Darren Eales issues Newcastle United ticket update

Darren Eales has pledged to keep tickets affordable at Newcastle United.
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The club's owners are looking to take the team to the top of the domestic and European game – but they won’t leave fans behind.

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Newcastle United plan stadium expansion amid unprecedented ticket demand
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Elsewhere in the Premier League, ticket and season-ticket prices have risen to unaffordable levels. United, according to Eales, will look to improve the premium tickets it is able to offer to fans while keeping the prices in other areas down.

Asked if the club, which is looking at pricing around the stadium, was committed to keeping tickets affordable, Eales said: “That’s absolutely fundamental.

“Everything we do has to be through the lens of the supporters. What does that mean? Well, a huge part of what makes Newcastle United the club that it is, is the passion of the supporters and the atmosphere that’s generated here inside St James’s Park.

“It was funny watching the Arsenal game at the end of last season in the United States, knowing I was going to be coming here. You could see Arsenal visibly wilt that day because of the energy and passion inside the stadium.

Newcastle United fans display a flag at St James's Park.Newcastle United fans display a flag at St James's Park.
Newcastle United fans display a flag at St James's Park.
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“Talking to Eddie (Howe, United’s head coach) and the players, they feel it too and feel it’s absolutely fundamental to what the club is. They love it and want that interaction between them and the supporters.

“I think that is clearly a huge part of Newcastle United’s identity, and it’s something we have to be mindful of when we’re making decisions.

“Now, we also have to get to a level where we want to be able to grow and support the team on the pitch as much as we possibly can, so we have to be smart in how we’re bringing in commercial revenues.

“But, the reality is, that doesn’t just mean we ratchet up the prices right around the ground to price people out, because that would be crazy.

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“We have to be thinking about what we can do, and where are there abilities for us to create an experience that people maybe are prepared to pay a higher price for, because it’s delivering value.

“If people want to pay that, we want them to be able to have that ability. But we also don’t want to be pricing out huge swathes of our fanbase. There has to be a trade-off.

“If we want to be creating that atmosphere, there may be some opportunities where we talk to the supporters and say ‘look, we want to do this – are you guys OK with it, because it’s going to help us bring in extra revenue?’.

“We need to compete, but that doesn’t mean we have to double the season-ticket prices – or price people out of the ground.

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“We need a dialogue and collaboration, but I hope the supporters know there is a genuine understanding throughout the ownership group of what makes Newcastle special, and that’s the supporters, the atmosphere and that engagement with the club.

“Everything has to be decided through that lens. It doesn’t mean everyone’s going to agree with everything, because there’s always going to be different factors at play.

"But it’s always going to be a fundamental part of the equation.”