The Cost Of Football Survey

[Quitongo's Left Peg]

Where does your club sit on the table of average costs?

You can also work out on average how much you'll spend supporting your team here - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-29527838

Best bit though:

Rangers FC are omitted from the survey and calculator because they did not provide data to the BBC

[Venti]

Killie pie lowest & best.

[Pie Of The Month]

I don't really see why the BBC continue to spend money on doing this survey every year to tell us the same thing.

Who by now doesn't know football is expensive in this country, more than likely not value for money and far more expensive than what fans of German teams pay? It's not as if much can be done about it in Scotland. The English Premier League makes enough money that most clubs could, if they chose to, subsidise the cost of match tickets because they get an obscene amount of TV money. It's not really workable up here when so many clubs are so reliant on matchday income to survive.

[Audaces Fortuna Juvat]

I don't really see why the BBC continue to spend money on doing this survey every year to tell us the same thing.

Who by now doesn't know football is expensive in this country, more than likely not value for money and far more expensive than what fans of German teams pay? It's not as if much can be done about it in Scotland. The English Premier League makes enough money that most clubs could, if they chose to, subsidise the cost of match tickets because they get an obscene amount of TV money. It's not really workable up here when so many clubs are so reliant on matchday income to survive.

Hardly the answer to overcharge though?

And the vast discrepancies between clubs is hard to account for. Football will kill itself unless it catches on quickly.

[Pie Of The Month]

Hardly the answer to overcharge though?

And the vast discrepancies between clubs is hard to account for. Football will kill itself unless it catches on quickly.

What do you suggest they do?

It's easy enough to say we're overcharged or it's not value for money like the BBC do every year. If clubs cuts prices do you really think they'd get enough people through the gates to justify it on a regular basis?

[Demented Zebra]

Killie pie lowest & best.

Best facilities for fans in Scotland with their sports bar and hotel. Recently got a steak & haggis pie it was that good went back and bought another , very delicious.

Back on subject here is an article from the toilet rag..............

WATCHING Barcelona and Bayern Munich is cheaper than following every team in Scotland with the exception of Peterhead.

A comprehensive new study has highlighted the increasing cost of attending football games in this country compared with watching the best teams on the planet.

The staggering results of the BBC Sport Price of Football report show how expensive ticket prices are in Scotland in relation to those on the continent.

The cheapest season tickets at Barcelona and Bayern can be snapped up for £103 and £109.

Of all our 42 clubs only League One outfit Peterhead, at £90, charge less than the Spanish and German giants.

The least expensive season ticket in the top flight is Inverness at £200 while it costs supporters three times as much to follow Dundee, Hamilton, Ross County and Partick Thistle than it does the two European super powers.

Prices in the Championship even dwarf the Bundesliga with Hibs charging £355 for their cheapest season ticket – the highest in any of the four divisions.

Alloa and Livingston offer best value at £190 and £180 in the second tier while Falkirk strike a happy medium at £250.

The average Premiership season ticket costs £339 compared with £508 in the English top flight, although both are miles more than the Bundesliga where the average price is just £138.

Andrew Jenkin, head of Supporters Direct in Scotland, who promote more fan involvement and fan ownership, reckons all our professional clubs should be taking a leaf out of the German book.

He said: “It is a startling statistic that watching football in Scotland is more expensive than following two of the biggest clubs in the world.

“Bayern and Barcelona are perfect examples to try to replicate. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that these two huge clubs are part fan owned and are in touch with what the supporters want.

“There will always be a demand to watch Bayern and Barcelona but they do not take advantage of that.

“They don’t short-change customers because

“I know there are also expensive tickets at Bayern and Barca and that statistics don’t tell the full story but our clubs could learn by adopting a similar blueprint.

“The whole fan experience in the Bundesliga is much better than here. As well as tickets costing less, supporters can also drink at matches and there are standing areas in most grounds.

“This all contributes to the huge attendances most weekends.”

The BBC study is now in its fourth year, having begun in 2011, and is the largest of its kind in Britain, covering 176 clubs in 11 divisions plus a broad survey of top leagues in Europe.

Rangers were the only club, north or south of the border, who failed to respond to the Beeb’s in-depth questionnaire.

It covers everything from admission prices and the cost of replica shirts to how much punters have to shell out for a pie and cuppa.

The findings also revealed the cost of a match-day ticket in the Premiership has increased by almost eight per cent – up from £18.92 to £20.42 since 2011.

Watching the national team isn’t cheap either with the SFA charging £45 to watch Saturday’s Euro qualifier with Georgia . They also want the Tartan Army to shell out £60 for next month’s friendly with England at Celtic Park.

Jenkin said: “Sometimes you have to look beyond the bare statistics and there are plenty clubs in Scotland trying to come up with initiatives to get fans through the turnstiles. Albion Rovers have to be commended for their scheme which allows fans to pay whatever they can afford. Livingston and Falkirk have also introduced initiatives.

“Not everyone is taking supporters for granted but I think the study does show football in this country is still too expensive.

“Hopefully, with the figures there in black and white some clubs will look at their pricing structure and act accordingly.”

Arsenal is the most expensive club in Europe to watch with season tickets ranging from £1014 to a mind-boggling £2013.

At the other end of the scale, Peterhead’s £90 is cheaper than anywhere else in the top four divisions of Scottish football and less than the top five divisions in England. The Scottish League One side also charge the least for a match-day ticket, at £6.

Arsenal have the most expensive ticket in the UK at £97, although that is £29 less than last year’s top-priced £126.

Chelsea’s cheapest ticket is £50, the highest-priced in the Premier League, and while Newcastle fans might be desperate to see the back of owner Mike Ashley, the £15 seats he offers at St James’ Park are the best value in England’s top flight.

Overall the average price of tickets across English football has risen at almost twice the rate of the cost of living since 2011. Compared with 12 months ago, the cheapest match day tickets in their top four divisions is up 4.4 per cent from 12 months ago, from £20.58 to £21.49.

Derby and Sheffield Wednesday’s £10 ticket is the cheapest in the top four leagues in England – matched only by Southport in the Conference.

[Honest Saints Fan]

I can get into a Saints game with two kids for £15. The BBC never seem to pick up on this but we hardly advertise it.

[HibeeJibee]

It's easy for the BBC and the supporters reps they quote to say what effectively amounts to "cut prices" and "be innovative"... without really explaining how they should be innovative or proving the effects it would have... but by-n-large, clubs aren't thick. They're already doing what they think maximises crowds and revenues?

EDIT: Also the 'huge' attendances thing is a bit misleading. Crowds in Scotland are, per capita, higher than Germany.

[John MacLean]

What do you suggest they do?

Cut their wage bills.

[HibeeJibee]

Cut their wage bills.

= poorer quality players

... = worse performances/positions

... ... = unhappy supporters

... ... ... = angst + lower crowds

would be most clubs reply?

[Radford]

I can get into a Saints game with two kids for £15. The BBC never seem to pick up on this but we hardly advertise it.

The clubs supply the information, so not sure why Saints aren't providing that information. The cheaper food and drink (which was recognised in this survey a few years ago) didn't last long either, despite us being told that the club taking control of it again would reduce costs. Notice that the soft drinks served now are warm cans, rather than draft too.

[booj]

How many of these cheap season tickets for bayern and Barcelona are available though?

Will probably find there will be a handful of these.

I paid 340 for my season ticket this year as was working most saturdays last year, don't buy any food as it is aids on a stick and way over priced. Haven't bought a programme in almost a decade.

Noticed that hearts dearest match day ticket is £30 are they taking the piss?

[The Old Northerner]

EDIT: Also the 'huge' attendances thing is a bit misleading. Crowds in Scotland are, per capita, higher than Germany.

'Huge', although subjective, isn't really a relative term though. 30,000 punters through the gate could be regarded as huge and 3,000 couldn't, no matter the background population

[Pie Of The Month]

Cut their wage bills.

Then the quality of player goes down even further and the same complaints stand about the now reduced prices not being value for money. Or one or two clubs do that and the rest don't then you can pretty much guarantee relegation sooner rather than later and the club loses even more money and has to cut the budget further and the crowds drop off.

If people want to watch a dreadful standard of football and pay a fiver the juniors already offer that. The likes of Supporters Direct want us to adopt the German model and blatantly ignore that most of it is subsidised by their much bigger TV deal and other sponsorship.

[Alert Mongoose]

Is it really only 50p for a programme at Inverness?

[YassinMoutaouakil]

But, but... GERMANY.

[HibeeJibee]

'Huge', although subjective, isn't really a relative term though. 30,000 punters through the gate could be regarded as huge and 3,000 couldn't, no matter the background population

I think the context of it was fairly clear... Germany has got it right, and get 'huge' attendances, and Scotland haven't. Except more people in Scotland go to watch football than in Germany. Quote is:

This all contributes to the huge attendances most weekends

With the most recent figures I have tabulated (2012) each game in Germany drew 0.06% of the population / whereas in Scotland it was at 0.26%. (Without Rangers 0.21% and for those who for some reason claim OF don't count 0.13%). Each matchday drew 0.5% / against 1.57% (or 1.24% or 0.78%). Overall season total was 16.84% in Germany / versus 59.65% here (or 46.94% or 29.73%).

Comparisons of value are valid. Introducing the element of scale is not, as we actually trounce the rest of the continent hands-down.

[Pie Of The Month]

Is it really only 50p for a programme at Inverness?

They do some sort of magazine which costs a couple of quid which I think is monthly and then there's an insert with a few pages for each match which is 50p.

[Dee Man]

How many of these cheap season tickets for bayern and Barcelona are available though?

Will probably find there will be a handful of these.

I paid 340 for my season ticket this year as was working most saturdays last year, don't buy any food as it is aids on a stick and way over priced. Haven't bought a programme in almost a decade.

Noticed that hearts dearest match day ticket is £30 are they taking the piss?

"Aids on a stick"

[Miguel Sanchez]

I never know what the point in comparing any English never mind Scottish team to clubs like Barcelona or Bayern Munich is in these things. They have stadiums that hold 80,000+, they could sell half the tickets for a fiver each and still make huge profits. The comparison is completely redundant.