Sharp rise in disorder at football games in England and Wales last season

Reported incidents of disorder at matches in England and Wales in the 2021-22 season were up by 60% compared with the last full campaign before the pandemic, according to data released by the Home Office on Thursday.

The data painted a depressing picture for the domestic game, with incidents reported at 1,609 of the 3,019 matches played in England and Wales over the course of last term – equating to 53%.

In 2018-19, there were reported incidents at 1,007 matches, equivalent to one third of the games played. There were 441 pitch invasions reported last season – up by a staggering 127% on the 2018-19 campaign – and 384 hate crime incidents, an increase of 99%.

Football-related arrests were up by 59% to 2,198 – the highest number of arrests since 2,273 were made in the 2013-14 season.