… It definitely wasn’t me, as I’m a big fan of football and the boys who get paid a lot of money to play it. They often get a lot of stick for their wage packets, and it is understandable in a recession when the UK has over 2 million looking for work, but the Wigan Athletic boys have made up for it with this smart bit of PR.
Don’t think I’m completely naive here, I am aware that it is very probably a smart PR person (like my good self) that has advised them to do this, but I like the sentiment either way.
Image Credit: Joe Giddens/The Times
Yesterday the Wigan team left fans in pieces after a massive 9-1 thrashing by Tottenham Hotspur. Today the players have come out in force to apologise in the form of money… and we all love a bit of that. They have vowed to refund the 400-odd supporters that had to witness the nightmarish 90 minutes; coughing up something close to £10k.
In an article by The Times, Mario Melchiot, the captain, was quoted as saying:
“We feel that as a group of players we badly let down our supporters yesterday, and this is a gesture we have to make and pay them back for their tremendous loyalty.”
“There is not a lot else to say, just that as a group of professionals we were embarrassed by the way we performed, we feel it was below our standards and this is something we feel we owe to the fans. Now we have to draw a line under the game, focus completely on training this week and bounce back on Saturday [against Sunderland],” he added.
In my opinion, this is a brilliant bit of PR… put your money where your feet clearly weren’t and show fans that you appreciate their support. Well done Wigan!
If you randomly happen to be one of these fans (unlikely to be reading my blog I know, but just in case), you are entitled to a full refund and should contact the ticket office, who will post the money to your home address. Refunds must be claimed by December 4 though so get your skates on!
Tara Tomes. That is All. 
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