The City chief executive has revealed season tickets will be reduced in price and the North Stand will be closed next season...
Coventry City chief executive Steve Waggott has written to Season Ticket holders who sat in the North Stand, Block 25 or the Family Zone this season to let them know of changes for the 2015/16 campaign.
In the letter, the Sky Blues chief executive admits that the timing is not ideal ahead of the game at Crawley but, with Season Tickets going on sale shortly and after consultation with supporters groups, he wanted to communicate those changes directly to fans affected.
The letter, which was posted on Thursday, said: “I am writing to you today regarding next season. It’s not an ideal time, given the circumstances, but I felt it important to contact you personally in advance about changes that will be implemented for the 2015/16 campaign as Season Tickets will be going on sale very shortly.
“Firstly, Season Tickets will be reduced in price. I’ve listened to supporters since our return to the Ricoh Arena regarding concerns around the affordability of football and have acted to bring down the cost of supporting your team week-in, week-out.
“We are also having a flat rate for adult and concession Season Ticket prices – so there won’t be a premium zone next season. More information on that as well as prices and sales dates will be on our website – www.ccfc.co.uk – soon.
“As I mentioned above, we are making a few other changes – largely to improve the atmosphere inside the Ricoh Arena by bringing supporters closer together but also to reduce the cost of opening the stadium completely when it is less than 50 per cent full.
“We have spoken to and consulted a range of supporters on these changes and the reasons for them and, coupled with the drop in prices, the feedback has been positive and there has been real understanding of what we are trying to do. We’ve looked at several alternatives but none were suitable at this stage.
“So the changes for the 2015/16 season are:
- Only the East and West Stands will be available for Season Ticket holders. The North Stand will only open for games when there is demand on a match-by-match basis.
- Our Family Zone will be moving from its current position to blocks 23 and 24 in the East Stand.
- Block 25 will no longer be available to purchase a Season Ticket in as it will be the area we use for group and schools packages in the 2015/16 season. It is also where cameras are placed during televised matches.
“We looked at alternatives to these changes but none were viable at this stage, which is not to say we have ruled them out for the future.
“We are, however, working with the Supporters Consultative Group on options regarding a partial opening of the South Stand to present our proposals to the independent Safety Advisory Group. If this option becomes available, we will move fans who have already purchased a Season Ticket elsewhere to that area for free – should they wish to do so.
“Please, if you have any questions or queries on any of the above, get in touch with the ticketing team and they will do everything they can to help.
“Thank you for your continued support and, we all agree, it’s vital that we get the right result on Sunday. Then it’s all systems go in terms of making sure we can be challenging at the top end of the table next season.”