The government has made entering a football ground without a ticket a criminal offence from this weekend, with fans who tailgate to be given banning orders of up to five years and £1,000 fines.
The law has been introduced to coincide with Sunday’s Carabao Cup final between Arsenal and Manchester City, after the Metropolitan police made 68 arrests of fans who attempted to gain entry to Wembley without tickets at last year’s final.
Those arrests were on suspicion of fraud but no charges were issued owing to very low conviction rates for tailgating, which has become an increasing problem for the Football Association and some Premier League clubs.
The Guardian revealed shortly after the 2025 final between Newcastle and Liverpool that the FA was urging the government to make tailgating a criminal offence, a lobbying campaign that has succeeded.
England’s penalty shootout defeat in the final of the 2021 European Championship was marred by about 2,000 fans gaining entry without tickets, of whom 400 were ejected. An independent review of the crowd disorder from Louise Casey, published that year, also found that a ticketless group of about 6,000 were preparing to storm the stadium had England won. She referred to collective security failures that “jeopardised the lives of legitimate supporters and staff”.
The crime and policing minister, Sarah Jones, said: “Football fans should be able to enjoy the game without feeling unsafe or threatened. We’re giving the police the tools they need to ensure the chaos we saw at Wembley five years ago never happens again. Anyone who endangers others by forcing their way into stadiums faces serious consequences.”
Lady Casey welcomed the act, which was introduced via a private member’s bill by Linsey Farnsworth, Labour MP for Amber Valley. “Forcing your way into a football match without a ticket isn’t harmless,” Casey said. “It jeopardises the safety of legitimate fans and staff.
“Making tailgating a criminal offence makes it clear that this behaviour is dangerous, won’t be tolerated and those who do it will face consequences.”