Just heard from my mate (the bond-holder who hadn't renewed his ticket) and he reckons sales must be down, as he has had a letter from the club this morning asking him if he is sure he doesn't want to renew and offering him a new deadline to reapply ! Sounds ominous ?

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

Answers

It's all speculation until the figures are announced. When any new signings are announced there will be a fair few applications going in.

Funny how almost all the speculation surrounding transfers and season ticket sales is negative.

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

If season ticket renewals are down - would this be such a bad thing? Wouldn't it mean that more less fortunate ones could get to see the games which would also (probably) improve the atmosphere. Hopefully it's the prawn sarny brigade buggering off and then some of the long term fans will get the chance to come and as Alan Robson would put it 'make some noise'.

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

Apparently the season ticket deadline wasn't the 9th of June as advertised but is now 5pm on Monday 25th June if you want to retain your seat. Everyone who has not renewed was mailed over the weekend. I asked a lad I know who works at the ticket office how many letters went out and he said "thousands".

Season tickets should be banned anyway. All grounds should be ten bob entry payable at the turnstile I say.

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

Well like I said, he and his brother are bond-holders so are not part of the "prawn sandwich brigade" but they do have valid reasons for not renewing. But if they announce some decent signings that may encourage some of the stragglers

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

Why are they not renewing? Football or Financial reasons?

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

Well the brother is moving from Manchester to Cornwall and my mate can't afford to renew both tickets and doesn't fancy making the trip from Manchester himself every 2nd week .

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

Problem is, Kegsy, we depend on the prawn sarnie brigade for financial survival. Like it or not, one bloke paying £1300 per season is worth more to the club than the bloke paying £392. This renewal news is quite scary but was predictable from the day we got knocked out of the FA Cup by Villa....the club should have acted then.

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

good news if u ask me. Fine we don't want rid of people just because they can't afford it. But if people are only leaving cos we aren't doing that well then I'd rather they weren't in st James's park.

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

what a classic thread.

i also think its good news, 50k season tix sold gives the board an excuse to delay a mass overhaul on the pitch - more old rope for the masses-

25 - 30 k season tix means they must act or there'll be nobody at sjp in march and april -unless there's a tasty relegation battle to savour which may happen-

so if you haven't renewed, don't, it's the only way we're gonna get ronaldo. if you do it's gary speed for life.

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

stop it
for life?


-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

The thing is, our entire debt programme was predicated on being able to flog massively expensive corporate boxes. I don't like it, but I also know that we DEPEND on the corporate people for survival. It's a crap fact but it IS a fact.

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

George - people not turning up did Sheffield Wednesday a lot of good, didn't it?

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

hmmm, there's a desperate tone in the air

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

Swifty, are you surprised?

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

Dougal, how many seats do they have to sell, if you don't wish to publish would you e-mail me with the answer ?

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

MacBeth, some very close friends of mine worked on the secritisation and told me that to break even, we really had to be selling at least 42000 seats per game. For financial comfort and some sort of latitude in the transfer market, we really need to sell almost all of the tickets. However, their figures were based on our being able to attract corporate buys who would pay a fortune for their seats. If they tail off, then we really have to more or less fill up on normal tickets to break even. I'll e mail this mate at the bank and see if he can tell me how this worked this out in more detail.

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

dougal,

there's nothing you or i can do about attendences at sjp, i was making the point that a big decline in sales will force the club to do something, (a point backed up in your own subsequent post vis a vis the breakeven calculation) namely investing in the product on the pitch to attract the punters. this approach is consistent with the contract every company has with its customers.

in my lifetime nufc has muddled along and survived serving up dross to a loyal fan base who kept the club afloat in spite of itself.

something has to change, if its for the worse it can't be too much harder to bear than the past 3 seasons

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

I really can't believe any true fan would think it's a good thing that the club struggle financially.

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

of course not, nor is it a good thing that they struggle on the pitch, since the two are so closely linked these days, perhaps the threat of financial peril can provide the incentive for improvement.

a financially successful club hitched in mid table is an investors dream.

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

..... may be cute lateral thinking George, but won't work in our case. The club is not in a good financial position due to bad player investments and the stadium expansion debt.
If the fans desert the Club right now it's bankrupt, pure and simple. Don't suppose that could also be a blessing in disguise, could it?

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001

Got said letter at my new address. It says "After that date (25/6/01) the box office will begin processing requests from new and existing applicants to move or buy additional or new seats."........."The Sports Bar in the SJH stand is now virtually sold out.

I am seriously thinking of applying for a third seat so I can lie down if it gets really bad for my youngest cherub whose three next month.

-- Anonymous, June 20, 2001

it's your duty Tony, what else would you spend the cash on? a lawnmower?

-- Anonymous, June 20, 2001

George - times have changed: we have a massive debt and the Premiership is expensive in terms of players and wages. Survival depends on finances generated by corporate business etc nowadays.

-- Anonymous, June 20, 2001

Chelsea's bond is to be repaid in six years time and their projections were based on Champions League football!!

At least our repayment period is far longer at about 16 years now and not based on European football.

-- Anonymous, June 20, 2001

Although they were based on corporate and ticket sale income streams.

-- Anonymous, June 20, 2001

They had to be based on something though! What better to base it on than the undying enthusiasm and love for the club of the Newcastle United supporter?

-- Anonymous, June 20, 2001

You'll find out how loyal the prawn sarnie brigade are soon...

-- Anonymous, June 20, 2001

What other corporate attractions are there in the North East that can compare with Newcastle United? many many firms use sporting events as marketing/getting pissed tools, so if they don't want to buy tickets at Newcastle where else will they go?

With the extending of the season ticket deadline to accomodate all the Zenden talk surely that alone will attract a few more sales?

-- Anonymous, June 20, 2001

Stadium of Light? The rugby? Wherever they went before Keegan's day...

-- Anonymous, June 20, 2001

So are we now saying that it'll just be prawn sarnies who won't renew? what a load of cack!

-- Anonymous, June 20, 2001

golf courses were the only corporate thing before Keegan, Rik is catching up with 1990 as we speak

-- Anonymous, June 20, 2001

If they are that fickle that they WOULD go to the SOS then we certainly don't want them here. Some corporate fans are equally great fans of the club but they can just afford better facilities to watch football.

The rugby is not really that much of a pull. The facilities at Kingston Park are not that great and certainly limited in size. the rugby club will have no trouble selling all thier corporate seats, probably to the same fims/people they have sold to for the past ten years.

-- Anonymous, June 20, 2001

it's your duty Tony, what else would you spend the cash on? a lawnmower?

Sex, drugs, a beer fridge, beer, more drugs, sex again, a trip to Barthalona then a lawnmower (one that you can drive, yesss!)

-- Anonymous, June 20, 2001

Of course I'm not saying it's just the corporate fans who won't renew...but they will be the most devastating to the club's finances if they don't renew. Of course, most of the people in corporate seats are great fans of the club but there are people who are just along for a free beer.

-- Anonymous, June 20, 2001

I'm not surprised at the "Sports Bar and 1892" nearly sold out although I would suspect that a lot of the new seats higher up might have UPGRADED to those seats , which now ONLY cost £750 /£795. The problem will be filling the seats in less desirable parts of the ground. I would think that we'll be ssing crowds in the mid 40 thousands next season unless we can persuade some big names to come to play at St James'.

-- Anonymous, June 20, 2001

However this season won't it be different in that the spare seats for public sale will be the ones in the higher parts of the ground?

Therefore cheaper and more attractive to the non season ticket holding fan? I for one will not be having a season ticket as the number of times I'm up North does not warrant it, but on the occasions when I'm up there I'll be looking to buy tickets for the matches.

-- Anonymous, June 20, 2001

I faxed an application for a third seat and stipulated they must be together in the same area and was told everyone around me has already renewed. Really quick response aswell, the call back was within 10 mins.

-- Anonymous, June 21, 2001

I faxed an application for a third seat and stipulated they must be together in the same area and was told everyone around me has already renewed. Really quick response aswell, the call back was within 10 mins.

I really didn't think they would because each match has different faces to my right, I know this isn't much of a barometer but I get the feeling that ST's won't drop as much as what has been predicted on here.

-- Anonymous, June 21, 2001

You're not implying that the doom mongers could be wrong are ya? :))

-- Anonymous, June 21, 2001