A company owned by Major League Baseball has signed a partnership agreement with Derby County, the English soccer club.

Tickets.com, owned by MLB, will be the club's new ticketing partner. Amongst the new measures introduced ahead of the new season is the introduction of a state of the art season ticket holder smart cards to scan at the turnstiles instead of the traditional tear-out books, a measure intended to reduce queues at Pride Park.

"This exciting new partnership with a market-leading organisation in Tickets.com will bring about all the positive changes that fans want," said Rams chief executive Tom Glick. "We are always engaging our supporters through extensive consultation and an improved ticketing service is a subject that has come up on many occasions: both in terms of a better service for season ticket holders and match by match ticket purchases.

"The changes and improvements that are being implemented will bring the club in line with the most up-to-date technology, all of which leads to a more efficient and convenient system for fans. These enhancements have all been made with the supporters at the forefront of our thinking and I'm sure it will prove popular as the new system and benefits bed in."