Getting a seat at St James’ Park has never been trickier – but there is hope that fans can find a way into the famous venue
Newcastle United chiefs pledged to create a waiting list during the fan advisory board last week raising hopes that there could be a pathway for supporters who want to get their hands on a season ticket.
Eventually, Newcastle aim to consult supporters on two viable options that will include breathtaking images and plans for what the club feel will be an exciting future. Club chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan is believed to have been shown those very pictures after a series of meetings last year.
With the club not putting season tickets up for sale since 2022, when 1,000 seats went up for grabs, nobody at boardroom level needs to be reminded that a bigger stadium is vital for Newcastle to flourish as a club. The only answer is more seats, something that CEO Darren Eales flagged up at a fan meeting at the STACK last November.
As reported by Chronicle Live in January, the options on the table seem to be a 60,000 updated version of St James’ Park or a move to a new site which could bring a 70,000 venue to the table.
When Newcastle was essentially ran into the ground by Mike Ashley between 2007 and 2021, it was simpler to get tickets and even got to the point where the Sports Direct magnate was giving them away.
Ashley, incredibly, gave away 10,000 free season tickets to bolster ailing crowds as Steve Bruce’s team failed to capture the imagination of the Newcastle public. The truth is Bruce took over a team that was put together at the end of the Ashley cycle and fed up fans had seen enough long before.
Newcastle chiefs now find themselves with a thriving fanbase keen to take in as much action as possible but unable to satisfy everybody. The Saudi-backed Magpies have the opposite problem to Ashley, who never seemed to fully grasp what supporters wanted.
After trying to remedy the issue of allowing fans to gain access to St James’ Park, commercial chief Peter Silverstone tweaked the club membership scheme to give supporters without season tickets the chance to effectively enter a match day lottery to pay for a seat.
There are other advantages to the Mags membership scheme but some fans argue that the chances of landing a ticket are one in six when entering ballots. NUST say that the club dispute those odds and there is a greater chance of success in the ballots.
Newcastle are trying to make St James’ Park as accessible as possible and say that other opportunities to get into the ground include friendly games, NUFC women’s fixtures and the opportunity to spend match days in Shearer’s or the STACK.
The pre-season Sela Cup against Atletico Madrid is close to a sell out with the club seeing a big rise on pre-season sales after 31,958 attended a friendly against Girona before 33,760 turned out for the 1-0 win over Brest.
As the club progresses and interest builds, especially for younger fans, Newcastle must work hard to ensure there is no type of lock out. As people’s families grow, the prospect of kids making that famous walk up the steps on the Gallowgate End for the first time becomes trickier the longer Newcastle stay at such a limited capacity.
An announcement on the new stadium was made at the start of the year but things have gone quiet after words from St James’ Park supremo Brad Miller last year. Whether that is down to the impending change of CEO remains to be seen, but work is still ongoing behind the scenes.
That announcement can’t come soon for those eager to see the next piece of history unfold at St James’ Park.
