Liam Holton, CEO of digital ticketing firm Future Ticketing, and the entrance to Athlone Town Stadium. Future Ticketing has agreed a partnership with Athlone Town ahead of the 2024 season.

Athlone Town agrees partnership with digital ticketing firm Future Ticketing

The Midlands-based digital ticketing company Future Ticketing, which has become the leading digital ticketing provider for football clubs in Ireland, has announced a new partnership with Athlone Town AFC.

In recent years, the Tullamore company has been facilitating the online ticket sales of many clubs in the League of Ireland which has seen a notable growth in its matchday attendances.

Future Ticketing is now bringing its state-of-the-art ticketing software to Athlone Town AFC, and said supporters would reap the benefits of the new system.

It said the efficiency of online and offline ticket sales would smooth the ticketing purchase path for fans and would ease matchday management of attendances at Athlone Town Stadium.

Future Ticketing said it was especially pleased the partnership announcement had coincided with the Athlone Town women's team winning the FAI Cup for the first time.

"At Future Ticketing we pride ourselves on being at the cutting edge of ticketing software technology, so we are very excited to partner with Athlone, a club which has just demonstrated the breadth of its ambition with this women's FAI Cup victory," said company CEO Liam Holton.

"As a company based in the Midlands, we are well aware of Athlone Town's heritage and exceptional progress in the last year.

"We are delighted to welcome Athlone ahead of the new season, mindful that 2024 will be the centenary of the club winning the Free State Cup, and 2025 will be the 50th anniversary of the memorable draw with AC Milan in the UEFA Cup."

A number of alumni of TUS (Technological University of the Shannon) work for Future Ticketing.

David Dully, Secretary of Athlone Town AFC said: "We have seen the benefits that Future Ticketing have brought to other clubs in the league and partnering with them is another step in the plan to bring the club back to the top table of Irish football.

"They have been critical to the growth of attendance in the League of Ireland in recent years. We are an ambitious club and partnering with Future Ticketing is another step on our journey."

The partnership with Future Ticketing will provide Athlone Town with immediate access to ticketing revenues and will boost season ticket sales in advance of the 2024 SSE Airtricity First Division season.

Future Ticketing said its digital ticketing app greatly eases online booking and matchday entry for fans, and has been embraced with enthusiasm by clubs across Ireland and the UK.

The 2023 League of Ireland season saw attendance records being broken yet again and Future Ticketing said it was pleased to have been at the heart of this progress.

The addition of Athlone Town to the list of clubs served by Future Ticketing family follows on from a renewal of the company's partnership with this year's men's FAI Cup winners, St Patrick's Athletic.

Future Ticketing was established by Liam Holton and Mark Cotter in 2015, and is chaired by former Failte Ireland chief executive Shaun Quinn.

The company is headquartered at the Axis Business Park on the Clara Road in Tullamore.