CITY today set a 15,000 target for next term after unveiling their latest cut-price season-ticket campaign in an attempt to swell their fan base.
Anyone over 16 will now pay £149 – £50 cheaper than the previous adult ticket. The popular £50 flexi-card will also be retained.
The reduction means that Valley Parade will boast the lowest prices in the division – and the club are confident that fans will back the latest move in their droves.
It works out at an average of £6.50 a game for fans who go every time, significantly cheaper than any other club in the area. Concessionary prices will remain the same.
But Valley Parade match-day admission will increase to £25 and £15, encouraging home fans to buy a season or flexi-ticket instead. Flexi holders will still pay £10 a game.
City sold around 12,500 season-tickets and flexi-cards for last season and are asking existing season-ticket holders to encourage new fans to sign up and smash that figure.
Joint-chairmen Julian Rhodes and Mark Lawn had planned to freeze prices across the board before deciding to cut the adult cost and bring it in line with students and OAPs.
Lawn said: "We believe we'll get more fans in – and it might encourage those who say they want to pay more to buy one for someone new to come, like a family member or friend, to help build on what we feel is the best atmosphere in the league.
"The ethos of the club is that we can get more fans and they are part of how we win games. When the fans turn out in numbers, it makes a hell of a difference.
"We need the fans' help to get us to 15,000 and I believe we can do that. Perhaps businesses can buy block tickets for their staff.
"Hopefully we can get the city of Bradford right behind us again and they can help push us to the next level.
"We've looked at the figures and believe that by doing this we can bring more income into the club. More people will come and spend more around the ground."
The club's 25-year season-ticket holders will again pay £110, which includes a suite upgrade. A junior season-ticket for 11 to 16-year-olds will cost £99 and admission for under-11s is free in conjunction with the purchase of an adult ticket.
The season-ticket offer will run until Sunday, July 5. After that point, prices will increase to £299 – as they did last year.
Rhodes said: "Look at how things have changed since we first started this ticket policy in 2007. We asked the people of Bradford to resurrect the club. It took a few years but we are now unrecognisable from where we were.
"We've got this great feeling of being all in it together and we want to take it a stage further. Let's set a very realistic target of 15,000. We're in the top six with ticket sales and it's a genuine win/win situation.
"We are going to have a decent budget next year, regardless of who is in charge, and I think we've got a great chance. It would be great to have a good season in front of a big home crowd."
Chief operating officer James Mason added: "This is a genuine opportunity to build our fan base after what has been a phenomenal season.
"This is a long thought-out process and we need everyone to get behind us and be positive about it. It's a holistic approach to achieving success on and off the field.
"We're not cheapening the product; far from it. We're making it more accessible and this is a very exciting time for the club and the city."
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