FSG intend to keep increasing ticket prices and attract a new clientele of better-paying supporters at Anfield, says University of Liverpool football finance expert Kieran Maguire.
Speaking exclusively to Rousing the Kop, the Price of Football podcast host said “season ticket holders have, to a large extent, outlived their usefulness” after Liverpool announced that general admission ticket prices would rise for the next three years, limited to inflation, up to a maximum of five per cent.
Liverpool’s matchday income was just short of £116m in 2024-25 and is expected to have risen again this season, despite the fall-off on the pitch after winning the Premier League last term.
That figure is lower than Manchester United, Arsenal and Tottenham’s respective matchday income totals, but the club’s yield per fan is behind only the Gunners and Chelsea, who charge a London premium.
Liverpool fan holds sign protesting FSG's decision to raise ticket prices at Anfield
Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images
Protests against FSG’s announcement on ticket prices last month will continue as Arne Slot’s side face Crystal Palace at the weekend. Fans will be invited by supporter group Spirit of Shankly to ‘show the yellow card’ to the club’s Boston-based owners with signs that say ‘Anfield’s soul’ is at risk.
Fenway Sports Group loaned the club several hundred million pounds to expand the stadium in recent years, with the new-and-improved Anfield Road and Main Stand developments taking capacity to 61,276.
The impact on the club’s season ticket waiting list, however, has been negligible, and bedrock fans now routinely voice concerns about the declining atmosphere at home games.
That problem is far from unique to Liverpool. Across the Premier League – and particularly at its elite apex – supporters report quieter, less passionate ambience.
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But as noise levels decline, revenues are booming.
Premier League hits £1bn matchday income milestone as FSG hike prices
When FSG bought Liverpool back in 2010, annual matchday income stood at £43m.
Relative to the Consumer Price Index, one pound back then would be worth £1.66 today. And yet, money through the turnstiles has risen exponentially faster. If FSG increase prices by their self-stated five per cent maximum in each of the next three seasons, it would imply matchday income of almost £150m by 2029.
And in reality, with an increasing emphasis on hospitality, premium seating and other revenue opportunities on the concourses and around the ground, the true figure will almost certainly be significantly higher, though variables such as whether Liverpool are in the in Champions League and their number of home matchdays in the cup competitions will of course affect the final totals too.
FSG are raising ticket prices – give us your views
Neccessary step or profiteering?
Liverpool matchday income vs inflation graphic
Liverpool matchday income vs inflation graphic Credit: Adam Williams/GRV Media
Again, Liverpool’s soaring Anfield income isn’t unique. Indeed, data collected by Rousing The Kop shows that the Premier League as a whole has now broken the £1bn mark for matchday income for the first time.
“Matchday income is average attendance, multiplied by average price, multiplied by the number of matches,” Maguire explains.
“When you look at the NFL, they have far fewer matches, but it is such a televisual success that that they can afford to get away with it. There is also a culture of paying high prices there already, whereas we’re resistant to that in this country.
“So, at Liverpool, the clubs want to replace the existing fans with a new fanbase. Season ticket holders have, to a large extent, outlived their usefulness. FSG don’t really care about season ticket holders.
“The clubs are standing on the shoulders of giants in terms of what the fanbase has done for the brand. FSG aren’t from Liverpool and have no emotional connection to the city, so they don’t care.”
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