The Finances Of A Football Fan
If you physically go to watch your team play at their ground or away, you will quickly notice how all the pounds add up over the year
Supporting a football team, whether in the Premier League or League Two can be an expensive hobby. Think about everything associated with football: the games, the memorabilia, how you watch it, and what you eat or drink while doing so. In fact, even your contents insurance cover can be related to your football support if you have an expensive high-definition (HD) television and surround sound for the ultimate game experience. How much money do you think you spend supporting your football team?
Going to the games
If you physically go to watch your team play at their ground or away, you will quickly notice how all the pounds add up over the year. Firstly you have your seat price – which could be above the original selling fee if the game has been sold out – and any delivery charges associated with this. You might even be a season ticket holder, which demands a large sum of cash either at once or in instalments throughout the season. Don’t forget to add travel costs on top of the seat prices, unless you have the privilege of living just down the road!
Buying the memorabilia
For many fans, it isn’t simply just going to the game though, as memorabilia plays a large role too. Think team shirts, scarves, pint glasses, and bed sheets. With football shirts, it is nice to update them as the team does, but it is easy to get suckered into paying extra money for your favourite player’s name (or even your own) printed on the back of it. If you go to the matches, you may also fork out a few pounds for a programme and magazine pack, some of which are available at newsagents too.
How you watch it
We’ve discussed the cost of going to the games in person, but what about watching it on the television? Many Premier League games are shown only on specialist subscription channels such as Sky Sports, and these are now available in HD too. These packages are in addition to the regular monthly charges for your programmes, so can get quite costly. You also need to factor in how much your television costs, and any set-top boxes, speakers and wires that raise the price.
Eating and drinking
Whether you go to the game, watch it at the pub, or settle down to view it at home, many of us like to eat and drink while doing so. At the grounds there are fizzy drinks and meat and potato pies calling to us, while the pub is more favoured for its drinks and crisps combination. At home the entire world of food is open to us, whether it’s a Chinese, pizza, or curry takeaway or delivery which can again prove expensive.
So while supporting our football teams can be joyous, albeit sometimes frustrating, it can be an expensive practice. The saying “watch the pennies and the pounds will take care of themselves” works just as well here as anywhere else, and some of us could certainly learn from this example.
About the author
Lucille Groutadge writes a number of articles regarding finance, including contents insurance.
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