Carabao Cup Final ticket allocations and pricing – Liverpool and Newcastle fan groups send joint letter to EFL | OneFootball

Newcastle United fans and Liverpool fans have come together to challenge the EFL on Carabao Cup Final tickets, the allocation and pricing of them.

The kick-off time has also been questioned.

Liverpool fans represented by the Spirit of Shankly group, NUST (Newcastle United Supporters Trust) when it comes to NUFC fans.

Together, they have written a joint letter (see below) to Trevor Birch, who is the CEO of the EFL.

Spirit of Shankly and NUST joint announcement 11 March 2025:

On Tuesday 11 March 2025, Spirit of Shankly and NUST wrote a joint letter to the CEO of the English Football League, Trevor Birch to ask for some answers around ticket pricing, allocation and the kick off time. You can read that letter below:

Dear Trevor,

We are sending this as an open letter in order that supporters know that we have raised these issues on their behalf.

We, Spirit of Shankly and Newcastle United Supporters Trust, are writing in unison to raise a number of issues ahead of the upcoming 2025 Carabao Cup final, to be played at Wembley on 16 March.

Each of our clubs has a rich history and huge loyal support, twin elements that have heightened the anticipation of the occasion and which will be lauded by the media in the build-up to the match. And yet, it is the fans who are forgotten.

Wembley Stadium has a 90,000 capacity, yet each club has received just 31,939 tickets – a total of 63,878. At the 2022 final, LFC were given 32,999 tickets and a year later, NUFC were allocated 32,761.

Why has the number of tickets gone down and where have they gone? We understand the ‘modern’ game and its sponsors, corporate members and guests who must be catered for, but at the expense of match going fans who follow their team week in week out? Fans dream of watching their team in a final, unfortunately for many it won’t come true with a dwindling number of available tickets.

A reduction in the finalists’ allocation tends to mean a larger number of tickets turn up on the black market and supporters, perhaps feeling it’s the only chance they’ll get to see a final, in the wrong section of the stadium. It is wrong that almost 30% of tickets will not be available to those for whom reaching the final means so much.

We heard countless times after games played in empty stadiums during the pandemic that ‘football without fans is nothing’. How quickly that has been forgotten.

In tandem with a falling allocation is the rising price of available tickets – another blow to the ordinary fan during a cost-of-living crisis and at a time when there is more money than ever in the game.

The cost of tickets within each category may have increased below the level of inflation, but the impact of the re-categorisation is significant. The majority of tickets in level 1 are more expensive than they were in 2023.

In the 2023 final, a ticket in the safe standing section was £72. This year it costs £97 (up 34.7%). The view is no different.

And why has the cheapest category of tickets been removed from the lower tier of Wembley, with fans now having to pay substantially more? Two years ago, pitchside tickets cost £40; they are now £76 (up 90%). Again, the view is no different. In addition, the two new ‘premium seat’ categories mean the most expensive GA ticket has jumped from £100 to £150 (up 50%)

Such price hikes symbolise nothing more than greed.

Kick-off time

When tickets for the final were put on sale supporters didn’t even know what time it would kick off. When the time, 4.30pm, was announced, it showed scant regard for fans who are based more than 200 miles away.

A later kick-off like this impacts on supporters getting home, for many it will be the early hours when they then have to get up for work the next morning. Travel on public transport is difficult later on Sunday evenings with direct trains not always available, and it shows disdain for ‘green football’ campaigns as many will be forced into using their own vehicles instead of public transport.

A complete breakdown of the distribution of Wembley final tickets. Future finalists each to be allocated a minimum of 45% of the capacity. A halt to making this a big day out for corporate ticket holders and instead a well earned day for real supporters, who make the game what it is and without whom it is nothing. Clubs and the game’s governing bodies work in tandem to reduce the cost for as many fans as possible to attend a final and for a more reasonable kick-off time.