Mansfield Town announced its pricing for 2026/27 season tickets and matchday tickets on April 2nd 2026: https://www.mansfieldtown.net/news/2026/april/02/mansfield-town-announce-season-ticket-information-for-2026-27/
Stags Fans United and the SSA were not consulted on the increase in ticket prices and it was the same last season.
We passed on fans' concerns last season and suggested that it may help if John Radford or other directors issued a video update or press release to explain the reason for any increases in ticket prices to the supporters. We also pointed out that it would be helpful if we could have a Fans Forum with John Radford and the other directors in the near future where fans can ask their questions, raise their concerns and give their feedback. I think the last Fans Forum was back in September 2024. We constantly ask for Fans Forums and video updates as they help with accountability and transparency. The same applies to the AGM.
John Radford's response was that the increase in match day ticket prices last season was aimed at increasing income from away fans and only affected around 1,000 tickets and it was a case of supply and demand.
He also said that the club had been working hard to get the ground to the best position it has been in and that the club continues to run at a loss which is why the decision was made last to have a slight increase on ticket prices as a contribution to making the stadium the best it has ever been. He further stated that where possible he will always try and minimise the increase of any costs to our fans. It's always worth remembering though that the stadium is owned by John Radford and not the football club.
We constantly ask the club to issue videos and press releases to explain their decisions and provide updates to supporters. Sid Pepper agreed with our suggestion and his video updates on the Bishop Street were very helpful and quite entertaining. He also did a Q&A in the marquee. However there should also be video updates with the other directors and operation or commercial managers explaining their roles at the club and providing updates for the fans. This information should also be on the club's website together with contact details so if fans have issues then they know who to contact.
Mark Hawkins is now the operations manager. He took over from Alex Sheriff last season. Mark does not seem to have an email address on the club website but you can email his PA Amy Thompson with your concerns and no doubt she will pass them on. Her email address is amy.thompson@mansfieldtown.net
I can understand that it is a big challenge for the club to remain competitive and stay in League 1 where some clubs are losing £9-£15 million per season. It was said that the average losses last season were £4-£5 million. John Radford does like to run a tight ship and a loss of around £75,000 last season is very good although some of our losses are subsidised from sponsorship by One Call.
I think most of us would agree that the club has made massive progress on and off the pitch since John Radford bought the club in September 2010 and there does not seem to be any drop in demand for tickets although I agree that there should be more options for fans to pay for their tickets over a period of time even if you take advantage of the early bird prices.
I will go through all the comments and put together a summary and email the suggestions to John Radford.
Darren Shaw,
Stags Fans United
