Aston Villa have forced fans into 'hard choice' as board take price hikes 'too far' - Keith Wyness

Aston Villa are wrong to have hiked the price of their season tickets up by five per cent for a second successive year.

That is according to former Villa chief executive Keith Wyness, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, who believes that the board have gone "too far" with the latest increases.

The second city outfit announced the price increases after another strong season, which saw them lift the Europa League trophy and qualify for Champions League football through the league.

They have also confirmed that individual match tickets for that Champions League campaign will cost up to £99 in some areas of the ground, a figure that Wyness believes will force the fans to pick and choose their games.

The Villans are looking to bridge the gap between themselves and the top six off the pitch in the coming years, but eyebrows have been raised by their latest round of pricing.

Wyness has highlighted the continued loyalty that Villa fans have shown in recent years, and acknowledged that there is an element of unfairness to their club's latest call.

Aston Villa price increases don't 'underline ambition'

Villa's former chief Wyness - who served as CEO at Villa Park between 2016 and 2018 and now runs a consultancy business advising elite clubs - believes that Villa's season ticket increases should only take place once every three years.

He suggested that with price increases coming in across the board at Villa Park, some of the club's most loyal fans may have to choose between renewing their season ticket or following the team's European adventure.

Speaking on the latest edition of Football Insider's Inside Track podcast, Wyness made it clear that he thinks the £99 Champions League pricing is a ploy to avoid breaking into three figures.

"I know the Villa fans well, and I think it's going a little bit too far. Obviously, they're keeping it under a hundred pounds as a headline number. You can see the marketing guys thinking about that," he said.

"Those fans have been incredibly loyal. I think it is a little bit wrong that they should be doing it. If I'd still been there, I would have tried my best to keep the increase to something every three years if possible.

"It doesn't underline ambition, it just means that the fans can't continually have to do the increase. 

"It could be that fans might buy Champions League tickets and forget the season ticket. People are going to start making these hard choices, and clubs need to realise that it is not a never-ending way to go and rinse the fans. 

I think the club could have done it in a better way and focused on other areas to raise the revenue."

NSWE to 'hide behind PSR' with price increases

Former Manchester City financial advisor Stefan Borson recently told Football Insider that NSWE will "hide behind" Villa's PSR restrictions as justification for the season ticket increases.

The football finance expert suggested that it is "inevitable" that Premier League owners continue to test fans' loyalty with their pricing, while he added that it is also inevitable that backlash continues to follow.

Borson made it clear that Villa have delivered an "amazing product" on the pitch in recent years, and made it clear that the fans have been victims of their success to an extent.

He was in no doubt that the pricing of top-level football will continue to be an issue in the coming years, and was keen to stress that it is not just Villa fans who are frustrated at the moment.