The Premier League season kicks off this weekend with a surprising twist on the ‘at home’ advantage as new research reveals the levels of local and not so local support for England’s top teams. Online estate agent, I Am The Agent has been delving into a study of 130,000 football fans conducted by property portal Rightmove. The survey results paint an interesting picture of life in the terraces with only three of the Premier League sides having 50% or more support from fans living within the same postcode.
Following a marauding end to last season and wins over Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal, Wigan Athletic could lay claim to having some of the happiest fans in the Premiership. They can also claim to top the table when it comes to level of local support with a huge 65% of their fan base living within the same postcode as the Lancashire side’s DW Stadium.
Despite its fabulous array of investment property, abundance of landlords eager to sell or rent a property online and a huge selection of sporting and leisure facilities, the city of Manchester seems not to hold much appeal for Manchester United Fans. The legendary team has only 9% of its fan base within the same postcode as Old Trafford. It does fare better behind enemy lines however with 4% of Liverpool residents admitting to supporting United or neighbours Manchester City ahead of their own local side.
Rightmove’s survey proved what many have suspected – that location does not necessarily guarantee loyalty to a football club. The most successful teams such as United, City and Liverpool have a much wider fan base with supporters spread over the entire country. Residents in locations such as Manchester, Liverpool and London are spoilt for choice with a number of world-class teams to choose from within the city limits. This means that while those surveyed may not support the home team closest to them, they will often support one of the other teams, supporting the local rivalry that has existed for generations.
Rightmove director Miles Shipside who commissioned the survey said “Our study shows that when a Premier League club plays at home, that isn't always the case for its fans. As major clubs like Manchester United have grown their national - and even international - fan base, the overall proportion of their fans living within the same postcode as the team’s home stadium has decreased. With the likes of Manchester
United and Liverpool at one end of the table and Wigan at the other, there certainly seems to be a correlation between historic success and placing in the Local Fans League Table. Although at least this means that the majority of Wigan fans can get quickly back to the comfort of their own homes on a Saturday afternoon if results at the DW haven't gone their way.
“The growing fan base of the bigger clubs can even be at the expense of their rivals as we are seeing with 5% of fans in Manchester supporting Liverpool, and 4% of fans in Liverpool supporting either Manchester United or Manchester City. These fans living 'behind enemy lines' have made some brave home location decisions to live in rival territory, and it goes to prove that whilst jobs, personal relationships and where you live are transient, the team that you support isn’t.”
Whatever colour strip you’ll be wearing when the whistle blows to start the season, find a property to rent or buy and advertise a property online from the convenience of your home with I Am The Agent, the UK’s fastest growing online estate agent http://www.iamtheagent.com
