Updates On:
Fan led Review of Football Governance
THST submission to DCMS on fan safety
Problems at Home Game Against Olympique de Marseille
Champions League Ticketing
Rescheduling of Newcastle match
Catering Update
THST Charitable Donations
Podcasts
THST Forum
Media log
Fan led Review of Football Governance
THST submission to DCMS on fan safety
Problems at Home Game Against Olympique de Marseille
Champions League Ticketing
Rescheduling of Newcastle match
Catering Update
THST Charitable Donations
Podcasts
THST Forum
Media log
1. FAN-LED REVIEW OF FOOTBALL GOVERNANCE
Following on from last month’s update, we have now received revised documentation from the Club, which we are considering together with the Proud Lilywhites, SpursAbility and SpursREACH. We will then discuss further with the Club in the hope of achieving a final set of documentation that can be supported by all groups.
Meanwhile, many of you will have seen the reports that the government may be backsliding on the recommendation for an independent regulator for English football (IREF) and other key recommendations of the report led by Tracey Crouch MP. We have liaised with other fan groups about this and have written to the relevant official at Number 10 Downing Street seeking reassurance that the government will pass the necessary legislation to implement the recommendations. At its conference, the Labour Party committed to pass the necessary legislation if it wins the next general election.
2. THST SUBMISSION TO DCMS ON FAN SAFETY
The Digital Culture Media and Sport Select Committee at Westminster asked for evidence from supporter groups on the following questions:
3. PROBLEMS AT HOME GAME AGAINST OLYMPIQUE DE MARSEILLE
We raised a number of concerns with the Club about incidents at the home match against Olympique de Marseille. Read the report of that and of the Club’s response here: Olympique de Marseille Report
Our Co-Chairs attended a meeting with the Club to review the CCTV footage from the night and be taken through the steps taken by the Club, stewards and police before during and after the game. It was a very helpful meeting and a clear demonstration of some of the problems faced by clubs dealing with the particular challenge of certain groups of away fans in European competition.
We raised a number of questions and have been given the opportunity to observe the police and stewarding operation in the build-up to the Frankfurt home fixture, including access to the ground and the arrangements in the away end. We will then be able to head to our normal season ticket seats to watch the game itself!
4. CHAMPIONS LEAGUE TICKETING: PRICING AND ARRANGEMENTS
We reported last month on our request to the Club to reconsider its pricing for this season’s Champions League home fixtures and to lower the prices for the games against Eintracht Frankfurt and Sporting Lisbon here. Regrettably the prices have not been reduced and the games remain as Category B fixtures.
We are pleased, however, that the Club has now agreed to our request that Ticket Share be available for those fixtures. That was confirmed on the email regarding extra tickets for the Frankfurt game - although you could be forgiven for missing it as it was very small and at the end of the email. We have asked that the information is provided more prominently for the Sporting Lisbon fixture.
5. FRANKFURT AWAY
We attended a planning meeting with the Club in advance of the away fixture in Frankfurt on 4 October. The proposed arrangements were explained and shown to us, we were able to raise a number of questions, and have some of the more draconian policies relaxed. The Club will be sending detailed advice to travelling fans covering all of those issues.
6. BRIGHTON AWAY
The Club is confident that the away fixture at Brighton on 8 October will be proceeding, despite the rail strike on that date. It has been explained that there were particular additional factors that caused the postponement of Brighton v Crystal Palace on a previous strike day. The Club is proposing to provide subsidised coach travel for the game and a further update on travel arrangements. The Club will be sending out details to supporters with tickets for this match.
7. RESCHEDULING OF HOME MATCH V NEWCASTLE
On 29 July, the Premier League announced its October TV picks and moved Tottenham’s home match against Newcastle United from 3pm on Saturday 22 October to the 5:30pm broadcast slot on the same day, with no caveat attached to the rescheduling. We understand that Chelsea versus Manchester United had provisionally been lined up for the valuable Sunday 4:30pm slot that weekend. Chelsea have since been scheduled to play in the Champions League on the following Tuesday, meaning that their Premier League match against Manchester United has to be played on Saturday rather than Sunday.
Subsequently, on 13 September the Premier League announced the decision to move the Tottenham versus Newcastle match into the empty Sunday 4:30pm slot. This late and unexpected switch has inconvenienced many supporters, including several THST members who have been in touch with us.
If you are a One Hotspur member who had purchased a ticket for the Newcastle match and can no longer make it, you can request a full refund as long as you do so at least 7 days before the game takes place – see here for the Club’s refund policy and request form. Season Ticket holders who cannot make the rescheduled fixture are expected to use Ticket Exchange or Ticket Share to sell or pass on their tickets.
We lodged our dissatisfaction with the Premier League and the Independent Football Ombudsman, and asked THFC to agree to refund any Season Ticket holders who are unable to attend the rescheduled match and are unsuccessful in selling or sharing their ticket through the official channels. The Ombudsman has recognised the inconvenience caused to supporters and the current imbalance between clubs and supporters. But at the time of writing, we are yet to receive information on THFC’s plans regarding refunds for Season Ticket holders.
No supporter should be left out of pocket as a result of fixture rescheduling. Yet our 2022 survey found that large numbers of fans have been unable to recoup all of their money for matches they could no longer attend due to broadcast moves.
Even if supporters are able to recover the money paid for their match tickets, there remains the issue of travel costs that many will have also incurred. Many Tottenham supporters do not live in N17 and rely on public transport to get to home matches. And that’s not to mention the considerable impact on Newcastle’s away fans.
The rail industry is currently operating a Book with Confidence scheme for advance train tickets which allows you to amend when you travel without incurring a fee. We are calling for a similar scheme to be put in place permanently to help match-going supporters moving forwards. Unfortunately, this wouldn’t help supporters who live further afield and may have incurred costs for flights and accommodation. But it would be a start.
We also advocate for a central pot of money to be set aside to compensate fans who have lost out financially as a result of late fixture changes, to be funded from the Premier League’s broadcast revenues. We will push for this when the next broadcast rights tender process approaches.
8. CATERING UPDATE
We invited Spurs fans to complete our catering survey to feed back on their experience after the first two home matches. We are grateful to every one of the respondents who took the time to comment on the quality of the provision and to give very specific detail on the difficulties they have experienced. Simon Sullivan and Rachel Martin are meeting with THFC’s Andrew Taylor and Levi Harris this week to discuss the findings with them.
There are some very clear trends emerging including, generally, satisfaction with the menu and the variety and quality of the food provided. However, a very significant number of supporters, 38%, saying they would be less likely to eat or drink in the stadium this season. Their comments showed very clear reasons for this:
First, the three price rises in 13 months mean that many state they would prefer to drink in local pubs rather than the stadium, as prices are now too high. The Club has shared data with us on the huge cost increases they are incurring, but price rises are too high at a time when we are facing a cost of living crisis. Second, the queue length at a range of locations, before, during and after the match make getting served an extremely frustrating experience. Many supporters described a perceived drop in standards of service, with staff appearing to be new to role and too many service points being out of action. There was widely reported dissatisfaction with leaking beer cups, too.
This survey reported on the first two home games of the season only so we would like to think that things will improve as new staff become used to the systems etc. but this is something we need to closely monitor and we look forward to hearing the Catering Team’s perspective and plans for the future, which we will report back to you.
9. THST CHARITABLE DONATIONS
Part of THST’s remit is to support our local community. We hold many events and initiatives throughout the year to raise much needed funds for local and national charities. Many of you joined us earlier this year for our end of season BBQ at The Antwerp Arms where our guest was Club legend Steve Perryman. The funds we raised that night supported the Cycle on You Spurs team who did a sponsored ride to Amsterdam raising funds for Prostate Cancer. This event has grown hugely over the years, and we are very grateful to former Board member Kevin Fitzgerald for his enthusiasm and leadership, which helped to make this happen. This year the Spurs Cycle Team raised an incredible grand total of £57,429.59 which benefits PCUK. Prostate Cancer UK educates people about this disease and supports those who experience it. You can read more about their work here https://prostatecanceruk.org/ as well as learning about the signs and symptoms of prostate cancer, and how you can check your risk.
10. THST OFFICIAL PODCAST
This month’s podcast features THST host Martin Buhagiar, Co-Chair Rachel Martin and Board Member Simon Sullivan. They discuss the work of the Trust with a focus on Champions League matches home and away as well as the results of the recent Catering Survey. Click here to watch or give it a listen, and don’t forget to let us know if there is anything else you’d like us to cover in our podcasts. THST Official September 2022 podcast.
11. LAST WORD ON SPURS PODCAST
Co-Chairs Rachel Martin and Steve Cavalier were delighted to appear on the podcast Last Word on Spurs on Sunday 25 September. It was great fun and many thanks to Ricky Sacks and Lee McQueen for having us on. We were (we hope!) able to answer lots of questions about the work of the Trust and the issues we are currently dealing with. And about the views of Spurs fans as shown in our Survey. Plus our views on all things Spurs. You can listen to the podcast here: THST on Last Word on Spurs. Thank you to all of you who tuned in and for your questions and supportive comments, which were very much appreciated.
12. FORUM
This month on the Forum full members have been discussing difficulties with accessing season tickets on android phones, ticketing, the Spurs App, catering at the stadium, the opening up of Park Lane Square, Club communications, and stewarding. The THST Forum is open to full and life members of the Trust. Full and life members should apply via the link on our website and set up an account. We should emphasise Trust membership alone doesn’t give you automatic access to the forum, you need to register via the link. To join the Trust, please register here. To upgrade from free Associate Membership of the Trust to Full membership, please click here. If you’re already a Full or Life member of the Trust, click here to register for our Forum.
.
13. MEDIA LOG
Spurs Supporters’ Trust question club’s ticket pricing for Champions League: Spurs Supporters' Trust question club's ticket pricing for Champions League - Spurs Web - Tottenham Hotspur Football News (spurs-web.com)
Police arrest five after crowd trouble follows Tottenham’s win over Marseille: Police arrest five after crowd trouble follows Tottenham’s win over Marseille | Borehamwood Times
THST Board
1 October 2022
For more exclusive and live updates follow us on our social media sites:
Twitter: @THSTOfficial
Facebook: www.facebook.com/THSTOfficial
TO BECOME A TRUST MEMBER, PLEASE CLICK HERE
Following on from last month’s update, we have now received revised documentation from the Club, which we are considering together with the Proud Lilywhites, SpursAbility and SpursREACH. We will then discuss further with the Club in the hope of achieving a final set of documentation that can be supported by all groups.
Meanwhile, many of you will have seen the reports that the government may be backsliding on the recommendation for an independent regulator for English football (IREF) and other key recommendations of the report led by Tracey Crouch MP. We have liaised with other fan groups about this and have written to the relevant official at Number 10 Downing Street seeking reassurance that the government will pass the necessary legislation to implement the recommendations. At its conference, the Labour Party committed to pass the necessary legislation if it wins the next general election.
2. THST SUBMISSION TO DCMS ON FAN SAFETY
The Digital Culture Media and Sport Select Committee at Westminster asked for evidence from supporter groups on the following questions:
- Are UK stadiums and crowd management policies sufficient to maintain the safety of large volumes of fans at major events?
- What steps can be taken to protect UK fans abroad at major events?
- Should regulations governing fans attending football matches be reviewed?
3. PROBLEMS AT HOME GAME AGAINST OLYMPIQUE DE MARSEILLE
We raised a number of concerns with the Club about incidents at the home match against Olympique de Marseille. Read the report of that and of the Club’s response here: Olympique de Marseille Report
Our Co-Chairs attended a meeting with the Club to review the CCTV footage from the night and be taken through the steps taken by the Club, stewards and police before during and after the game. It was a very helpful meeting and a clear demonstration of some of the problems faced by clubs dealing with the particular challenge of certain groups of away fans in European competition.
We raised a number of questions and have been given the opportunity to observe the police and stewarding operation in the build-up to the Frankfurt home fixture, including access to the ground and the arrangements in the away end. We will then be able to head to our normal season ticket seats to watch the game itself!
4. CHAMPIONS LEAGUE TICKETING: PRICING AND ARRANGEMENTS
We reported last month on our request to the Club to reconsider its pricing for this season’s Champions League home fixtures and to lower the prices for the games against Eintracht Frankfurt and Sporting Lisbon here. Regrettably the prices have not been reduced and the games remain as Category B fixtures.
We are pleased, however, that the Club has now agreed to our request that Ticket Share be available for those fixtures. That was confirmed on the email regarding extra tickets for the Frankfurt game - although you could be forgiven for missing it as it was very small and at the end of the email. We have asked that the information is provided more prominently for the Sporting Lisbon fixture.
5. FRANKFURT AWAY
We attended a planning meeting with the Club in advance of the away fixture in Frankfurt on 4 October. The proposed arrangements were explained and shown to us, we were able to raise a number of questions, and have some of the more draconian policies relaxed. The Club will be sending detailed advice to travelling fans covering all of those issues.
6. BRIGHTON AWAY
The Club is confident that the away fixture at Brighton on 8 October will be proceeding, despite the rail strike on that date. It has been explained that there were particular additional factors that caused the postponement of Brighton v Crystal Palace on a previous strike day. The Club is proposing to provide subsidised coach travel for the game and a further update on travel arrangements. The Club will be sending out details to supporters with tickets for this match.
7. RESCHEDULING OF HOME MATCH V NEWCASTLE
On 29 July, the Premier League announced its October TV picks and moved Tottenham’s home match against Newcastle United from 3pm on Saturday 22 October to the 5:30pm broadcast slot on the same day, with no caveat attached to the rescheduling. We understand that Chelsea versus Manchester United had provisionally been lined up for the valuable Sunday 4:30pm slot that weekend. Chelsea have since been scheduled to play in the Champions League on the following Tuesday, meaning that their Premier League match against Manchester United has to be played on Saturday rather than Sunday.
Subsequently, on 13 September the Premier League announced the decision to move the Tottenham versus Newcastle match into the empty Sunday 4:30pm slot. This late and unexpected switch has inconvenienced many supporters, including several THST members who have been in touch with us.
If you are a One Hotspur member who had purchased a ticket for the Newcastle match and can no longer make it, you can request a full refund as long as you do so at least 7 days before the game takes place – see here for the Club’s refund policy and request form. Season Ticket holders who cannot make the rescheduled fixture are expected to use Ticket Exchange or Ticket Share to sell or pass on their tickets.
We lodged our dissatisfaction with the Premier League and the Independent Football Ombudsman, and asked THFC to agree to refund any Season Ticket holders who are unable to attend the rescheduled match and are unsuccessful in selling or sharing their ticket through the official channels. The Ombudsman has recognised the inconvenience caused to supporters and the current imbalance between clubs and supporters. But at the time of writing, we are yet to receive information on THFC’s plans regarding refunds for Season Ticket holders.
No supporter should be left out of pocket as a result of fixture rescheduling. Yet our 2022 survey found that large numbers of fans have been unable to recoup all of their money for matches they could no longer attend due to broadcast moves.
Even if supporters are able to recover the money paid for their match tickets, there remains the issue of travel costs that many will have also incurred. Many Tottenham supporters do not live in N17 and rely on public transport to get to home matches. And that’s not to mention the considerable impact on Newcastle’s away fans.
The rail industry is currently operating a Book with Confidence scheme for advance train tickets which allows you to amend when you travel without incurring a fee. We are calling for a similar scheme to be put in place permanently to help match-going supporters moving forwards. Unfortunately, this wouldn’t help supporters who live further afield and may have incurred costs for flights and accommodation. But it would be a start.
We also advocate for a central pot of money to be set aside to compensate fans who have lost out financially as a result of late fixture changes, to be funded from the Premier League’s broadcast revenues. We will push for this when the next broadcast rights tender process approaches.
8. CATERING UPDATE
We invited Spurs fans to complete our catering survey to feed back on their experience after the first two home matches. We are grateful to every one of the respondents who took the time to comment on the quality of the provision and to give very specific detail on the difficulties they have experienced. Simon Sullivan and Rachel Martin are meeting with THFC’s Andrew Taylor and Levi Harris this week to discuss the findings with them.
There are some very clear trends emerging including, generally, satisfaction with the menu and the variety and quality of the food provided. However, a very significant number of supporters, 38%, saying they would be less likely to eat or drink in the stadium this season. Their comments showed very clear reasons for this:
First, the three price rises in 13 months mean that many state they would prefer to drink in local pubs rather than the stadium, as prices are now too high. The Club has shared data with us on the huge cost increases they are incurring, but price rises are too high at a time when we are facing a cost of living crisis. Second, the queue length at a range of locations, before, during and after the match make getting served an extremely frustrating experience. Many supporters described a perceived drop in standards of service, with staff appearing to be new to role and too many service points being out of action. There was widely reported dissatisfaction with leaking beer cups, too.
This survey reported on the first two home games of the season only so we would like to think that things will improve as new staff become used to the systems etc. but this is something we need to closely monitor and we look forward to hearing the Catering Team’s perspective and plans for the future, which we will report back to you.
9. THST CHARITABLE DONATIONS
Part of THST’s remit is to support our local community. We hold many events and initiatives throughout the year to raise much needed funds for local and national charities. Many of you joined us earlier this year for our end of season BBQ at The Antwerp Arms where our guest was Club legend Steve Perryman. The funds we raised that night supported the Cycle on You Spurs team who did a sponsored ride to Amsterdam raising funds for Prostate Cancer. This event has grown hugely over the years, and we are very grateful to former Board member Kevin Fitzgerald for his enthusiasm and leadership, which helped to make this happen. This year the Spurs Cycle Team raised an incredible grand total of £57,429.59 which benefits PCUK. Prostate Cancer UK educates people about this disease and supports those who experience it. You can read more about their work here https://prostatecanceruk.org/ as well as learning about the signs and symptoms of prostate cancer, and how you can check your risk.
10. THST OFFICIAL PODCAST
This month’s podcast features THST host Martin Buhagiar, Co-Chair Rachel Martin and Board Member Simon Sullivan. They discuss the work of the Trust with a focus on Champions League matches home and away as well as the results of the recent Catering Survey. Click here to watch or give it a listen, and don’t forget to let us know if there is anything else you’d like us to cover in our podcasts. THST Official September 2022 podcast.
11. LAST WORD ON SPURS PODCAST
Co-Chairs Rachel Martin and Steve Cavalier were delighted to appear on the podcast Last Word on Spurs on Sunday 25 September. It was great fun and many thanks to Ricky Sacks and Lee McQueen for having us on. We were (we hope!) able to answer lots of questions about the work of the Trust and the issues we are currently dealing with. And about the views of Spurs fans as shown in our Survey. Plus our views on all things Spurs. You can listen to the podcast here: THST on Last Word on Spurs. Thank you to all of you who tuned in and for your questions and supportive comments, which were very much appreciated.
12. FORUM
This month on the Forum full members have been discussing difficulties with accessing season tickets on android phones, ticketing, the Spurs App, catering at the stadium, the opening up of Park Lane Square, Club communications, and stewarding. The THST Forum is open to full and life members of the Trust. Full and life members should apply via the link on our website and set up an account. We should emphasise Trust membership alone doesn’t give you automatic access to the forum, you need to register via the link. To join the Trust, please register here. To upgrade from free Associate Membership of the Trust to Full membership, please click here. If you’re already a Full or Life member of the Trust, click here to register for our Forum.
.
13. MEDIA LOG
Spurs Supporters’ Trust question club’s ticket pricing for Champions League: Spurs Supporters' Trust question club's ticket pricing for Champions League - Spurs Web - Tottenham Hotspur Football News (spurs-web.com)
Police arrest five after crowd trouble follows Tottenham’s win over Marseille: Police arrest five after crowd trouble follows Tottenham’s win over Marseille | Borehamwood Times
THST Board
1 October 2022
For more exclusive and live updates follow us on our social media sites:
Twitter: @THSTOfficial
Facebook: www.facebook.com/THSTOfficial
TO BECOME A TRUST MEMBER, PLEASE CLICK HERE
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