What is more important to you: fan affordability or reaching Premier League?

[MattBackHome]

I'd rather the club used FFP as a catalyst to bring wages etc in control and make football more affordable. Not simply pass on the additional costs to supporters.

Totes this blud

 

[KZNSeagull]

The club seems to think the priority should be increasing revenues and cutting costs to allow them to keep paying competitive wages which will compete for promotion.

I'd rather the club used FFP as a catalyst to bring wages etc in control and make football more affordable. Not simply pass on the additional costs to supporters.

That is the conundrum isn't it. FFP is fine as long as ALL clubs play along with it - we have to pay competitive wages to compete for promotion, but all the time there are clubs out there willing to pay over the top wages, we are hitting our head against a brick wall. Based on the figures I seem to remember from El Pres earlier in the season, our wages are certainly not excessive compared to other clubs. We are in a far better position than most to conform to FFP. But that is a waste of time if others are not going to bother to comply.

Players do want to play for us because of the clubs philosophy and are sometimes prepared to come to us over rumoured bigger wages elsewhere eg CMS. Look at Arsenal though - they implemented a wage cap several years ago and now their fans are moaning that they never win anything. I wonder how many players would want to leave if we asked them to lower their wages?

It's all Sky's fault!

 

[Gullflyinghigh]

Affordability. Whilst it'd be great to see us mixing with the big boys on a regular basis it shouldn't have to come at the expense of those that actualy wish to follow the team.

I'm aware that, realistically, gaining promotion now comes at a cost; but would it be worth it? The club would obviously rake it in, but ticket prices would likely go up further, starting the 'you have to spend to get into Europe' cycle (yeah I jumped ahead a bit).

Anyway, it'd be only natural for those priced out to have a waning interest when they're left with only the occasional Sky game (or MotD highlights) instead of the actual experience, which would be a great shame.

 

[BadFish]

I would love to see us in the Premier League but I don't want us to forget what we have been through and how we got out of it. If it is a choice of selling our soul and getting to the Premier League but forgetting the fans that saved the club and kept us going or remembering what the club owes the fans and putting us first whilst staying in the championship and ticking over. I will certainly take the latter.

 

[TSB]

Tough thing to balance, but no point being 11th in the Prem and only playing in front of 3 blokes and a dog.

 

[shaolinpunk]

If we get promoted I won't be able to afford a season ticket

 

[hybrid_x]

isn't it funny? its the greedy player and their agents causing all this......and they are the ones we go and cheer and idolise.


imagine a handful of players saying "we are happy with 7k a week, we don't need more - and keep the fans rates down please."

f00king over fans for more than 7k a week is just greed and really deserves rotten tomatos to be thrown.......i dont care if the career ends at 33 years old or so.......with that sort of wages you can easily set yourself up.

 

[Rookie]

Have a feeling I will be priced out if we hit the top flight, not nice. I also really like the Championship so a bit of a no brainer for me

 

[Mellotron]

The most important thing is that we find a balance between the two, is the correct answer.

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

Heart says affordability but Head says #TeamBloom

 

[BadFish]

The most important thing is that we find a balance between the two, is the correct answer.

.....and to understand that many of us will have to compromise our ideals and support the club no matter what that balance maybe. While Tony is paying the bills then I guess Tony tips the scales.

 

[HawkTheSeagull]

Balance between the 2 - Palace (somehow) got promoted without spending much so it can be done. We have also signed good 2 players for low fees as well (Upson on a free and Chickenhead for a few hundred k), if we kick on not spending much like this - then i see no reason why we cant go up.

Swansea were probably in the same boat as us, they went up and didnt spend a fortune (they also went up in the 3rd season in the Championship - hmmmm).

If they club simply wants to be affordable to fans, then quite frankly the club will be in the shit financially, you cant have everything for nothing, not to mention other clubs would spend more and it would probably relegate us - and us going back to League 1 right now would be a monumental disaster.

 

[Janbha]

I cant imagine Mr Bloom sank millions of his own money into the club to be happy plodding along in the lower leagues , the club is and should be , for all Brighton supporters as its stadiums name suggests , but it is also a business venture that has to be in control and well run .

We have all but stopped going to away games now to compensate for any price hikes at The Amex , it has been a conscious decision to do this last season as its simply far to expensive .

I wish as everyone else does that it was still a fiver to watch a game of football but those days are long gone , a happy medium must be found between the fans and football itself if the game is to survive throughout the leagues as it stands now , if not there will in the not to distant future be a world league 30 or so super clubs and thats it.

In answer to the question , i am and would be willing to pay a little more if it helps us get into the premireship ,yes , but there would be a cut off point for me personaly where i simply would have to relinquish my season ticket .

 

[Giraffe]

The club seems to think the priority should be increasing revenues and cutting costs to allow them to keep paying competitive wages which will compete for promotion.

I'd rather the club used FFP as a catalyst to bring wages etc in control and make football more affordable. Not simply pass on the additional costs to supporters.

Agree completely with this.

It strikes me English football is just waiting for the equivalent of the banking crisis. We all knew that people's debt was getting too high, we all happily ploughed on with being offered ridiculous terms on mortgages and credit cards but then it went boom.

Football is doing the same. You can't expect to constantly try and bridge the gap between player wage demands and the FFP by increasing turnover from supporters. Eventually it will become unafforable and attendances will drop.

Clubs should be getting together and saying this has to stop, wages are far too high, and in the long term unsustainable. If wealthy owners want to subsidise this I guess it is up to them, but it not right to constantly ask the fan to dip into his pocket as well.

 

[Dave the OAP]

I agree with the principle of this but the trouble is, Brighton can't act alone. We could reduce our wage bill by 75% but other clubs won't and we'll find ourselves playing local derbies with Lewes very swiftly. Using FFP as a catalyst to reduce wages will work only if other clubs did as well

This 100%

My fear is that some clubs will gamble and to hell with the consequences....but we have always been a " right on" type club, so I expect people see it as a feather in the cap that we are the leaders of this FFP and we can take the moral high ground

 

[Blue Valkyrie]

It's a balance.

Everyone has different levels of 'affordability' and it's right that a certain amount of cheaper tickets are available.


Tony is funding the capped FFP loss himself, something he choses to do. He could easily chose not to do this, so perhaps a little less moaning would be a welcome thing.

However, and ironically a moan...

The PR, and advance communication from the club, has been a disaster recently.

Too many redundancies in that department

 

[Pavilionaire]

I don't think people should overlook the effect transfer fees can have on this situation.

We're losing £8million a season but have done so without any meaningful transfer income in. This situation won't continue; either we go up or some of our best players get sold. Personally, I think we could get a decent amount of money for Barnes or CMS and still manage just fine.

That said, I don't want us to become a selling club, but the costs have to be sustainable, and the travel / stewarding costs are a millstone around our necks.

 

[8ace]

EPL football

 

[brakespear]

I can't afford it now and I'm sure there are others for whom it's the same - but I'd still rather my club were successful than not, although possibly not at *any* price.

 

[Albumen]

The club are cutting back everywhere, hence the mass redundancy recently. But also we're now seeing the reduction of excess services that other clubs don't have simply because we can't afford it. You can't just reduce the players salaries just like that either, there will be more emphasis on cheap youth but also not throwing money at any more Vicentes. It's sensible and affordable, and with the right manager and tactics, a route to the premiership. I'd rather pay another £5 a month if we're to see the top clubs here.