WICB Ticket Levy is Discriminatory

The US$260 ticket levy being imposed by the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) on England cricket fans has caused a lot of controversy in the United Kingdom. There are three key reasons why I believe that this levy is unfair.

First, it is clearly discriminatory because it only applies to fans in the U.K. I'm unaware of any significant cricket event played before where the price of the tickets are vastly different depending on which team you are supporting.

The English Cricket Board (ECB) has not outwardly said that in its view the levy is discriminatory. It has, instead stated that "the levy is an inequitable, disproportionate and unjustifiable way of treating England supporters." Strong words indeed.

It must be noted that the WICB has done nothing to dispute the fact that this levy is discriminatory but that's not the only problem here.

The levy will not make it easier for locals to attend the games, as claimed by the WICB. It has been a fair criticism in the past to point out that the mass invasion of England supporters has made it difficult for locals to attend the games. It has been suggested that the levy will ensure that this will not be repeated. The two arguments put forward are:

• That the levy will be used to provide extra temporary seating.

  The ticket prices are already relatively expensive. The income that sales generate would have been sufficient in itself to provide additional temporary seating. The levy is simply raising additional capital.

• That the levy will discourage the attendance of English Supporters.

If this were actually the case, the WICB would not be boasting about the number of tickets that they've been able to sell. What the levy has done is ensure that the number of England Supporters attending without tickets will be multiplied. The main people to benefit will be the touts. In all likelihood England Supporters will be able to tempt the local supporters to part with their tickets meaning that even fewer will end up attending.

I also believe the unfairness was exacerbated because the levy was announced too late.

The facts are that most supporters made their plans to travel six to nine months before the levy was introduced. Indeed, some English supporters started planning for this trip many years ago. It is a dream holiday for many, and their dream has now been spoilt. Supporters have said that they have been held hostage by the WICB. Their options are to cancel and lose their deposits, pay the levy, or travel without tickets.

It has been argued by the WICB that the funds are required to fund the World Cup developments, and to build the new stand in Barbados. If this were the case we would ask the WICB why they didn't come to this conclusion many months ago? Why wait until England supporters had made their travel plans? We think that the answer is obvious.

Let's make one thing clear. It is not the job of England Supporters to fund the World Cup in the West Indies. We believe that it is the job of "Cricket" and the ICC to ensure that there adequate facilities in place. Clearly ticket income is a valuable source of revenue and no one in England would begrudge making a reasonable contribution to the WICB's funding. This levy, however, is beyond what any even-handed person could deem reasonable.

At WIShame.org, we have done everything that we can to start a dialogue with the WICB. We have suggested that a small conciliatory response could avert a protest and help appease the discontent. Ideas that we have put forward are:

• Issue a new statement to clarify all of the rumours about the levy that are circulating. Let England supporters know whether they will be able to buy tickets locally, for example;

• Indicating that the levy is being charged in exceptional circumstances and will not be repeated;

• Indicating that the WICB stance at the ICC meeting in February will be that Boards cannot do this again. Or, alternatively, that Boards must give fair warning to the travelling supporters.

• That if the levy must be retained that it should be replaced with a levy that is proportionate to the ticket price. At least in this way, the tickets would remain affordable to all.

We are open to all suggestions, not just those from this list, but unfortunately, we have had no response from the WICB. We will always be open to dialogue.

Our objective as England supporters is to have a great time in the West Indies, to enjoy the cricketing festival, and to have some fun with the West Indian people. We will all ensure that our discontent with the levy doesn't spoil our holidays, and not let it spoil the enjoyment of the West Indians.

A protest is proposed for Barbados. Any protest would be good natured, and non-disruptive. We have a simple message to get across, but before and after we will want to get on with the cricket, sun, beach, and perhaps the odd rum, or beer!

But, what the Caribbean should be worried about is the backlash. These England supporters will not have short memories. Attendance at the World Cup by England Supporters will be poor. Attendance at the next England Tour in the West Indies will be worse.

With England supporters making up the majority of travelling support, the WICB and unfortunately, the Islands, will be the losers in the long-run.

* Paul Bowden runs the WIShame.org protest Web site.

** EDITOR'S NOTE: We have forwarded this article to WICB chief marketing executive Darren Millien. Equal space will be made available for Mr Millien's response, if one is forthcoming.