Man Utd branded a ‘total disgrace’ for raising ticket prices for pensioners by 57% to help fund £2bn stadium
MANCHESTER UNITED have been branded “shameful” and “a total disgrace” over raising season ticket prices by up to 57% for OAPs.
On the day Old Trafford legend Paul Scholes accused his former club of “begging a little” for funds to help pay for a new £2billion 100,000- seater stadium supporters raged over the increases hitting pensioners.
Man Utd fans have been left furious with the changes[/caption]
Paul Scholes has made scathing comments[/caption]
Man Utd confirmed that the age at which senior fans receive a 25 per cent discount will now be 66 – with supporters who previously received 50 per cent off seeing their discounts halved.
One posted on social media: “My mum is 77. Her ticket has gone up from £494 to £840.1975.”
Another complained that her mum, also aged 77, would from the next campaign have to pay £612.75, up from £389.50, saying “It’s disgusting.”
Amidst the online storm following a cut of 50 per cent on concession rates for the elderly, another fumed: “I can’t believe what I’m reading.
“Supporters over 70 who’ve been watching United for 60-plus years saying their season tickets have gone up over 50 per cent – what has happened to our club when we are treating the most loyalist of fans like this? Shameful.”
Fan group the 1958 piled into the controversy after United this week announced a five per cent price increase and as well as well as advising some fans that they would be forced to change seats to accommodate a new hospitality area near boss Rubin Amorim’s dug out.
In a statement the group condemned what it called “stealth” rises, saying: “Our seniors are facing effectively a 57 per cent increase on next season. Our most loyal generation of fans who have supported the club for decades.
“This is the first phase of reducing the amount of season ticket holders.
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“We have always campaigned that the club are trying to marginalise match going fans.
“Cutting the 50 per cent OAP concession to 25 per cent for those who had it is a total disgrace.”
The 1958, who staged a 15,000-strong demonstration against owners the Glazers before the recent home clash with Arsenal, stressed: “The fans are now directly paying for years of Glazer greed and generational damage they have caused to our club.”
The group also warned the rises, although prices for under-16s remain frozen, were a sign of things to come should part-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe succeed in building the new ground.
It warned : “This also paves the way for there never being any new season tickets issued now.
“It is also a stay of execution to put them up to whatever they want to if we ever move to a new stadium.
“These are all stealth increases to change the optics of the 5 per cent increase across all season ticket holders. Again, penny-wise and pound foolish.”
Meanwhile Scholes says Ratcliffe, who last week warned the club could have gone bust by Christmas without a series of swingeing cuts including job losses that are likely to total 450 shouldn’t be asking for outside cash to complete the new stadium.
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United will pay for the actual ground but are asking for public funds for the rest of the project that would include a wider regeneration of the Old Trafford area with Chancellor Rachel Reeves backing the plans.
Scholes, speaking on The Overlap Fan Debate brought by Sky Bet said: “You can be gullible at times, and believe what he [Sir Jim Ratcliffe] says, just because you’ve never heard anyone say anything before.
“You don’t know how realistic it is, it’s all up in the air.
“Words are cheap, and we could say anything about anyone, you can say in 10 years we’ll have the biggest and best stadium in the world, you can say anything.
“For a long time we’ve been called the richest club in the world.
“But I feel like we’re begging a little but, coming out and asking for the stadium and that we need £2billion, and selling players to buy players.”
Sir Jim Ratcliffe has again come under fire[/caption]
Man Utd ratings vs Leicester
MANCHESTER UNITED leapfrogged Tottenham into 13th in the Premier League by beating Leicester.
Rasmus Hojlund was left to run in behind and shoot low into the bottom corner from an angle to open the scoring on 28 minutes.
The Danish striker had not found the net since December 12 – a run of 21 matches.
Alejandro Garnacho saw a goal chalked off for offside but there was no taking his snap-shot finish off him on 67 minutes.
And skipper Bruno Fernandes rounded off the comfortable 3-0 win in style in the closing stages.
