With us increasing the amount of games we are attending this season it got me thinking about the cost of tickets for entering a game especially in the women's game. It amazes me how cheap it can be to go watch some of the biggest teams yet attendances are nowhere near where they have the potential of being at. I am sure that there are plenty of factors that contribute to that but today's post is going to be a look at a few of the possible factors and what could be done to improve the numbers as with the cost of tickets they should be a whole lot higher than they currently are.
When the men's Euro's had some games in Wembley I actually looked at getting tickets but there was no chance to get them due to availability and those tickets that were available were an absolute fortune so I didn't bother going which I am still a bit gutted about as it was such a good opportunity however, once I saw early access for the women's Euros next year were on sale I was straight in to purchase some tickets so I didn't miss out. I made sure I had some money put to one side as with it being a major tournament I expected it to cost me a fotune. Once I got the the checkout though I was surprised to see it was under £300 for 18 tickets which included 5 tickets to the final at Wembley. There is a chance just 1 men's ticket was going to cost me £300 so to get 18 for under that is absolutely fantastic. It is no surprise 140,000 tickets were sold in the early access at those prices so why can't we pack out stadiums in the league?
If you look at ticket prices you can go see Man City women for £10 for an adult and just £4 for an under 16 however, if you are 16-21 year old it is just £5 still. If you want to go see Man City men you are looking at around £40 for an adult ticket and £30 for a kids tickets to see them in the Premier league. So you just have to look at the difference for the men's and women's game 2 adults and 2 under 16's can go to see Man City women for less than one adult can go to see the men. Some teams even allow under 16's in for free, like at Bradford City Women it is £5 for adults and under 16's are free so you are getting an afternoon out for £50 which is fantastic value for money. At times some clubs also offer some discounts for those who hold male season tickets where they can get in for half price if they show their season ticket at the gate which is yet another fantastic incentive to get people in.
The value for money provides a fantastic cheap and entertaining afternoon watching a variety of levels of football rather than just watching those big name clubs through a TV screen, I think since the pandemic stopped us fans going to games we are all starting to realise that there is nothing that beats live football. I know full well I would rather be sat in those stands with an atmosphere rather than on my sofa with just the other half to chat to and the commentators droning on. Yes it might get cold for some games but you just can't beat the atmosphere and for under £10 there isn't much better than being in those stands. Plus I actually think that the women's game is often better to watch especially at lower levels these days than the men's games as they just tend to get on with it and put some fantastic challenges rather than rolling around the floor for a while when there was not even any contact. Plus when you can hear the players down there on the pitch it is great as you get a bit more of an understanding for the game, granted as more fans turn up the atmosphere will improve and you might losing hearing the on pitch shouts but I would love rather lose the on pitch sound and see those stadiums start to fill up.
It does make you wonder though why many people don't turn up to the women's games as tickets are a lot easier to come by and at many places especially in the lower leagues you can just turn up on the day and pay on the gate so you aren't missing out, so if you wake up on a Sunday morning and fancy going to watch a football game you can see if your local women's team or the team you support are playing there is a high chance you can just walk up to the gate and get in. There is also the fact that even purchasing tickets for women's game is a lot easier as the availability is currently a lot better than the men's game so even a few days before a game you can usually still get them. It might take a little while to navigate big clubs sites to find women's tickets but once you know you will be able to easily purchase those tickets to any games you like. Some teams also don't even offer tickets and only allow the option to turn up on the day so it is worth checking with the team on the women's teams social media as this is usually where they have every bit of game day information easily accessible.
The fact is is often free or low priced for under 16's to get into a women's game I believe it is a great way to get kids involved in the game from a young age and to teach them about the women's game. You only have to look on social media to see how uneducated a lot of the older generation are on the women's game which possibly links up to the low attendances so it would be great to see more families attending the game and educating the younger generation on how great the women's game actually is. We have seen audiences on TV increase so why can't we see it replicated in the grounds, yes we are starting to an increase but it is nowhere near as large as it should be and with the prices as low as they are I just can't see why it isn't selling out each week. I do think if teams men's counter parts promoted the women's team a whole lot more the attendance would increase and we are already starting to see that at Bradford City, since the changes in the summer and the men's team promoting games more often attendance has certainly increased and is getting better week after week let's just hope it keeps up as the weather changes.
Let's hope that as the women's game grows prices don't increase too much so the fans who have been going years don't get priced out of games in the future but let's hope more people are aware of the women's ticket prices soon so those attendances can start to increase week after week.
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