Usually dropping out of the Premier League sees clubs suffer a drop in season ticket sales, however Saints seem to be baulking that trend and have announced that season ticket sales are booming.
Speaking to the Daily Echo Southampton FC have announced some surprising news, that they have sold more season tickets ahead of their drop back into the Championship than they did in the lead-up to last season's Premier League campaign.
Not only that but they have sold over 3,000 new season tickets this year, this is already a record for any season since the initial season when the ground was opened in 2021, but the total is still rising.
It is also revealed that this has been the fastest ever year in terms of how quickly the tickets have been snapped up and the club recorded both their highest and second-highest number of sales in a single day.
But the pleasing news is that the total includes the highest ever sales in the 8-25 age group, more than 22% more tickets sold to the younger generation than last season, this truly bodes well for the future as it is building the fanbase to sustain the club for the future.
The Northam End, traditionally the most vocal part of the ground is seeing a resurge with 91% of seats available now season ticket holders . this is 13% up on the whole of last season.
The club re iterate that Season tickets are still available to be purchased, however, availability in the Northam Stand, Itchen Stand and Family Stand is now limited.
Speaking to the Daily Echo last month, Southampton's new director of football Jason Wilcox stressed the importance of the fans as Saints aim for an instant return to the Premier League.
"We need to get behind the manager and players because they are going to need you, that’s really key – they are going to need you more than ever now.
"These supporters are loyal and they travel thick and thin and I think they’re going to see some unbelievable things this year. We need unwavering belief."
The club have been coy on the actual number of season tickets actually sold, but the guess is that it is around the 21-22,000 mark.
Southampton's first home game of the season is at St Mary's is against Norwich City, on Saturday, August 12.and there are now only around 2,500 tickets left in the home sections for general sale, suggesting that given the Canaries good away following there could be a 30,000 plus crowd in the ground.
If you compare that to 2005 when we dropped into the Championship from the Premier League, the opener against Wolves attracted only 24,000 in a season where the average was just over 23,000, a more than 7,000 drop on the previous season.
This season it looks like the average could be a lot higher, indeed more than the 26,420 average in 2011/12 when we were promoted back to the Premier League.
The figures are pleasing for three reasons, firstly that so many have remained loyal from last season, secondly the number of returning fans, many of whom had grown sick of the Premier League and stopped going and lastly for the number of the younger generation who have taken up season tickets, they are the fans who need to be nurtured as they are the future.