Aston Villa ready to welcome fans
Villa will offer season ticket holders from 2019-20 the chance to attend their final match of the Premier League campaign.
The club hope to welcome 10,000 supporters back to Villa Park for the visit of Chelsea on May 23.
Fans who held season tickets last term will be given the chance to apply, with a ballot held in the likely scenario the club is oversubscribed.
Villa had 30,000 season ticket holders last term but must operate on a restricted capacity for what would be the first home match with supporters for more than 15 months.
The attendance of fans remains subject to government approval and the club will not formally confirm their plans until getting the go-ahead.
Stadiums will be allowed to open partially during the next stage of the road map out of lockdown, scheduled to come into effect on May 17.
Should all go to plan, the Premier League will play its final two rounds of matches in front with supporters present. Villa’s final away match of the season at Tottenham will be moved to midweek to allow fans to attend.
From May 17, stadiums will be allowed to operate at 25 per cent capacity or have 10,000 fans, whichever is fewer.
The last time Villa Park hosted supporters was on February 16 last year when Dean Smith’s team were beaten 3-2 by Tottenham. Matches have been played behind closed doors ever since the outbreak of the pandemic the following month.
A meeting of the club’s fans consultation group earlier this month was told Villa were still considering the logistics of selling season tickets for next season. Further announcements are expected in due course.
