Minutes of MSF meeting with MFC 20th January 2025
| Minutes of MSF meeting with MFC 20th January 2025 | Present; Representative from MFC, FMTTM, Boro Breakdown, OneBoro, BoroSC2020, MDSA24, Twe12th man. MSF Press Officer, | Present online: Representative from Rainbow Reds, Middlesbrough Supporters Club South, Boro North America. |
| Points raised by fans | Discussion | Outcome |
| Catering and concourse facilities. | Some fans still concerned about the length of queues at concourse outlets, particularly at half time. Queuing has been reduced in the North Stand and there has been some positive feedback regarding the East stand. The new self-service stands are becoming more popular and MFC are collecting data on the usage to see if they are effective. Some fans still reluctant to use former betting outlet bars, as they have traditionally gone to the same bar every match. | MSF and MFC are organising a meeting with the new Head of Catering Operations. MFC are keen to listen to supporter feedback and understand what can be done to improve concourse facilities. Improved wi-fi could make it easier to do advance orders and costs are being reviewed. |
| Replica shirts. Problems with availability. Timing the release of new kits. | Issues with availability of this season’s shirts have been discussed at previous meetings. Home shirts and some sizes of away shirts continue to be available. Some Clubs have reduced the price of their shirts. | The availability issues this season are being addressed. MFC accept some areas of its retail operation have not been to the standard they expect and are in the process of fully reviewing its current operation and will develop a new strategy. Some issues have been outside of MFC’s control, but accept they ultimately are still responsible for this, and have taken actions to remedy such issues. The club understand the fans need to be fully consulted on its new strategy and will arrange, as part of a regular series, a number of open fan consultation evenings, in person and online, similar to the recent one held for the new club crest, to give fans the opportunity to provide feedback and insight around the club’s retail offering and operation, which will be considered within its new retail strategy. It is difficult to release Boro’s kit any earlier than it has been in recent year, as it has been difficult to predict which league Boro will be in each season, and this gives rise to kit sponsorship issues for example the EFL allow for a back of shirt and short sponsor whereas the PL do not and there has also been contractual clauses in some contracts that allow the club to explore new opportunities upon promotion, agreed to allow the club to seek higher fees due to the increase value the PL media coverage provides to sponsors. This means the kit has had to be printed after league status has been confirmed. |
| Club badge/crest meetings. Some fans unable to attend but would like to have an input. | Everyone felt that the Club Crest meeting was a big success. Fans would like to have the opportunity to attend further meetings. MFC would like to hear fans’ opinions on a range of experiences and would like to extend the range of topics and hold more fan consultation evenings in order to engage with a wide range of supporters. These consultation events will be advertised on a first come first served basis. | Some fans who were unable to get to Club Crest meeting in Dec can attend the next meeting online. Date will be announced very soon. Fan consultation events to discuss MFC Retail, Match Day atmosphere, and ticketing feedback are also planned. |
| Earlier and more media announcements on matches, including U21 games. More information on what is going on at MFC. | Media announcements are happening well in advance and then just before an event/match. Sometimes announcements can be missed. MSF met many fans at the Foodbank who did not know there was a collection taking place. The U21 game was shown on You Tube. Some fans have asked for longer match highlights to be made available, others have requested shorter highlights. | MFC encourage all fans to check the website regularly where all information of upcoming events/games and club announcements is available. Dates and venues for U21 games will be announced. Unfortunately, games like the Under 21 fixtures may need to change date and location. MFC will facilitate the advertising of events on the big screen, including Foodbank collections More fans seem to prefer short snappy highlights. Brief match highlights will be shown on the website and You Tube and will be approximately 2 minutes long. Inside Matchday will continue to run for longer. This could change as MFC are continually analysing what is watched and what isn’t. |
| Meeting with Seat Geek re ticketing. | There has been no meeting between fans and Seat Geek yet. Seat Geek have changed their account manager and now an appointment can be made. | MFC to get in touch with Seat Geek to confirm a meeting date. Delay so far has been around a new account manager being appointed at Seat Geek. |
| Season Cards. Renewals. Concession abuse. Family Zone tickets. | MFC are already thinking about next year’s Season Cards and will communicate with fans as soon as possible. MFC welcomed any feedback from the group to consider before making final arrangements. MFC would like to give fans more notice in order to make the Season Cards as affordable as possible. The interest free 4 Payments scheme for Season Cards has been very successful. The Chairman is keen to reward fans for their loyalty and the Chairman’s Drink will continue. Admin cost have risen significantly due to increases in the minimum wage and National Insurance Contributions. Any new Disabled supporters and any new Family Zone supporters wanting to purchase a season ticket can do so either in person from the ticket office, or over the phone. They can also provide evidence of their eligibility via email. Under 14s cannot renew until their accompanying adults renew. As per the ground regulations, all under 14’s attending the stadium must be accompanied by an adult. MFC are conducting Season Card spot checks at various matches as there have been several incidents of concession abuse. A disabled fan and their PA were treated disrespectfully by a steward who was checking for concession abuse. MFC have extended the Generation Red Family Zone to enable families to buy tickets on a match-by-match basis. | MFC are very grateful for the support of season card holders and understand the huge commitment and outlay by fans when purchasing a Season Card and therefore various payment plans will be available next season: The 4 Payments option for purchasing Season Cards will continue. The option to spread the payments across a longer period with v12 will also continue. There will continue to be a new and renewal Early bird price. Fans will be informed ahead of when Season Cards go on sale and will be given period similar to the extended deadline last season in which to pay. This is to check eligibility and to avoid concession abuse. Checks for concession abuse will continue. MFC are aware of this incident and engaged their Disability Liaison Officer. They have also increased training for stewards. |
| Priority Points. Gold Cards. | Priority Points are being abused, with fans buying tickets, particularly for away games, and not attending. Some fans sell on their tickets, and this is illegal. Digital ticketing has made transferring and selling on of tickets more difficult. The introduction of Priority Points has proved a fairer method of getting tickets than waiting in long queues. Some fans are frustrated that they can never attain Gold Card status. | Improvements in the Priority Point system continue to be made and it will be looked at in the Close Season. The status of all Season Card holders and different ways of rewarding and thanking long-time fans will be looked at in the period leading up to MFC’s 150th anniversary. This is also a planned fan consultation evening. |
| Match atmosphere. | Match day atmosphere has been quite flat recently and MFC is reviewing the whole matchday experience. The introduction of Beat Boutique before a game has split the fans, with some feeling the volume and music prevent singing and chanting, and others feeling that it livens up the atmosphere. | MFC is looking at ways to improve matchday atmosphere and are currently researching various clubs across Europe for ideas, various things will be trailed for the rest of the season, some will be subtle, some more obvious. The club will then seek feedback and ideas at a fan consultation evening before looking to create a consistent matchday experience for the new season. |
| MFC Initiatives Walkouts and flag parade. Ticket price reductions. Free tickets. EDI survey. Roary Squad. Boro Bricks. | At our game v Sheffield Wednesday we selected young supporters to join in Player Walkout (reason for each supporter being picked) and we randomly selected younger supporters to take part in flag parades on the day of the game. This was very well received as in the past we have only had groups involved, particularly in Player Walkout. We hope to continue with this a few times throughout the season. Reduced price cup tickets and changes in kick off time have meant more young fans coming along to games. Attendance at Stoke City Carabao Cup game was 18,000. Some tickets are made available free of charge for families and individuals for specific reasons, in all areas, through MFC and the Foundation. A recent EDI survey was completed by 3,000 fans MFC are keen to encourage the next generation of Boro fans. The inscriptions on the first phase of the Boro Bricks have been catalogued and MSF are making the database searchable. | These initiatives have been very well received and will continue. MFC would like to thank fans for completing the survey. The results are being analysed to understand the makeup and needs of all Boro fans, with an aim of ensuring the club is inclusive for all. In the last few weeks, MFC have launched a club for young Boro fans called The Roary Squad. Almost 300 young fans have already signed up. As some of the bricks have been down almost 20 years now, they are no longer under guarantee and having them cleaned professionally is very expensive. The Boro Bricks will remain in situ and MFC are looking at an alternative way of commemorating Boro fans and linking it to the Club’s 150th anniversary in 2026. Boro Brick holders will be considered in this process. |
| Could MFC donate leftover food to homeless shelters? | This point was raised by fans attending recent Foodbank collection. Bristol City donate prepacked and labelled food to the homeless, e.g. packs of sandwiches. There is very little waste from our concourse outlets as monitoring systems are very good. Similarly, leftover food from our hospitality areas is low, but it is also more difficult to distribute due to a variety of regulations MSF suggested the charities could collect the food themselves and sign a disclaimer. | MFC have recently introduced measures to reduce food waste, which have been effective but will look into any opportunities. MSF will purchase a Sum Up card machine to enable fans without cash to donate to the Foodbank on a match day. |
| AOB Can fans use their preferred name rather than their given name to purchase tickets? How can late arrivals enter the Stadium? Stewarding at games. Water dripping from the roof at the Blackburn game. MDSA24 | Proof of identity is needed to set up a ticketing account, so the name on the ticket should match the name on the ID. A supporter complained that he was 10 minutes late for the Blackburn Cup game and could not get into the stadium. The turnstiles were closed and a steward sent him to the ticket office where the shutters were down. He eventually got into the stadium at half time. Issues experienced by fans celebrating goals at the front of the South Stand. Some fans are blocking wheelchair access there and, in some concourses too. This was due to the extreme cold. There was ice from condensation on the roof, and this turned to meltwater as the roof warmed up. MDSA24 representatives attended the meeting for the first time and were welcomed by members of MFC and MSF. | This will continue to prevent fraud, concession abuse, etc. MFC will communicate with the Main Reception, Ticket Office and stewards to ensure everyone is aware of how and where any ticket holder who is late can get access to the Stadium. MFC will look into the issues raised around accessibility, via their Disability Liaison Officer. MFC are undertaking a roof survey, mainly due to the age of the stadium. The new Disabled Supporters Club is due to be launched soon. |
