Premiership Rugby attendances fall by a quarter
Premiership rugby clubs are struggling to attract supporters back to matches, with attendances down by a quarter so far this season.
After five rounds of fixtures, the average attendance for a game in England’s top division has been 10,748. That is a 25.9 per cent decrease on the average for the last full season played before the pandemic, 2018-19.
And attendances reached a new low at last weekend’s Premiership matches, with an average crowd of 8,700 across the six games – just 53 per cent of capacity.
In 2018-19, the Premiership averaged around 14,500 supporters per match. That figure was boosted by games played at larger stadia such as Twickenham, the end-of-season play-offs and a busy Christmas period where attendances tend to rise. None of those have happened yet this term.
Last weekend, Wasps attracted 8,250 to their 32,500 capacity arena for the visit of Exeter Chiefs, while London Irish sold 6,749 tickets of a possible 17,500 as they drew with Gloucester. By contrast, Bath enjoyed a sell-out of 14,509 at the Rec as they were trounced by Saracens.
Bath aside, many of the sides who played at home at the weekend aren’t known for huge attendances, and this may also be a factor in the markedly low numbers. The likes of Bristol, Leicester and Harlequins, on the other hand, regularly have fuller stadiums.
Clubs in the Championship have increasingly turned to promotional deals to solve a worsening attendance crisis in the second division. With very visible blocks of empty seats in the Premiership, top flight clubs may now be forced to consider following suit.
Fans have cited ticket costs, lack of atmosphere, on-field performances and Covid-19 anxiety as reasons to stay away from grounds this season.
The Premiership Rugby action continues Friday night as Worcester Warriors travel to Northampton Saints.