Aberdeen to make matchdays ‘noisy-colorful’

Article posted by Coliseum, July 31^st, 2023

Image: Pittodrie Stadium, Foxj, CC BY-SA 4.0

The Scottish Premiership team Aberdeen F.C. have made 200 more season ticket seats available in the Red Shed at their digs – the Pittodrie Stadium in Aberdeen, Scotland (UK), as well as outlining their desire to push more home fans into the currently-segregated away section of the South Stand.

‘footballscotland’ stated that the club have been in dialog with the local Council in a bid to increase the “useable capacity” of the Merkland Stand, which houses the ultras of the Aberdeen support. They plan to hand the newly-available season ticket seats to people on their current waiting list, with the rest not taken to be dished out on a first come, first served basis.

The Aberdeen Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in Aberdeen, Scotland (UK). They compete in the Scottish Premiership and have never been relegated from the top division of the Scottish football league system since they were elected to the top flight in 1905.

The 22,199-capacity Pittodrie Stadium, commonly referred to as Pittodrie, is an all-seater stadium in Aberdeen, Scotland (UK). Used primarily for football, it has been the home ground of the Scottish Professional Football League club Aberdeen F.C. since they were formed in 1903.

‘footballscotland’ further stated that moreover, the Granite City (Aberdeen, Scotland’s third-largest City) outfit plan to make structural adaptations to the South Stand, which accommodates both the home and away fans. They want to make around 1,000 seats of Section R of the stand, which is currently segregated for away supporters, available to their own fans for big matches instead in what they call a ‘flexible’ change.

This will mean taking away the fence that segregates the home and the away fans, as well as a number of other physical changes to the stand. Once approval is gained, Aberdeen hope to commence this work in September of this year.

Meanwhile, in their statement, Aberdeen – who have sold a record-breaking 12,000-plus season ticket – say they intend to have discussions with the other Premiership clubs in the hope that they can negotiate “reciprocal allocations” when it comes to their away fans at the other grounds and when welcoming the visiting supporters to Pittodrie.

They say the outcome of those discussions will factor into the allocation of seats for away fans coming to Pittodrie on matchdays.

The Aberdeen head honcho Alan Burrows offered his insight into the new plans, saying, “We are delighted to be able to offer even more season tickets in the Red Shed ahead of the 2023-2024 seasons. There has been a huge amount of excellent work undertaken by the Aberdeen F.C. staff over the last few years on engaging with supporters and making matchdays at Pittodrie more noisy and more colorful and improving the atmosphere. We will continue to engage with all stakeholders to try and build on that, whilst maintaining a safe and secure environment for everyone. Our plans for the South Stand are very much an extension of that desire. We want even more Aberdeen fans coming to Pittodrie in the best seats, cheering the team on. The fence has not only proved a visible hindrance for fans in that area, but it has also not allowed us any flexibility to try and maximize attendances.”

Added Burrows, “This work will also have the added benefit of increasing the catering provisions in the South Stand by 25 percent, which we hope will further reduce queues and waiting times in that area for the specific games.”

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