Next FAB meeting

[Richard E]

I’m none the wiser after having read that, to be honest.

[Sexual Ealing]

Nor me.

[saunders_heroes]

I’m none the wiser after having read that, to be honest.

Politician answers. They told us absolutely nothing really.

[dave.woodhall]

Fan Advisory Board 28th February 2024 Villa Park

Fan Representatives
Joanne McKibbens – Aston Villa Disabled Supporters Association (AVDSA)
John Gillett – Lions Clubs
Ravinder Ubhi – Punjabi Villans
Mo Razzaq – Aston Villa Supporters Trust
Ian Stokes – Vital Villa
Ben Redding – My Old Man Said
Dave Woodhall – Heroes & Villans
Nilesh Chauhan – Villans Together 
Lena Curran – Fan Representative

Apologies
Scott Jones – Villa Talk
Sarah Breslin – Villa Bellas
Connor Smith – Fan Representative
Sam Timms – Villa & Proud
Nick Sanders – Avillafan.com
Steve Gough – Independent Supporters Clubs

Club representatives
Ben Hatton – Chief Operating Officer
Tommy Jordan – Communications Director
Lee Preece – Supporter Liaison Manager
 
Agenda items and comments provided by Fan Representatives are in normal text.
 
Club agenda items or responses are in blue italics.
 

Aston villa lion design
1. Crest
Given the requirement to consult on heritage assets, the FAB reminding the Club of the FA rules regarding changes to the crest, why did the Club not follow its own Fan Engagement Plan?


The Club has been in extensive discussions with the FA since beginning the process to review the Club Crest. At no stage during those discussions has the FA informed the Club that it is in breach of the Heritage Asset rules. Following the Club’s stated discussions with the FA, what was the outcome and the plans to announce the new crest? The Club will follow the FA’s outlined process requiring the registration of the Club Crest and will roll out its usage thereafter.

2. Accessible Seating
The Club does not meet the Accessible Stadia guide for wheelchair spaces and is somewhat short of the 214 recommended wheelchair bays. It previously shelved plans to remove rows within Lower North for accessible seating and more recently stated that the redevelopment of the new North Stand would improve disabled facilities. How is the Club planning to improve facilities, given it is in breach of the national guidelines? When will it meet its commitment to the Accessible Stadia Guide?

The club are currently undertaking a detailed technical study on seating bowl optimisation including integrating compliant accessible standards in line with the Accessible Stadia Guide, Green guide and a peer review of these plans conducted by Level Playing Field. We are at the mid-point of this study and will have a confirmed strategy by early April. The Club would like to engage with AVDSA following the Level playing field peer review.

3. Financial Fair Play
This season, the Club announced a new management structure with a Sporting Director and a President of Business Operations. Who has ultimate accountability for FFP decisions under the new structure?

The Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability rules set out a process requiring the reporting on an annual basis of each member Club’s financial status. There is no such thing as “FFP decisions”. The Club carries on its business in the ordinary course and reports as required under the aforementioned rules.

The reporting structure the Club has implemented sees the President of Football Operations reporting directly to ownership on football related matters and the President of Business Operations reporting directly to ownership on business related matters.

Fans should note that we have changed our financial reporting year to conclude at the end of June. This is simply to align with other contractual commitments such as players contracts etc.

4. Betting Sponsorship
Growing concerns over the potential harm caused by betting have resulted in Government intervention in some European countries. If the Club qualifies for Europe next season and still has a front-of-shirt gambling sponsor, how will it navigate the rules?

We will follow the same process as has been followed this year. Where it is not possible to show the name of the Club’s principal partner on the front of the playing strip, alternative arrangements will be made.

5. Ticket Pricing 2024 / 2025
Supporters have experienced above-inflation double-digit price increases across the last two seasons sandwiched between a cost-of-living crisis. The FAB calls for the Club to commit to keeping prices affordable and share its plans for 2024/25 as part of a meaningful consultation process and with greater transparency.

It was agreed with FAB Representatives that we will use the next Informal FAB meeting scheduled for Wednesday 20th March to consult on this issue in detail.

6. Ticket Re-sale
Reportedly, when purchasing resale tickets for the Nottingham Forest game, these were only available at an adult price; no concession options were available. If eligible seats, ordinarily on sale, can be purchased at concession prices, why does this not apply to resale seats?

Any seats made available for resale by the club are only sold at adult price, as per the terms and conditions of resale which can be found on the website. This has been the case since we introduced the ticket resale functionality in the 2019/20 Season. If we allow for concessions to be sold, we could refund more to an adult season ticket holder than the price paid by a concession.

7. Seating 2024 / 2025
What stadium changes is the Club planning for next season, including changes to the “seating bowl” and further introduction of general admission plus? When will it start consulting with impacted season ticket holders concerning these changes?

As per question 2, the technical seating bowl optimisation study on additional seats will be completed by the end of March. At which point the club will be able to communicate any proposed changes / additions and alterations and any impact to existing season ticket holders.

In addition, the Club is reviewing the current seating mix in order to ensure that going forwards we have the right balance of GA, GA+ and Hospitality seating. Inevitably this will result in a greater allocation of GA+ and Hospitality seating than we currently have. Changing this mix is an essential part of ensuring we can keep season ticket prices as affordable as possible.

8. 150th
What plans is the 150th Anniversary Board proposing, and how can supporters get involved in the commemorations?

We have had the first introductory meeting of the 150th Anniversary Board. It is our intention to hold monthly meetings and to communicate any resulting plans with the entire fanbase. It is also our intention that as many of our fans as possible are able to be involved in commemorating this momentous anniversary, so all ideas are welcomed. It was suggested that part of our celebrations should involve the City of Birmingham, specifically events with museums, the arts etc.

AOB
Club Shop
The club shop housed at the Villa Village will be overhauled in the summer to greatly increase product availability and footfall, particularly on matchday.

Holte Pub
The Holte Pub has been subject to a major face-lift and additional provision (a second bar has been added upstairs). The facility remains free for season ticket holders and Lions Club members on a first come first served basis, opening three hours prior to each kick-off.

Family Fun Zone / Academy Warehouse
Work will begin on the Academy building in the summer and will take approximately 12 months for the new facility to complete. Once completed, it is intended that the new facility will continue to be free for fans to access on matchday. The club is contemplating moving the family fun activities to the new Inner-City Academy.

Trinity Road Fan Zone
It was noted that the Portaloos in the area are not accessible. The Club will take this away and see what we can do.

Next meeting Wednesday 20th March (see item 5).

[Somniloquism]

As mentioned by a few on here as worries, it does seem that more GA+ and hospitality seating will be extracted out of the normal seating arrangements.

[jon collett]

Just saw this on twitter for those who can't wait....

https://myoldmansaid.com/villa-fan-advisory-board-notes-clubs-stance-on-crest-ffp-logistics-north-stand-and-more/

Those answers from the club are incredibly sniffy and a sign that they really don't value the meetings. 

Exactly the vibe I was getting from the answers. Seems like a complete waste of time, sadly.

We already knew this didn’t we?

[frank black]

As mentioned by a few on here as worries, it does seem that more GA+ and hospitality seating will be extracted out of the normal seating arrangements.

I was hoping that the suspension of the ground development would result in a delay to the conversion of our seats to GA+. Seems I will be  evicted sooner.

[Villan82]

The current execs are a disgrace. Contempt drips through those minutes.

Oh, and I can only deduce that, instead of getting to a 50,000 capacity for 2026, with all the add ons needed for FFP, it's more likely there will be fewer and fewer seats available at our iconic ground unless you are loaded.

If it wasn't for Unai and the squad being out of this world I would be so ticked off with the villa

[Villan82]

As mentioned by a few on here as worries, it does seem that more GA+ and hospitality seating will be extracted out of the normal seating arrangements.

I was hoping that the suspension of the ground development would result in a delay to the conversion of our seats to GA+. Seems I will be  evicted sooner.

No good was ever going to come from the suspension of the redevelopment. It was always going to result in them squeezing every penny out of what is already there with the added bonus of making us look small time.

[pauliewalnuts]

The tone of that isn’t the best. It sounds like an organisation that knows it can do whatever the fuck it wants.

It’s a shame they’ve managed to introduce this level of fuck you when we’re finally looking good on the pitch.

I mean, those answers to the ffp and crest questions drip with condescension.

[VILLA MOLE]

Swap 10000 seats over to corporate , chuck in some street food and £150 job done, i imagine sadly

[VillaTim]

Did the subject of that letter not come up then

[pauliewalnuts]

I genuinely think the fans need to stop engaging with this entire process.

There is not a single answer there, the content or tone of which, suggests they give a fuck.

The entire tone is “we’re going to do what we want anyway”.

Really disappointing that such great owners seem to have put a pair of narcissistic tossers in charge.

[dave.woodhall]

Swap 10000 seats over to corporate , chuck in some street food and £150 job done, i imagine sadly

I think that's the reality. We need more money and until we're Champions League regulars that's how they want to get it.

[Risso]

I genuinely think the fans need to stop engaging with this entire process.

There is not a single answer there, the content or tone of which, suggests they give a fuck.

The entire tone is “we’re going to do what we want anyway”.

Really disappointing that such great owners seem to have put a pair of narcissistic tossers in charge.

My thoughts exactly. The answer about the new badge for example is basically a cut and paste from last time.