Man Utd have raised the price of season tickets for the fourth year in a row but insist the revenue raised will be pumped back into the first team and facilities.
Manchester United fans at Old Trafford
Season ticket prices are going up again at Old Trafford
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Putting an exact figure on how much Manchester United will raise by charging season-ticket holders an extra 5% next season is hard to estimate, but a fair guess is about £2million across the season.
This is the fourth straight year of 5% increases in season ticket prices, amounting to more than £100 extra in that time for the cheapest season ticket at Old Trafford. After more than a decade of price freezes, United are now pushing as hard as they can to increase revenues.
There is also evidence that it's working. The club's latest financial accounts showed matchday revenues were down by 3.6% through the first half of the season, despite playing 10 home games in that period, compared to 15 last term.
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Crunching the numbers shows those 10 games were worth £7.57million a game this season, compared to £5.23million last season. That is partly down to the rise in season ticket prices and general admission costs, as well as the increase in hospitality areas.
Those factors will be at play again next season. General admission prices have yet to be confirmed, but the news that around 600 fans will be moved from the Sir Bobby Charlton Stand due to its premium location suggests hospitality revenues will rise. It will likely push United well beyond revenues of around £8million-a-game
But only a fraction of that will come from the rise in season ticket prices, and the price increase has frustrated plenty of supporters. United insist it will be used to finance football activities and be reinvested in facilities, but there is a reason fans remain sceptical.
Ineos have made enough mistakes in their two years in charge of football operations to mean any increase in season ticket revenues is still being used to cover those up.
From the hiring and firing of Dan Ashworth, to giving Erik ten Hag a new contract and sacking him four months later, to the doomed experiment with Ruben Amorim. Those missteps are likely to result in more than £40million of waste.
Filings to the New York Stock Exchange last week confirmed that dismissing Amorim could cost as much as £16million, after paying around £11million in compensation to Sporting. Sacking Ten Hag cost £10.4million and the figures associated with Ashworth's doomed spell at Old Trafford amounted to £4.1million.
United appear to be on steadier ground at the moment under Michael Carrick, but the search to find a permanent head coach continues. Carrick is rightly the favourite, but Ineos have stumbled upon what potentially is the right solution, rather than arrived here through any grand plan.
That is why scepticism amongst the fanbase remains high. There is a feeling that match-going fans have borne the brunt of some of Sir Jim Ratcliffe's decisions, which is difficult for them to accept, given his own mistakes have been so costly.
Despite representations from the Manchester United Supporters' Trust (MUST) and the club's Fan Advisory Board (FAB) to freeze season ticket prices, they have risen again. That is only going to add to the resentment some fans feel towards Ratcliffe.
United need to be careful they don't price people out of going to the game, especially those in the local area, and above-inflation season ticket price rises are a trend that cannot continue.
But goodwill towards the decision-makers is also in short supply when the relative pittance raised from such decisions is put alongside the money wasted by sloppy decision-making and a lack of clarity. Until Ineos get more decisions right, that isn't going to change.