Nottingham Forest have announced a huge rise in season ticket prices for next term, with fans set to have to pay an average of 24 per cent more to secure their seat.
The club announced the decision on Tuesday, despite Forest being in danger of dropping into the Championship with five games of the season remaining.
After being docked four points for breaching the Premier League’s financial rules last month – a verdict they have since appealed – Forest are just one point above the bottom three.
However, they have still opted to hike up prices, with the most expensive adult ticket for the 2024-25 season set to be £850, up from £660 for the current campaign.
The cheapest ticket has also gone up to £550 from £465, while a child season ticket has risen from £90 to more than double that figure at £190.
Age brackets have also been adjusted ahead of next season, with only 14 to 17-year-olds eligible for a youth season ticket, whereas the current range is 12 to 19-year-olds.
The changes are expected to generate £2m for Forest, and club chiefs have defended the price rises.
‘We aspire to keep our season cards amongst the most affordable in the league,’ chairman Tom Cartledge said.
‘At the same time, it is imperative that the club continues to grow financially in order to remain competitive, particularly in light of the forthcoming squad cost ratio rules which will cap spending as a percentage of club revenues.’
Forest are just the latest Premier League club to raise their prices, with Mail Sport recently explaining how season tickets could soon be killed off.
Liverpool fans protested during last week’s 3-0 defeat by Atalanta by boycotting flags inside Anfield after prices were increased by two per cent ahead of next season.
Manchester United have also put up their prices for the second straight year after a long freeze, while Burnley and Brentford have followed suit.
Meanwhile, Arsenal and Tottenham are not inviting any new OAP season-ticket holders – and are doing away with the idea of discounts for them.
Forest have two more home games this season against Manchester City and Chelsea, and it remains to be seen whether fans will protest during these fixtures.
The Nottingham Forest Supporters’ Trust released a statement last month where they called for the club to not increase ticket prices.
The statement read: ‘Following the trend of other Premier League club announcements of the “double whammy” of raising prices and removing/reducing concessions would not be in the best interests of our members who have demonstrated exceptional loyalty to Nottingham Forest over many years.’
They added: ‘The Trust challenges the club to do the same with 2024-25 ticket prices and repay the loyalty that has been given over many years.’
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