Football arrests hit record low

Arrests of football supporters in 2013/14 were the lowest on record according to the latest statistics published by the Home Office.  In total, 2,273 of the 38 million people that attended football matches in The Football League, Premier League, Football Conference, domestic cup competitions, European competitions and international football last season were arrested, a fall of 7% on last season.

Arrests at football matches are down by 46% since 2000 and last year there was just 1 arrest for every 16,800 fans attending matches.

In The Football League arrests fell by 4% to 1,003, just 0.006% of supporters attending matches.  On average there is less than 1 arrest per match with 1.02 arrests per match in the Championship, 0.51 in League 1 and 0.29 in League 2.

The statistics also show that the number of football banning orders issued fell by 7% to 2,273.

The number of arrests for racist and indecent chanting has fallen by 76% since 2000 with 21 people arrested last season.

A Football League spokesperson, said:  “The Football League and our clubs work closely with the police and local authorities to ensure that our grounds are safe places for people to watch and enjoy football.  Every season clubs spend over £10 million on security arrangements to keep supporters safe and a further £6million on police services where they are required, although more than half of Football League matches are now police free.

“It’s hugely encouraging that arrests at football matches are at a record low and the large fall in incidents over the last decade demonstrates that the approach being taken to crowd management at our clubs is the correct one.”