Away Tickets - What's the magic?

[VillaTim]

Without wanting to be too much of a prick Frank, haven't you previously said you believe very few people sell on away tickets?

Now you're giving an example of two people plus several others you personally know who have had the same experience.  And this is just for aways with NFC tickets, which I think is a very small minority.

Apologies if it wasn't you, but doesn't this prove the point that many people have been making? 

I joined a facebook page for Villa tickets earlier this week and loads are looking to get rid of them for Middlesbrough, even a batch of 5 who are all now working, if this is true and not just a load of scammers, it is ridiculous the amount of tickets that seem to be available, why couldn't they just leave them for the next in line

its a joke and the system needs sorting. Same old faces

[frankmosswasmyuncle]

Without wanting to be too much of a prick Frank, haven't you previously said you believe very few people sell on away tickets?

Now you're giving an example of two people plus several others you personally know who have had the same experience.  And this is just for aways with NFC tickets, which I think is a very small minority.

Apologies if it wasn't you, but doesn't this prove the point that many people have been making? 

Yes, absolutely me. In MY experience, regarding the people I know.
A few seem to be claiming some kind of massive conspiracy, yet everyone I know who goes regularly wants to be there.
It's inevitable that at some point regular away goers can't get to a game...I would say it's pretty standard practice to pass a ticket on, just as most people do with their ST if they can't make a home game. It's not planned or contrived imho.
The problem I described above has happened with me and my mate and his daughter about two or three times in about 10 years...in the past we could could move paper tickets on...my mate's son and grandson are both STHs and rarely get to away games and they had them, and an old college friend had them on another occasion. The galling thing about the NFC tickets for ManU a few weeks ago was that the deadline for refunds had passed and the TO just said tough. If they had been paper tickets I have no doubt they would have gone to family or friends. It's not something that happens regularly....they want to go to the games!
The other example was a friend whose nephew goes to almost every away game but went  down with Covid...she contacted the TO and they refunded the match ticket and put it back on sale I suppose...but had it been a paper ticket she would have passed it on to another Villa fan. No refund for the travel. I don't know of anyone who regularly moves tickets on as a matter of course or for profit or whatever.
And I was behind two lads at the Spurs game who said they had the emails on their phones but the ticket wouldn't open. They didn't get in.

[frankmosswasmyuncle]

Without wanting to be too much of a prick Frank, haven't you previously said you believe very few people sell on away tickets?

Now you're giving an example of two people plus several others you personally know who have had the same experience.  And this is just for aways with NFC tickets, which I think is a very small minority.

Apologies if it wasn't you, but doesn't this prove the point that many people have been making? 

I joined a facebook page for Villa tickets earlier this week and loads are looking to get rid of them for Middlesbrough, even a batch of 5 who are all now working, if this is true and not just a load of scammers, it is ridiculous the amount of tickets that seem to be available, why couldn't they just leave them for the next in line

I was lucky enough to meet an ex player on the car park last season who was going to an away with the same old faces...he said he couldn't get tickets for games at Villa Park, never mind away games....but someone had put him in touch with someone locally who could guarantee him a ticket for any game he wanted to go to...and that is where he'd got the ticket from for this particular game.
It happens, but I have no idea how.

[VillaTim]

you missed the point though, they do it to keep the booking history intact and keep the shop closed . rather than fall down the pecking order which would be fair.

[frankmosswasmyuncle]

you missed the point though, they do it to keep the booking history intact and keep the shop closed . rather than fall down the pecking order which would be fair.

I'm not missing the point you are making.
They didn't do it to keep the booking history....until two days before the game they were going to the game!
As the tickets weren't used is that removed from their booking history? I don't know.

I understand, SOME may do it, I just don't know of anyone who does it systematically. All the people I travel with to away games are there almost every week, very rarely not. They get their tickets and go to the games.

[frankmosswasmyuncle]

I think the facebook page for Villa tickets is exactly the thing the club/TO is concerned about tbh.
That's definitely taking the piss.

[VillaTim]

Point is the tickets are snapped up by those able to purchase regardless of availability to attend (which may or may not be known at the time of purchase) and then they use them if they can and sell them on / pass them on if they can't go .

[VillaTim]

I think the facebook page for Villa tickets is exactly the thing the club/TO is concerned about tbh.
That's definitely taking the piss.

Yeah I've not seen that but that does sound like a epic piss take

[frankmosswasmyuncle]

Point is the tickets are snapped up by those able to purchase regardless of availability to attend (which may or may not be known at the time of purchase) and then they use them if they can and sell them on / pass them on if they can't go .

They are "snapped up" at the time set by the TO, sometimes a month in advance.
If you don't, you don't get a ticket.
Sending them back, as we tried to do, failed. Instead of somebody going, nobody went. Two empty seats.
Were we penalised for that?
I have no idea.

I know what you mean Tim, but I don't know of anyone who does it systematically...a few games a season perhaps, and I agree that's a few games too many.
I think we are probably saying pretty much the same thing but from different angles.
Perhaps the new eligibility system will help to even things out, but like most things it will take some time.
Unless they come up with a completely different system eg: lottery.

[amfy]

you missed the point though, they do it to keep the booking history intact and keep the shop closed . rather than fall down the pecking order which would be fair.

I'm not missing the point you are making.
They didn't do it to keep the booking history....until two days before the game they were going to the game!
As the tickets weren't used is that removed from their booking history? I don't know.

I understand, SOME may do it, I just don't know of anyone who does it systematically. All the people I travel with to away games are there almost every week, very rarely not. They get their tickets and go to the games.

I appreciate that there are times when the inability to attend is very last minute, but there are many more when people know days or weeks in advance. You can return home or away match tickets for a full refund up to 24 hours before kick off.
When Villa are playing in the north west, I and many others who live up here are still looking out for a ticket and able to make the game at short notice.

We don’t get the chance because these people pass their tickets on instead of return them. So if we don’t know any of those people, then we won’t get a sniff, and if we do, then we might get a ticket, but we’ll never have a booking history.

It might not be planned, but it isn’t fair. I appreciate that a huge number of people go to all or most games, but loads more of us could be doing one game, a handful, half a dozen, if each of them felt able to return their ticket when they couldn’t go, but they are as trapped as the rest of us because actually, it’s not just about convenience or inconvenience of returning tickets, it’s also that no one dares lose their magic number.


Just for info - if you email ticketsalesAF@AVFC.co.uk to return tickets - you’ll get a message back saying it might take them 10 days to respond, but in my experience they get back to you inside 3 hours to confirm you want to return a ticket.

[frankmosswasmyuncle]

Hi amfy!
We tried to return the ManU tickets 2 and a half days before the game but it was a Saturday and TO closed....by Monday, when they were open, deadline had passed.

The person I spoke to in the TO gave me the email address but said if the deadline has gone, it's gone....and it's usually TWO days before the game.

Regarding away tickets generally, I'm really looking forward to them coming up with the perfect system.
Launched alongside the new perfect crest?
 ;-)

[Tristandacuhna]

Good start by the club this in cracking the "closed shop club" .

if you had been going when our chips were down in the Championship then it wouldn't be an issue for you.  Harsh yes but 100% as well.

i did about 8 a season back then . I don't have the option to go to EVERY bloody game nor would i want to ! Now its a case of attend them ALL or nothing. Its a pathetic system.
Just the other day one of the "closed shop group" offered me 2 for Everton , i told him to shove them where the sun don't shine

And there we have it from the great entitled one who cant be bothered to attend all games as a season ticket holder or not cause he don't want to & wants to sit at any game that befits his mighty status above all and sundry.

Well Golden Muppet takes this grip to the club oh mighty one if you hold the moral high ground.

The terrace view brigade get away tickets after que jumping the season ticket waiting list.
And i dare say the lower grounds will be sold to season tickets squatters next season and a bestowed allocation of away tickets 
tickets.

Hark can we hear the mighty Tim carping about that to the club, NO cant hear him.
Speak up please the can't be bothered part timer.

[frankmosswasmyuncle]

Just checked my phone records...I contacted the TO on Friday before the weekend.
That bloody Christmas thing got in the way of returning the tickets!
Bah humbug....with bloody knobs on!

[dave.woodhall]

Good start by the club this in cracking the "closed shop club" .

if you had been going when our chips were down in the Championship then it wouldn't be an issue for you.  Harsh yes but 100% as well.

i did about 8 a season back then . I don't have the option to go to EVERY bloody game nor would i want to ! Now its a case of attend them ALL or nothing. Its a pathetic system.
Just the other day one of the "closed shop group" offered me 2 for Everton , i told him to shove them where the sun don't shine

And there we have it from the great entitled one who cant be bothered to attend all games as a season ticket holder or not cause he don't want to & wants to sit at any game that befits his mighty status above all and sundry.

Well Golden Muppet takes this grip to the club oh mighty one if you hold the moral high ground.

The terrace view brigade get away tickets after que jumping the season ticket waiting list.
And i dare say the lower grounds will be sold to season tickets squatters next season and a bestowed allocation of away tickets 
tickets.

Hark can we hear the mighty Tim carping about that to the club, NO cant hear him.
Speak up please the can't be bothered part timer.

Can we please have less of that?

[claret+blue ed]

Just seen we had 4393 official away attendance today, thought we had nearly 5k allocation, that looks like a lot didn’t actually bother going, tickets that could have gone to the next in line rather than just purchased to get extra history