Football banning orders on the rise in England and Wales, statistics show

Government statistics show that the number of new football banning orders issued in England and Wales has reached its highest level for 13 years.

New banning orders issued reached 825 in 2023-24, representing a 21% increase from the 2022-23 season.

This was the highest number of new football banning orders (FBOs) issued since the 2010-11 season, when 960 new orders were issued.

Reported incidents of online hate crime associated with football also saw an 81% increase from 234 to 423 in 2023-24, though the government report states this is likely due to improved standards of reporting rather than an increase in the number of online hate crime incidents which occurred.

It is not stated in the report how many of these incidents resulted in FBOs.

Data taken on 1 August 2024 shows there were a total of 2,172 football banning orders in force. This is an increase of 34% compared with 1 August 2023 (1,624).

This figure of total FBOs includes orders which have carried over from previous years, due to the length of the ban. The 825 ‘new’ orders are banning orders which were first issued in the 2023-24 season.

As the data on the bar chart demonstrates, the number of new FBOs had been on a steady decline prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, but the numbers have risen significantly since 2021. This was when fans were allowed back into football stadiums.

Of the 2,172 total banning orders, 99.4% were issued to males. Around 68% of recipients of orders were aged between 18-34 (1,480 people), while 3% (58) were aged 17 and under.

FBOs are made by the courts to prevent violence or disorder connected with football matches, with recipients of an FBO legally prevented from attending all regulated matches in the UK. They may also need to hand over their passport to the police ahead of overseas matches and tournaments.

An FBO in England and Wales lasts between three and 10 years, depending on severity. In cases where the offender is sentenced to imprisonment for the offence, an order lasts for a maximum of 10 years. If the offender is not imprisoned, an order can last for a maximum of five years.

In August 2023, the Crown Prosecution Service updated its legal guidance to state that prosecutors must pursue an FBO on conviction of a relevant offence (those listed in Schedule 1 of the Football Spectators Act 1989) except in exceptional circumstances.

Wording of the guidance changed from ‘could’ pursue to ‘must’ pursue, and this could represent a contributing factor in the large increase in the number of new FBOs issued in the 2023-24 season.

West Ham United supporters had the highest total number of FBOs in the 2023-24 season (93) in force across all clubs in England and Wales, ranking top of this statistic for the first time since records began in 2014-15. West Ham also ranked as the team with the highest number of arrests in 2023-24 (103), ranking top for the third consecutive year in this metric.

Manchester United (89) and Millwall (82) fans ranked second and third respectively in the highest total number of FBOs in 2023-24, both dropping down a place from the 2022-23 rankings.

Total football arrests made in England and Wales in 2023-24 also increased, by 14% to 2,584 (compared with 2,264 in 2022-23). But the number of football matches with reported incidents decreased by 12% (from 1,516 to 1,340).

From 1 July 2022, football-related online hate crime offences were added to Schedule 1 of the Football Spectators Act 1989. These offences can also result in FBOs being issued.