Chelsea are facing another season with a new face at the helm, but it doesn’t seem to affect their ability to attract supporters to Stamford Bridge. Despite Maurizio Sarri leaving for Juventus and another period of uncertainty, Stamford Bridge is likely to once again be sold out every week, with the Blues seemingly able to get fans to come to the game no matter what’s happened off the field.
We look at four reasons why top sides can keep selling season tickets out year on year, even under the toughest of circumstances.
Winning trophies
One of the main ways to sell tickets is to ensure the side is successful on the field and, despite the recent changes, Chelsea have been.
They’ve not picked up a Premier League title this season, nor the Champions League, but that won’t bother fans hugely. The Europa League is a good trophy to win and they despatched Arsenal in convincing style in the final. There is something to build upon there, a foundation to move forward, and fans will identify with that.
Baku is Blue… and Green! ?
? #UELfinal pic.twitter.com/EIfUjqyarO— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) May 29, 2019
Signing new players
This doesn’t apply to Chelsea this summer; the transfer ban will see to that. But big sides can attract supporters with a key signing or two.
It’s a testament to how much the Blues have impressed that the ban won’t affect their ticket sales. However, they signed Christian Pulisic back in January as a potential replacement for Eden Hazard and that ended up coming to fruition, so he acts as a new arrival as he stayed on loan at Borussia Dortmund until the end of last season.
Strong managerial appointment
Chelsea have another pivotal offseason ahead of them on and off the pitch as they have changed managers, once again. They need to make an appointment quickly in order to prepare for next season, but they also need someone who can deliver their high standards of success. If they make the right appointment this summer, it will also keep fans interested.
Frank Lampard is a Chelsea legend and clear favourite for the job, so he could keep the supporters onside, unlike Maurizio Sarri who had to deal with sections of the fanbase that weren’t enjoying his style of play.
On this day in 2001, Frank Lampard joined Chelsea. He went on to win it all ? pic.twitter.com/wU3O8VPNFc
— B/R Football (@brfootball) June 14, 2019
Not only that, he’ll come with Jody Morris in tow. Morris was the youth team manager with the Blues and if anyone can get the best out of their talented youngsters, he can. They’ll need to tap into that vein of talent they have in their ranks as well, given the ban on bringing in new players.
Promotions
If all else fails, give the supporters a promotion or benefit that makes buying a ticket attractive. Chelsea have frozen prices on their season tickets, which ensured they sold out their season ticket allocation.
Offering incentives and such is a great way to keep supporters, or customers, coming back, and it works in every industry. For example, while sportsbooks, which are strongly associated with football for obvious reasons, use free bets and special offers to retain customers, online casinos follow a similar strategy, using free spins and matched deposits to give customers more for their money. It stands to reason that you will enjoy the promotions you will find on bonus.ca if you’re a fan of online casinos, so when it comes to football fans buying season tickets, freezing the prices as Chelsea have done is bound to go down well too.
Chelsea and clubs like them don’t need the money from the tickets; often they make their profit from advertising, TV money and player sales, but a full stadium helps the team push on to further success. If the new manager is to negotiate the choppy waters that the Blues are currently in, he’ll need a loud and vociferous Stamford Bridge, something that is almost certainly guaranteed this coming season.
