The cost of watching football from the Premier League through to League Two has risen by over 11 per cent. Are normal football fans being priced out of watching the game they love?
The BBC Sport Price of Football surveyed 166 clubs and found that the cost of watching football in the top four divisions in England has gone up by over 11 per cent with the most affordable ticket price going from £19.01 up to £21.24. The survey found that only three clubs in the top 92 teams offered fans a ticket and day out for less than £20 when compared with 12 clubs last season.
Economic times in Great Britain are harsher than they have ever been and there is a clear argument that football clubs are only adjusting in parallel with this but the obvious concern after this survey is that attendances will drop. Sooner or later large chunks of fans are simply not going to be able to afford to go and watch football, which will decrease attendances, place strain on clubs and see even more sides going out of business.
“Despite the difficult economic times we live in, prices at some clubs and at some levels of the game are still exceedingly high. It is quite shocking that at Arsenal, for example, the cheapest season ticket is only £15 short of £1,000,” said Malcolm Clarke, chairman of the Football Supporters Federation.
This could simply be a reflection of the way football clubs are now run as businesses where the sole aim is to create as big a profit as possible so that shareholders can be paid larger dividends. Arsenal are one of the best runs clubs in the world, as a business, so it’s no surprise that if you turn up at the emirates on match day and need a ticket, you will have to pay a staggering £126 to get in through the gates.
What’s more astonishing is that if you go across the border as a fan and into Scotland, half of all clubs in the top four divisions offer a day out for less than £20. This is remarkable considering that some non-league sides in England charge as much as £15 to see a single game.
The reason for the lower prices in the Scottish game is an obvious reflection of the difference in quality between Scottish football league clubs and English football league clubs. Scottish sides don’t have to charge fans as much money to watch games because they don’t have to pay their players the same level of wages that some players in the English game earn.
Unfortunately, this is not something which is going to change any time soon. The £2.50 that fans have to pay for a cup of tea at Manchester United and Manchester City will soon become £3 and the cheapest season ticket at Arsenal will more than likely head to the over £1,000 mark. Until UEFA gets a grip of finances at top European clubs prices will still be driven up as the cost of the best players increases and the cost of success increases.
image: © twicepix
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