Premier league clubs are not doing enough for disabled fans

According to new research, disabled supporters are still being forgotten about by a number of the professional clubs, as more than half of the teams in the top four divisions are forcing away fans.

The study has revealed that only three Premier League clubs have the minimum wheelchair space as suggested by the Accessible Stadia Guide, which is worked out depending on the size of the stadium. Those who complied with the recommendations were the recently promoted AFC Bournemouth, as well as Leicester and Swansea.

Back in 2014, the government said that the facilities for disabled people and stairlift users at sporting stadiums were ‘woefully inadequate’, but despite there being some changes, it would appear that there is still much to do. The Labour party is now calling on the government to make sufficient wheelchair space a mandatory requirement.

Premier League clubs still aren’t doing enough

The analysis by Level Playing Field shows the cost of upgrading the stadiums to the minimum standards, with regards to how many seats they already offer, which is brought to life in this Guardian graphic here. While Arsenal are only a few seats short, and would expect to pay £140,000 in order to cater for the required standard, Tottenham Hotspur have just 28 seats, which would cost almost £2 million to upgrade.

To meet the recommended minimum number of wheelchair spaces, it would cost Manchester United £2.2 million, which is just a fraction of the amount spent on players during the current transfer window.

Chris Bryant, the shadow secretary of state for culture, media and sport told the Guardian: “With the money pouring into Premier League football it just isn’t right that disabled football fans are being forgotten by the clubs they love.”

Check out our guide to the most accessible sports venues in the UK to find out which stadiums cater for people with mobility difficulties the best.

Image Credit: The Stadium Guide (flickr.com)