Irish Examiner view: Standing in UK stadia only start of changes

Five clubs are in the vanguard of the early adoption of 'rail seating' from January 1

In the era of net zero, the reintroduction of standing is unlikely to be the last change to the match-day experience.

Standing by fans in professional football grounds in Britain has been outlawed since the devastating Hillsborough disaster in April 1989, which claimed the lives of 97 supporters and has had consequences that still echo today.

The scandalous, and ultimately fatal, practice of herding fans into locked and fenced pens led directly to one of the great pieces of reforming legislation in sporting history, based on the Taylor Report, which said stadia should be all-seater or lose their licences.

The report identified the appalling manner in which clubs treated their customers in an era when visiting a ground could be a foreboding and dangerously tribal experience. Football was played, noted one newspaper in its post-tragedy coverage, “mainly in slum conditions”. It is possible to argue that the sweeping changes initiated 32 years ago (the Premier League was founded in 1992) have reshaped the game into the financial behemoth of today.

Ticket costs

Another aspect of the report’s findings, that ticket costs should be maintained to ensure that traditional supporters were not priced out, has been held in less regard.

The sitting-only protocol is on the cusp of being changed, with five clubs — Tottenham Hotspur, Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City, and Cardiff City — in the vanguard of the early adoption of “rail seating” from January 1. If it is successful, it will be expanded in time for the 2022-23 season.

In his biography, Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish said: “With smaller capacities, no one standing, and a wealthier audience, grounds have become quieter.”

Young people increasingly watch games in the pub with their mates in a pale imitation of the terrace experience.

In the era of net zero, an ambition already proclaimed by the sport’s bigwigs, the reintroduction of standing is unlikely to be the last change to the match-day experience.