions — small tweaks, reasonable flexibilities, and modern tech upgrades — that would soften the impact for genuine supporters. Too often, these ideas have been ignored or dismissed.

The club says these changes reflect its ticketing principles. But we believe some of them risk undermining those very principles — particularly around rewarding loyalty. The changes will hit some of our most committed, longstanding supporters, including many who regularly help others get to games.

And key issues raised by fans — like the use of burner phones — remain unaddressed.

We’ll now be gathering further feedback from supporters through a short survey and a planned public meeting. More details will follow soon.