Aston Villa defend Champions League ticket prices

Aston Villa person defended their Champions League summons prices aft a backlash from supporters, and insist they must make "difficult decisions" to enactment competitive.

The nine were labelled "out of touch" past week aft revealing they were charging up to £97 a summons for location Champions League matches this season.

Adult tickets for their 4 location matches successful nan caller 36-team convention format will beryllium £85, £94 and £97, while season-ticket holders get discounted rates of £70, £79 and £82.

The Premier League nine big Bayern Munich, Bologna, Juventus and Celtic successful their return to Europe's apical nine title for nan first clip successful 41 years.

Aston Villa Supporters' Trust (AVST) criticised nan move, but president of business operations Chris Heck has outlined why nan nine person charged truthful much.

He said: "We recognise and understand nan extent of passion felt amongst fans and their caller vexation astir summons pricing. Achieving our sporting ambitions while complying pinch financial stableness regulations requires difficult decisions.

"Financial adjacent play (FFP) rules prohibit owners from covering shortfalls to finance this ambition, truthful we request to make arsenic overmuch gross arsenic imaginable done sponsorships, merchandise and summons income to guarantee that we tin support nan nine wherever it rightfully belongs - competing and winning astatine nan apical of English and European football.

"Our privilege will ever beryllium to lucifer our corporate ambition while ensuring that we are capable to summation stadium capacity each play and supply nan champion matchday acquisition for each our fans."

Villa unfastened their Champions League run astatine Swiss nine Young Boys connected 17 September. They besides recreation to Club Bruges, RB Leipzig and Monaco.

The Football Supporters' Association (FSA) besides criticised nan costs and judge fans' loyalty is being taken advantage of.

"During Covid location was a batch of talk astir 'football without fans is nothing'. That sentiment seems to person vanished beautiful quickly successful that it seems shot fans are location to beryllium wrung dry," said FSA spokesperson Michael Brunskill.

"There’s a large connection for clubs who are squeezing fans mostly and trying to monetise everything - conscionable measurement backmost and extremity exploiting that protagonist loyalty.

"Just because you could doesn’t mean you should. We would for illustration clubs to respect nan loyalty of supporters. If your nine tries to utilization you, really does that make you feel? Clubs request to deliberation astir nan agelong game."