Coventry City's £45 tickets spark outrage as Mowbray admits West Brom's 'poor' 2-0 loss sealed his fate

It wasn’t just the 2-0 scoreline that stung. It was the £45 ticket, the silence in the stands, and the realization that the season was slipping away. On April 18, 2025, West Bromwich Albion collapsed at the CBS Arena in Coventry, losing to league leaders Coventry City in a performance manager Tony Mowbray called "wasn’t good enough." Two days after scraping a win against Blackburn, the Baggies looked lost — and the defeat would cost Mowbray his job.

"We had no control"

Mowbray didn’t hold back in his post-match presser. "We were spending too long defending balls coming into our box," he said, voice tight with frustration. "They scored inside the first 10 minutes. That set the tone. And then the second half? We were on the back foot from the first whistle." The goal, a clinical counterattack after a miscommunication in the backline, wasn’t just a goal — it was a symbol of everything wrong. The second came from a defensive error Mowbray later called "unforgivable." The team, once dominant in possession under his new attacking philosophy, looked like a side that had forgotten how to attack.

Coventry’s early strike didn’t just open the door — it kicked it off its hinges. The home side, buoyed by a crowd of over 30,000, pressed high and forced West Brom into panicked clearances. Mowbray’s tactical shift from the defensive, draw-heavy approach of his predecessor, Mark Corberán, had shown promise in the previous six games. But against Coventry, the attacking intent collapsed under pressure. "We dominated the ball," he admitted, "but we didn’t dominate the game. That’s the difference."

£45 to watch us lose?

For West Brom fans, the defeat was made worse by the cost of getting there. Coventry City owner Doug King had slapped a "Category A+" price tag on the match: £45 for adults, £40 for seniors, £35 for juniors. That’s £13 more than what West Brom charges visiting fans at The Hawthorns. Some Albion supporters had already threatened a boycott. "They’ll have a great time," King told the Express & Star in November 2025, comparing ticket prices to streaming services and concerts. "It’s not just football — it’s entertainment."

But for fans who’d traveled 80 miles from the West Midlands, the "entertainment" felt like a punch. "We paid more to come here than we do to watch Manchester United at home," said Steve Hargreaves, a 52-year-old season ticket holder who made the trip with his 16-year-old son. "We didn’t get a great game. We got a bad one. And we paid top dollar for it."

This wasn’t the first time. The Express & Star reported similar complaints in each of the last three seasons. Coventry’s pricing model, designed to maximize revenue from high-demand fixtures, has increasingly alienated away supporters. The club’s capacity is 32,609 — but on April 18, the away end was half-empty. A small, quiet group of 1,200 Albion fans watched their team crumble — and then watched their own loyalty questioned.

The final straw

Mowbray’s comments weren’t just about tactics. He was visibly shaken by something he saw up close — a specific error, he later told reporters, that "you can’t coach out." It was the same mistake that led to Coventry’s second goal: a lazy backpass, a moment of panic, and a defender who didn’t even turn around. "No head coach can mitigate against that sort of error," wrote Brummie Roadender the same night. "But you can build a team that doesn’t make it."

That night, the cracks in Mowbray’s project became impossible to ignore. His philosophy — a high-energy, front-footed style — had brought West Brom to the cusp of the playoffs. They’d won four of their last seven, out-possessed opponents, and looked like a team on the rise. But they’d also drawn too many 1-1s, lost too many 2-1s. The attacking third remained a black hole. Against Coventry, it wasn’t just the goals they conceded — it was the chances they didn’t take. Two clear headers in the box. One missed penalty shout. Three shots on target in 90 minutes.

By 10 p.m. that night, West Brom’s official website quietly updated its news section: "The club has hard parted company with Tony Mowbray." The statement offered no explanation, but the timing was unmistakable. Three games left in the season. One point out of the top six. A home crowd already restless. And a manager who had just admitted his team wasn’t good enough — on a night when the fans had paid more than ever to see it.

What happens now?

West Brom sit 8th in the Championship, six points from the playoffs with three matches remaining. The club’s hierarchy now faces a summer of reckoning. Who replaces Mowbray? Can they find a manager who blends attacking ambition with defensive discipline? And how do they rebuild trust with fans who’ve seen too many false dawns?

The bigger question, though, is about the future of away ticket pricing in English football. Coventry’s model isn’t unique — clubs like Nottingham Forest and Sheffield Wednesday have raised away prices to match home rates. But when fans pay more to watch their team lose, and lose badly, the social contract breaks. The EFL has no cap on away pricing. And until it does, matches like this won’t just be about football. They’ll be about fairness.

Background: The Mowbray era

Appointed in November 2024, Mowbray inherited a team that had drawn 11 of 17 games under Corberán. His mandate: attack. He introduced a 4-2-3-1, pushed the fullbacks higher, and demanded pressing from the front. For a while, it worked. West Brom won 7 of their first 10 under him. They outshot opponents by 14.7 shots per game. But they also lost 6 games 2-1. The attacking flair was there. The finishing wasn’t. The Coventry loss was the final proof: dominance without results is just noise.

His departure marks the end of a brief, hopeful chapter. Now, West Brom must decide whether to double down on attacking football — or return to the pragmatism that kept them afloat for years.