Manchester City have confirmed further details around the North Stand expansion and the latest update means some season ticket holders are being asked to move seats.
Season ticket holders in the Etihad’s North Stand are being moved for a new hospitality area
Manchester City fans who have been told they will have to move their season tickets to make way for a new hospitality section behind the North Stand goal have reacted with anger to the latest controversial ticketing decision at the Etihad.
Season ticket holders on Level 0 behind the goal will be moved to create the City Hall bar, a new corporate experience that will open next season as part of the North Stand redevelopment.
City wrote to those supporters affected on Thursday morning, shortly before the news that they would have to relocate was made public as part of an update on the North Stand expansion.
They were offered a priority relocation window, giving them the chance to move to any available general admission seat, with their season ticket price locked in for two seasons. They were also offered first refusal on staying where they are and paying for the enhanced hospitality experience at City Hall.
Dave Moore has been a season-ticket holder for 48 years with his dad, while his two children also sit with them now. He has had the same seats since City moved to the Etihad in 2003.
“We’ve ridiculed Man United for it for years, and we’ve become what we always hated them for. It’s a real kick in the teeth. When the owners took over, it was all about the community and building the club,” he said.
“To do this and put a load of corporate people in a seat behind the goal they attack in the second half. The atmosphere’s not great, but in the second half of games when they need it, it’s pretty good. With 500 corporates in there, it will probably be empty or people who don’t care.
“Every game you go to now it’s more about the tourists, the guys going in the shop spending money, buying food in the stadium. Long gone are the days when it was go to the pub for a load of pints with your mates and leave the pub at five to 3.
“It’s not just City. It’s happening at all clubs, but City have always been good with the fans, the last four or five years they seem to be distancing themselves further and further.”
The decision to move fans follows a trend at the Etihad and has again caused widespread anger. There have been a series of ticketing flashpoints in recent seasons and Dave pointed to the first leg of the Champions League play-off against Real Madrid as a moment when he nearly gave it up.
“The Real Madrid game last season was nearly the final straw for me,” he said. “I was sat in our seats and we were surrounded by foreign fans supporting Real Madrid. After the game, I said to my dad and kids, ‘I’ve had enough of this’. They convinced me to carry on, but to see that email this morning, it’s like, ‘what’s the point?’ I’ve spent tens of thousands of pounds following them all over the place and it just kind of feels like it’s for nothing now.”
Matt Burrows has sat in his North Stand seat with his son for the last two years and is now being asked to move.
“My initial thoughts are mixed with regard to the relocation. My lad and I had built a nice relationship with the family who sit on the row in front of us. It will be a shame to have to move away from them,” he said.
“I’m keen to hear more from City. I assume from the email it means our season tickets are going to stay the same price as we are currently paying for 2025/26 season, which I feel is a reasonable gesture and to try and take positives from the situation, it may allow me and my lad to relocate and sit with my other mates who also take their children now too.
“It’s not the first time we’ve seen season ticket holders moved out, Tunnel Club, 93:20, Joe’s and the rest of the hospitality areas/premium bars introduced over the last 10 years or so and it won’t be the last time City do this.
“I must have seen this coming because I asked at a supporter club meeting five or six months ago if they knew what areas were going to be affected by new hospitality or bars. They thought it may have been Level 1 (old Level 2) that may be affected. I knew our seats on Level 0, almost directly behind the goal and well under shelter, would be prime areas for corporate.”
Supporters were told they would receive more information about the specific seats available to them in early 2026, before they choose a seat for next season during the season ticket renewal window, which will be later in the current campaign.
Dave will take his time before deciding what to do, and although he is reluctant to give it up, he is concerned about what the club might offer.
“My dad is 75, he won’t want to go in safe standing. I spoke to him before and he was just gutted, he couldn’t believe it. It’s just a kick in the teeth, really. Now we’re worried about where we will be relocated to,” he said.
“Can we get four seats together? Will we be undercover? Will we be in a stand that is £400 or £500 a season more expensive? They’ve said they will hold the prices for the first two seasons, but what happens after that? With four season tickets, we could be paying an extra £1,000 or £1,500 a season.
“We’ve got until the end of the season to make a decision. I don’t want to stop going because I love it. My youngest is 16 now, he’s probably had a season ticket for the last 10 years so it’s been like the family day out, I don’t really want to stop doing that, but it was just the anger when the email came through.”
In announcing the latest North Stand developments, the club said: “The introduction of City Hall means that a small number of Season Ticket Members in North Stand Level 0 (formerly known as Level 1) may need to move seats ahead of the commencement of the 2026/27 season. No fans will need to move to accommodate Cross Bar.
“We understand that relocating seats may be unsettling, and we are here to support these fans.”
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