Attendances are up, but are they reliable?

Record attendances have been reported in the Football League and National League. A note of caution is needed. In the past, attendances may have understated the crowd, particularly at really popular games. Youths knew ways of getting in for free; clubs may have been trying to minimise their 'entertainment tax' liabilities; and it has been alleged that some gatemen were on the fiddle.

Today, fans complain that attendance figures are boosted by the number of complementary tickets given out (the referee has always been entitled to some for his mum or friends who like the way he flashes a card). Many fans do not like the fact that season ticket holders are counted whether they are in the ground or not. Fans at Charlton who are opposed to Belgian owner Roland Duchatelet think that attendances have been exaggerated to mask the erosion of supporters.

In any event, attendances in the English Football League have reached their highest levels for more than 60 years with more than 18.3 million supporters watching League fixtures in 2017/18. This is the third consecutive year that the 18 million barrier has been broken, with the average gate at all three divisions at over 11,000.

The 2017/18 figures represent a 1.5 per cent increase on the same figures for 2017/18. Sunderland's Boxing Day crowd of 46,069 against Bradford City set a new League One record.

The National League has broken the two million mark in total attendance across the three divisions for the first time in the competition's history. The total average attendance increased by 8.8 per cent from last year.

The top division's average attendance fell by 3.3 per cent but National South saw a 45 per cent increase while National North was up by 11.9 per cent. Of course, such figures are affected by the teams in the division in any one season.

Champions Leyton Orient had the largest average attendance of 5,445, compared to 4,337 last season. Wrexham were second with just over 5,000, while relegated Chesterfield were third with 4,503.

In the National League North former Football League side Stockport County claimed the top average of 4,001, up by 15 per cent on last season. York City, another former League club, took second spot with 2,528. Newly promoted Hereford, a reformed league club, were third following their promotion with 2,367.

Torquay United were top in the National League South with 2,508 followed by Woking with 1,898 and Dulwich Hamlet with 1,842. Three other clubs, including Billericay Town, had four figure averages.

It's no deal say Spurs insiders over Taiwanese takeover

Senior figures at Tottenham Hotspur insisted on Friday that they had not been informed of any deal to sell Daniel Levy’s stake in the club. A business group, Eight Sports Capital — which is said to include a billionaire Taiwanese financier — claimed that it had an agreement in place to buy a 24.99 per cent stake in ENIC, the club’s majority owners, from Levy, who owns 29.88 per cent. The Times has been told Ng Wing Fai and Brooklyn Earick form part of the group, having both been linked previously to potential takeovers of the Premier League club. The Taiwanese businessman, Richard Tsai, is also said to be part of the consortium. He is reportedly worth £7 billion. Last year Earick, the former DJ and tech entrepreneur, was part of an attempted £4.5 billion takeover, which was “unequivocally rejected” by Spurs. An ENIC spokesperson said: “We can confirm that neither ENIC nor THFC are aware of any sale by Daniel Levy’s Family Trust of its minority stake in ENIC, THFC’...

Reports about Charlton sale exaggerated

Reports have appeared in The Guardian and elsewhere that Charlton has been put up for sale. Richard Cawley is an authoritative local journalist who runs a South London Sport substack site. He reached out to the club yesterday evening to ask for comment on The Guardian’s article. Early indications from the club have been that nothing has changed since the story about them seeking investment, except that it is now a different company doing it. Charlton have since managed to consolidate their place in the Championship, avoiding an instant return to League One, with their women’s side promoted to the WSL, returning to the top flight for the first time since 2007, although staying there is likely to be costly. It would be counter-intuitive for owners Global Football Partners not to progress the club when looking for investment, that the focus remains on driving it forward, that their spend this summer is in line with long-term planning and will see an increase in wages spent on players...

Hull City's 'strange' loan

When football finance guru Kieran Maguire seems flashing lights in a club's loan deal, I become concerned. He is the leading football finance expert in the UK. Hull City have borrowed £55m against their stadium and training ground yet they should get £30m from the Premier League before long. What is going on? https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cpwel48y51do

The Political Economy of Football V2

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