Record Number of English Football Matches Had Police Incidents in 2025-26 Season

Police recorded incidents at 1,644 football matches in England and Wales during the 2025-26 season — a 4% rise on the previous year and a record high, according to a Home Office annual report released Thursday. The arrest rate stood at four per 100,000 attendees, returning to pre-Covid levels. Police are now calling on English football clubs to bear more of the security costs rather than passing the burden to taxpayers.

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