Price of Football 2016: Scottish season-ticket prices fall
- Published
Season ticket prices in Scottish football have largely fallen for 2016-17, with many clubs freezing or reducing ticket prices.
The BBC Sport's annual Price of Football survey reveals the cheapest available in three of the top four tiers has dropped.
Season-ticket charges in the Scottish Premiership fell by 5.5%, largely due to Hamilton Academical cutting the cost of a seat at New Douglas Park by £200, opting for a tag of £150 to try to get numbers through the gates.
League One clubs reduced theirs by much the same percentage, while in League Two they actually fell by nearly 20%.
However, in the Championship they are up slightly, with Hibernian remaining the most expensive for all tickets and catering.
SPFL chief executive Neil Doncaster commented: "All 42 SPFL clubs work tirelessly to ensure they have a pricing structure which provides as much value for money as possible, especially for families to help attract the next generation of supporters.
"Reductions in ticket prices help increase accessibility to Scottish football in all corners of the country and all clubs are to be congratulated for their ongoing efforts in this area."
A ticket to the Old Firm game can cost as much as £49
If you are going for the full matchday experience, taking in a Scottish Premiership game complete with a cup of tea, pie and a programme to browse, it will cost you £28.29, only £2.81 dearer than in 2011.
However, a visit to either Celtic Park or Ibrox for an Old Firm game could set you back up to £49 for the ticket alone.
In the Scottish Championship the matchday experience comes in at £24.03 on average, with the most expensive matchday ticket of £22 at Easter Road and the cheapest of £15 at Raith Rovers.
The SPFL also confirmed attendances north of the border are up.
"In season 2015-16 some 4.18m supporters attended 860 SPFL league games - up from 4.12m in 2014-15 and 4.06m the year before - and we anticipate that trend continuing this season," Doncaster said.
It also confirmed that since the league restructuring, more than 300,000 supporters have attended play-off matches involving 26 clubs.
When it comes to catering, Forfar Athletic are not to be outdone by anyone in the UK it seems as their £1.20 pie washed down with an 80p cuppa is priced lowest in the whole BBC study.
You will not get a matchday programme for less than £2, but at Tynecastle and Ibrox you will be expected to hand over £3.50 to read about Hearts or Rangers.
The average price of replica shirts has also fallen almost across the board.
Former Lowland League outfit Edinburgh City have the cheapest shirts in Scotland, in fact in most of the UK, at £19.99 for juniors and £29.99 for adults.
But if you want to kit yourself out in Championship side Ayr United colours, the tops will come in the highest in Scotland at £45 and £55, dearer even than Scottish champions Celtic.