Opta: The real price of football

opta The price of football www.optasports.com In our study, we have reinterpreted the BBC data, and combined its findings with Opta's statistical analysis, to try and offer some insight into value for money, this time, in terms of entertainment. By combining the two sets of data, we hope to demonstrate which clubs offer fans the best value. Not just the cheapest day at a Premier League football match, but also, potentially the most exciting one. The BBC Sport website recently published its “Price of Football" survey which worked out the cost of enjoying a day at the football for fans without season tickets. The study identified those clubs offering supporters the best value for money, and showed where football could be watched most cheaply. The survey looked at: the cost of match tickets, programme prices, and the cost of tea and a pie. Arsenal £0 £5 £10 £15 £20 £25 £30 £35 £40 £45 £50 Aston Villa Birmingham City £44.00 Blackburn Rovers £29.10 £23.40 Blackpool £17.50 Bolton Wanderers £25.50 Chelsea £28.50 Everton £31.11 * Fulham £32.50 £28.11 * Liverpool £46.95 Manchester City £32.61 * Manchester United £35.60 Newcastle United £28.50 * £35.50 Norwich City £42.80 Queens Park Rangers £32.30 Stoke City £32.50 Sunderland £42.60 £40.00 Swansea City £33.10 Tottenham Hotspur £40.30 West Bromwich Albion £21.60 West Ham United £28.00 Wigan Athletic Wolverhampton Wanderers Cheapest match ticket Programme Pie Tea 22% 28% On average, the cheapest day out watching football match in London will cost a supporter 22% more than if they see a match elsewhere in the country. Capital Watching a game at the ground of one of the three promoted sides this season, will cost supporters on average 28% more than it does to watch an established side play at home. Elevated Premier League What's the real cost of watching Premier League football? Now that we have identified the cheapest Premiership grounds to enjoy a day out, we can combine this data with statistics about the stadiums that saw the most goals scored in total, the most goals scored by the home side and which grounds saw the home sides pick up points most frequently. This means that supporters can now see how their teams faired, based not only on financial criteria, but also in terms of entertainment value. Here were have the 20 teams competing for the 2011/12 Barclays Premier League, and for consistency, we have also included the three sides relegated from the top flight last season. In the graph below, the smaller amounts indicate clubs offering the best value for money. These are the stadiums where you will see the most goals and the home side picking up the most points, for the least amount of money. These are the clubs offering supporters true value for money. £40 West Ham United £35 £30 £25 West Bromwich Albion Tottenham Hotspur Blackburn Rovers Blackpool Swansea City Bolton Wanderers Chelsea Sunderland Everton Stoke City Queens Park Rangers £/ goal seen £/ home goal seen £ / home points won How much is that half-time pie really costing you? The ritual of the half-time pie is something that many fans experience each match day, but leaving your seat early, or getting caught in a long queue at the kiosk, waiting for a delicious balti pie, is a risky business. Having a financial figure for the cost of a snack is all well and good, but football supporters are interested in a different currency... goals! Now that we are able to calculate the cost per goal at each Premier League ground, by using Opta's stats on the number of goals scored 5 minutes either side of half time, we are able to calculate the "real" cost of your half time pie. At which ground are you most likely to miss the ball hitting the back of the net, whilst you were stuck in the queue? Anfield Goals 40-50th mins - 63 £8 "Real" price of a pie £7 - £8.28 93 £5 £4 Stadium £1.25 £3 of Light Sunderland's Stadium of Light witnessed only 2 goals either side of half time. This means it is the £2 - £1 safest ground in the Premiership to grab a half-time pie. Pukka The real cost of sneaking out early for a cuppa... It's 0-0, on a wet Wednesday night in February. The wind is howling through the stadium, and the players look as keen to get home as the supporters do. Before you get out of your seat in search of a warming cup of tea, you might want to consider what the true value of a cup of tea at your ground might be. The drink itself may only set you back a pound or two, but leaving the ground with 5 minutes to go in order to beat the rush could be more costly then you realise. Which grounds are liable to see late goals, and in terms of missed entertainment, how much is that cup of tea potentially costing you? Ground Goals scored in the last 5 mins "Real" cost of tea 0000000000000O 00000000000000 Reebok Stadium £6.88 Carrow Road £6.45 Emirates Stadium 000000 Stamford Bridge £6.42 £7 £5.98 White Hart Lane £5.71 Stadium of Light Britannia Stadium 00000000 Liberty Stadium* St James Park £5.63 93 £5.27 £4.92 £5 00000000000 000000 00000 £4.61 Bloomfield Road £4.57 £4 Loftus Road £4.43 Upton Park £4.40 The Hawthorns £3.86 £3 Goodison Park £3.75 Molineux £3.73 £2 Anfield £3.68 Villa Park £3.23 Craven Cottage £3.18 £1 DW Stadium £3.09 Old Trafford St Andrews £2.33 £1.71 Eastlands £1.42 Ewood Park £0.92 * Fulham, Chelsea & Manchester City had not yet set prices for programmes, pies & tea. Prices were calculated using average figure for rest of Premier League. * Newcastle United did not reveal ticket prices. Prices were calculated using cheapest ticket available for first home game of the season. * Play-off matches excluded from results. Sources: Match ticket, programme, pie & tea prices from BBC Sport Price of Football survey: 01/08/2011 Additional statistics provided by Opta. opta design by: Visual Evolution, London Birmingham City S Stadium of Light OOE Carow Road I Eastlands AIKARIEA DW Stadium Ewood Park Aston Villa ON Villa Park CCOO0 The Hawthorns OK IO O K Bloomfield Road Q36364696N6 NOA Craven Cottage Arsenal Fulham Liverpool OOOO Upton Park ebok Stadium COOOO St Andrews OOO000 Stamford Bridge QOONNC HC NO N6 N0A St James Park Manchester City Wolverhampton Wanderers Q366 N Liberty Stadium* SOOOOOO Loftus Road OOONCC Britannia Stadium NNNKNC N Goodison Park CNNGGOO Emirates Stadium 30036IOIOHE White Hart Lane OOOOOCOOOE Old Trafford Manchester United Wigan Atletic NCCCCK Anfield Newcastle United Norwich City