Liverpool Fan Groups Plan Ticket Price Protests for Fulham Match

In case you’d somehow missed it, things have gone rather poorly for Liverpool on the football front this season, with the Reds following up last year’s title win by forgetting how to press, pass, defend, and finish and so almost immediately dropping out of the title race.

The performances have mostly been poor, and with the players folding at the slightest adversity and too often looking like they simply can’t be bothered, the mood around the club and in the stands has begun to take on an exceptionally sour note. Into that mix, late last month the club announced ticket price increases for next season—and committed itself to more in the years to come.

This has gone over about as one would have expected with fan groups, which is something the club would have entirely expected. Assuming there’s anyone competent in the decision-making chain. Regardless, said fan groups are now planning protests and boycotts.

“Liverpool FC has chosen to ignore clear, overwhelming opposition from its own supporters and push ahead with plans to increase ticket prices for the next three seasons,” read a statement from fan group Spirit of Shankly. “Fans do not accept this decision. And if the club’s owners won’t listen, then we make them.

“This is no longer about consultation. That opportunity has been and gone. This is about action. Supporter groups are already organising a coordinated response. We are doing so at speed because time is against us. But the direction is clear: protests will take place. If the club does not value supporter voices, we will make ourselves difficult to ignore.”

While not all details have been set, with plans still evolving as supporters seek to formulate a response quickly with the season nearing its end, protests are set to begin against Fulham on Saturday and one of the first planned avenue for protest is seeking to limit in-stadium spending.

To that end, fan groups are requesting that anyone attending upcoming Liverpool matches make no purchases while in Anfield or via official club channels, instead choosing to support local businesses outside of Anfield when sourcing souvenirs, food, and beverages.

At the core of the pushback is the idea that the club are doing something that hasn’t been done before by locking in future ticket price increases, trying to hide the extent of the rise by spreading it over multiple years while making those increases a simple fact of life and more difficult to push back against once established.

“This is Liverpool FC’s owners locking in price rises for years to come and removing meaningful annual scrutiny from supporters,” Spirit of Shankly added. “No other Premier League club is doing this. If it goes unchallenged, it sets a precedent. Not just for Liverpool, but across the game.

“At the end of these three years, it would be a fifth increase in six seasons. Tickets heading towards £70. Season tickets beyond £1,000. And for what? A club generating record revenues still wants more, and has decided supporters will be the ones to pay for it.

“This isn’t just about price. It’s about direction. It’s about what kind of football club Liverpool chooses to be. One rooted in its people, or one that sees them as a revenue stream to be pushed year after year. Future supporters will live with the consequences of what happens now.”

Source: liverpooloffside.sbnation.com