The Premier League fixtures for the new season have been revealed and clubs are beginning to look ahead to the commercial opportunities 2025/26 will bring about.
Manchester United have one major asset above all others and have developed a terrific knack for annoying it in the last couple of decades. Now, United’s fanbase has been given another reason to voice its discontent.
The Red Devils have categorised the season’s fixtures and whacked a not insignificant ticket price onto each one.
You may like
How much will tickets cost at Manchester United?
Fixtures at Old Trafford next season have been divided into four categories: A, B, C and D.
Category D starts at £32 per match and is only applicable to cup games, while Category C (£37 to £60) covers only the fixtures against Sunderland and Wolverhampton Wanderers.
11 Premier League fixtures will be priced as Category B games (£57 to £86) and the remaining six as Category A.
The visits of Chelsea, Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool will cost supporters between £59 and £97, though United state that “less than 1% of tickets” will cost £97.
The club also makes clear that the overall average per-match ticket cost at Old Trafford will be lower than last season – as it should be, if the quality of last season has been taken into consideration in any way.
“The result of the pricing model for this season means that the average cost of a general admission match ticket (season tickets and match by match members tickets) will be £46.51 vs £41.41 for the 2024/25 campaign,” reads the announcement.
But look down the more commonly used end of the telescope and the picture is a little different. According to a statement from the Manchester United Supporters’ Trust (MUST), the changes will result in hefty price increases for 20,000 supporters per match.
“This really is a fresh kick in the teeth for Manchester United fans,” says MUST. “We urged [the club] to keep the majority of matches at current levels and only apply the highest category for a small number of the biggest games.”
United can have little footballing justification for any sort of increase in ticket price. In 2024/25, they finished 15th in the Premier League and were arguably flattered even by that.
With the Europa League final closing the back door on the unlikely salvation of a last-minute Champions League qualification, supporters are entitled to question what constitutes value for their money.
MUST says that United’s failure to engage with supporter groups is a failure to fulfil the club’s commitment to fan representation and that their opposition to the categorisation’s implementation was therefore not heard.
“The structure is in place, and the fans’ forum and [Fan Advisory Board] representatives are doing their job, but the club are not adhering to their previous commitment to proper consultation and that needs to change and change fast,” reads the supporters’ trust statement.
