With football clubs strengthening their teams over the summer as transfer window closed, the Premier League season has begun with a bang. Both Manchester clubs have already climbed to the top of the table, each demonstrating their strong ambitions to be crowned champions for the season.
Whilst there will no doubt be many pivotal twist and turns for each club, one reoccurring issue that arises every season is the general ‘cost of football’ for fans.
TicketGum.com decided to investigate the cost of football by specifically focusing on the cost of football shirts. A football shirt is the focal piece of merchandise that fans primarily use to show their allegiance to their football club.
The importance of football shirts for fan culture is indicated by figures showing the Premier League’s traditional top six clubs (Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur) collectively sell an average of 4.95 million shirts per year (2011-12 to 2015-16 season).
For the research, Ticketgum.com focused on the top five football leagues in Europe (Premier League, La Liga, Bundesliga, Serie A and Ligue 1). Based on the final league table from the 2016/2017 season, Ticketgum took the top twelve teams to find out the price for each club’s official home shirt for this season (2017/2018).
• The average price of a Premier League shirt for the 2017/18 season is £53.74
• Comparatively, the average price of a football shirt in La Liga: 19% higher (£63.78), Bundesliga: 28% higher (£68.85), Serie A: 34% higher (£72.08) and Ligue 1: 34% higher (£72.10)
• 74% of fans believe the current price of football shirts are too excessive
• 58% believe football clubs can be doing a lot more to offer supporters better value on official merchandise
The average price for a Premier League shirt this season is £53.74 – the cheapest out of Europe’s top five leagues. Comparatively, the average price for a La Liga shirt this season is 19% higher at £63.78. The average price for a shirt in the Bundesliga, is 28% higher at £68.85. The average price for a Serie A and Ligue 1 team shirts are equally 34% higher at £72.08 and £72.10 respectively – the latter representing the highest average price for a football shirt out of the big five European leagues.
TicketGum.com also conducted a survey to find out what football fans really thought about the price of football merchandise such as shirts. A survey of 660 passionate football fans found that 74% believe the current price of football shirts are excessive. 66% stated they wanted to buy their clubs latest shirt but are put off due to the high price. 58% believe their football club could do a lot more to offer supporters better value on official merchandise.Information for immediate release TicketGum.com
Adam Taylor, a spokesperson for TicketGum.com commented:“Football shirts are fundamental to footballs DNA. They are symbolic for football fans as it allows them to visually express their support for their club. Whilst the Premier League has the lowest average shirt price from the big five European leagues; fans certainly feel that the prices could be more affordable. The consensus seems to be that football clubs can be doing more to offer better ‘value’ to their supporters in terms of merchandise as well as ticket prices”.
