The marketing of season tickets in the English Football League during a cost-of-living crisis

The importance of financial sustainability and the role of economic, social and cultural capital

Datos Bibliográficos

ID12675643
AutoresJamie Wheaton (0000-0003-2316-2590, University of Bristol, autor de correspondencia)
Año2023
Volumen25
Número7
Páginas899-913
Fecha de publicación2023-12-19
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessNo
TipoARTICLE
RevistaSoccer and Society (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 1466-0970 • E-ISSN: 1743-9590
EditorialTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/14660970.2023.2293050
OpenAlexW4389949491
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas1
Referencias citadas34

English Football League (EFL) clubs rely on season ticket (ST) sales as an annual revenue source. ST sales during the cost-of-living crisis in 2022 theoretically took on more importance given clubs’ rising operating costs. Conversely, supporters may have faced a difficult choice in purchasing or renewing STs. This paper – through a Critical Realist approach – explores how the importance of financial sustainability was represented in the ST marketing deployed by EFL clubs ahead of the 2022/2023 season. The online ST-related promotional material of 71 EFL clubs was thematically analysed. Key themes consisted of economic mitigations, the importance of the supporter base, and the value promised to supporters. Retroduction uncovered a ST sales structure which unifies EFL clubs and supporters, between whom economic, social, and cultural capital are continuously exchanged. These forms of capital generate economic revenue for EFL clubs, and elevation within the supporter habitus for ST holders

Business · Capital (architecture · Economics · Financial crisis · Football · Geography · League · Political science · Social capital · Sustainability · Management and Organizational Studies · Sport and Mega-Event Impacts · Sports, Gender, and Society · Finance