Battle to save the football programme

The English Football League has announced a vote will be held at their June AGM over whether the rule that all clubs must publish a printed programme for home games. Sky Sports reports: “The EFL revealed several of its members have questioned the requirement for clubs to offer a physical version of their product in an era of social media. Many clubs have reported a drop in sales in the current climate and there will now be a ballot on the issue during the close season.”

However some clubs feel the match day programme is still a valuable asset. Brentford Football Club says in a statement: “Last summer, Brentford Football Club entered a three-year partnership with Curtis Sport. The experienced print and sports specialist is responsible for the sales and distribution of BEES and the Club will honour this partnership, guaranteeing the production of a programme until at least the end of the 2019/20 season. The Club is very pleased with our match day programme during the first year of our new partnership, but is always open to ideas and suggestions for ways we can freshen our content and keep it relevant to our readers.”

Opinions are mixed among fans with many saying they didn’t buy them anymore as they are full of adverts while others saying it would be shame as they are a souvenir of the match that can be kept for ever. Although some clubs sell fewer copies there is little doubt that if designed, written and printed to a high standard together with the advertising support and a cover price of around £3 they are a valuable source of revenue. 

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