Aston Villa branded ‘disgrace’ for charging fans nearly £100 to watch Champions League matches

Aston Villa’s Champions League ticket prices have been branded an “absolute disgrace” after they announced fans would be forced to pay almost £100 to watch the club’s European Cup return.

Villa supporters reacted with fury to the news of the cost of attending their side’s first matches in Europe’s premier club competition for 41 years, which will see them charged up to £97 per ticket.

The cheapest adult tickets for their games against Bayern Munich, Bologna, Juventus and Celtic have been priced at £85 for non-season ticket holders, almost three times that charged by Liverpool (£30) for their Champions League home matches and more expensive even than going to London-based Arsenal’s fixtures (£74.30).

They are also in the region of three times more expensive than for Villa’s group-stage games in the Europa Conference League last season.

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The new prices, which multiple fans branded an “absolute disgrace” on social media, were announced a day after the club revealed they were hours away from facing a points deduction for breaching football’s financial rules before selling Douglas Luiz to Juventus.

The cost of attending Champions League fixtures risks souring Villa supporters’ joy at qualifying for the competition and drawing the likes of Bayern – who their side beat in the 1982 European Cup final – and Juventus, who ended the Midlanders’ reign as defending champions the following year.

Mo Razzaq, chair of the Aston Villa Supporters Trust (AVST), told Telegraph Sport the prices had been announced in defiance of calls from the club’s Fan Advisory Board for the cost of Champions League tickets to be no more than for a Category A Premier League game at Villa Park.

Razzaq, who sits on the FAB, said the matter would be raised again at the body’s next meeting with the Villa hierarchy.

The ticket price announcement also came two days after Uefa announced a reduction in the maximum amount clubs could charge away fans for attending Champions League matches to around £50.

Razzaq said “it would be great” if a similar cap was introduced for home supporters.

AVST later added in a statement: “When compared to other English clubs in the Champions League this year and indeed Uefa’s own away ticket price cap, today’s announcement is out of touch. Loyal Villa fans who’ve waited as long as 40 years to celebrate this momentous season are being punished and exploited.

“The trust fears the club will alienate fans with these prices and urges the club to rethink ahead of the first home match against Bayern Munich in October.”