Jose Mourinho and Paul Poba during Manchester United's Uefa Champions League match at Sevilla last season, for which fans were charged €100 for a ticket. AP Photo
Jose Mourinho and Paul Poba during Manchester United's Uefa Champions League match at Sevilla last season, for which fans were charged €100 for a ticket. AP Photo

FSE call on Uefa to address 'unfair' away ticket prices as Manchester United fans continue to get stung



European football fans are calling on Uefa to change and clarify their rules to prevent travelling supporters being subjected to high ticket prices in their club competitions.

Belgian club Anderlecht and Spanish side Sevilla charged visiting Bayern Munich and Manchester United supporters €100 (Dh430) respectively for their Uefa Champions League games last season – a record price for a normal away ticket.

Bayern and United fans protested and both received partial compensation, but Valencia are charging United fans €85 for December’s Champions League game – when the vast majority of their own fans in similar sections are paying far less.

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Read more:

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Champions League talking points: Ronaldo's fresh challenge, new managers and earlier start times

Richard Jolly: A date with Inter Milan conjures magical memories for Tottenham

PSG v Liverpool: Which sharpshooting Fab Three will be the last men standing?

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United tried to negotiate with Valencia to lower the prices, but the Spanish club did not agree. On Friday, United announced that they will raise their own prices for visiting Valencia fans by £22 (Dh106) to match the amount their own travelling fans are being asked to pay. United will then compensate each of their own fans £22.

Football Supporters Europe (FSE), which has members in 48 countries across the continent, will ask Uefa on Wednesday to amend and clarify their regulations “at the earliest possible opportunity to prevent clubs from using loopholes, for example by charging regular season ticket holders or members much less than away fans.

“We are also calling on Uefa to continue to enforce its regulation by obliging clubs to compensate the affected fans in cases of a breach of the ticketing regulation.”

The problem is acute in Spain, which doesn’t have a culture of away fans for most domestic games.

While German clubs usually offer good value for money with their ticket prices, and tickets for away games in England’s Premier League are now capped at £30, four of the five most expensive tickets in Manchester United’s history have come from Spanish teams.

Athletic Bilbao charged United fans €90 for a 2012 Europa League game and Villarreal regularly charge visiting clubs over €90 for a ticket. Barcelona charge similar amounts for fans of big name opponents, though the 5,000 PSV Eindhoven fans in the city for Tuesday’s Champions League game paid €54.

“These unfair, punitive prices raise concerns on the capacity of a growing number of dedicated football fans to follow their club abroad,” FSE said. “The presence of those away fans in substantial numbers is a key part of the spectacle and atmosphere of Uefa Club Competitions.”

FSE would like other economic factors to be taken into consideration.

“We further call on all clubs playing in European competition to adopt self-regulation mechanisms, taking the purchasing power of the respective country of the visiting team into account, therefore encouraging more supporters to travel from countries with significantly lower wages and salaries.

“The worrying trend currently observed in the ticketing policy of some European clubs for their away sections requires all stakeholders to come to a common understanding on the reinforcement of Uefa regulations, taking into consideration the interests of all active supporters and the overall cost of travelling abroad for an away supporter, as well as a general rethinking of pricing for European Club Competitions tickets.”

Uefa have been contacted for a comment and it is hoped that they will agree to step in rather than leaving matters to individual clubs.

HAJJAN
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

A State of Passion

Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi

Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah

Rating: 4/5

The Bio

Name: Lynn Davison

Profession: History teacher at Al Yasmina Academy, Abu Dhabi

Children: She has one son, Casey, 28

Hometown: Pontefract, West Yorkshire in the UK

Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

Favourite Author: CJ Sansom

Favourite holiday destination: Bali

Favourite food: A Sunday roast

Representing%20UAE%20overseas
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Poacher
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
 
Started: 2021
 
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
 
Based: Tunisia 
 
Sector: Water technology 
 
Number of staff: 22 
 
Investment raised: $4 million 
Important questions to consider

1. Where on the plane does my pet travel?

There are different types of travel available for pets:

  • Manifest cargo
  • Excess luggage in the hold
  • Excess luggage in the cabin

Each option is safe. The feasibility of each option is based on the size and breed of your pet, the airline they are traveling on and country they are travelling to.

 

2. What is the difference between my pet traveling as manifest cargo or as excess luggage?

If traveling as manifest cargo, your pet is traveling in the front hold of the plane and can travel with or without you being on the same plane. The cost of your pets travel is based on volumetric weight, in other words, the size of their travel crate.

If traveling as excess luggage, your pet will be in the rear hold of the plane and must be traveling under the ticket of a human passenger. The cost of your pets travel is based on the actual (combined) weight of your pet in their crate.

 

3. What happens when my pet arrives in the country they are traveling to?

As soon as the flight arrives, your pet will be taken from the plane straight to the airport terminal.

If your pet is traveling as excess luggage, they will taken to the oversized luggage area in the arrival hall. Once you clear passport control, you will be able to collect them at the same time as your normal luggage. As you exit the airport via the ‘something to declare’ customs channel you will be asked to present your pets travel paperwork to the customs official and / or the vet on duty. 

If your pet is traveling as manifest cargo, they will be taken to the Animal Reception Centre. There, their documentation will be reviewed by the staff of the ARC to ensure all is in order. At the same time, relevant customs formalities will be completed by staff based at the arriving airport. 

 

4. How long does the travel paperwork and other travel preparations take?

This depends entirely on the location that your pet is traveling to. Your pet relocation compnay will provide you with an accurate timeline of how long the relevant preparations will take and at what point in the process the various steps must be taken.

In some cases they can get your pet ‘travel ready’ in a few days. In others it can be up to six months or more.

 

5. What vaccinations does my pet need to travel?

Regardless of where your pet is traveling, they will need certain vaccinations. The exact vaccinations they need are entirely dependent on the location they are traveling to. The one vaccination that is mandatory for every country your pet may travel to is a rabies vaccination.

Other vaccinations may also be necessary. These will be advised to you as relevant. In every situation, it is essential to keep your vaccinations current and to not miss a due date, even by one day. To do so could severely hinder your pets travel plans.

Source: Pawsome Pets UAE

List of officials:

Referees: Chris Broad, David Boon, Jeff Crowe, Andy Pycroft, Ranjan Madugalle and Richie Richardson.

Umpires: Aleem Dar, Kumara Dharmasena, Marais Erasmus, Chris Gaffaney, Ian Gould, Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Nigel Llong, Bruce Oxenford, Ruchira Palliyaguruge, Sundaram Ravi, Paul Reiffel, Rod Tucker, Michael Gough, Joel Wilson and Paul Wilson.