What Doug King has said about controversial Coventry City ticket situation - West Brom fans aren't happy | OneFootball

Coventry City owner Doug King has come under fire for the club's £45 price for away tickets for clash against West Brom.

Coventry City owner Doug King has issued a response to the West Brom supporters who have criticised the £45 price of an away ticket to the CBS Arena for their clash later this month.

The Baggies will travel to take on the current league leaders when the Championship returns to action following the upcoming international break.

While away tickets in the Premier League are capped at a price of £30, fans of the second tier side will have to pay considerably more in order to travel with their team to face the Sky Blues.

This has led to criticism for Coventry, who are enjoying a strong start to the campaign under Frank Lampard.

They are the current Championship league leaders and will be aiming to earn automatic promotion to the Premier League this season, but their ticketing policy is causing ire from around the footballing community.

Coventry City owner Doug King responds to £45 away ticket criticism

King has highlighted the short distance to travel as part of his justification for the increase in price compared to last season.

The businessman has also highlighted the expensive cost of tickets in other forms of entertainment as an example that the prices they are charging are reasonable.

"We're local so the transport costs are reduced,” King said, via the BBC.

“The price increase year on year is about £7, everybody has got their opinions.

“People will shout about the price of the ticket but I look at other ticket prices in other entertainment media and I see them through the roof.

"They say, here's the price, get to that concert and get on with it.”

King also dismissed the £30 cap in the Premier League, claiming the difference in broadcast revenue more than makes up for the decrease in away tickets.

"People say the Premier League is capped at £30 but I say, 'Yeah but the Premier League has got £120m broadcast revenue and I've got a pittance',” the Cov owner added.

"We're not printing money in the Championship.

Whilst some Coventry fans have backed King's views on the ticketing price increase, it's fair to say others are a bit more critical - including a mass amount of West Brom fans.

Albion supporters have called for a cap to be introduced following King’s comments, suggesting that retaliation could be taken from clubs against Coventry if nothing is done.

King has been criticised by plenty of Baggies supporters for comparing football to other industries, with matches happening on a weekly basis compared to alternative big entertainment events.

And fans are suggesting that they are not willing to pay the £45 cost of a ticket, suggesting they are reaching a tipping point of what they are capable of paying in order to follow their team.

And it’s not just Albion fans that have had their say on the Sky Blues owner’s latest comments, with a lot of neutral parties criticising the Coventry City owner.

In particular, his claim that other entertainment charges more for tickets received a lot of backlash.

While people may be willing to pay extra for a one-off concert or event, fans are hoping to go to many football matches in a given season, and so are hoping to pay less for an individual game.

Even Coventry supporters have stood up for their rival fans, criticising King despite recognising the good work he’s done since taking over the club in recent years.

Regulation on ticket price is the only way to keep the game affordable

Championship clubs like Coventry will continue to have the ability to increase the price of away tickets if they so wish, as long as they feel they can get away with it.

Supporters are innately loyal, and are more inclined to pay over the odds for tickets to a game if it’s something they’ve always done.

That makes them easy to exploit, so regulation like in the Premier League is needed in order to keep the game affordable for the average fan.

West Brom, neutral, and even some Coventry supporters.