Nearly two-thirds of Parliament back safe-standing at football according to a poll by YouGov. The majority of Parliament believe that the existing all-seater rule should be scrapped.
Parliament Backs Shift in Football Stadium Rules
Ever since the 1989 Hillsborough disaster, stadiums in the Premier League and Championship have had to be all-seater. The shocking occurrence saw 96 Liverpool supporters lose their lives at the start of the FA Cup semi-final with Sheffield Wednesday.
A survey of 100 MPs proved that 66 were in favour of safe-standing, 22 opposed and 15 were undecided. Among those who are deemed to be football fans, three-quarters supported safe-standing.
YouGov also asked more than 2,000 adults how they felt about the current state of play with all-seater stadiums. Nearly half supported the integration of safe-standing, one in six opposed a rule change.
But, again, seven out of ten among those who have an interest in football were in favour of introducing safe-standing.
Richard Elliot, associate director at YouGov, said:
“Close to two-thirds of the 100 MPs surveyed support safe-standing areas and that support is even higher among the general public with a strong interest in football.
“The main reason given for opposition among MPs and the public was a belief that standing at stadiums can never be safe. So although there’s strong support out there, there’s still important work to do to address safety concerns.”
Reasons Against Safe-Standing Have Begun Evaporating
Opposition to safe-standing has been declining over recent months for a number of reasons.
Firstly, standing is considered safe in the lower leagues, Scotland and rugby grounds. Even Premier League stadiums can use safe-standing, as long as they are not used for football.
Secondly, it has since been proven that poor policing and stadium management was the factor that resulted in the Hillsborough disaster.
The idea that safe-standing will never be safe has been undermined by supporter experiences in Germany, Scandinavia and Scotland where thousands of supporters stand in designated areas that have been properly designed.
Even former sports minister Tracey Crouch dropped her opposition of safe-standing.
Many safe-standing campaigners hoped this would lead to safe-standing being integrated from next season. However, Brexit and ongoing criminal cases related to Hillsborough make a change unlikely.
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