Chelsea's FA Cup semi-final against Blackburn at Old
Trafford is in danger of being played in front of thousands of
empty seats. Neither club have sold their full allocation for
Sunday's game and on Wednesday they each had about 9,000 tickets
left.
Although there is still time for the potentially huge gaps at the
stadium to be filled, the take-up is a poor reflection of what
should be a prestige encounter. The lack of enthusiasm for the
semi-finals is also reflected in the fact Watford have not sold out
for their game against Manchester United at the much smaller venue
of Villa Park on Saturday. They still had about 2,000 tickets
available on Wednesday night and United are the only club in the
last four whose seats did not go on general sale to their
fans.
The snub by supporters is a huge embarrassment to the clubs,
sponsors, television companies and in particular to the Football
Association, who have gone to great lengths this season to promote
the FA Cup as the final returns to Wembley for the first time since
2000.
Furthermore, the FA confirmed that from next season both Cup
semi-finals will be played at Wembley but filling its 90,000
capacity looks a tough task based on the sales for this weekend's
clashes. The reasons for the apparent apathy vary.
Chelsea fans have blamed the time and cost involved getting to and
from Manchester for a 4pm kick-off. Ticket pricing, with the most
expensive £55, does not appear to have been the most significant
single factor.
An FA spokesman denied the country's biggest cup competition was
losing its appeal. He said: "The FA Cup is more popular than ever.
This season the third, fourth and fifth rounds saw the best average
crowds for about 20 years."
