Chelsea have reacted quickly to demand refunds for Indonesian supporters who have been ripped off for autograph opportunities, coaching sessions and time with players during next week’s visit to Jakarta. Fans in the Indonesian capital were asked to pay nearly£1,500 for a meet-and-greet opportunity with the players, £460 for a shirt to be signed and £330 to take part in a coaching clinic. These were fees imposed by promoters Ninesport who were hired by BMI, a commercial bank that is Chelsea’sbanking partner in Indonesia and the match sponsor for next week’s tour game in Jakarta.Once Chelsea were informed about the fees by Sportsmail, they launched an investigation and then the process of issuing refunds. As they moved to diffuse the situation, the London clubstressed that it was not part of their philosophy to charge fans to meet players and accepting this was a misunderstanding blamed on cultural differences. The only things fans should be paying for are match tickets. It is apparently an accepted practice specific to Indonesia for the promoters to charge for these events. Other big football teams have operated by the same system, although it clearly depends on the promoters. Arsenal visited Jakarta last weekend but their fans were not asked to pay for similar opportunities.
Posted on: Thu, 18 Jul 2013 11:01:14 +0000