London Irish can today confirm its revised ticketing and membership policy for the 2020/21 season.
With the government indicating that – owing to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic – crowds will be unable to return to stadia until possibly April, it looks increasingly likely that, unfortunately, the majority of the 2020/21 season will be played behind closed doors.
All Exiles supporters who have purchased a Season Ticket for the 2020/21 season will automatically have their Season Ticket deferred, by default, for the following campaign. The same deferral also applies for 3-year Season Ticket purchasers, with the deferral rolling over to include the 2023/24 campaign.
Supporters' 2020/21 Season Ticket will be automatically replaced by an Exile Nation membership (or age bracket equivalent) free of charge (worth £95), which includes:
- Exclusive members’ only gift pack, including a scarf, notebook, pin badge and unique face covering
- Priority access to match tickets when available
- Entry into monthly prize draw to win money-can’t-buy prizes, including the ‘Golden Ticket’ experience, as well as signed merchandise and more
- Invitation to book a stadium tour to experience the Brentford Community Stadium, free of charge. For deferred Season Ticket holders, this is an opportunity to try your seat
- Priority access or discounts to events
- A card sent to you on your birthday
- Exclusive discounts
- Entry into international ticket ballot (if available)
- Invitation to monthly members’ only ‘Rugby Round-up’ Zoom calls with members of the playing squad and coaching staff. The Zoom discussions will be an opportunity for members to gain exclusive insight from inside the camp and ask questions to the players and coaches
- 10% discount off the Exile Nation merchandise range, and additional retail discounts throughout the season
- 10% discount on food and drinks at the One Over The Ait pub in Brentford, just across the road from the Brentford Community Stadium
- 10% discount on food and drinks at Hazelwood, and half price room hire
- Right to buy a Flexi Ticket (if available). Flexi Tickets are a personalised ticket bundle where the supporter selects which games are included from a set amount
Season Ticket holders will also have the option of requesting a refund instead of a deferral, either as a downgrade to an Exile Nation membership or a full refund. The deadline for supporters to claim their refund is midday on Wednesday 2 December. If the club does not receive a request for a refund by that date, your Season Ticket will be automatically deferred.
Non-Season Ticket holders wishing to purchase an Exile Nation membership can do so through the online ticketing website on Thursday 12 November. For more information on Exile Nation memberships, along with child and junior memberships, please click here.
The club remains hopeful that supporters will be able to attend fixtures at some point during the 2020/21 season. In this instance, all supporters will need to book tickets, with deferred Season Ticket holders given priority access. It is likely that there will be restrictions including overall capacity and social distancing, so tickets will go on sale in accordance with these guidelines, therefore you are not guaranteed your original seat.
If capacity is restricted, a priority system will be in place, as follows:
- Deferred 2020/21 Season Ticket holders
- Exile Nation Members
- General sale
For supporters who defer their Season Tickets to the 2021/22 campaign, there is also the option to upgrade your Season Ticket to include an additional one or two seasons. The cost to upgrade will be frozen at the price you paid for your 2020/21 Season Ticket. One year upgrades (to include the 2022/23 season) must be paid in full, and two year upgrades (to include the 2022/23 and 2023/24 seasons) have the option to spread the cost using direct debit.
For supporters who are able, deferring and upgrading will provide significant financial support to help the cub's cashflow during this period, whilst also benefitting by avoiding any annual price increases.
London Irish CEO, Brian Facer, said: "As I've said from the outset in all of our communication with our supporters, we – as a club – fully appreciate the Exiles fans’ understanding around this ever-changing situation.
"We've worked hard to come up with what we feel is the fairest option for supporters, whilst striving to maintain financial sustainability.
“We appreciate there are a lot of different scenarios and individual circumstances to consider, and in such cases where your question may not be answered in the FAQs, we will endeavour to accommodate supporters’ queries on a case-by-case basis.”
All Season Ticket holders will receive an email communication with further details regarding next steps.
Supporters with specific queries relating to their Season should email [email protected]
To view the full FAQ’s, please click here.
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