Following the mass walk-out of Anfield at the weekend in protest against Liverpool's new ticketing structure, the club agreed to review the changes made.
The club have released a statement signed by John Henry, Chairman Tom Werner and President Mike Gordon in the last few minutes apologising to their supporters for any distress caused, and have agreed to alter the structure.
Here are the opening few paragraphs of that statement:
Dear Liverpool supporters,
It has been a tumultuous week. On behalf of everyone at Fenway Sports Group and Liverpool Football Club, we would like to apologise for the distress caused by our ticket pricing plan for the 2016-17 season.
The three of us have been particularly troubled by the perception that we don’t care about our supporters, that we are greedy, and that we are attempting to extract personal profits at the club’s expense. Quite the opposite is true.
From our first days as owners we have understood that serving as custodians of this incredible institution is a distinct privilege and as such, we have been driven solely by the desire to return LFC to the pinnacle of football. In the world of modern football, growing the club in a sustainable way is essential to realising this objective.
The statement went on to admit that while the club met some of the objectives set during discussions with fans over the issue - including access for local and young supporters; engagement and access to Anfield for local children - they did admit that the club were wrong to increase ticket prices to £77 and announced a freeze on tickets for the next two seasons:
Removal of game categorisation – regardless of the opposition fans will pay the same price for matchday tickets.
The pricing of tickets will be readjusted to result in zero revenue growth from GA ticketing on a like-for-like basis.
Though individual ticket prices may move marginally from this season, we are freezing our 2016-17 GA ticket revenue at the 2015-16 level exclusive of newly-added seats in the new Main Stand.
The price of our highest general admission ticket will be frozen at the 2015-16 level - £59.
The price of our highest season ticket will be frozen at the 2015-16 level - £869. The lowest price reducing a further £25 from the 2015-16 level to £685, as well as all other tiers being frozen or reduced.
£9 GA seats will be offered for each and every Premier League match, an allocation of more than 10,000 tickets across the season.
It is a considerable reversal by the club, and totally odds with Ian Ayre's justification for the prices last week. It is a victory for Liverpool supporters, and proof that supporter activism can affect change in football.
[LFC.com]
