Almost half of London-based football fans would consider giving up a season ticket due to price increases, research finds

A new report by AskGamblers has revealed how the cost of living crisis is impacting fans’ ability to attend football matches in London, with a supporter trust having found that tickets to attend a League Cup semi-final at Chelsea had increased by 128.4% over seven years.

The research, which involved financial analysis of each of the current 20 Premier League clubs alongside a survey of over 170 London-based football fans, has highlighted how attending football matches is becoming unaffordable for the growing number of Londoners.

Only a third of London-based fans believe that their club prioritises ordinary supporters
AskGamblers found that just a third (33%) of Londoners believe that their club prioritises loyal and ordinary fans.

Almost half (48%) said that they would consider giving up a season ticket due to price increases, and almost two in five (39%) reported having gone into some sort of financial difficulty to afford a match ticket or season ticket.

Additionally, almost one in five (18%) admitted that they have borrowed money from family or friends to afford a match ticket or season ticket, and more than a quarter (27%) said that they would cut back on savings to be able to afford tickets.

Financial Forecast: The Premier League clubs with the highest predicted ticket prices by 2035/36
AskGamblers analysed five years of ticket prices for all current Premier League clubs against average incomes in each club’s local area, and found that Arsenal (5.50%) are forecasted to become the first side to charge fans over 5% of their annual income, with this currently projected to happen for the 2030/31 campaign.

North London rivals Tottenham (5%) are projected to reach the threshold the year later for the 2031/32 season, while Chelsea (5.32%) are forecasted to do so for 2032/33.

A further six clubs (Liverpool, Aston Villa, Everton, Newcastle, Manchester United and Bournemouth) are forecasted to reach the figure during the 2033/34 season.

Teams with the Highest Predicted Ticket Prices by 2035/36:

Arsenal projected to reach £3,832.85 (10.32% of income)
Tottenham projected to reach £2,975.44 (8.01% of income)
Chelsea projected to reach £2,959.61 (7.97% of income)
Aston Villa projected to reach £2,530.73 (6.81% of income)
Liverpool projected to reach £2,501.26 (6.73% of income)