QPR's Price Increases (Continued) "First Championship Team To Charge £50 for a ticket"...League Set To Rule Today

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- More Press Focus on the ticket price increases. The Football League is set to rule since, according to the Derby Evening Telegraph "Clubs set their ticket prices before the start of the season and have to submit them to the Football League. Any change to prices for away fans has to be agreed between the two clubs." Derby have not agreed.
- Meanwhile the majority of fans who are commenting about the increases on the various messageboards - and as always there is no way of knowing what percentage of fans they represent - are strongly condemning the action; a few however are explanatory of, or defending the price increases, sometimes very eloquently.
- For many fans, the fact that the increases came after the season had started; that QPR's prices compare to other clubs in the Championship; the fact that the increases came as a bolt of the blue, with nothing said in Sunday's programme; the fact that Skysports on Sunday was showing how QPR spent some of their money in the summer - and the fact that the club is owned by billionaires (and a multi millionaire) all accentuate the fan responses. That the club has commented to the media but not on its own site; or spoken directly to fan groups is another matter.


Mirror/James Nursey - £50 TO SEE RANGERS!
Qpr fans plan to protest at the club's "outrageous" ticket price hike as some supporters face paying £50 to watch the Championship side.
Rangers' costs have soared since being bought last year by billionaires Flavio Briatore, Bernie Ecclestone and Lakshmi Mittal, who have spent nearly £10million on new players.
But fans have reacted with fury after learning non-season ticket holders may have to shell out £50 for some home games - an increase of £10.
"This has caused outrage and there is talk of protests," said Howard Prosser, editor of a new book about the club, From Buckets To Billionaires.
"The club put their prices up in the summer by 10 per cent and have put prices up again just weeks into the season.
"This is a strange decision which will alienate fans further." Mirror


Daily Mail/Ian Gibb - As the credit crunch deepens, QPR come up with the first £50 Championship ticket
Queens Park Rangers have sparked an angry reaction from fans by becoming the first Championship team to charge £50 for a ticket.
It is all the more surprising considering their opponents for the game a week tomorrow are struggling Derby County, who have refused to accept their
allocation after Rangers also raised prices for away fans to as high as £40.
Dexter Blackstock scores for Rangers in front of rows of empty seats
The disagreement between the clubs is in the hands of the Coca-Cola Football League after an appeal from QPR.
But Rangers have come under fire from their own supporters who cannot understand why the billionaire owners who took over at Loftus Road last year, Lakshmi Mittal, Flavio Briatore and Bernie Ecclestone, have sanctioned the £10 hike.
One angry season ticket holder said: ‘I’m disgusted with the pricing. I hope other supporters do not judge the fans and team of QPR by the greed of the owners. I hope away fans stay away in protest. It’s daylight robbery.’
QPR Loyal Supporters’ Association announced they were ‘dismayed and disgusted’ by the increase, especially after some season tickets went up by half.
The £50 ticket is still less than London’s Barclays Premier League clubs, with
Arsenal (£96), Chelsea (£65), Tottenham (£75), West Ham (£63) and Fulham (£70) charging more for top-priced tickets to category A games.
But it is more expensive than every other top-flight team, except Manchester United, who charge only £5 more for the best seats to top fixtures.
Ticket prices are usually set before the season and submitted to the League, with both teams needing to give their permission for any changes.
Derby refused to accept the rise, and a club spokesman said: ‘We think it’s too high and we don’t think that’s fair. We’ve stood our ground and QPR have exercised their right to appeal that to the Football League.’
QPR said: ‘Since the takeover, the club has had massive investment which has enabled us to increase our competitiveness in the Championship and provide a better standard of entertainment for home and away supporters.
'The base price has not changed. You can still get a ticket for £20. All match-day profits will continue to be ploughed back into the club.’ Daily Mail


Derby Evening Telegraph - League set to deliver verdict on QPR tickets
DERBY County will today find out if the Football League has ruled in their favour in the ticket price row with Queens Park Rangers.
QPR want to charge visiting Rams supporters up to £40 to attend the Championship clash on September 27 – an increase of £10 on the price originally agreed.
The Rams objected and the matter is now in the hands of the League.
"We have stuck by our guns. We don't think it is fair to increase those prices," said Matt McCann, the Rams' head of communications.
Clubs set their ticket prices before the start of the season and have to submit them to the Football League. Any change to prices for away fans has to be agreed between the two clubs.
The prices for Derby's visit to Loftus Road are £30 in the Upper Tier and £25 in the Lower Tier with the standard concessions. QPR want to raise them to £40 and £30.
The West London club has increased ticket prices for their own fans and defended the rise saying it will help maintain budgets previously set to provide a better standard of entertainment for home and away fans.
A statement read: "Since the takeover, the club has had massive investment, for both on and off the pitch activities. The board has considered it a necessity to increase match-day prices to maintain budgets previously set. We are totally committed to building a sound financial base for the future." Derby Evening Telegraph


Football 365 -QPR CHARGE £50 FOR CHAMPIONSHIP TICKET
As purse strings around the world tighten, QPR have paid no attention to any global financial worries by charging £50 for a Championship match ticket.
The wealthiest team in the second tier have announced that the top price ticket for their forthcoming game against Derby will cost more than all but six of the Premier League's most expensive admission prices.
Only the five London clubs and Manchester United charge more, and Derby have refused to accept the new structure for the game on September 27.
A Derby spokesman said: 'We think it's too high and we don't think that's fair. We've stood our ground and QPR have exercised their right to appeal that to the Football League.'
However, QPR sought to justify the rise, saying that the better standard of play at Loftus Road meant the price was fair.
A club statement said: 'Since the takeover, the club has had massive investment which has enabled us to increase our competitiveness in the Championship and provide a better standard of entertainment for home and away supporters.
'The base price has not changed. You can still get a ticket for £20. All match-day profits will continue to be ploughed back into the club.' Football 365


- See Also:

- Perspective of Website "Can't Stop The Bleeding" - "QPR : Hoping Rival Fans Have More Money Than Brains

- Earlier Responses/Comments re Ticket Increases "Media Disparages QPR's Decision to Raise Ticket Prices - As Derby County Protest QPR's Decison"