Price of football survey: cost of tickets keeps on rising

How a day out at Arsenal could cost almost as much as a season ticket at Charlton

Manchester City with the Premiership trophy last season
(Image credit: Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

The day after inflation hit a five-year low, it has been revealed that the cost of a ticket to watch football in England has risen 13 per cent in three years.

According to BBC Sport's annual Price of Football study, the average price of the cheapest match-day ticket from the Premier League to League Two is now £21.49.

The survey lists the price of season tickets and match-day tickets for England's 92 league clubs, along with the price of programmes, pies, a cup of tea and a replica shirt.

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Here's what the survey found:

  • Arsenal has both the most expensive season and match-day ticket prices. A season pass at the Emirates can cost more than £2,000 and the most expensive match-day ticket costs £97.
  • Chelsea charge a mimimum of £50 for a match-day ticket, more than any other club. The cheapest tickets at Newcastle, Hull and Leicester are under £20 and there are tickets available at Arsenal for just £27.
  • Champions Man City have the cheapest season tickets in the Premier League, costing as little as £299. The cheapest at Arsenal costs £1,014, Spurs charge a minimum of £765 and Man United's cheapest seats cost £532 for a season.
  • The most expensive season ticket at Manchester City is £860, which is less than at QPR and West Ham charge. The most expensive season tickets at Swansea and West Brom are less than half the price of the cheapest ones at Arsenal.
  • It is possible to watch a match, buy a programme and enjoy a cup of tea and a pie for just £24 at Hull. The cheapest day out for a non-season ticket holder at Burnley is £42.30, more than at Arsenal.
  • Non-season ticket holders at Man City, Man United and Liverpool must all pay more than £45. The most expensive 'cheapest day out' is at Stamford Bridge, where a trip to watch Chelsea costs at least £57.50.
  • The cheapest match-day tickets in England are at Derby County and Sheffield Wednesday, where you can watch a match for £10.
  • Despite being in London, Charlton Athletic offers the cheapest season tickets in the country at £150. The most expensive seats at The Valley cost £525 for the season.
  • Britain's most expensive pie can be brought at Kidderminster Harriers, where they cost £4.50.

The survey also covered Scotland, the Women's Super League and other leagues around Europe. The contrasts between the Premier League and the rest of Europe did not go unnoticed.

"Arsenal are charging almost 10 times more for their cheapest season ticket than Barcelona and Bayern Munich, according to a survey highlighting just how expensive watching Premier League football has become," reports the Daily Telegraph.

But as the Daily Mail notes, Premier League stadiums have remained 95.3 per cent full this season.

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