Football
Jonathan Smith, Manchester City correspondent 8y

Manchester City to review UCL ticket pricing policy after backlash - source

Manchester City say they will look at their Champions League ticket pricing policy for future games following a backlash over the cost of attending the quarterfinal clash against Paris Saint-Germain, a club source has told ESPN FC.

Thousands of tickets for Tuesday's second leg remain unsold despite City being on the verge of the semifinals of the competition after their 2-2 draw in the French capital last Wednesday.

However, tickets have been selling quickly following the strong result in the first leg, and the club is still on course for a record Champions League crowd -- beating the 50,363 for the group stage game with Juventus in September 2015.

The Premier League club reached the last eight of the Champions League for the first time in their history but they faced criticism when they announced the cost of tickets for the PSG game from supporters who could be charged up to £60 for a seat for the game.

Influential fans' group the 1894 Group led the objections. It said in a statement: "Our view is that the club have not shown any consistency on pricing for this competition which has resulted in thousands of empty seats for games.

"The prices were too high for too long. Our view is that even if the club signed Messi, Pogba and Neymar but the prices were too high -- fans just would not go."

City defended their prices which are similar to those charged for the Barcelona games in the Champions League knockout stages for the previous two seasons.

The club said in a statement: "Pricing for each match is reviewed on an individual basis, based on factors such as the opposition and stage of competition."

However, a source told ESPN FC that the club will now review the cost of tickets for future games after it had reached unchartered territory in Europe.

City have the third-highest average attendance in the Premier League at 54,029 but that drops to 47,397 for Champions League games.

There was only 43,630 at the Etihad Stadium in the previous round against Dynamo Kiev in March, although the tie was effectively over after a 3-1 win in Ukraine.

City also announced this week that it will freeze season ticket prices for next season.

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