Wrexham free tickets campaign hits 4,000 seats provided
In a historic campaign at the Racecourse ground, Wrexham has been providing free tickets throughout the season. With so many games played in the National League and Wrexham’s FA Cup run, the voluntarily missed revenue exceeds $100,000 for the fifth-tier club, according to The Athletic.
This season, Wrexham launched its ticket promotional program called ‘Racecourse Live,’ fittingly named after the club’s home stadium. Each home game, Wrexham allots 200 tickets to individuals and groups otherwise unable to attend the game. For example, The Athletic talked to All Saints Church Youth Group, which allowed a group of children aged 10 to 14 to attend a Wrexham contest.
Wrexham owners Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds are just a part of the idea behind Racecourse Live. John Widdowson, Wrexham’s head of community, says the desire to give away free tickets is all about giving back to the community. In fact, that is one of the main principles behind McElhenney and Reynolds’s takeover of the club.
Almost 40 groups and organizations received free tickets from the club this season. Those groups consist of food banks, housing associations, specialist council and even the local police force.
Free tickets to Wrexham games runs through end of season
Moreover, Wrexham does not only do this for smaller games against weaker opposition. This applies to every home game. Therefore, by the end of the season, Wrexham will have given away over 4,000 tickets. That includes a simply massive Easter Monday game against promotion challengers Notts County.
In total, those 4,000 tickets this season cost the club an estimated $116,000 in revenue. That figure comes from the average adult price ticket at the Racecourse Ground.
“The scheme started in the summer,” says Widdowson. “Partly in response to the cost of living, which was rising even then, but also to help encourage behaviour change. Basically, a way in which the club can support the police or the authorities to work with individuals.”
Plus, it is a way to get those that could miss out on the ticket process into the ground. Wrexham’s popularity, both in northeast Wales and across the world, makes getting into games incredibly challenging with the scarcity of tickets. Wrexham’s average attendance is just shy of 10,000 per game this season. Plus, that is the highest in the National League by more than 2,000 compared to Notts County.
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