Fans travelling as away supporters this last season have been asked to rate their experience with a mark out of ten. All the marks for each club were then added together and an average score out of ten given.
It is no surprise that Cardiff came top of the league from the point of view of away support. They were known, at Ninian Park as one of the worst grounds to go to. The facilities were bad, the stewards unhelpful and the police were by far and away the most aggressive, nasty, and utterly acceptable that I have ever seen in a lifetime of going to football.
But they did recognise their problems, and did resolve them, once they moved to their new ground. They even brought the police under control. They might have had a bit of a turnip as an owner these last few years, but they got the away facilities right.
But while the upper positions are dominated by new grounds, the bottom of the league is dominated by old grounds.
Aston Villa is a real “don’t care” environment – you are away support, you are scum, we treat you like scum. West Ham hate Arsenal far more than we hate them, and the ground is very old and crumbling – we’ll need to see what they get up to at their publicly funded Olympic Stadium. Everton is an Archie Leitch ancient ground totally out of touch with modern times, and the history between the clubs always makes life hard there. As for Liverpool what is noticeable is the total of lack of atmosphere in a totally cramped environment.
Arsenal got a lot of good reviews, and many people simply said, “wow” with a lot of comments about this being the best ground in the league. But Everton fans habitually vote it down, and constantly make allegations about stuff being thrown at them from on high. And of course there are the stories about the lack of volume, which comes from the fact that someone one day thought “oh Highbury rhymes with Library”.
Here’s the Premier League list of how away fans voted for each ground.
Premier League:
- 1. Cardiff 8.05,
- 2. Swansea 7.4,
- 3. Hull City 7.34,
- 4. Southampton 7.25,
- 5. Arsenal 7.11,
- 6. Fulham 7.08,
- 7. Norwich 6.89,
- 8. Sunderland 6.87,
- 9. West Brom 6.78,
- 10. Newcastle 6.7,
- 11. Tottenham 6.69,
- 12. Man City 6.67,
- 13. Stoke 6.45,
- 14. Man United 6.41,
- 15. Aston Villa 6.34,
- 16. Chelsea 5.96,
- 17. West Ham 5.89,
- 18. Everton 5.71,
- 19. Liverpool 5.41,
- 20. Crystal Palace 4.79.
And in case you travel to other grounds as an away supporter outside the Premier League here’s where to go and where to avoid… The three promoted teams are in bold – and it is noticeable that two of the three were right near the foot of the league even in the Championship.
Championship:
- 1. Wigan 7.92,
- 2. Reading 7.54,
- 3. Blackburn 7.37,
- 4. Brighton 7.3,
- 5. Leicester 7.27,
- 6. Bournemouth 7.21,
- 7. Derby 7.17,
- 8. Huddersfield 7.03,
- 9. Doncaster 6.91,
- 10. Birmingham 6.86,
- 11. Middlesbrough 6.8,
- 12. Barnsley 6.78,
- 13. Watford 6.74,
- 14. Charlton 6.55,
- 15. Yeovil 6.53,
- 16. Ipswich 6.46,
- 17. Nottm Forest 5.94,
- 18. Bolton 5.65,
- 19. Millwall 5.29,
- 20. Sheff Wed 5.27,
- 21. Blackpool 4.72,
- 22. Burnley 4.67,
- 23. QPR 4.67,
- 24. Leeds 4.12.
And finally the next two leagues. Having been to the Women’s Cup Final at the MK Dons stadium I can see exactly why it comes top of the league. And thanks to everyone who voted my second favourite team into second place in League Two. Much as I love Torquay, I am surprised the away fans liked it so much – although it is near the seaside. Sorry we won’t be welcoming League Two next season. And I was surprised too that Northampton didn’t come higher as theirs is a fine ground. Coventry City who play at Northampton got an even lower rating from away fans.
League One: 1. MK Dons 7.73, 2. Preston 7.51, Rotherham 7.41, 4. Wolves 7.39, 5. Bradford City 6.94, 6. Crewe Alexandra 6.86, 7. Crawley Town 6.85, 8. Carlisle 6.79, 9. Notts County 6.76, 10. Walsall 6.71, 11. Sheffield United 6.7, 12. Coventry City 6.65, 13. Stevenage 6.62, 14. Brentford 6.44, 15. Tranmere Rovers 6.42, 16. Shrewsbury 6.33, 17. Leyton Orient 6.25, 18. Port Vale 6.2, 19. Bristol City 5.91, 20. Colchester 5.75, 21. Swindon Town 5.73, 22. Oldham Athletic 5.35, 23. Peterborough United 5.14, 24. Gillingham 3.69.
League Two: 1. Plymouth Argyle 8.33, 2. Torquay 7.87, 3. Rochdale 7.86. 4. Chesterfield 7.47, 5. Dagenham 7.2, 6. Fleetwood 7.1, 7. Morecambe 7.06, 8. Wycombe 6.93, 9. Northampton 6.91, 10. Burton Albion 6.69, 11. Southend 6.52, 12. Accrington Stanley 6.29, 13. Portsmouth 6.23, 14. AFC Wimbledon 6.09, 15. Scunthorpe 6.09, 16. Hartlepool 6, 17. Newport 5.83, 18. Mansfield 5.77, 19. York 5.74, 20. Bury 5.6, 21. Oxford United 5.52, 22. Cheltenham Town 5.34, 23. Bristol Rovers 4.6, 24. Exeter 3.83.
- Woolwich Arsenal: The club that changed football – Arsenal’s early years
- Making the Arsenal – how the modern Arsenal was born in 1910
- The Crowd at Woolwich Arsenal
Thank you! There are some really fascinating stats here. Cardiff, Swansea, Hull and Saints – well done, I must say. It isn’t surprising to see some of the PL big-noters rock bottom. Perhaps I could have guessed the Championship top and bottom – Wigan and Leeds! Also some of the horror away days from my past (back in the mists of time, when I lived ‘more northerly’), I note that these clubs haven’t progressed – Peterborough, Gillingham, Mansfield and others. Thank God, I progressed south in 1978! It’s good to see that away fans don’t hate coming to the Arsenal, as much as the media do.
I await with baited breath the comprehensive report of whom the home fans hate to be in their stadiums !
What’s that ? No one bothered to ask ? Really ?
What with flares being ‘fired’ , coins being thrown, allegations of expensive tickets , unavailability of prawn sandwiches and capucinos and verbal abuse from opposition ‘fans’ – it does come as a surprise !
And talking of unwanted fans , here’s another perspective of the WC , which I ‘ll call ,” Meanwhile in the other side of town….. ”
http://m.animalnewyork.com/2014/picture-rio-many-brazilians-hate-world-cup/