LaLiga clubs that introduced a €25 (£22/$28) limit on away tickets earlier this season have called on more teams to join them after a successful launch.
In July, Alavés, Athletic Bilbao, Eibar, Osasuna and Real Sociedad set an upper limit of €25 per ticket for traveling fans who will attend games between the teams during the 2019-20 season.
The aim of the initiative is to boost the atmosphere at derby matches between the teams. The number of tickets that will be made available for away fans at €25 will depend on the relative stadium capacities, which range from 53,000 for Bilbao to just 7,000 for Eibar.
The arrangement marks the first price cap for away tickets in LaLiga, with the league stating that the initiative is already spreading across the top Spanish division.
Athletic Bilbao has already introduced a similar arrangement with Celta Vigo, while Osasuna has away ticket deals with Real Betis, Levante UD and Villarreal CF.
A spokesperson from Real Sociedad said: “It could be the start of a series of arrangements between different LaLiga clubs so that attendance at stadiums is as high as possible, with the priority being on the fans.”
SD Eibar’s communications director Unai Artetxe, said that the savings made could encourage fans to spend longer in the other club’s city.
A spokesperson from Athletic Bilbao, which has already hosted two Basque derbies this season, added: “We want to create a great atmosphere at each one of our derbies, as you could already see when we welcomed Real Sociedad and Alavés. We also want our supporters to be able to go and see their team away from home in a way that isn’t so costly.”
Bilbao hosted Real Sociedad in August, and welcome 46,697 fans to the San Mamés Stadium, and played Alavés in September in front of a crowd of 45,143, both of which are higher than the club’s 2018-19 average attendance of 40,800.
In February, Premier League clubs agreed unanimously to continue their £30 cap on away tickets until the end of the 2021-22 season. The scheme was brought in for of the 2016-17 campaign. In France, the price cap for away fans is €10.
Image: Tsutomu Takasu
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