I totally get what you are saying but that's not how business works. I understand that they didn't need to do it but the fact is, they could do it because they had a customer base ready, willing and able to pay it. The club is not a charity.
Shi has a duty to his paymasters to maximise revenue from every revenue stream possible. Of course, that makes him deeply unpopular with the fan base affected by the increase.
As for long term and being damaging. Very arguable. If they don't bring in the revenue when there is a demand that outstrips supply, when do they do it? The issue, for me, isn't about increasing the prices but how do they still keep those people involved who simply cannot afford it? But how do you cater for those less well off when you have a stadium full of fans paying the higher price?
One answer is to expand the stadium so you are able to offer more price points for less desirable seats. It happens at a lot of stadia in the US. I don't see us doing that with Fosun in charge as they seem to be satisfied with their lot at the moment and have realised that to compete at the top of the game simply costs too much and is a big risk.
