Owen Gibson



Premier League clubs are expected to consider a range of proposals, including a radical suggestion that all 20 offer free coach travel to away supporters for every match, against a backdrop of growing outrage from fans over the price of away tickets.

A central attendance and ticketing working group was established by the Premier League in May to consider all issues around the topic and is drawing up proposals that are likely to be discussed at the next full shareholders' meeting in February and could be voted on in the summer.

But the ongoing discussions are unlikely to be enough to placate increasingly angry supporters' groups who feel the issue is reaching a tipping point and plan to work together to campaign for action.

The talks have covered not only the vexed issue of pricing for away fans, which has snowballed in the wake of Manchester City returning almost a third of their allocation of 3,000 tickets priced at £62 for their trip to the Emirateson Sunday, but the overall matchday experience and transport.

At a recent meeting of all 20 Premier League clubs, Stoke City suggested offering free coach travel to all away fans in the Premier League to cut down on costs for travelling fans. The Stoke chief executive, Tony Scholes, also put forward an alternative suggestion: that away ticket prices should never be more expensive than the cheapest home ticket. While the Premier League continues to believe that pricing is essentially a matter for individual clubs and that it will be hard to come up with proposals that would satisfy the two-thirds majority required to pass new rules, there is also a recognition that the atmosphere created by away fans is central to a product that will bring in more than £5.5bn in TV revenues over the next three seasons.

Just as the bumper TV deal has accelerated discussions around a form of financial fair play for Premier League clubs, so it is believed to have focused minds on growing fan unrest about the complex issue of away ticket prices and the matchday experience.

Rival supporters' groups, including those from Liverpool and Manchester United, this week revealed they planned to work together to campaign on the issue and the Football Supporters' Federation has called for a cap of between £25 and £30 on tickets for away fans.

In a document drawn up last year in response to government calls for changes in the way football is governed, the Football Association said ticket pricing and strategy was a matter for the Premier League and Football League. But many fans would like to see co-ordinated action on the issue, driven from the centre, rather than it being left to individual clubs.

Ahead of the City match, the Arsenal manager, Arsène Wenger, has said the situation around ticket prices is "delicate". His club charge home fans up to £162 and have been criticised for charging the away fans of some clubs almost double the amount paid by fans of other teams due to the way matches are categorised.

Wenger said Arsenal were more reliant on ticketing revenue than other clubs such as City and Chelsea, who are able to rely on benefactor funding, and he was more concerned about his own fans than visitors.

"I am really worried they are high for our supporters. For the visitors, it only happens once a year, so that is less of a concern," he said. "We sell out our games, but ideally you want ticket prices to be affordable to everybody. It is a very delicate subject."

Roberto Mancini, the Manchester City manager, said it was a shame that fans were unable to follow their team to London because they felt it was too expensive: "We are disappointed for this because we need our fans away. We have fantastic fans, fantastic support. We are sorry for this."