Man City spark angry row with disabled fans over new parking charges

Manchester City have angered their disabled fans after introducing parking charges for matchdays just weeks before the beginning of the season.

City have previously not charged their Disabled Supporters Association (DSA) for the 300 spots at the Etihad offered to the group for every match but wrote to them recently to inform them of immediate changes. There will be 60 extra spaces available this season but, despite protests from supporters about both the charges and the way they have been brought in, each car will have to pay £6 every game.

The money will raise over £2,000 every game if all the spaces are filled. City insist that these costs will not be profit and will instead go into the running of the car park, and told supporters that they were being introduced after a high number of bookings last season were not followed through.

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More than half of the clubs in the Premier League already charge disabled fans for parking - United are reported to have increased their prices for disabled parking to £323 for the season, up 20 per cent from last year - so City still believe their pricing is reasonable. However, the decision has not gone down well with hundreds of supporters who now face an unexpected bill of over £100 to watch their team and feel they have not been listened to.

Proposals from the DSA in a series of meetings with the club to sort out the issue included a deposit system whereby people would only be charged if they didn't take up a booked spot, similar to the no-show policy of many restaurants and bars. However, this was ignored and