‘the Romance Of Football Is Cremated’: The Clubs Charging Kids To Be Mascots

It is nan worldly that dreams are made of for immoderate football-mad youngster: stepping connected to nan transportation beside and lining up pinch their heroes earlier kick-off. Being a mascot provides memories to cherish for nan remainder of their lives and clubs are keen to capitalise connected nan fervent wishes of young fans to beryllium mascots. However, it comes astatine a value and often a very hefty value astatine that.

While galore English clubs complaint for nan privilege of being a mascot, nan mostly of Premier League clubs person made nan noble motion of either reducing nan costs for mascots aliases not charging astatine all. Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester City and Tottenham are among nan clubs who do not charge.

The opportunity to beryllium a mascot astatine Old Trafford is usually unfastened to children pinch semipermanent aliases terminal illnesses, pinch nan only stipulation that nan children person to beryllium charismatic nine members. Through nan Manchester United Foundation, nan nine besides offers nan chance to fundraise for a selected origin via an auction to go a mascot. For past season’s lucifer against Crystal Palace nan winning bid to beryllium nan mascot was £5,531, pinch nan costs going to nan instauration to thief pinch their organization outreach and acquisition programmes crossed Manchester.

At Crystal Palace nan value for a men’s first-team lucifer starts astatine £255 for a “silver mascot” package for a Grade B game, rising to £520 for a “gold mascot” package for a Grade A game. The Gold package includes a afloat kit, 2 tickets and a photograph successful nan matchday programme, arsenic good arsenic gathering immoderate of nan players and head earlier nan crippled lucifer to get an point of merchandise signed, positive a free nexus to each nan photos taken connected nan day.

Nottingham Forest connection 1 free spot per crippled done their Community Trust programme, but nan remainder of their mascots are charged handsomely. The nine informed maine that their mascot packages for this play are sold retired moreover though they commencement astatine £2,000. The package is for 4 group – nan mascot and 3 guests – and it includes a four-course repast successful nan Robin Hood Suite, positive food and biscuits astatine full-time. Although I’m not judge really galore five-year-olds would beryllium that keen connected that peculiar culinary delight.

You mightiness person imagined location would beryllium nan overseas complimentary portion but it is simply a salary bar. A mates of expansive doesn’t get you a batch successful Nottingham these days. When asked astir nan precocious prices, nan club’s Fan Advisory Board declined to comment. What would Robin Hood think?

Crystal Palace players locomotion connected to nan transportation pinch their matchday mascots. Photograph: Katie Chan/Action Plus/Shutterstock

Kieran Maguire, nan shot finance master and University of Liverpool lecturer, says nan precocious prices are symptomatic of what is going connected astatine galore clubs. “Clubs are monetising each aspects of fandom and that includes being a mascot,” Maguire says. “Commercial board are nether unit to present revenues and nan owners don’t peculiarly attraction wherever nan money’s coming from.”

The different contentious rumor is that location is often thing exclusive astir nan experience, pinch a multitude of mascots progressive each match. Clubs are cashing successful by including truthful galore mascots astatine each game. “If you’ve sewage 10 mascots and parents are paying £500,” Maguire says. “Then that’s £5,000 per lucifer positive further summons income to relatives and, pinch 20 matches a season, that brings successful £100,000 successful revenue.”

For example, a nine root astatine West Ham told maine they tin person arsenic galore arsenic 22 mascots astatine games. With a costs of £375 for Category A and B matches, that brings successful £8,250 per match. With a minimum of 19 matches, excluding cup ties, nan imaginable income is successful excess of £125,000 a season. The nine besides charges mascots for their women’s squad – though that only costs £65.

“We are now surviving successful a commercially driven environment, wherever nan romance of shot has not only died but was buried past cremated galore years agone and that’s not going to return,” adds Maguire. “While I tin wail and obstruction against it, I person to admit I’m conscionable an aged man shouting astatine clouds.”

The dash for further income has been criticised by MPs connected some sides of nan aisle. Caroline Dinenage, a Conservative MP and lifelong Portsmouth fan, said: “It feels a shame that immoderate clubs are profiting by pricing truthful galore young fans retired of this awesome experience.” Clive Efford, a Labour MP, went further, saying: “Pricing working-class families retired of ever being a mascot for illustration this is axenic greed. Considering nan millions Premier League clubs get each twelvemonth from TV deals, really tin they warrant charging for what for galore is simply a puerility dream? They should beryllium ashamed.”

Going further down nan pyramid location are still immoderate beautiful steep prices being quoted. When Barnsley big Luton Town astatine Oakwell later this month, nan meaning of a League One mid-table clash, the basal package will costs £199 and nan mascot has to beryllium wearing a afloat Barnsley kit – which must beryllium bought separately astatine an further costs of £80.

There is intelligibly still an appetite for parents to bargain these packages for their children and nan clubs will constituent to nan continuing request and nan willingness of supporters to do so. As Maguire himself points out: “I’ll beryllium a complete hypocrite if there’s an opportunity for my granddaughter successful a mates of years to go a mascot, would I spell down that peculiar route? I can’t definitively opportunity that I wouldn’t if it was money good spent.”

This is an article by Richard Foster, nan writer down The Football Mine and big of nan podcast It Started With A Kick.