The True Cost of Supporting a Premier League Team in 2022/23

Recently at OLBG, we looked into how much it cost fans of EFL teams following their side to every home and away game during the 2021/22 campaign. The research totalled the lowest possible season ticket, average train travel costs to away games (the most popular mode of transport), the total cost of away tickets (based on the league average) and tickets/ trains to Wembley where applicable. 

The figures were staggering, with Plymouth, Sunderland and Middlesbrough being hit the hardest over the course of the season, spending over £4,000 following their beloved clubs home and away. This was mainly down to the remote locations of the cities and the rising cost of train travel across the UK.  

Using the same methodology, we’ve totted up an approximate cost for each Premier League team and ranked them according to how much fans may have to shell out to go to every game during the upcoming 2022/23 campaign. 

Here’s how much it will cost the extremely devoted fans of every Premier League club next season…

Toon at the Top

Hard-core Newcastle fans will be wishing they had a fraction of the wealth their Saudi-backed owners have at their disposal, as our research shows they will have to pay the most compared to any other club to follow their side during the upcoming season.  

Taking into account their total travel costs of a whopping £2,206.85 (based on an average of £116.15 per away game), even their modest season ticket costs (the fourth lowest in the league) could not stop them from taking the top spot, with a total spend of over £3,300. 

Premier League newcomers Bournemouth were not far behind, which was no surprise given they ranked the fourth highest spenders in our true cost of EFL research. The good news for Cherries fans though, is that their total cost for the 2022/23 campaign is some £400 lower than last season's outlay with the new total of approximately £3,202.57. 

Location again plays a big part in the costs both clubs' fans will have to incur this season, with train costs accounting for almost exactly two-thirds of their respective totals. In fact, Newcastle’s nearest game next season is Leeds, which is still a lengthy journey of around 2 hours and will cost them just short of £70 for a return ticket on a Saturday. Bournemouth have a few fixtures closer by in the form of Southampton and Brighton, which is why they rank second to the Magpies. 

Liverpool, Leeds and Arsenal make up the Top Five

Liverpool placed in third and this was mainly due to their season ticket prices of £685, which was the third-highest in the league behind North London duo Arsenal and Spurs. The Reds would have ranked lower if season tickets were cheaper, as is evidenced by their average cost of travel per game being the fifth highest in the division - the same figure as rivals Everton who ranks in sixth place.  

Leeds United were a relatively surprising entry in fourth place, given their relatively low season ticket price of £487 and its central location the UK meaning fans never have too far to travel for away games. However, similarly to Newcastle, Leeds is the only club within its county that will play in the top flight next season, with the nearest away day coming in the form of an hour’s journey to Manchester to play City and United. This has been the main factor in the rankings, with Leeds fans having to spend the third most (£1,685) on travel. 

Arsenal round off the top five and it’s very easy to see why with the most expensive season ticket cost compared to all other clubs at a whopping £1,010 - a good £200 more than their bitter rivals Spurs who had the second-highest prices. Due to having several London teams around them and the Capital's great transport links, Gunners fans are able to keep travel costs down at £1,108 across the season, the joint lowest with all other London clubs. 

London Quartet the ‘Cheapest’ to Support

Photo Credit: Chris Sampson, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

West Ham, Brentford, Fulham and Crystal Palace make up the bottom four, with seven London clubs in the Premier League minimising their travel costs to away fixtures. The Hammer’s can also boast the cheapest season ticket price in the league (£335), evidencing their mantra of being ‘committed to affordable football’ as stated on the club website. 

Brentford place just above them, again having modest season ticket prices of £419 and Fulham aren’t too far ahead of them, with the Cottagers just £41 more expensive to follow across the season. Crystal Palace were just above their London rivals, but the financial gap was slightly bigger at around £60 more than Fulham's total.

Premier League new boys Nottingham Forest rounded off the ‘cheapest five’ as their central location within the UK meant travel costs were kept to a relative minimum and their season ticket prices of £385 (the second cheapest in the League after West Ham) was also a contributing factor to their ranking.