This is outrageous.

Manchester United considering a Personal Seat Licence System for their new stadium.

Basically, you will bloat £4,000 up front and that will give you a licence for a seat for 30 years, but only if you purchase a season ticket on top of that. Miss one year on the season ticket and the licence is revoked.

More fool anyone who pays it.

Disgraceful what is happening to domestic fans.

Try to raise concerns, and you're just called a dinosaur, while we meekly watch the game wither away in front of our eyes... How much is enough?!

No way this will happen

fidelcastro wrote: ↑

Thu Jul 24, 2025 3:08 pm

More fool anyone who pays it.

The only way if could work for me is if they charge £4000 over 30 years so charge you £133 a year or £11 a month and if you do miss a year where you don't renew ... the next person takes on another 30 year license.

So you pay £4000 to guarantee a seat for 30 years, that you then need to get a season ticket for, to guarantee a seat?

It sounds very similar to a debenture scheme, which are regularly used to fund improvements & redevelopment of stadiums ... All four major Home Nations Rugby stadiums issue them, as do Lords, the Oval, The All England Club and even Arsenal ..

If they signed up 40,000 @ £4,000 each, that's £160m ...

wilks_bfc wrote: ↑

Thu Jul 24, 2025 3:30 pm

So you pay £4000 to guarantee a seat for 30 years, that you then need to get a season ticket for, to guarantee a seat?

That’s it in a nutshell. It’s common place in American sport.

Daft thing is this will be paid by ticketing agencies and the 4k will be made back within 12 months.

Utd got lucky they day the got a local born investor to come up with such schemes

It's all in the detail.

Is it every seat ( i doubt it)
Is it just the most expensive seats, if so it makes good business sense, as those people can afford the cost, and will pay it, whereas it would make no sense for the average season ticket holder.

Row x wrote: ↑

Thu Jul 24, 2025 3:36 pm

It's all in the detail.

Is it every seat ( i doubt it)
Is it just the most expensive seats, if so it makes good business sense, as those people can afford the cost, and will pay it, whereas it would make no sense for the average season ticket holder.

This

If I’d paid £4000 up front for 30yrs, but then died after 3, would in be able to pass that onto somebody else?
Know the usual t&c I doubt it

This is an American thing. I remember watching a programme about the Dallas Cowboys who did this when they moved to a new stadium.

What a nonsense. Surely even United fans wouldn’t be stupid enough to do this?

NewClaret wrote: ↑

Thu Jul 24, 2025 3:56 pm

What a nonsense. Surely even United fans wouldn’t be stupid enough to do this?

Well...

Conroysleftfoot wrote: ↑

Thu Jul 24, 2025 3:54 pm

This is an American thing. I remember watching a programme about the Dallas Cowboys who did this when they moved to a new stadium.

It is an American thing. San Francisco 49ers charge up to £60,000 although they do allow fans to pay in instalments.

It's only at propoal stage yet but has been put to fan groups by a US consultancy company.

ClaretTony wrote: ↑

Thu Jul 24, 2025 4:07 pm

It is an American thing. San Francisco 49ers charge up to £60,000 although they do allow fans to pay in instalments.

That's very good of them.

Perfect for the Surrey Set.

Anything is possible with Man UTD if I remember correctly they were part of the group of big clubs who wanted to stopped sharing the home gate receipts.

So typically the Rich got richer and beggar the rest

Last time I looked it took two teams to play football. So why not let the home team take out their expenses and then share any profit

ClaretTony wrote: ↑

Thu Jul 24, 2025 4:07 pm

It is an American thing. San Francisco 49ers charge up to £60,000 although they do allow fans to pay in instalments.

It's only at propoal stage yet but has been put to fan groups by a US consultancy company.

Not really, Wimbledon started doing it in 1920.

just watch local non-league where your support and money is appreciated

deanothedino wrote: ↑

Thu Jul 24, 2025 4:58 pm

Not really, Wimbledon started doing it in 1920.

It’s American in terms of supporters watching a team on a regular basis.

Yorkshirelad wrote: ↑

Thu Jul 24, 2025 4:50 pm

Anything is possible with Man UTD if I remember correctly they were part of the group of big clubs who wanted to stopped sharing the home gate receipts.

So typically the Rich got richer and beggar the rest

Last time I looked it took two teams to play football. So why not let the home team take out their expenses and then share any profit

They used to have to pay the away team a percentage of the receipts (not including catering, retail etc.) but that disappeared years ago. We benefited from it having been scrapped when we were in the lower divisions.

This is not in of itself a terrible idea and it's worked pretty well in the NFL (more successes than failures, and United would be the most obvious case for this to be successful in the UK). Somebody's got to pay for it and United fans have been moaning about the state of Old Trafford. This gives fans the opportunity to become small scale investors in the business.

The new stadium for United seems to have gone quiet.
I suppose this is Ratcliffes idea of helping to pay for it.

This is Times report (link takes you past pay-wall).

Man United fans may have to pay £4,000 to reserve seat at new stadium

https://www.thetimes.com/article/6e2414 ... 583a2b358a

Is he still trying to get the Council to mend their leaky roof?

WHU decided to sell 5 Yr season tickets to their free ground and then when the bill came in from Sullivan he'd put the price up by several times the original Loads of Hammers fans we met in Burnley won't pay the extra but go to away games instead. This greed is destroying our game

ClaretTony wrote: ↑

Thu Jul 24, 2025 5:14 pm

It’s American in terms of supporters watching a team on a regular basis.

Sure, if you move the goalposts enough to make it American. But the concept is hardly new, and hardly American. Wimbledon, Wembley, Twickenham, Royal Albert Hall, Millenium Stadium, Emirates all have debentures and PSLs aren't a huge departure from them.

At least they're not yet trying the primary source of American sport infrastructure funding... new taxes!

deanothedino wrote: ↑

Thu Jul 24, 2025 8:19 pm

Sure, if you move the goalposts enough to make it American. But the concept is hardly new, and hardly American. Wimbledon, Wembley, Twickenham, Royal Albert Hall, Millenium Stadium, Emirates all have debentures and PSLs aren't a huge departure from them.

At least they're not yet trying the primary source of American sport infrastructure funding... new taxes!

If you read the articles they all refer to American sport. No goalposts being moved, referring to clubs where supporters buy season tickets.

ClaretTony wrote: ↑

Thu Jul 24, 2025 9:23 pm

If you read the articles they all refer to American sport. No goalposts being moved, referring to clubs where supporters buy season tickets.

What the journalists chose to write doesn't change the facts of the matter that PSL's are just a lower cost version of a debenture, which have been in use for centuries in the UK.

deanothedino wrote: ↑

Thu Jul 24, 2025 9:53 pm

What the journalists chose to write doesn't change the facts of the matter that PSL's are just a lower cost version of a debenture, which have been in use for centuries in the UK.

You win, really can't be arsed any more.

All it takes is one club to start something like this and the rest will follow.
If they already do it in America then it will happen here. Football is becoming more and more americanised everyday.

No matter how much money they raise or get from TV income, they'll just stick it in the players and agents pockets.

bigdavethemaddog wrote: ↑

Thu Jul 24, 2025 5:02 pm

just watch local non-league where your support and money is appreciated

Not a bad idea. I do, and enjoy it £3 for a pensioner.