Football not cheap - nor are some pies

Yesterday BBC Sport published the results of their annual study into the price of football looking at costs at 227 clubs in 13 leagues across the UK and Europe. The cost of watching football in the UK has dropped or remained the same for the majority of fans, the BBC study found.

The difference between the top British clubs and those on the continent are shocking but well known among football fans. If you take the Champions from last season in the Premiership, Germany, and Spain it is stark

• Premier League Manchester City £299.00 (cheapest s/ticket) £42.00 (cheapest matchday ticket)
• Bundesliga Bayern Munich £104.48 (cheapest s/ticket) £11.19 (cheapest matchday ticket)
• La Liga Barcelona £73.88 (cheapest s/ticket) £17.16 (cheapest matchday ticket)

To be fair Manchester City are one of the cheaper Premier League clubs compared to Arsenal where the cheapest season ticket is a staggering £1014. I know there is plenty of protest surrounding the cost of going to football for example ticket prices but the pie situation caught my eye

Not a pie in my eyes

The most costly pie on sale at a UK football ground would set you back £4.50 and that is not even a top of the table Premier League pie but lowly Kidderminster Harriers - a National League side - who are not even in the Football League.

"It isn't a pie really. It's a meal”, baker Brian Murdoch announced proudly. "You don't put away one of these and expect to lose weight."

I will shout from the rooftop, it’s not a pie, in my eyes (see picture). More like a shepherds/cottage pie a real pie is encased in a pastry shell not a mash potato topping. This thing may well be tasty but a pie it is not, a meal in a pie tray is what you are getting.

At the Cardiff City Stadium, its £3.50 for a pie, which is ridiculous when you think about it when you can pick a pie up for £1.80 or less if you were to pop into a shop, be it a bakers or fish and chip shop on the way to the ground. Looking at the other Welsh clubs Newport and Wrexham both charge £2.60 for a pie and according to the BBC Swansea declined to take part in this survey for some unknown reason.

The survey included the Welsh Premier League for the first time and I always wondered about the pie situation in the WPL. Ticket prices fluctuate between £6 and £8 a bargain and there are pies to be had at most grounds. The dearest pie can be found that The New Saints ground £2.50 while Haverforwest County and Port Talbot Town bring up the rear at a cost of £1.50.

However, for the ultimate bargain you need to cross the border to Scotland and visit Elgin City, Moray, where you can bask in a £1 footy pie.

>>>Study Results<<<