Season Ticket Prices

Most of us know that season tickets at Sheffield Wednesday are expensive. Recent research published by the Trust shows just how expensive. The cheapest season ticket at Hillsborough in the 19/20 season was the dearest in the league. The most expensive season ticket at Hillsborough in the 19/20 season was the second dearest in the Championship. All the data to support the findings in this blog can be found in the research report on our website accessed via this link. 

The cheapest season ticket available at Hillsborough in the 19/20 season was in the early-bird phase of sales costing £455 to sit on the Kop. This was £35 more expensive than the next cheapest ticket offered by Middlesbrough and Preston North End at £420. It is £230 more expensive than the cheapest season ticket offered by QPR at £225, the lowest in the Championship. At £455 the cheapest season ticket at Hillsborough in the 19/20 season was £125.31 (38%) more expensive than the average cheapest Championship season ticket. 

The most expensive season ticket at Hillsborough was £705 to sit on the South Stand in the final phase of sales. This was £5 cheaper than the dearest in the Championship, the £710 season ticket at Elland Road. It was £25 higher than the next most expensive season ticket, the Club Class offered by Birmingham City at £680. Both these clubs however offered a far lower ‘cheap’ season ticket when compared with Sheffield Wednesday. Leeds United have a selection of season tickets available at £349 and Birmingham City offer a season ticket for as little as £240. 

What constitutes value for money will be different for each supporter. For many paying the equivalent of £19.78 per game to sit on the Kop (when purchasing the cheapest ticket available in the early-bird phase of sales) will constitute value for money, and attending matches is not just about the football, but includes the social aspect of sharing time with friends and family that is impossible to place a price on. Yet these are difficult times we live in. Absence from Hillsborough during lockdown might mean some have lost the habit of attending games preferring the comfort of their living room. The economic prospects are bleak meaning others will face unemployment or job insecurity. 

This is all complicated because the club will likely face a situation in the spring of 2021 (the usual early-bird period) where it must convince fans to renew their season tickets into 20/21 (effectively keeping their money in the club) and not demand a refund. The club recently confirmed that 55% of all season ticket holders requested a full refund on their 19/20 season ticket. Anything approaching this number of requests for 20/21 season tickets would be catastrophic to the club’s financial position. The Trust believes the growing sense of frustration and alienation among the fanbase can be ameliorated if the club show signs they are willing to change from their existing approaches to club operations. Public recognition that Sheffield Wednesday is adopting a new ticketing strategy for the post-Covid world, one that is more reflective of the economic position of the fanbase and wider city of Sheffield, and looks more like it treats fans as engaged partners in a collective endeavour and less like a cash machine, would provide a powerful incentive and encourage fans to return to Hillsborough. A good place to start would be with the cost of season ticket prices.