What’s Happened to Villa Park’s Atmosphere – and How Can It Be Fixed?

Aston Villa’s on-field resurgence under Unai Emery has turned Villa Park into a statistical fortress: 13 consecutive league wins propelled last season’s top-four finish, and a club-record 15 straight home victories are being chased this campaign. Yet the decibel level inside the stadium is failing to match the numbers, and players, staff and supporters are asking why.

After the 3-1 January win over Nottingham Forest that lifted Villa to second in the Premier League, striker Ollie Watkins broke ranks with the usual post-match platitudes. “The atmosphere was quite flat,” he told broadcasters, noting fans filing out before the whistle. “People need to enjoy it… stay until the end and keep singing.”

Watkins’ candour echoed a growing concern inside the club. Emery, who learned the English word “fortress” specifically to describe his home-ground objective, believes support can act as an extra midfielder. Senior aides such as director of football operations Damian Vidagany share that view, and the club’s fan advisory board (FAB) has been told Villa will explore every avenue to reignite the noise, including the creation of a dedicated singing section in the Holte End.

The issue is not volume alone. Ticket prices, fixture scheduling, corporate encroachment and rising expectations have combined to mute the traditional claret-and-blue roar. Category-three pricing for the recent Leeds United visit set a minimum adult ticket at £58 and an upper-tier Holte End seat at £77, a £24 increase on lower-category matches. The club argues demand justified the banding—Saturday 3 p.m. slots have become so rare that Leeds was Villa’s first in 371 days—but supporters say the cost is reshaping the crowd.

“You have some people there to watch Premier League football, not to support Villa,” says Rob Steele, a Holte End season-ticket holder since 2013. “The season we got promoted from the Championship was superb—crowds were lower but everyone was there for Villa. Now ticket prices are creating a tourist-style atmosphere.”

Premium seating has expanded into the Trinity, North and Doug Ellis Stands; 900 fans were asked either to relocate or pay hospitality rates after new lounges were installed. The Holte Suite, once a 1,000-capacity social hub, is now an exclusive “Lower Grounds” dining area for 500. Empty seats in corporate blocks, fans say, fragment the vocal support just as kick-off times scatter across television schedules.

The tension crystallised during the 1-1 draw with Leeds. Villa, expected to win, laboured until the 42nd minute without a shot on target. Groans drifted around the back-line passing sequences, prompting defender Ezri Konsa to motion for calm. The final whistle brought another ripple of early leavers, a scene increasingly common despite Villa sitting third in the table.

Disquiet over atmosphere can feel incongruous given Emery’s acclaim. “Any Villa fan criticising performances under the best coach we have ever had is ridiculous,” says Stephen Morley of the Aston Villa Supporters Trust, who attended every match of the 1980-81 title run. Yet Morley also accepts that modern realities—cost, congestion, Champions League jeopardy—feed anxiety inside the ground.

Francesco Calvo, appointed last July as president of business operations, is tasked with balancing revenue and experience. Unlike predecessor Chris Heck, Calvo attends FAB meetings and fields questions via supporter-liaison officer Matthew Dainty. Champions League progress—Villa reached the quarter-finals and earned more than £70 million—buys goodwill, but fans know qualification is not guaranteed. Failure could mean player sales, budget cuts and, potentially, the departure of a head coach who has lifted expectations to levels not seen since the European Cup era.

Short-term fixes are being discussed: a singing section, safe-standing areas once legislation allows, and improved concourse facilities. Long-term hope rests on the North Stand redevelopment, due to start this summer and add 5,926 seats, lifting capacity to 48,809 while trimming a season-ticket waiting list of 27,000. More bodies, the theory goes, equals more noise.

For now the equation remains two-way. “The atmosphere can be directly linked to what happens on the pitch,” Steele adds. “We need something to feed off.” Emery’s programme notes ahead of Leeds urged supporters to be “full throttle”; the response was hesitant. With Chelsea, Liverpool and Europa League ties looming, Villa require both a raucous home and the results to keep their European dream alive. Whether Villa Park can again strike that harmony will determine if the fortress Emery craves is restored—or remains a slogan on a quieting stand.