Premiership attendances withstand recession

The world may be experiencing the second wave of the global economic crisis, but Premiership attendances look like holding up well this season.   This in spite of the fact that eleven teams have increased prices above the rate of inflation, itself relatively high by recent standards.

The world may be experiencing the second wave of the global economic crisis, but Premiership attendances look like holding up well this season.   This in spite of the fact that eleven teams have increased prices above the rate of inflation, itself relatively high by recent standards.


Chelsea have reached their limit of 25,000 season tickets and Tottenham Hostopur have hit their cap of 23,000.  The Premiership new boys have done well.   Norwich City have reached their practical limit of almost 22,000, almost 5,000 short of the capacity at Carrow Road.    At Swansea City 16,000 seats out of a 20,500 capacity are reserved at the Liberty Stadium.


The average stadium occupancy rate in the Premier Lague was 92.2 per cent last season, only 0.2 per cent down from the year before.    These figures have held steady for a decade and compare with an average occupancy rate of just 69.6 per cent of capacity in the first year of the Premier League in 1992-3.   One should also bear in mind that many clubs have increased capacity since then.


Gate money remains a key revenue stream for the top clubs.   Manchester United and Arsenal each make more in revenue in two home fixtures than Blackburn and Wigan make in a season.  In 2009-10 Blackburn collected £43m in broadcast revenue but match day income was thought to be around £6m.  With an average crowd below 17,000, Wigan Athletic earn more from viewers in Singapore and Hong King than they do from people going through the turnstiles.


There are a few straws in the wind that all is not well.   Crowds in the away end are falling as fans seek one way to economise.   Manchester United games have gone on general sale.  Arsenal fans way down the waiting list have been offered season tickets.


There is also a distributive issue.   The Football Supporters’ Federation ask about the impact of price rises on people on low and average incomes, arguing that you don’t want football to become just the province of the better off.   But in many ways it already has.   I saw a clever advert by Chelsea on the tube the other day selling matchday packages by making an ironic play on the idea that their prawn sandwiches are better quality.


Even if gates do fall off, there is real longer run potential in overseas broadcast income which is why clubs like Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool among others toured the Far East season.   There are 1.3 billion people in China and only a small fraction of them are watching the Premier League on television.