The average cost of the cheapest adult ticket in the top-four divisions of English football has risen by 11.7% -- "more than five times the rate of inflation," according to the BBC.
The BBC Sport Price of Football survey, released Thursday, found that the "average price of the most-affordable ticket" in league football has gone from £19.01 ($31) to £21.24 ($34) in the past 12 months.
The survey looked at 166 clubs in 10 divisions across British football, including the Blue Square Bet Premier and Women's Super League.
The BBC has "recorded the most-expensive and cheapest season tickets and adult match-day tickets as well as the cost of a cup of tea, a pie and a program, to calculate the cheapest day out at a football match." The BBC's findings:
- Only two out of 92 English league clubs offer a day out for less than £20 ($32) this season. Last year it was 12.
- In Scotland, 21 of the 42 teams across four divisions offer a day out for less than £20.
- The most-expensive adult match-day ticket is Arsenal at £126 ($203) and the cheapest £6 ($10) at Scottish Third Division Montrose.
- Arsenal also has the most-expensive season ticket at £1,955 ($3,220), while Montrose's was the lowest at £90 ($145).
Football Supporters' Federation Chair Malcolm Clarke said, "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 ($24) short of £1,000 ($1,600)" (
BBC, 10/18).
| Premier League |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Club |
Cheapest
match-day ticket
|
Most expensive
match-day ticket
|
Cheapest
day out
|
Program |
Pie
|
Tea
|
| Arsenal |
£26 |
£126 |
£34.3 |
£3 |
£3.3
|
£2 |
Aston Villa
|
£20 |
£45 |
£28.3
|
£3
|
£3.2
|
£2.1
|
| Chelsea |
£41 |
£87 |
£49.6
|
£3 |
£3.6
|
£2
|
| Everton |
£31 |
£43 |
£38.9
|
£3 |
£2.8
|
£2.1
|
| Fulham |
£20 |
£75 |
£29.3
|
£3.5
|
£3.9
|
£1.9
|
| Liverpool |
£39 |
£48 |
£47.3
|
£3
|
£3.1
|
£2.2
|
Man City
|
£26 |
£58 |
£35
|
£3 |
£3.5
|
£2.5
|
ManU
|
£30
|
£52 |
£38.6
|
£3
|
£3.1
|
£2.5
|
Newcastle United
|
£15 |
£70 |
£23
|
£3 |
£2.8
|
£2.2
|
| Norwich |
£30 |
£50 |
£38
|
£3.5
|
£2.5
|
£2
|
QPR
|
£25 |
£55 |
£33 |
£3
|
£3
|
£2
|
Reading
|
£37 |
£50 |
£45
|
£3 |
£3.2
|
£1.8
|
| Southampton |
£28 |
£48 |
£36.2
|
£3
|
£3.2
|
£2
|
| Stoke |
£25 |
£50 |
£33.1
|
£3.5
|
£2.6
|
£2
|
| Sunderland |
£25 |
£40 |
£33 |
£3 |
£2.9
|
£2.1 |
| Swansea |
£35 |
£45 |
£42.8 |
£3
|
£3 |
£1.8
|
Tottenham
|
£32
|
£81
|
£41.2
|
£3.5
|
£3.7
|
£2
|
West Brom
|
£25
|
£39
|
£33.1
|
£3
|
£2.9
|
£2.2
|
West Ham
|
£36
|
£67
|
£44.5
|
£3.5
|
£3
|
£2
|
Wigan
|
£20
|
N/A |
£27.1
|
£3
|
£2.3*
|
£1.8*
|
*pie and hot drink meal £3.9
| Scottish Premier League |
|
|
|
|
|
| Club |
Cheapest
match-day ticket
|
Most expensive
match-day ticket
|
Cheapest
day out
|
Program |
Pie
|
Tea
|
| Aberdeen |
£18 |
£28 |
£24.6 |
£3 |
£1.8
|
£1.8 |
Celtic
|
£23 |
£29 |
£30.3
|
£3
|
£2.2
|
£2.1
|
| Dundee |
£20 |
£20 |
£27.5
|
£2.5 |
£3
|
£2
|
Dundee United
|
£19 |
£25 |
£26.4
|
£3 |
£2.2
|
£2.2
|
Heart of Midlothian
|
£18 |
£28 |
£24.8
|
£3
|
£2
|
£1.8
|
| Hibernian |
Did not respond |
Inverness CT
|
£16 |
£30 |
£20.5
|
£0.5 |
£2
|
£2
|
Kilmarnock
|
£17
|
£26 |
£22.7
|
£2.5
|
£1.6
|
£1.6
|
Motherwell
|
£18 |
£25 |
£24.6
|
£3 |
£1.9
|
£1.7
|
Ross County
|
£20 |
£26 |
£25.6
|
£2
|
£2
|
£1.6
|
St. Johnstone
|
£22 |
£25 |
£27.7 |
£2
|
£1.8
|
£1.9
|
St. Mirren
|
£20 |
£22 |
£26.5
|
£2.5
|
£2.1
|
£1.9
|
Click here to see all leagues of BBC's Sport Price of Football survey 2012.
PREMIER LEAGUE: Newcastle United offers the "cheapest day out for adults fans" in the EPL, with tickets starting at £15. Newcastle, Aston Villa, Fulham and Wigan all offer a ticket, program, pie and cup of tea for less than £30 ($48), with Newcastle the cheapest at £23 ($37) (
BBC, 10/18).
CHAMPIONSHIP:
Huddersfield is the "cheapest place to watch Championship football." The lowest-priced adult ticket is £10 ($16), with the cost of a program, cup of tea and pie adding another £7.8 ($12.5) to a visit to the John Smith's Stadium. Championship leaders Cardiff City and Derby "made history in June when they became the first football clubs in the U.K. to launch dynamic-pricing across a stadium" (
BBC, 10/18).
LEAGUE ONE:
Sheffield United provides the cheapest match-day experience in League One, with a total of £17.20 ($28). Bournemouth offers the most-expensive match-day experience in the league. A program, pie and cup of tea "adds up to £34.3 ($55)." Last season's League Two champions Swindon
has frozen its ticket prices, with its cheapest ticket at £19 ($31) and most expensive £25 ($40), while the cost of a program and a pie also costs the same as it did while it was in the lower division (
BBC, 10/18).
LEAGUE TWO:
Burton Albion is the "cheapest place to watch League Two football." The "least-expensive adult ticket at the Staffordshire club is £14 ($23), although that is £4 ($6) more expensive than the cheapest ticket in the Championship." Port Vale is the only club in League Two to lower its cheapest adult match-day ticket prices. In '10-11, it would cost £20.50. Now it is £20 (
BBC, 10/18).
WOMEN'S SUPER LEAGUE: Arsenal is the "cheapest team to watch in the Women's Super League." The title winners get average crowds of more than 500 at home games, meaning it is one of the best-supported female clubs in the country. A day out consisting of the lowest priced match-day ticket, a program and a cup of tea with the Gunners costs £7.50 ($12) -- with no pies available (BBC, 18/10).
SCOTTISH PREMIER LEAGUE: Celtic is the "most-expensive match-day experience" in the SPL. The cheapest adult ticket, program, pie and cup of tea costs £30.3 ($49) at Celtic Park. The "cheapest day out in the top flight" is Inverness Caledonian Thistle, at £20.5. Celtic's cheapest season ticket option is still £112 ($181) more expensive than the equivalent ticket at EPL champions Man City. But, while Celtic's cheapest ticket has risen £1 ($1.6) from last season to £23, "its most expensive has dropped" from £40 ($65) to £29 ($47) (BBC, 10/18).
SCOTTISH FIRST DIVISION: Morton's Cappielow Stadium is the "cheapest place to watch Scottish First Division." The total price of a program, pie, cup of tea and cheapest adult ticket costs £19. At £23.7 ($38), Falkirk is the division's most expensive in the cheapest-day-out category. Following relegation from the SPL at the end of the '11-12 season, Dunfermline Athletic is "one of the most-expensive sides to watch in Scottish First Division" (BBC, 10/18).
SCOTTISH SECOND DIVISION: Forfar Athletic is the "lowest-priced club to watch Scottish Second Division football." The club's cheapest day out, including one adult match-day ticket, program, pie and cup of tea, costs £15.1 ($24). However, Brechin has the least-expensive cup of tea in the whole of English and Scottish professional football, with a tea costing £0.5 ($0.8) (BBC, 10/18).
IT'S ALL ABOUT THE PIE: Blue Square Bet Premier, England's fifth division, Kidderminster Harriers' pies "are the most-expensive in the U.K." Pies cost £4 ($6). Club Catering Manager Brian Murdoch said that its "cottage pies cost more because they are made of meat, vegetables and potatoes rather than the usual pastry pie sold at other grounds." Fan Steve Ellis said they were "by far the tastiest" in any league ground (BBC, 10/18).
