THST News - May 2023

Updates on:
Fan Advisory Board
Ticketing update
Summer BBQ
​Media Log

Spurs supporters will be glad this season is over. The football has been poor and uninspiring and we have ended the season with nothing. The Club needs to act quickly to appoint a manager who can bring back exciting and inspiring football back to White Hart Lane and persuade Harry Kane there is something worth staying and fighting for.  

Meanwhile, the Trust has represented members and the wider fan-base on all the key issues and will continue to advocate for changes that improve the overall supporter experience.

Fan Advisory Board
We reported last month on the establishment of the THFC Fan Advisory Board (FAB), which was welcomed by the Trust. We then consulted our members on whether the Trust should participate in the FAB via an online consultation and an online meeting. Trust members endorsed the recommendation that the Trust should take up its two allocated seats on the FAB and it was also agreed to review the effectiveness of the FAB in twelve months' time and to continue actively to engage with Trust members in that process. Our thanks to all members who participated in the consultation.

The Trust Board has elected Rachel Martin and Steve Cavalier as the Trust’s first representatives on the FAB. Five of the ten positions on the FAB are directly elected, in the categories Season Ticket Holders, One Hotspur Members, Women’s Team Season Ticket Holders, Domestic Supporters’ Clubs and Overseas Supporters’ Clubs. Applications for those positions are now closed and the process is underway to shortlist candidates for election in each of those categories. Those elections will open on 16 June and close on 30 June, with the successful candidates being announced on 3 July. The aim is for the first meeting of the FAB to take place in July. In parallel with this, the Trust has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Club on the formal relationship between the Trust and the Club.

Ticketing Update
Here’s the most recent report from our recent ticketing meeting with the Club.  
The key points of note are:

• Whilst match day pricing for next season is yet to be confirmed, THST strongly opposed any increase in prices.
• We had been contacted by several ST holders who have not been able to access their senior discounts, even though they are aged 65+ and in a concessionary area of the stadium. We are disappointed the Club have stated that concessionary STs are ‘subject to availability to strike a balance between different concessions and seasonal/matchday ticket type’. Our position is that concessions should be linked to the person and not the seat. But given the Club’s current policy, they should honour all those eligible for senior concessions in areas where concessionary pricing is available and not have a quota on the number of seniors allowed within a specified area. We would be interested in hearing from any fans who have encountered any issues accessing their senior ST rate.
• The Club reported that no decision had been made on membership package offerings or pricing. Subsequent to this meeting, the Club notified us on the same day as the public announcement that membership packages had been increased for next season and would feature ‘added value and benefits’.

A further meeting was held with the Club after the announcement of membership package changes.
The key points of note are:

• The Club highlighted their key findings from fan focus groups they held this season which forms their rationale to changes in membership package offerings.
• We emphasised it would have been preferable for the Club to have consulted with us so that we could have shared insights from our own research prior to changes being made instead of after the fact.
• We emphasised that many fans would have preferred to see a reduction or freeze in the membership price rather than an increase in benefits that aren’t relevant to them. We also referred to the cost-of-living crisis (something the Club acknowledged when announcing the freeze to General Admission Season Ticket prices)
• THST raised several issues around membership packages, including the retail voucher only being valid online, whether non-footballing events are seen as added value to membership by supporters and the benefits requiring fans to spend more money to enjoy them.
• THST highlighted that for many overseas fans, membership benefits are likely to be of little value, as they have fewer opportunities to visit the stadium in person and incur significant costs when doing so. The Club have agreed to engage further with us on their plans for overseas supporter benefits.
• We asked the Club to consult more widely with their One Hotspur members to review the changes they have applied

Summer BBQ
THST's much-loved social is back for the sixth time as we team up with our local community pub, the Antwerp Arms, to host our summer BBQ on Sunday 23 July 2023. We'll have an afternoon full of entertainment for you, including:

• special Spurs guest;
• charity raffle;
• delicious BBQ;
• DJ set and live music.

We’ll provide further details and a full running order nearer the time. Entry is by ticket only and bookings are now open. To let us know you're coming, please register for this FREE event via Eventbrite and indicate whether you'd like to be fed at our earlier (1:30pm – 2:30pm) or later (4:30pm – 5:30pm) BBQ sitting.

Media Log
New Chair and Vice-Chairs call for change
New Chair and Vice-Chairs share plans with supporters