Season Ticket Record Surpassed
In a campaign where the Greens have already broken a number of records on the pitch, the Green Army have set one off the field – with 22/23 season ticket figures now the highest on record.
The club moved to a digital ticketing system in 2003, with season ticket data incomplete prior to this change. Since records were digitised, the 2004/05 season – our first of a six-season stay in the Championship – held the previous season ticket record of 9,549. Our tally for the current Sky Bet League One season stands at 9,600 – and growing, with half season tickets still on sale.
Our current average attendance at Home Park for league games this season stands at 14,882. For a period in the third tier of English football, you would have to go back to the 1958/59 season, where Wilf Carter netted 25 goals to fire the Pilgrims to the Division Three title, to find bigger average crowds at Home Park.
This season’s figure so far eclipses seasons like the 2003/04 Division Two title winning campaign under Paul Sturrock, and edges out the Tony Waiters Dream Season in 1974/75, a great number of campaigns in which the Greens competed in the second tier, including all but the first of the six campaigns most recently spent in the Championship – between 2004-2010.
Perhaps the most encouraging thing about the attendance figures so far is the sheer consistency of our supporters, and the growth in key areas to ensure the long-term health of the club’s fanbase.
There has been a growth in under-18 season ticket holders of 60%, while the most recent five Sky Bet League One fixtures at Home Park – against Ipswich Town, Sheffield Wednesday, Accrington Stanley, Shrewsbury Town and Exeter City – have all exceeded 15,000 attendances. It is the first sequence of five games over 15,000 since 2004/05. With next Friday's clash with Port Vale already just 200 tickets short of 15,000 sold, it is looking extremely likely to be the first time we have exceeded 15,000 crowds on six consecutive games within a single season this century.
It has certainly influenced proceedings on the pitch, with the Pilgrims setting a club record nine successive home wins to start the Sky Bet League One campaign. Like the majority of our ever-growing fanbase, Argyle’s Head of Marketing and Communications, Jamie Yabsley, is rightly delighted with the progress.
He said: “This season’s attendances have been incredible, and we can’t thank supporters enough for the way they’ve backed the team.
“A lot of work goes into, firstly, ensuring that the matchday experience is as good as the very best clubs in the EFL – and our Family Excellence status in the last few seasons is testament to that.
“We have seen huge growth in families coming to games, and to see so many young people taking pride in Argyle bodes very well for the future.
“Of course, it helps that the team are playing fantastic football and sitting top of the table. The team’s performance, alongside targeting growth in key areas and enhancing the matchday experience, has added to our attendances, and that support is feeding back into the team to give them a greater edge on the pitch. It’s a really exciting time.”
Half season tickets are on sale now, offering supporters the opportunity to secure their seats for the remainder of a thrilling Sky Bet League One campaign, as well as a whole host of other benefits, including away and cup ticketing priority, retail discounts and more.
Click here to see what’s available.
