I make no apologies that this match missive will be different from my norm and long. But I need to get this off my chest. Not related to anyone here. And I sincerely hope it will be very pertinent for everyone to understand the main issue of the past week that affects every last one of you reading.
There was absolutely nothing good to take out of that game last night bar what happened before KO. Which got the loudest cheer and applause of the entire night from everyone in the ground who fully understands why a stand
HAS to be made against the rising cost of football and the very, VERY worrying direction of travel the game is once again going.
The unified support for both Spion Kop 1906 and the SOS’s decision to remove the flags pre-game from the Kop (Which L’pool themselves forced to happen by refusing to listen to supporters representatives, conveying supporters views, in the first, formal part of the process ….. If the club won’t listen and engage in discussion, then protest is your
ONLY alternative!), was heartwarmingly brilliant to witness. Myself personally, like the vast majority in Anfield last night, couldn’t be prouder to stand in solidarity alongside Spion Kop 1906 and the SOS. Two outstanding fan organisations that give every last one of us a voice in a PL where our club, and the 19 others, don’t care about the very lifeblood of the game. Supporters. Without whom there is NO PL. NO game. And by association,
NO LFC. And they do it in a very dignified manner that upholds and protects the core values of our support.
They didn’t turn around and say we’d boycott the game. They didn’t turn around and say we’d withdraw our support. (The lack of pretty much anything on the pitch last night was what lead to a subdued crowd. As has always been the case, one begets the other. And the lack of flags had absolutely
NOTHING to do with that. A flag has never cheered for anyone.
We turned up in great number, as always, to support our side.). What they said was simply this ….
’See them flags that you market the club on? That everyone on the TV loves to see with the colour they generate. That fans the World over identify with and are drawn to support LFC in the first place? Sound. Don’t engage with us. Take us all for granted and we’ll take that part of the experience you love to market the heck out of away. Whilst not impacting in any way, shape or form on the team or our support of them and their chances of advancing to Dublin and winning the PL.’
People who don’t go the game and aren’t affected by yet another hit in your wallet at the match have madly become fixated over the past week with the ‘2%, lowest in the league, increase on both season and general match day tickets’ line. Which is actually 4% over the last two years as this is the second successive increase. With the subsequent flippant, insulting nonsense about it being ‘under inflation/ everything else in life has increased/ you should be grateful as you are privileged to go the game’ et al. Conveniently ignoring the fact that you are starting form a position where football tickets are
MASSIVELY over priced to begin with and out of proportion with most things in life. The increase in tickets over the duration of the PL is something like 1200/1300 %!!!!!
WELL above inflation over the duration. We only have £30 away tickets (Which is still way too high), across the board in the PL down to similar protests from ourselves in standing up for football supporters everywhere. Tickets which were regularly pushing £50/ 60 a game and, worryingly, could well be again when that agreement is up next year. We’ve suffered that creeping back in first hand this season alone. At Bournemouth and Utd in the Cups with massive price hikes on tickets over the PL maximum. Clubs like Arsenal and Tottenham are doing away with child and senior reductions on their tickets from next season. More and more games getting flipped at the shortest of notice to mad KO in the new TV deal. Often after people have already booked travel. The list goes on and on and on …..
Just like when we walked out in 2016 against Sunderland, the direction of travel all PL clubs are once again taking is excessively worrying for the future of football support. They’ve already priced many traditional fans out of the game. And they are now circling back to attempting to attract those with the highest bank balances who don’t have anything like the dedication those of us that have given the majority of our lives to our club do.
This is even more concerning as regards our own club being from the City it represents. Not only is our home ground in one of the most deprived wards in the Country. But Liverpool is not a wealthy City by any means- the gross domestic household income here is £16k. Compared to £21k nationally (per head). You increase prices again and again and again and you drive a growing wedge in the City toward the football club that bares the City’s name we live for. Tell us again it’s only 2% and we should be grateful and privileged to accept it …..
Having no flags on The Kop before KO is a glimpse into the future if LFC continues down its path of pricing out long standing fans from going every week. The very same lads and lasses who make sacrifices many saying they’d love to go regularly just wouldn’t make. Who have dedicated a massive part of their life to supporting this football club. And who take that dedication on another level in both time spent, and money paid, to produce those flags and banners that are uniquely us. Continue pricing that traditional support out, and that tradition will dwindle to nothing.
Withdraw them once and make a stand, or lose them forever before too much longer. As the old adage goes, give them (football clubs) an inch, and they’ll take a mile! All from, in our instance, a club that doesn’t need the pittance extra it will make from this. That is already up on match day revenue next season with both an expanded capacity. And expanded CL meaning you have no choice but to buy the extra game. (Or 2 if you end up in the playoff round.). With CL prices returning to full price unlike the staggered Europa price this season. Just pure, out and out greed when they could, and should, be subsidising their own without feeling the pinch. Ticket revenue is minuscule to our income today and our third highest revenue stream. Which is dwarfed by TV revenue and the commercial side. A totally unneeded and unwarranted move from the club.
The efforts of those few to benefit the many in Anfield looks and feels suddenly to be much more valued than it was 24 hours ago. Hopefully, the club will now see it that way too and recognise the need for meaningful discussion with the experts here on support who are the most important component in it all.
US!!!!!
You may or may not have read to this point. You may still not get it and may still not care as any price rise doesn’t affect you. But I would ask you to think on this in closing …..
Over the past few days I’ve honestly never felt more disconnected to the online support of my club. The absolute disingenuous, highly insulting garbage slung our way over us standing up and making a stand for
ALL supporters has been abhorrent. To be polite. On Monday, I won’t be in work as my head will be wrecked as it always is on April 15. A day that irrevocably changed my life forever when there but for the Grace of Gd I nearly made the ultimate, tragic sacrifice following my club. A club I, like many others, have dedicated a large portion of my life to with sacrifices, financial and personal, no sane human being ever should. So when I read, either directed at myself or any of my fellow, match going supporters, some of the ill-informed abuse that has been slung our way on-line …..
All I can say is thank **** that the people I actually see each and every match day get it. And I only hope you’ll now understand why standing up to the latest price increase and refusing to be taken for granted is so, SO important for everyone and the generations of supporters to follow.
Showing contempt and disdain for the core local support of a team that you have chosen to support is beyond proper grim and just fuels the divisional narrative the greed of the clubs and the PL want.
Enjoy your Friday. We’ll get back on track Sunday against Palace!
UTR.
FTT!!!!!
