Another interesting idea from the Dons Trust. They seem to come up with something like this every few years. Obviously it hits future revenue.

https://www.afcwimbledon.co.uk/news/2021/may/25-year-season-tickets-explained/

I think the National Trust do a Life memberships...but they bank on a reasonable idea of how long their typical visitors have left.

Quoted from Southwark Mariner

I think the National Trust do a Life memberships...but they bank on a reasonable idea of how long their typical visitors have left.

They do. My ex-wife’s grandmother bought us life memberships. Think we must have been well below the average age 😁.

Think it’s very much specific to their particular circumstances & need for a big cash injection in the short term.

Fair play to them though, always innovative in how they approach things and I was amazed at the amount of money they raised from fans to fund their new ground.

Quoted from ska face

Think it’s very much specific to their particular circumstances & need for a big cash injection in the short term.

Fair play to them though, always innovative in how they approach things and I was amazed at the amount of money they raised from fans to fund their new ground.

Like this you mean?

https://www.afcwimbledon.co.uk/news/2020/june/solutions-for-season-2021-we-want-your-views/

Or this?

https://www.wimbledonguardian.co.uk/news/18248836.afc-wimbledon-fans-raise-5m-plough-lane-development/

They did something similar to finance the purchase of the lease on Kingsmeadow.

So basically they have a 5m hole in their budgets and if they dont get it paid off or stay in League 1 they will be on thin ice.
Sounds like they heading into a financial downward spiral to me.

Quoted from KingstonMariner

Or this?

https://www.wimbledonguardian.co.uk/news/18248836.afc-wimbledon-fans-raise-5m-plough-lane-development/

They did something similar to finance the purchase of the lease on Kingsmeadow.

Yeah, that’s what I just said wasn’t it.

Not sure something similar would work, or necessarily be needed, here but shows what can be achieved when you approach recurring, annual issues like season tickets with some fresh thinking.

Yeah I wasn’t suggesting it was something we should do. Just that there are all sorts of ideas out there. Ways that a fan owned club can operate and cover non-recurrent costs.

Quoted from moosey_club

So basically they have a 5m hole in their budgets and if they dont get it paid off or stay in League 1 they will be on thin ice.
Sounds like they heading into a financial downward spiral to me.

They don’t have a £5m hole in their budgets. It’s just a cheaper way of covering a capital cost than a commercial loan.

Obviously it will impact on their revenue down the line but they have allowed for that in their planning.

They’re expecting a £1m loss this season.

Quoted from KingstonMariner

They’re expecting a £1m loss this season.

I wonder what our new incumbents are hoping for from the next season?

Could they be planning on making a loss from their initial investments in the pitches, on top of a high end budget for players and then possibly extra backroom staff etc etc

Spendthrift F***wit F**** proudly managed to keep the books balanced but that was because had no investment in anything. Almost the polar opposite of what 1878 are planning on by the sounds of it.

I suppose it depends on how they intend to fund the new pitch and training pitch. It might be a loan, it might be funded by the Dembele money, they might pay it themselves or (most unlikely) it might be from the operating budget but we know that is likely to be maxed out on the squad.

Yep do it here in Bristol Rugby. Sold a good number too.

Can’t seem to find out how much a regular ST is to calculate the cost...anyone any ideas?

I guess it makes sense when you read the rationale and they’re not looking to shift thousands of them.

It’s rare, unless you end up with a Fenty situation or club falling apart that people wouldn’t get a ST, most seem to have them for life...

Quoted from aldi_01

Can’t seem to find out how much a regular ST is to calculate the cost...anyone any ideas?

I guess it makes sense when you read the rationale and they’re not looking to shift thousands of them.

It’s rare, unless you end up with a Fenty situation or club falling apart that people wouldn’t get a ST, most seem to have them for life...

I did a bit of digging and I believe it’s 10k and they’re trying to shift as many as possible (before then launching 5 and 10 year season tickets - which they’d rather not do!). Was quite hard to get any figures though.

I’d imagine the demographic of Wimbledon supporters must be somewhat wealthy but for them to have launched three similar schemes in recent years makes you ask serious questions about sustainability. Supporters pockets only go so far irrelevant of loyalty.

Just a guide going on the Wimbledon deal.

GTFC 2019/2020 Adult Season ticket for the Young's Upper Stand (£360)  

25 x £360 =  £9,000

No discount but fixed price for 25 years (5% discount for debenture holders)
The 25-year season ticket can be transferred or left in your will.

I seem to recall something about Bury offering "life season tickets" about 20 years ago - that didn't turn out well!

Quoted from Zero_as_a_limit

I seem to recall something about Bury offering "life season tickets" about 20 years ago - that didn't turn out well!

Don't know about Bury but Bradford City did the 25 year season tickets when Geoffrey Richmond was chairman. They then went into administration and all these loyal 25-year season ticket holders were left high and dry. The only concession given was that they received a discount on the normal season price from then on.

I wouldn't touch such an offer with a barge pole.

UTM

Quoted from bradzmilne

I did a bit of digging and I believe it’s 10k and they’re trying to shift as many as possible (before then launching 5 and 10 year season tickets - which they’d rather not do!). Was quite hard to get any figures though.

I’d imagine the demographic of Wimbledon supporters must be somewhat wealthy but for them to have launched three similar schemes in recent years makes you ask serious questions about sustainability. Supporters pockets only go so far irrelevant of loyalty.

They’re not. They explicitly stated a couple of times in that article that they are aiming for 500 maximum, with an initial target of 200.

Wimbledon supporters are better off on average than Town fans, in terms of income. Obviously housing is much more expensive (3x).

I don’t think any of the schemes were gifts from supporters. There was some form of economic benefit as well as helping the club. But you’re right there is a limit.

The other factor is in all this is that if they finished off the stadium with commercial loans it would be more expensive.

Very interesting.  If we shifted 500 25-year season tickets on the figures punted about above we would bring in £4.5million which would be a very significant amount.

Countering that you're then look at approx. £180,000 a summer down on your usual season ticket income.  Let's face it the people who commit to a 25-year deal are likely to be buying one every year regardless.

Then to flip it again, is the new stadium likely to generate more than £180,000 a year extra based on the new facilities etc.  

Purely at face value, it looks a smart move to me.  Put it this way, if it came to it and Town needed to find that money for the new stadium and we were confident new facilities would bring in an extra £180,000 a year (which isn't unreasonable at all) to cover the loss of ticket sales, I'd be all for it.

As others have said, shifting 500 at £9,000 a pop wouldn't be easy at all here. But it really does show that you can be a bit more inventive than just churning out the same crap every season and expecting things to improve.

I see Motherwell are giving free season tickets next season to those who bought one for this season. Great gesture by the club.

Quoted from BottesfordMariner

I see Motherwell are giving free season tickets next season to those who bought one for this season. Great gesture by the club.

That’s amazing. Got to question how they can afford it though. Unless only a handful bought them.

The theory of a 25 year season ticket sounds reasonable, however you also have to live for 25 years which I doubt I will. But you never know!

Quoted from KingstonMariner

That’s amazing. Got to question how they can afford it though. Unless only a handful bought them.

Good point. I can't see in the report how many they sold.

I think 1878 said they were looking to make an announcement this week regards those who bought tickets last year.

As someone who bought one, I've written this off as a very expensive iFollow pass.  The offer of a voucher for a calendar was an insult from the previous regime, still also waiting for the 'thank you' that Day mentioned those who wrote off the remainder of the 19/20 tickets.

All in, completely written off as money that's gone.  Any expectation I had for something/anything back laid with the previous ownership.  I don't expect anything from 1878, anything they do come forward with will be seen as a fantastic gesture in my eyes.

Quoted from DB

The theory of a 25 year season ticket sounds reasonable, however you also have to live for 25 years which I doubt I will. But you never know!

In the Wimbledon scheme can leave it in your will.

[for the avoidance of doubt, I am not advocating Town do this, merely that it is an interesting idea for saving money on expensive commercial loans, and shows fan-owned clubs can come up with novel solutions]

I'm expecting a carefully thought-out pricing structure to get bums on seats without cannibalizing revenues. Lower-priced season tickets for Pontoon and Main Stand to try and near fill them. Day trip exiles like me will be happy to pay the same as the matchday League 2 price for the Upper or Lower Young's so apart from discount for those that bought last season Young's ST prices could stay the same..

No away team is going to fill the Osmond - Notts couldn't fill it when they needed a win to take them to the verge of promotion. At the most we are talking 5-700. Chesterfield travel ok if doing well as will Stockport if not promoted. If ST have sold well the Osmond can be opened for unreserved seating at a keen matchday price with away fans in the Osmond / Main corner.

Can BP be licensed for standing? Why not offer 200 adult / kid combo tickets for standing against the fence line in the corners at a £10 a pop?

I think we're still covered by the all-seater rule that came in when we were in the First Division.

Quoted from KingstonMariner

I think we're still covered by the all-seater rule that came in when we were in the First Division.

Can we make a licence application to have some standing? Other clubs have done it for safe standing with stadiums that are otherwise all-seater. A couple of hundred standing in the corners would sensibly be treated as de minimus, unfortunately, common sense often doesn't apply in these cases.

AP mentioned that redevelopment of BP might be an option. Be great to have a new rail seat Pontoon that wrapped around the corners. Manchester City are installing 5,600 rail seats (might be the biggest standing area at any stadium in the UK now?). The Kippax at Maine Road used to be the biggest all standing at 35,000 (26,500 in 1980) in England after Charlton closed the Valley.
We could probably get 4k at the Pontoon end and corners with safe standing. That would take BP to 11k plus. Enough for now...

Quoted from KingstonMariner

They don’t have a £5m hole in their budgets. It’s just a cheaper way of covering a capital cost than a commercial loan.

Obviously it will impact on their revenue down the line but they have allowed for that in their planning.

They’re expecting a £1m loss this season.

£1m loss this season, must pay £4.1m loan back before April...that's £5m hole isnt it?

Quoted from moosey_club

£1m loss this season, must pay £4.1m loan back before April...that's £5m hole isnt it?

About 5 X 3-bed houses in Wimbledon isn't it? Gy equivalent would be £750k on that basis...

Quoted from moosey_club

£1m loss this season, must pay £4.1m loan back before April...that's £5m hole isnt it?

No. They can get another loan to pay off the £4. The point is it’s cheaper to sell 500 25 year season tickets.

It’s a bit like your mortgage term coming to an end. You need to get a new mortgage but you don’t call that a ‘hole’.

Quoted from KingstonMariner

No. They can get another loan to pay off the £4. The point is it’s cheaper to sell 500 25 year season tickets.

It’s a bit like your mortgage term coming to an end. You need to get a new mortgage but you don’t call that a ‘hole’.

But thats not how they are selling it is it ? They want to sell these tickets to become debt free.

However fair play to them in what they have acheived so far in the time they have been formed.

Quoted from moosey_club

But thats not how they are selling it is it ? They want to sell these tickets to become debt free.

However fair play to them in what they have acheived so far in the time they have been formed.

Incorrect. They want to sell these tickets to reduce the cost of the bridging loan. To reduce the cost of interest. They still in effect will ‘owe’ £4m worth of services (on a reducing basis) to the supporters who buy them.

I think the idea is a good one and probably being sold to the fans with much more transparency than those sold at Bradford for example.

I’d imagine they’ll probably get all 500 shifted although I’d imagine they’re using some sort of finance scheme to fund the purchase? Even down there, not many folk have 10/20k stuffed in an account waiting to be spent on a hobby...