The Magpies Extend Formal Apology to Followers Over Ticket Controversy

The club have revoked more than 100 membership cards and said sorry to supporters for an “administrative error” after passes allocated to tour organisers a decade ago were “unnoticed until now”

The club have taken action following a thorough investigation into the unauthorised secondary selling of passes for fixtures at their home ground.

It comes after a college around 200 miles away being able to buy seats for the extremely popular Champions League fixture against FC Barcelona on Thursday night.

The club explained that when the takeover group took over four years ago, they cancelled deals with commercial partners that allowed them to trade tickets.

That included the deal set up ten years prior with a handful of event coordinators “to assist school groups” - however the club had not detected they were still selling tickets because there was no official agreement with the organisers.

“At a time when we are doing our utmost to ensure authorised access for followers, we want to be fully transparent and express regret for this mistake,” officials said.

A number of tickets for the game were purchased by the educational institution in the very period that a huge number of fans had been in an online queue for the remaining seats for the much-hyped fixture.

An official for the school said they acquired them believing they were legitimate, after being “reached out to” by a provider, but the tickets were later cancelled by the club.

NUFC have now terminated a overall of 103 memberships in lately for violating policies.

The club states the latest situation is separate from season ticket holders trading their tickets for home games in “this case”.

Third-party agents purchased the memberships in the previous campaign.

Newcastle emphasised that the persistent activity and illegal distribution of season tickets at a “inflated cost” was not discovered because there was “no written deal in place for the tour groups”.

“After learning of this issue, the club took swift measures,” a release read.

“Newcastle United have not collected any funds above the standard cost of these passes and have immediately returned the seats for sale to fans who have entered the random draw for upcoming fixtures.”

Supporters representatives previously “approved” the club “implementing clear measures to prevent and punish those who may be profiteering from the fanbase”.

“In addition to the increase in entry fees, according to our annual survey, one of the major issues for Newcastle fans is limited seat access as a result of, not only massive interest, but the selling of tickets through unauthorised platforms or additional improper methods,” it commented last week.