https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9008-0136
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ABSTRACT
In 2019, the reported cost of policing football, according to an infographic on South Yorkshire Police’s website, was £48 million per season with £5.5 million being recovered by the police from football clubs. These figures were discussed in Parliament and deemed accurate by politicians. Chief Constable Mark Roberts, the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead for football policing, says police forces cannot continue to subsidise a multi-billion-pound industry. This research uses Freedom of Information requests submitted to all police forces in England and Wales to establish the true cost of football policing. The results demonstrate that previous data is unreliable, as the actual amount recovered through Special Police Services from football clubs averaged £10 million per season between 2015 and 2019. This paper shows that police forces do not have a grasp of how much is spent on football policing, and the £48 million headline figure is likely overestimated, raising concerns about the lack of transparency over the data in the South Yorkshire Police infographic. Finally, the paper calls for further research to establish the exact cost of football policing and consideration of more efficient methods of football policing that can help to reduce costs and prevent disorder, not only in England and Wales but across Europe.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Correction Statement
This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.
Notes
1. Generally considered to be the Premier League, English Football League and Football Conference.
2. Salary costs are approximate. NPCC lists officer annual productive hours as 1,508. The salary costs provided in the document have then been divided by 1,508.
3. Search of ‘matchday steward salaries’ on Glassdoor (as of 18 November 2021): https://www.glassdoor.co.uk/Salaries/matchday-steward-salary-SRCH_KO0,16.htm.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Richard Hester
Richard Hester was a police officer with Thames Valley Police for 12 years, specialising in football policing, before working as a Lecturer in Policing at the University of Gloucestershire. He worked in various front-line roles in policing, including high profile events such as the 2011 riots and 2012 Olympics. His specialist role as a football officer has led to a strong interest in football hooliganism and how it is policed. Other research interests include youth justice, green criminology and restorative practice.
Jon Hobson
Jon Hobson is Research Lead for Social Sciences, which includes Criminology, Criminal Justice., Policing, and Sociology. He is convenor for the University’s Society and Learning Research Priority area, supporting research and impact work across Social Sciences Education and Social Work. Jon researches and teaches across the Social Sciences, particularly in Criminology. Jon specialises in issues of Restorative Justice and international crimes such as Genocide and Crimes against Humanity.