Manchester United has opted to subsidise the £102 ($134/€118) expense for away fans travelling to Barcelona for the UEFA Champions League quarter-final next month.
The Premier League club has taken a “difficult decision” to ask for the same price from Barcelona fans traveling to Old Trafford.
The club claims it will use the additional revenue from the first leg on April 10 to decrease the cost of the tickets for its fans hoping to travel to Camp Nou on April 16. United said it will bring the ticket price down to £75.
“We believe that our travelling supporters are again being subjected to increased/excessive ticket prices from the host club,” a statement on United’s website said. “We have again taken the difficult decision to charge Barcelona fans the same amount Barcelona are charging for the away fixture (£102). We will use the additional revenue gained to subsidise our travelling support by paying the £27 price difference.”
United has already sold out its allocated 4,610 standard tickets for the match in Barcelona, although there will be a second ballot for away tickets held next Monday.
United has been forced to subsidise its fans for increasingly expensive UEFA Champions League tickets before, with trips to Valencia and Sevilla last year.
UEFA openly backed English football fans in their bid to cap ticket prices for away fans in Europe in December. The governing body for European football said it is aware of the issue of clubs inflating pricing for travelling fans, and is ready to put a cap on tickets.
Liverpool supporters were also forced to pay £73 for their semi-final trip to AS Roma last year, while Valencia increased prices to £72 for the Merseyside club.
Image: Piotr Matyja
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