Football article

 

football Participation rates on the rise  !

 

Sport England’s Research has discovered that Football participation has grown from 2.91 million to 3.12 million an increase of 232,000 participants over the period of 2007-2009. 

However, Sport England reports those playing regular football fell from 2,144,700 in 2007  to 2,090,000 by 2010-2011. While the number of small-sided teams has gone up by 1,000 in the last five years, the FA admits the number of traditional, adult, male, 11-a-side teams has fallen from 33,568 in 2005-06 to 30,355 in 2010-11.

The main reason for 11-a-side participation rates decreasing is because 5-a-side football participation rates have increased. All across Britain, 5-a-side leagues are being set up to encourage more people to play football. Organising a 5 a-side team is a lot easier than an 11 aside team whilst its less time consuming for people and costly.

The 5-a-side league have increased as because of the recession, there are less jobs around, so people can now allocate more of their time to football. A 5-a-side league costs little in subs compared to 11-a-side which is around £100 a season.   

I think that one of the major reasons is a change in youth culture. Teenagers  would now rather sit at home playing online computer games (Xbox, PlayStation)   or be on the internet chatting to friends rather than going out.  This has impacted the sport because teenagers are not prepared to give a whole day playing 11-a-side such as traveling (especially away games) warming up, getting changed, playing the match, showering and changing before going to the club house after the game.  Whereas  playing  5-a-side is sharper and faster and you can get there play your game and  get home within 1 hour.

Another reason is the advance of technology. 5-a-side are being set up made of Astroturf all around Britain. These courts are easier to play football on than grass. Especially when its wet , as football pitches become boggy and muddy with puddles of rain water, which prevents the ball from flowing smoothly. This is because it is too costly to maintain the pitches. Whereas a 5-a-side court can be indoors or outdoor and the weather would affect the game because the pitches are made of Astroturf and therefore cannot become boggy and there is nothing to prevent people playing a decent game of football.

 

Has this had an effect on football spectatorship ?

Over the last 15 years,  football spectatorship has increased massively. As the results shows, in 1994, around  44,000 people on average were attending  football grounds to watch on their teams play. By 2008, the average attendances increased to  65,000, why?. This is because in the early 90’s, football was still in the shadow of hooliganism and therefore people were too intimidated to go and watch football matches in which the fan were more interested in fighting with one another rather than watching the game. Therefore, the stadium security had to be improved as there are now stewards sat on the edge of the pitches watching the crowd all around the ground. There are also police outside the stadium before and after the games so that people feel safer to go and watch football.

Another reason is that stadiums were just too small. Many top Premier league teams such Arsenal have upgraded to bigger stadiums to raise their maximum capacity. They have also brought boxes in which families can go and sit in with their children where its warm and still watch the game. The club also send the families gift such as birthday cards, Easter eggs, etc. to make them feel as part of the club.  

 

How sport benefits the Local Econemy

http://www.scribd.com/doc/75759029/How-sport-benefits-the-local-Econemy

a poster about the benefits that sport brings to the local econemy