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Life isn't easy at Bradford City. With a rent of £1.3M per season just to use the ground, the club needs to maximise income and support so they try and sell as many season tickets as possible.
Given they finished last season just above Hereford United, their average gate was 11,127, by far the highest in League Two. But, says Paul Newman in today's Independent, much of this is down to selling cheap season tickets.
After being relegated three times in seven years the club reduced season tickets to just £138 and up went the attendance.
Since the new pricing policy was introduced, the current season has been the only year in which season ticket sales fell below 10,000 (to 9,600).
Some 6,000 tickets for 2011-12 were sold (at an advance price of £150 each) in December last year, putting the club on course to match the 2010-11 figure. David Baldwin, the club's director of operations, said: "We started the Christmas campaign simply because I had a request from a grandparent asking: 'Why can't I buy a season ticket now for my grandson for next year as a Christmas present?' The first year we ran it 2,000 people took up the option, the second year 4,000 and the third year 6,000."
The final phase of sales for next season will start soon. Prices have not been announced yet, but the club have always kept the cost below £200. "Pricing is important," Baldwin said. "You have to realise that in the current economic climate."
Bradford offer season tickets at half-price to under-16s, while under-11s are admitted free if accompanied by an adult. "We know that around 18 per cent of a crowd of 10,000 are under-11s," Baldwin said.
"There's no greater way of promoting future fans than creating a situation where a dad can bring his son or daughter to a game for free. We hope that they become Bradford City fans for life."
The club's support is all the more remarkable when you consider what they have been through since losing their Premier League place 10 years ago. One of the last clubs to be relegated before the introduction of parachute payments, Bradford went into administration three years later, which resulted in their stadium and offices being sold off. They now have to pay £1.3m a year just to use the premises, including £750,000 in rent for the 25,500-capacity stadium.
"I think the vast majority of fans realise that we're operating in a difficult set of circumstances," Baldwin said. "We're carrying the costs of a Championship stadium and operating on a League Two budget."
He added: "We've had fantastic support when you consider the decade we've had as a club. We have very long-suffering fans and we're desperate to give them something to smile about in the future."
