A dispute has flared between the FA and England’s "most loyal supporters," those who travel to away games like England's World Cup match against Italy in Manaus, Brazil on Saturday, according to Henry Winter of the London TELEGRAPH. The FA, which is concerned about filling Wembley during an "unappealing Euro 2016 qualifying campaign, has annoyed many fans by radically altering the 'caps' benefits system," rewarding those who go to Wembley "more than the diehards who spend hefty sums travelling aboard." Under the old format, members of the englandfans scheme attending away games "received double the amount of caps as Wembley-goers, bringing improved access to finals tickets." The FA has "controversially reversed this for Euro 2016 qualifying." The FA said, "Members will earn two caps for every England home game they attend." Under the new rules, "an England fan who lives in London can gain 10 caps with minimal damage to his Oyster card let alone his credit card." It "was one of the main subjects of conversation amongst England fans in Miami for the friendlies with Ecuador and Honduras." They "feel exploited." They believe that "the change of emphasis with 'caps' is simply a commercial decision by the FA to try to sell tickets for low-key qualifiers at Wembley." In fairness to the FA, "it plans to reduce prices for such qualifiers but it also stands accused of ignoring England’s most steadfast fans" (TELEGRAPH, 6/9).
