Manchester City have introduced schemes such as flexi gold rather than issuing new season tickets but Manchester United have no plans to do the same.
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Updated 15:04, 25 Mar 2025
Manchester United fans
Manchester United don't plan to introduce pay as you go ticket options at Old Trafford
Manchester United have told supporters they have no plans to introduce a pay-as-you-go season ticket option similar to the controversial flexi-gold scheme introduced by Manchester City.
City rolled out the flexi-gold ticket last season rather than offering new season tickets. They have 1,100 flexi-gold users who pay a £150 membership fee, which guarantees them the option of buying a ticket in the same seat for all 19 Premier League games.
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They must attend 10 home games to keep their flexi-gold seat for next season, but if they purchase a ticket for all 19 games, the cost will be £150 more expensive than a regular season ticket as a result of the membership fee. City say it gives fans the option to pick which games they wish to attend, offering them a 72-hour window to buy their ticket before it is resold by the club.
The introduction of the scheme has caused anger among City supporters. In a letter to chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak from the six main City supporters' groups in February, fans raised the issue of no new season tickets since 2021, even in cases where tickets are not renewed.
They wrote: "Anecdotal evidence shared by both City Matters and the 1894 Group has indicated that a number of supporters purchased Flexi Gold because it was their only way to purchase a seasonal product. In practical terms, fans are therefore being charged an additional £150 tax for being loyal to the club they love."
Ticketing has become a big issue at Old Trafford and the Etihad this season, and it was the focus of many questions at the latest United fans' forum last week. One supporter asked about plans to introduce similar schemes at United.
"Can we please have a guarantee that the issue Manchester City fans are having in regards to woeful schemes like flexi-gold season tickets will not be implemented at Old Trafford and Manchester United. This is fan exploitation, and essentially dynamic pricing (in other words touting)?"
In response, United said: "We are not introducing a pay-as-you-go option similar to this."
City sold 1,100 flexi-gold tickets last season within a total of 37,000 season ticket members and are reviewing their offering for the 2025/26 campaign. Earlier in the season, flexi-gold members reported a satisfaction rate of 8.2/10, suggesting the flexibility has been welcomed by those who have purchased the tickets.
However, a recent poll of supporters by the 1894 fan group showed 90.8 per cent of the 130 flexi-gold members they surveyed saying they would like to see the charge removed if they attended every game. The proportion of respondents was similar to the percentage of flexi-gold members at the Etihad.
Only 6.2 per cent said the charge was fair, and 97.7 per cent of flexi-gold members reported that they would like to have the ability to renew with a normal or Gold season ticket next season - something which is not possible under the current terms.
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