Football scores own goal with children

More than one in five of all football fans say the cost of attending live games is stopping them taking their children, new research from Virgin Money shows. Its analysis shows 21 per cent of fans say they are inhibited from taking their children with them to matches.

And the clubs that are most at risk of losing the next generation of fans are Middlesbrough and Chelsea, the research shows. Around 44 per cent of Middlesbrough fans say cost is stopping them taking children to games while 40 per cent of Chelsea fans are struggling.

Virgin Money’s research – published as part of its regular Football Fans Inflation Index – shows that the average British football fan across all divisions spent around £1,080 following their team in 2007.

The expense of following a Premiership team was for some significantly higher – the average Premiership fan paid £251 more for tickets and matchday essentials in 2007 compared to the national average.

Its research polled 2,000 fans who attend matches on a regular basis – 21 per cent of them said cost is inhibiting them from taking young children to games while 23 per cent say it doesn’t affect them. The other 56 per cent do not take children to games or do not have children. Among fans with children 48 per cent of them fear they are being priced out of taking kids to games.

The cost of taking a child to a Premiership fixture can vary but, for example, a family of four supporting Everton would fork out £104 per match to watch the Toffees from the Main Stand.

Virgin Money spokesman Scott Mowbray said: “If children aren’t going to live games then they won’t get the football supporting habit at an early age. The game could lose the next generation or end up with stadiums packed with middle-aged and elderly fans.

“Clubs have made efforts to reduce ticket prices in an effort to attract more people to match days but a dad – or mum – taking two children to a game is still facing a big bill for a day out. There are cheaper ways to entertain the kids than going to football.”

Virgin Money’s Football Fans’ Price Index shows that in the past two years the cost of attending games has risen by 9.28 per cent. The index is aimed at helping supporters keep track of the rises and falls in the costs of supporting their team. The company identified the match day essentials fans buy and keeps tabs on increases and decreases.

At the launch of the index in January 2006, the match day basket of goods cost £77.95. However the most recent analysis puts the cost at £85.19 – a rise of £7.24, or 9.28 per cent. An increase in the cost of petrol, match tickets and replica shirts is the main reason behind the increase.

Virgin Money’s Football Fans’ Prices Index runs every three months and looks at the cost of a typical basket of goods monitoring the ups and downs of prices. The firm’s research team examines the cost of items such as a gallon of petrol; match tickets; food; alcohol; train tickets and replica shirts.