West Ham United hold Ticketing Workshop with Fan Advisory Board
Following the first Fan Advisory Board meeting on 11 September 2024, an action was taken for the Club and Supporter Representatives to review feedback on the Club’s concessionary policy, reviewing the policy ahead of the 2025/26 season. The Club agreed any ticketing principles would be discussed in December’s Fan Advisory Board meeting. Ahead of this meeting, supporter representatives met with club officials for an informal workshop on the topic.
Attendees:
Date: 19 November 19 2024 7-9pm
Location: London Stadium / Virtual
Fan Advisory Board representatives:
Andy Payne (Hammers United)
Austin Gigg (Junior Supporters Board)
Cathy Bayford (Disabled Supporters Association)
James Brown (Claret Member)
Kevin Hind (West Ham United Supporters Trust)
Martine Dodwell-Bennett (Bondholders Committee) attended virtually
Mike Field (Old School Hammers)
Peter Tyler (Co-Chair, West Ham Women’s Supporters Board)
Paul Christmas (West Ham Official Supporters Club)
Scotty Burkhart (Overseas Supporters Rep) attended virtually
Club Representatives:
Nicola Keye, Director of Ticketing, Executive Director of the Women’s Team attended virtually
Catherine Smith, Head of Supporter Services and Fan Engagement
David Chaplin, Head of MarComms Operations
Kerry O’Shea, Fan Engagement Lead
Agenda:
1. Introductions and Overview
2. Workshop
3. Open Forum for Supporter Feedback and Concerns
4. Discussion of Next Steps and Agreed Actions
Introduction and Objectives
The FAB Co-Chairs welcomed the group and outlined the agenda.
The Club stated its objectives from the workshop, which was intended to:
Allow the fan voice to be included in the Club’s decision-making processes
Provide a mechanism for the FAB to meaningfully and constructively contribute to the creation of a new policy
Provide further opportunities to hear the views of supporters, and the members they represent
The workshop was structured around four themes: reward, respect, re-evaluate, rationale, with the Club aiming to return with a proposal at the FAB meeting on 4 December.·
Workshop summary
The key themes which emerged from the workshop were:
Loyalty: Supporter Representatives discussed how there was a need to establish how loyalty is recognised, acknowledged and rewarded, particularly for those supporters officially affiliated with the Club (Season Ticket Holders, Match by Match purchasers, Claret Members, Official Supporters Clubs) who either come to games currently or have previously done so. There was discussion about how this was currently reflected using the loyalty points system. A view was shared from Supporter Representatives that price was the most important factor in recognising loyalty, rather than additional gifts/incentives and Supporter Representatives talked about options for spreading the cost of season tickets over time, and the continuing importance of an overall discount for season tickets when compared to match-by-match tickets for Premier League fixtures.
Family Tickets and Generational Attendance: Supporter Representatives stated that the Club should ensure that there was a healthy pipeline of younger fans coming through, which Club representatives agreed with. There was discussion about whether families should be able to pass on Season Tickets more easily or whether this could create a closed shop or add confusion to the current ticketing policies . The group discussed what ‘Affordable Family Football’ meant and took the view that it was important to ensure future generations continued to attend matches, alongside providing ways for new supporters to purchase tickets at every stage of life. Supporter Representatives wanted to prioritise affordability for families, younger, older and accessible supporters. Some supporter representatives queried whether it would be possible to ‘register interest’ in specific seats.
Accessibility: The Club confirmed that they intended to discuss accessible concessions with the Disabled Supporters Board and Supporter Representatives again stressed the need for consistency and simplicity, allowing choice and flexibility in where disabled supporters sat in the Stadium. Supporter Representatives agreed that any proposals shared with the Disabled Supporters Board would be shared at Fan Advisory Board meetings for discussion. The DSB Representative highlighted some of the unique challenges faced by supporters with disabilities.
Simplicity and Communication: Supporter Representatives asked the Club to keep policies simple to avoid confusion among supporters and ensure fairness across the fan base. Supporter Representatives emphasised the need for a clear and fair concessionary pricing structure and the importance of clear communication and a logical rationale for changes. Supporter Representatives said they would welcome an understanding of a longer-term view of ticketing strategy.
Affordability: Supporter Representatives highlighted the need for simple and clear pricing and suggested it would be best to have the same level of percentage discount for all concessionary tickets across different categories and bands. The Club shared some ideas of how this could work, noting that this would have an impact on existing concessionary ticket holders. The Club agreed to return to these ideas in more detail at the Fan Advisory Board meeting on 4 December.
Agreed Actions:
Supporter Representatives to review and re-share their previous proposals shared in April 2024 with the Club on concessionary policies (Due: end of November)
Supporter Representatives to share survey data delivered in partnership with FSA as it stands (Due: ahead of December meeting)
The Club to review feedback from the workshop and recent fan survey, creating a proposal for discussion (Due: December meeting)