Chelsea's ticket sales

[BLUENUT]

Last night I seriously began to question my relationship with Chelsea football club. After the team gave me one of the best weeks of my life as a Chelsea supporter, a trip to Wembley, and that cracking quarter final against Liverpool, I sat there last night watching us play Everton, in a game that seemed totally insignificant after a brief browse through the programme.

Let me explain........... Last week, in our last home game, we played Liverpool in one of the greatest games of football I think I've ever witnessed. We qualified to play Barcalona in the semi's a few weeks later. Last night Iooked through the programme to find out when the tickets went on sale for Barcalona, remember it is our first home game since progressing past Liverpool 8 days ago. The programme said the match was SOLD OUT.

Have you ever been to a Chelsea final and lost. Have you ever witnessed us lose to a lower division club in the 3rd round of the cup, remember when Jose was sacked? Well none of these emotions came close to how I felt knowing that someone else will be sitting in MY SEAT, a seat I have had since the Matthew Harding stand was built, at home to Barcalona in the semi final of the European cup - nights you only dream of as a football fan!! I cannot begin to explain how angry I am at the club's ticketing policy.

It must be my fault, I did purchase a Liverpool programme and didn't really read it thoroughly. The details of the ticket sales for the semi final must have been pencilled in under 'If we qualify for tonights game etc.....'' I checked the Liverpool programme when I got home and no ticket information was on the box-office page.

I found out from a fans sitting near me that the semi-final ticket went on sale to season ticket holders on the internet at 07.00 the day after the Liverpool match, about 9 hours after we beat Liverpool infact.

I also read in last nights programme that season ticket holder were able to purchase tickets up until 17:00 yesterday for the away game. Talk about telling you after the event!!!!!

I'm still absolutely fuming after supporting the club all my life, being a member for over 30 years and a season ticket holder for over 15 years that it has come to this. The result and match was insignificant to me last night, I honestly felt I had been kicked in the teeth and have never felt so defranchised from the club in my life.I just wanted to get up and walk out, with about 5 mins played! It felt like finding out the best girl you've ever had in you life was sleeping with a bald bloke called Kenyon.

To make it even worse I have received emails from the club in the past week reminding me my season ticket is up for renewal, (several in fact), do I want a stadium tour, kids go free with an adult, and do I want to come and have a meal in Marco Pierre f**king Whites restaurant - not one mention of the Barcalona tickets or when they went on sale!!!!!

My blood is still boiling!!!

With no ticket announcement in the programmes, no email, no letter, no information at all (apart from going onto the Chelsea website) - the club have sold my ticket behind my back, I can't see it any other way - the game is still a fortnight away, why sell them 9 hours after qualifying?!?

If anyone is looking for tickets to our last to 2 home games of the season let me know, there are 3 season tickets (together) in the MH upper for sale, face value £300 for the 3 tickets to Chelsea's last 2 home games, I never thought Chelsea would ever make me feel this way, but right now I don't want to be anywhere near the place - and I'm seriously having doubt's about renewing them.

I'm absolutely F*cking furious!!!

[andy]

Mate.. I am in exactly the same position as you and the exact same thing happened to me... No communication by email or anything. I actually missed the pool game thorugh no fault of my own, long story not relevant, but I just asumed that I would purchase my Barca ticket in the normal fashion.

to add another insult to injury.. the stadium announcer at half time annouced the tickets were for sale.. then had to come back and correct himself !

I am gutted, but any protest will fall on deaf ears I feel

[Pudge]

It was very quick

We only just managed to get them as luckily enough the bloke who sits in front of me came round to do a plumbing quote on the Friday and told us

I ended up at a funeral in the afternoon waiting for the hearse to arrive on the phone to the box office after ringing everyone else up to inform them

It was very badly managed

Maybe a call to the club might help - they sometime get returns

I'm sure it will be the same for the cup final

Last time it was only by luck someone walked past the ground to realise they were queuing from 1 oclock the day before and closed the ground to people by 9 pm when we were originally going to go down about 10 oclock that night to queue

You need to be on the ball with Chelsea - they don't care because the seats will be sold whatever

[BLUENUT]

they don't care because the seats will be sold whatever

That's exactly it.

Whats the point in being a season ticket hold if you're treated to ticket sales in such a underhand way?!?

The money spent on it may aswell be used going to the odd game here and there, then paying up and buying a ticket from a tout for the big game's you really want to go to, it actually works out cheaper.

Saturday afternoon's have always been spent going to the football with my brother and dad, having a get together and a lads day out, I don't want to lose that, but the club are taking the absolute piss out of me.

As a supporter I'm looking towards the end of the season and won't be going to the European cup semi-final because the cub sold my ticket behind my back, I have to enter some kind of free for all to get an FA cup final ticket, and realistically don't know the chance of getting one if we get to Rome. What's the point., really.....what's the f*cking point or advantage in having a season ticket.

[BlueBeard]

The way the club treats the fans is just one of the reasons I don't go anymore.

[Guest Sindre]

What is the price for a season ticket at SB? Totaly see that you are pissed about this by the way.

Edited April 23, 2009 by Sindre

[BLUENUT]

What is the price for a season ticket at SB? Totaly see that you are pissed about this by the way.

Can't remember the exact amount, I think it was about £790, its stayed the same for a few years.

So all in all, between the 3 of us, we pay over £2k a year to get treated like c*nts

[Zola's Love Child]

It is incredible depressing that your story doesn't even surprise me BlueNut. They sure did do a good job on alienating the fans who don't take please in reading the programme at matches, or those who, god forbid, celebrated the CL game afterwards, and had hangover issues until the following noon....

[BLUENUT]

It is incredible depressing that your story doesn't even surprise me BlueNut. They sure did do a good job on alienating the fans who don't take please in reading the programme at matches, or those who, god forbid, celebrated the CL game afterwards, and had hangover issues until the following noon....

Thats the trouble though - it wasn't even in the programmes.

[Mike O]

The way the club treats the fans is just one of the reasons I don't go anymore.

Ditto for me. I gave my seat up after 15 years in 05/06 because the numpties couldn't get their heads around my wanting to move to the family section with my boy. Having said it wouldn't be a problem, they then reneged on the deal saying no seats were available and sold my original seat off behind my back.

Ultimately, they made me feel that I'd be the stupidest twat ever to spend money with them again.

[Backbiter]

Gutted for you, BlueNut. My brother is on the Fans Forum and gets to grill Kenyon every so often. I'll make sure your feelings are expressed publicly. It won't help, but at least the anger and disgust of loyal supporters will be put across and he'll have to answer for the club's shocking treatment of its core following.

[Barn]

It's sh*te that it's happened and it shouldn't be allowed to happen, what is a bigger concern is that not all season ticket holders don't have a computer and so would have no chance of ever finiding out about such seat sales.

We get a lot of stick for only having newbie fans and those of us that are of the old brigade feel hurt by it, then every now and then the club try to do something to prove that they understand and value the history of the club, then this happens that just proves that all they care about is the money comming through the door.

[bonetti]

Ive felt the same way since being treated like sh*t at the Spuds match at the beginning of the season. 600 supporters missed the 1st half coz of the new gate system - The ticket office staff could not give a f**k

[Mr Chelsea]

thats disgusting that is Bluenut

you should as a loyal customer and supporter be offered first refusal on your seat for any home game regardless of which competition and who the opposition is

[Guest bigjockknew]

That really is sh*te, they forget at times what the club should be about - loyal fans. You should get first refusal on your own seat and if you don't want it or can't use it then it should be up for grabs.

I really can't stand it when clubs f**k over their best supporters and the people who should be going to games either can't or justifiably get so pissed off they don't go back

[andy]

thats disgusting that is Bluenut

you should as a loyal customer and supporter be offered first refusal on your seat for any home game regardless of which competition and who the opposition is

They do give us first refusal to buy our own seat for the match.. which is fine and correct.

The problem being it has been standard practice to give us minimum of a week (even when the timesales are short) usually about 3 weeks to buy our tickets, these went on sale the next day and were sold out before we even knew about it, some of us dont spend loads of time on the internet, I travel a lot for my work so have bouts of not logging on for a few days now and again.

They manage to email us about re-newing season tickets, promotional offers, apply for a Chelsea credit card etc, but no email saying Barca tickets are on sale.

Both of us found out at the Everton match less than a week later that they are sold out... myself have hardly missed a match home and away incl. Europe (and including Moscow last year) for years now. As Bluenut says, make sus feel why bother.

[BLUENUT]

They do give us first refusal to buy our own seat for the match.. which is fine and correct.

The problem being it has been standard practice to give us minimum of a week (even when the timesales are short) usually about 3 weeks to buy our tickets, these went on sale the next day and were sold out before we even knew about it, some of us dont spend loads of time on the internet, I travel a lot for my work so have bouts of not logging on for a few days now and again.

They manage to email us about re-newing season tickets, promotional offers, apply for a Chelsea credit card etc, but no email saying Barca tickets are on sale.

Both of us found out at the Everton match less than a week later that they are sold out... myself have hardly missed a match home and away incl. Europe (and including Moscow last year) for years now. As Bluenut says, make sus feel why bother.

Like Andy says, we are supposed to get first refusal, but don't tell us in the next home games programme that the game is sold out, without even telling us when they went on sale.