Bristol City’s Ashton Gate and Worcester Warriors’ Sixways Stadium have become the latest UK venues to introduce cashless services as part of plans to improve the match-day experience.
Ashton Gate will introduce a phased rollout when Championship football club City faces Millwall on December 10. It is hoped the initiative will improve service times during peak periods on match days and shorter service periods such as half-time.
The cashless system will cover a range of concessions throughout the concourses, the Fan Village and hospitality areas. All stands within the stadium will have a concession unit that will accept both cash and card payments during the first phase of the rollout.
Jenny Hutchinson, head of venue and events at Bristol City, said: “We are introducing this service across the stadium to help reduce queues during peak times. It will also make our operation more secure and will most importantly; help us to deliver the best possible service to all our fans.
“We understand there are supporters who are used to paying with cash at the stadium and so we will continue to offer a provision at a number of kiosks for the time being as part of the phased rollout. A large proportion of our fans are already paying by card rather than with cash in the stadium, so we are hoping that the transition will be quick and easy for many fans.”
The stands will accept all major contactless credit and debit cards as well as mobile, Apple Pay and Google Pay.
Meanwhile, Sixways will become completely cashless from next month, with the stadium to only accept credit or debit cards or mobile phone payments.
The move will be effective from December 7, when English Premiership rugby club Worcester takes on Cardiff’s Dragons in the European Challenge Cup.
Peter Kelly, the Warriors’ managing director, said: “We live in a society that is becoming increasingly cashless in which customers are used to purchasing goods using a card or their mobile phone.
“We hope that there will be significant benefits for supporters and visitors to Sixways when the stadium becomes cashless. It will reduce queuing at bars and food outlets so that supporters do not miss any of the action on the pitch or entertainment in the new EBC Fanzone. It will also speed up service and improve the match-day experience for supporters.”
The Warriors have also installed a new high-speed Wi-Fi system at Sixways in partnership with EBC Group. The system will be fully operational in time for the Warriors’ match against Sale on November 30 and will also be available on non-match days.
Image: Bristol City
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