Why are Chelsea fans angry over tickets?
- Published
Fresh from winning the Club World Cup, a triumph in the Conference League, a return to Champions League football and unprecedented investment in the squad, things should be rosy between Chelsea's ownership and supporters.
But one month into the season relations between parts of the fanbase and the club hierarchy have turned sour.
Issues around tickets, particularly the resale of tickets and touting for in-demand matches, are at the heart of the matter.
So what is driving fan frustration, what is the club doing about it and what does it say about the current climate in the Premier League?
The cheapest adult ticket for the Benfica match in the Champions League this week was £66 for members and £71 for non-members. By comparison, Arsenal charge a minimum of £78 for their Category A matches, while Tottenham charge £71.
Chelsea sources, when asked by BBC Sport, said their price rises align with English football trends.
They added that fans can access a cheaper rate by purchasing a bundle for all four home matches - against Benfica, Ajax, Barcelona, and Pafos - and noted that the elected fan advisory board, which includes supporters' group members, was consulted before the ticketing policy was announced.
Chelsea are unique in that they have particularly outsized demand for matches amid efforts to expand their 40,000-seater stadium or, indeed, build a new one under the Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital ownership.
They have roughly 28,000 season ticket holders, between 4,000 and 5,000 tickets available to members and about 3,000 for away supporters - with the rest being available to hospitality, including the dugout club charging (likely a Premier League record) £12,500 for a single seat behind the home and away benches for big matches last season.
There were said to be about 90,000 members in 2024-25 but it is unclear what proportion were touts.
In a report on the wider cost of football last season, Manchester United Supporters' Trust CEO Duncan Drasdo said: "We are all fighting the same fight on ticket prices. Clubs are exploiting loyalty and fans are united in saying enough is enough."
His comments came after 19 of the Premier League's 20 clubs raised their ticket prices before the 2024-25 season, prompting the Football Supporters' Association (FSA) to start a campaign called 'Stop Exploiting Loyalty'.
Tens of thousands of tickets are listed on third-party websites, including Vivid Seats, where Chelsea owner Boehly is a director.