Swansea to help pay for tickets
The Welsh club are claiming such a move will reduce the total cost for the season for one adult who goes to every away league match at £250.
The Swans have titled the pledge ‘True to 22’, which will mean adults will pay no more than £22 for away tickets purchased through its membership scheme, even at clubs where the cost per game is more than £50.
The cost to Swansea FC is likely to be around £300,000 for the entire season.
Vice-chairman Leigh Dineen said: “The club was very proactive on its Away Supporters Initiative (ASI) last season.
“But we believe our ‘True to 22’ pledge has taken it to a new level. We worked hard on reducing away ticket prices for our supporters last season through reciprocal deals with other clubs.
“Unfortunately, we were unable to finalise deals with all clubs for different reasons.
“Therefore, while we introduced other away fan benefits, we felt it would be more beneficial to our supporters if we took the step of guaranteeing them cheaper tickets for all our away games, whether there was a reciprocal deal in place or not.’’
And Swans Supporters Trust Director, Huw Cooze, added: “As a fan-owned club, we are well aware of how expensive it is to follow the team to away games, especially with the increasing transport costs.
“But this ‘True to 22’ pledge means an adult can now watch every one of our away games in the Premier League for a total price of £418.
“That’s more than £250 cheaper per adult than the amount we believe it would cost this season without our subsidy.’’
It is estimated Swansea fans travel, on average, around 220 miles per match – more than any other club in the Premier League.
And Football Supporters’ Federation chief executive Kevin Miles told the Daily Mail: “The news that Swansea will cap away ticket prices for their travelling fans is extremely welcome. It’s pleasing to see that they’re recognising the importance of their away support.
“We’d encourage other Premier League clubs to take note.”