Why Brentford ticket news has shamed Ratcliffe and Manchester United

Brentford have cast Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s price increases at Manchester United in an even less flattering light by slashing the cost of away tickets for young fans to just £10.

The Premier League club’s pledge not only affects junior Brentford fans attending their away games but also under-18s making the trip to west London to support visiting teams. 

It comes after Manchester United fans protested against the removal of concessions for young and old fans at Old Trafford by Ratcliffe and fellow owners the Glazer family on Sunday.

“We’re putting young fans first to ensure they can watch their team on the road by keeping football affordable and accessible,” said Brentford chief executive Jon Varney. 

“Clubs have the power to make the game more affordable for everyone and to challenge rising costs for supporters and we want to play our part. We hope other clubs follow this initiative.”

Premier League clubs have an agreement not to charge adult away fans more than £30 for a ticket, but prices for juniors can still be as high as £25.

Brentford make just £11m in matchday revenue per season, meaning that they would be entitled to charge as much for tickets as the market will sustain. Manchester United make £137m.

“We want to go a step further and that’s why we are extending this principle to young supporters, demonstrating that more can be done to ensure football is accessible for families and young people,” Brentford said in a statement.

Manchester United’s removal of concessions for juniors and the elderly means that they will have to pay the increased adult price of £66 to attend home games for the rest of the season.

The Manchester United Supporters’ Trust called the policy change “offensive” and warned it would be seeking urgent talks with the Old Trafford hierarchy.

Club chiefs defended the move on Monday, saying it was part of a wider drive to cut costs and increase revenues and would only affect a small number of remaining tickets.

West Ham United have also come under fire for charging their under-18s between £85 and £100 for standard tickets to the Premier League match with Liverpool later this month.

Brentford have previously been praised for giving their supporters any ticket credit in their accounts back as cash to help with the cost of living over the Christmas period last year.