Arsenal welcome Manchester United to the Emirates on Sunday afternoon in the FA Cup third round but part of the stadium could be left empty due to safety concerns at the ground
The dispute over Manchester United’s ticket allocation for their FA Cup clash against Arsenal has continued to escalate, with the Red Devils now asking for the missing part of their allocation to go to neutrals.
United have been provided with 8,000 seats at the Emirates Stadium, less than they should have been permitted. Football Association rules state that away clubs must be allocated up to 15 per cent of the ground capacity, a greater figure than that required for Premier League matches.
Ruben Amorim’s side complained to the FA after not receiving 9,000 tickets but the Gunners cited safety concerns. The Safety Advisory Group insisted the upper tier at the Emirates cannot be used for the away supporters amid concerns over persistent standing when it is not permitted in the upper tier of the stadium for safety reasons.
Mail Sport report United offered to handpick who the recipients of disputed seats would be, and also wanted to suggest they offer the tickets to families and children from the club’s charity arm. With no movement from Arsenal however, United have now contacted the FA with their latest plan.
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Their view would be to see FA select the recipients of the tickets and that they could be provided to those who are not often in the position to attend games, such as emergency service workers and those involved in the FA’s grassroots projects. With just over two days until the match, currently the seats look set to remain empty.
Should this remain the case, the report adds United would expect Arsenal to cover the costs of the wasted capacity. Gate receipts in the FA Cup are split equally between clubs regardless of where a match is based.
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It is not the first time issues have arose over ticketing for away fans when Arsenal have been pulled out of the hat to play at home. Liverpool faced similar problems last term and were initially offered just 5,200 tickets but eventually settled for 7,600 due to similar fears.
It had been suggested United could see some of their allocation placed in an area outide of the north Londonder’s traditional away section. A section of to the side was said to be under consideration but that would have led to huge numbers of Arsenal season ticket holders needing to be relocated.
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