The Aston Villa Fan Advisory Board (FAB) met on Monday 2 February 2026 for our latest internal meeting, held online. The session focused on progress across Working Groups, how we manage engagement with the Club, and ensuring that supporter feedback is handled clearly, consistently, and in a timely way.
As always, our aim is to represent supporters’ voices independently, constructively, and transparently.
Keeping Momentum and Visibility
The Chair confirmed the importance of maintaining the current schedule of FAB meetings while Working Groups are fully established and legacy issues are addressed. This consistency is vital to ensuring momentum and accountability.
We also discussed plans for an upcoming FAB pop-up engagement ahead of the Leeds match, with a presence in the Holte pub. This will provide an opportunity to speak directly with supporters, gather feedback, and encourage sign-ups to the FAB website. The Club has confirmed its support for promoting this activity.
In addition, future Fans’ Forums were discussed. While these are formally delivered by the Club, it was agreed that FAB involvement is essential to ensure supporter perspectives are embedded meaningfully in their design and delivery.
Fan Engagement and Information Sharing
The Fan Engagement Working Group shared frustration that requested information from the Club has not consistently been provided in advance of meetings, despite internal data and survey insights being available.
The FAB agreed that clearer expectations are needed. Where we are asked to work to deadlines, it is reasonable that similar timelines apply in return. Setting agreed response times will help improve transparency and allow issues to be escalated appropriately where needed.
We also noted the importance of understanding how Aston Villa’s Supporter Liaison resource compares with other Premier League clubs, particularly given last season’s fan engagement outcomes. This will be explored further to support constructive conversations about resourcing.
Accessibility and Disability Issues
Several accessibility concerns were discussed, including rumours about potential changes to disabled access points during upcoming construction works. The FAB agreed to seek early clarification from the Club to avoid uncertainty for disabled supporters.
Concerns were also raised about stewarding practices during busy entry periods, where disabled entrances are sometimes used as overflow, creating additional queues for those who rely on them.
Digital and physical ticketing remains an ongoing issue. A specific case involving the non-receipt of a physical ticket will be followed up directly to ensure it is resolved promptly.
Culture, History, and Inclusion
The first Culture Working Group meeting was described as positive, with open discussion about how supporter culture, history, and equality, diversity and inclusion (ED&I) intersect.
While the Club’s framing focuses on ED&I reporting requirements, the FAB reiterated that culture also includes heritage, storytelling, atmosphere, and the lived supporter experience. Ensuring the FAB is fully integrated into both Fans’ Forums and ED&I structures will be essential.
There was strong interest in developing a more coherent approach to club history, including better curation of existing artefacts, storytelling initiatives, and the potential involvement of external expertise for specific themes. Ideas ranged from regular history events to consultation with supporters on how heritage is reflected across the stadium.
Ticketing
The Ticketing Working Group confirmed further progress, including the co-option of additional expertise and a clear focus for upcoming meetings. Priorities include consultation timelines for the 2026/27 season and resolving ongoing issues around digital ticketing, transfers, rewards, websites, and customer contact processes.
Understanding the supporter impact—and cost—of repeated contact to resolve basic ticketing issues will form part of this work.
Key Decisions
The FAB agreed to:
- Send a clear set of questions to the Club following each monthly meeting.
- Identify the top three cross-cutting issues from all Working Groups to focus future agendas and discussions.
Next Steps
Actions were agreed across all Working Groups, including:
- Preparing website updates and supporter-facing summaries.
- Coordinating questions and outstanding issues ahead of the March FAB meeting.
- Gathering comparative information from other Premier League clubs.
- Progressing plans for supporter engagement activities and forums.
The next FAB internal meeting will take place on:
Monday 2 March 2026
Online (Teams)
A Continued Commitment to Constructive Engagement
This meeting reinforced the FAB’s role as a critical bridge between supporters and the Club: supportive, informed, and independent. By strengthening how information flows, setting clearer expectations, and maintaining regular engagement, we remain focused on improving the supporter experience in practical, measurable ways.
Further updates will follow as actions progress.
UTV — Prepared, one voice.