After meeting with other Officers of the Supporters Group, we wanted to make sure that we were going to hit our Platinum status before ‘bombarding’ everyone with all the news that has been flying around the last few weeks. Also, Chelsea have been a bit slow is sending out details of the ‘new ticketing procedures’ they are expecting to be adhered to, and whilst there has been much ‘noise’ from all Supporters Groups, we wanted to be absolutely sure that we had this in writing and understood how this would affect our group.
So firstly CFC will be giving all registered Supporters Group members access to a new ordering portal for tickets. This will only be given to those with a current season full Chelsea Members and who are registered with their relevant Supporters Group. It is a separate portal we understand from the main Chelsea website and will be available to access 7 days before tickets are put on members sale via the main CFC website. (VWR) We will still send out the timelines for ordering (‘the order window’) and members will firstly tell me (YOUR Club secretary) of your intention to apply, then you will apply yourself using the portal. If successful you will be sent a link to pay CFC directly rather than paying the Supporters Group. We will now only take your money for the coach fare.
There will also be introduced a limit to the number of times a member can be successful in obtaining a Supporters Group ticket. This means that members can only be successful in obtaining a Supporters Group ticket 8 times a season. It does not mean you can only go to a game 8 times a season, it just means that once each member has had 8 tickets through the SG they will then only have access to tickets via the VWR, The Ticket Exchange, or through a transferrable Season Ticket. This is the big change in policy that will affect some but not all of our members. Anyone going to almost every game through a supporter’s group is deemed by Chelsea as having ‘unfair access to tickets through the Supporters Groups’, and so they have subsequently applied the 8 times limit, so in their words “this will ensure all members of the SG get fair access to SG’s tickets”. This applies to every member attached to the supporters group. If you are not paid up and registered with the supporters group you will not have access to the supporters group tickets.
We are hopeful that we will be able to ‘navigate’ these changes for the majority of our group, so that we can ensure that we can continue to run smoothly and be financially viable with the coach travel we provide, as we have done in the past. For those ‘regular attendees’ who are hit the hardest, we will still be trying all avenues to ensure that everyone gets to as many games as they are happy with. To be fair, we have had restrictions in place for the last couple of seasons where demand has often outstripped supply, and that’s why members may have got one game they applied and qualified for, but then missed out on another enabling us to be fair to everyone in the group.
Everyone has taken their turn in the past in good grace and been understanding that they won’t be successful every time they ask, acknowledging that we always do our best, and that ‘internal policy’ has always been accepted by the majority of our group.
The South West Supporters Group still remains very active and offers a valued service of match day tickets & coach travel across Devon and Somerset. Or if you have your own tickets and just want door to door cheap travel options you are also welcome on board the coach. This applies to non members of our group, and members of any neighbouring groups in surrounding or adjacent counties.
We have issued an email to our wider distribution list, and if you have not received it then please email me @ timothyjdoherty@outlook.com for a copy or if you have any questions then please come back to us.