Tom Cowgill asks if clubs are dropping the ball when it comes to young fans?

So long as there are passionate fans who want to save money on their season ticket, membership or club shirt; retailers, sponsors and betting partners who want to gain access to, and incentivise, a bespoke audience to transact with them; and clubs who want to provide their fans with great rewards for their support, our rewards platform and our programmes will remain vital.

At the same time, clubs get an unprecedented insight into individual fan behaviours, enabling clubs to tailor communications and incentive packages to the person based on their activity away from the club. Knowing where their fans spend money away from the sport, and allowing them to connect this data to their sporting habits, would drive greater fan engagement through even more targeted rewards over each fan’s lifetime.

The results of this year’s survey highlight why initiatives like ours are so important. It’s vital that clubs keep the cost of football affordable to as many as possible – particularly those fans of the future. Making the game more affordable through the redemption of loyalty points (gained through a fan’s everyday shopping) could be the tipping point that turns these youngsters into season ticket holders.

The long-term impact of young fans feeling priced out is yet to be truly felt, but these latest findings should act as a warning for clubs; and they should ignore it at their peril.

Tom Cowgill, co-founder and director at Rewards4.

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