Season tickets: Learning from KCCA model to aid Villa missteps, ambitious Kitara

Kitara, on the other side, hastily introduced a tiered seasonal tickets of five categories from Shs20, 000, Shs50, 000, Shs100,000, Shs1m and Shs10m.

The last category offered a chance for about eight fans to accompany the team to Libya for their double-header against Al Hilal in the Caf Confederations Cup.

These didn’t bear fruits as well. The club has revised the prices to Shs150,000 for ordinary and Shs450,000 for VIP after exiting the continent.

These two scenarios are a stark reminder to clubs of the potential pitfalls of pricing too aggressively in a market with constrained disposable income.

A model to emulate?

A week later, KCCA unveiled their 2024/25 season ticket. It quickly captured the attention of many among them, the Fufa president Eng. Moses Magogo who promptly purchased a VIP ticket worth Shs650, 000. Magogo is a confessed staunch fan of Villa.

Properly designed

“Thank you KCCA for getting this STRATEGY right, please deliver my VIP ticket today,” he posted on his X.

Magogo elaborated his action: “Whereas I am not a fan of the club, it is my policy to pay for all properly designed season tickets for all the UPL clubs if done right.”

Magogo’s VIP ticket offers him VIP access to all home games at Lugogo and a new branded home kit for this season.  KCCA fans who bought the same ticket last year had access to their Caf Confederation Cup match against Libya’s Abu Salim at Kitende, Fufa Super Eight and their international friendly against Kenya’s Homeboyz during the season launch. A renewal for this season attracts a discount of Shs50,000.

Ordinary ticket holders will pay Shs200,000 for new subscribers and Shs180,000 for renewals, which comes with a non-branded home kit.

KCCA’s model seems to strike the balance between pricing, value, and fan engagement, something that other clubs can learn from. A normal KCCA match day ticket goes for Shs.10,000.

More than a match

Wakiso Giants is another club showing intentions of following suit with tickets ranging from Shs150,000, Shs250,000 (VIP), Shs500, 000 (VVIP) and Shs1m for corporate.

The main difference among the first four is the seating position while the corporates have the luxury of attending the club’s annual general meetings.

However, realistically, one will whether Kabaka Kyabbagu Stadium is well-built to offer the different standards.

While these innovations are commendable, their early outcomes highlight some of the broader economic challenges in the country. With a large portion of the population having limited disposable income, high ticket prices can affect attendance as seen at Namboole.

Brian Kato, a resident of Wakiso who occasionally supports Wakiso Giants, sums it this way: “I don’t see the reason [to buy a season ticket] because a normal 90 minutes costs Shs10, 000 which translates to Shs150, 000 a season, so what is the extra charge for?”

This statement reflects the overall view among fans about ticket pricing, begging the question of value addition in a league whose quality of football might not justify the cost.

Previously, Wakiso offered drinks and snacks but their chief executive officer Sula Kamoga explains that the venture is unsustainable.

“Introducing the fans' experience aspect is a bit expensive, especially when you compare what we collect to the overall costs,” Kamoga says.

League newcomers Mbale Heroes have the cheapest season tickets at Shs100,000, Shs300,000 (gold) and Shs500,000 for platinum.

Shifting the financial burden

What Kato is raising is a pertinent question for club creative heads to solve. Villa reported over a thousand members in their Villa Membership Trust last year yet did not translate into visible support in arguably their biggest game in two decades.

Most clubs that have tried out the project struggle to explain the methodology used to arrive at those figures beyond shifting the club’s financial burden to the fans.

“If we charged Shs10,000 per match for 15 home games and say five cup games … then for 20 matches, a fan is giving us Shs200,000 a season. This is money that cannot pay training allowances for all players per day … (and) take care of training and match day.,” William Nkemba, Villa’s chief executive officer, shares his ideology.

Fans experience

Magogo added, “Next time let us include family packages too; the recruitment should be for families and not fans just like religions do.”

For context, and skewing a little bit, tickets for the opening 2025 Africa Cup of Nations Qualifier between South Africa and Uganda at the Orlando Stadium will go for R30(Shs6,200), R60(Shs12,500) and R140(Shs30,000). That is for students, adults and a family package, respectively. Yes, a family of four - two adults and two children - will pay only Shs30,000!

Unlike Magogo, Clive Kyazze, a popular journalist and avid supporter of KCCA does not find the value in his club’s season tickets, probably due to his recent exposure to better markets. “No I don’t [buy season tickets], it’s not worth it,” he says briefly.

Maybe Kyazze has an alternative option with his media pass but Ronald ‘Puyol5’ Kiryowa, an ordinary KCCA fan expounds with a tinge of advice: “A season ticket makes you feel at home and involved but the holders need to be allocated special sitting areas, given special treats, and invited to annual meetings and dinners.”

Kiryowa has not yet purchased a ticket but sees value in the concept, if improved further. Kamoga reveals that Wakiso has averaged fewer than 40 ticket holders per season since 2020. Vipers also tried the concept in 2018 but abandoned it in 2021. Their tickets were offered at Shs300, 000, 500,000 and Shs1.5m.

Infrastructural hurdle

Fred Isabirye, a Bul and Busoga United fan shares his skepticism due to stadium uncertainties.

“It will be a loss if I buy and they transfer home games to Njeru, Lugazi or even Kampala. If you don’t have a fit stadium, don’t bother with such,” he says plainly.

Hamza, a former Express chief executive and current president of Futsal offers his advice: “Solutions for clubs include affordable pricing, exclusive events, fan engagement, tiered packages, loyalty programs, and modern ticketing systems.”

Talking infrastructure and modern ticketing, Uganda’s oldest premier club Express has not been left out. The Red Eagles have abandoned their traditional swampy Wankulukuku for Hamz (formerly Nakivubo) in a bid to transition into an upgraded facility.

The club said the move was part of a “broader strategy to grow and reach new heights".

Treasure hunt

 They have also launched e-tickets for the season with the lowest (ordinary) going for Shs260, 000, VIP for Shs700,000, VVIP at Shs1.3m and executive at Shs3.25m. The respective VIPs come with non-branded kits while the premium, on top of that, has access to Wi-Fi and a special treatment. All these come days after the club played their opening game at the facility against Kenya’s AFC Leopards in an international friendly in front of empty seats.

Tickets for the match ranged from Shs20,000 to 250,000.

Africa’s big boys’ club

At Shs3.25m, Express’ executive season pass is not only the most priced locally but more expensive than those offered by Africa’s richest and most successful club, Al Ahly.

The Egyptian giants charge $500(Shs1.9m) and $600 (shs2.26m) for their season tickets for VIP and VVIP respectively! At that cost, the club’s fans managed to watch 17 league, five Cup and seven Caf Champions League matches. The club also returned the favour with a league title and continental glory.

Across the southern borders, reigning Tanzanian champions Young Africans charged TShs1m (Shs1.37m) for their season tickets last term. The tickets catered for 15 league and seven continental matches, delivering the former glory and a final appearance in the Caf Confederation Cup. Regular tickets for normal match days range from as low as Tshs5,000 (Shs6,900) to Tshs30,000 (Shs40,000) and Tshs50,000(Shs69,000) for top clashes like the derby and big continental games. The club offered over 36,000 free tickets for their Caf Champions League quarterfinal match against South African giants Mamelodi Sundowns.

A spokesman of the club told Saturday Sports that the club registers an average of 35,000 fans per match, with the tickets accounting for about 12% of their total income.

With these figures, Yanga is estimated to have earned in the region of Tshs3.85b (Shs5.3b) last season. The club reportedly collected $830,000 (Shs3.1b) from the 2022/23 season.

Their derby and eternal rivals Simba Sports Club resonate around the same range. The two league matches between Simba and Yanga last season fetched a gross of Tshs806m (Shs1.1b) with the return leg hosted by Simba raking in Shs20.22m more. About 53 569 spectators watched the second leg live.

In Kenya, the clubs have not yet embraced the season ticket concept but their league holders and record champions Gor Mahia charge between Kshs200(Shs5,800) and Kshs500(Shs14,400) respectively. The club, according to their chief executive officer Ray Ouro, records approximately 2,000 fans in normal games to 30,000 in their local derby against AFC Leopards. The collections account for 20% of their total revenue.

Benchmarking

Season tickets date back to the late 19th century when football clubs started appreciating the value of guaranteed money in advance. Initially, these tickets were some typical booklets with a series of pages that fans would tear off and hand at the gate at every match but it has evolved with passing generations.

Today's season ticket represents so much more than mere admission to a match. They’ve been transformed into comprehensive packages designed to give the best experiences from early access to new kit launches and exclusive club content to priority booking for away games and cup finals.

In Europe for example, an Arsenal season ticket ranges from £805 (Shs4m) to £2050 (Shs10m) but to get it, one has to pay £50(Shs242,000) to be on the waiting list or pay at least 25% of platinum membership worth between £3,495 (Shs17m)  to £6,995(Shs34m). With an average of 59,000 attendance at their Emirates Stadium, big data analytics company, Sponsorlytix estimates that Arsenal collect about $3.1m (Shs11 51b) in matchday sales.

Some of the benefits include priority booking for away games and high-demand fixtures, exclusive access to content such as behind-the-scenes footage and special match day events, discounts on club merchandise and food and beverages inside the stadium and a fixed reserved seat for the entire season at a preferred spot.

Season tickets in UPL

Express: Ordinary – Shs200,000; VIP - Shs700,000; VVIP – Shs1.3m; Executive – Shs3.25m

KCCA: ordinary – Shs200,000 & Shs180,000 for renewals; VIP – Shs650,000 & Shs600,000 for renewals

Kitara: ordinary – Shs150,000; VIP – Shs450,000

Wakiso Giants - ordinary – Shs150,000; VIP – Shs250,000; VVIP – Shs500, 000 (VVIP); & corporate - Shs1m 

Mbale Heroes: Ordinary – Shs100,000; gold – Shs300,000; & platinum – Shs500,000