Courier Country clubs are enjoying a post-Covid supporter boom as football fans pack into grounds in Angus, Fife and Tayside.
Fans were locked out of the game for 17 months due to Covid restrictions between March 2020 and August 2021.
Many wondered if we’d ever see a full stadium again but the good news is: we have.
Courier Sport has analysed data around attendances for seasons 2021/22 and 2022/23 for the following Scottish football clubs:
Angus: Arbroath, Montrose, Forfar and Brechin City
Tayside: Dundee, Dundee United and St Johnstone
Fife: Dunfermline, Raith Rovers, Kelty Hearts, East Fife and Cowdenbeath
In mapping the data, we removed the Covid-restricted attendances of Christmas 2021 to avoid figures being skewed.
We discovered:
- A general positive trend of increased gate figures – crowds are back at football stadia
- 10 out of 12 teams have enjoyed a spike in attendances
- Two have seen a sharp fall in numbers
- One club has eclipsed the rest with a 45.6% increase
How does your team fare against the rest?
Angus: Arbroath, Montrose, Forfar and Brechin City
Arbroath
The Costa del Gayfield was looking glorious at the @ArbroathFC v @DundeeFC clash.
📷 @davidsdronepics pic.twitter.com/OO3TcKp87c
— 𝐄𝐰𝐚𝐧 𝐒𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐡 (@ewansmithpr) April 9, 2023
Arbroath have enjoyed a meteoric rise in their crowd numbers during Dick Campbell’s seven years in charge.
Averaging 598 on his appointment in 2016, their rise from League Two to the Championship has been matched by year-on-year gate increases.
With a record 1,500 season tickets sold this season, Gayfield gates are up by 21.9% this term from a 1,766 average to 2,152.
They were the fifth-best supported team in the Championship last term.
Their increased gate is made all the more remarkable when you consider Arbroath have been battling relegation, having come within two points of the Championship title last term.
Arbroath have just announced a price freeze on their new season tickets as a thank-you to their loyal crowds.
Montrose
Stewart Petrie’s side missed out on a play-off spot for the first time in five seasons.
But after firmly establishing Montrose as a challenging League One side, the fans are sticking by the Links Park side.
They welcomed 11.3% more punters, on average, than they did in 2021/22. Gates increased from 646 to 719.
Forfar Athletic
It’s been a difficult season for Forfar on the pitch.
They were anchored at the foot of League Two when Ray McKinnon took over from Gary Irvine in November 2022.
McKinnon transformed their fortunes and took them to the brink of the promotion play-offs.
There has been only a modest, 6.16% increase in the gate at Station Park, with a 500 average v 471 from last term.
Crowds increased as the season drew to a close with their two biggest crowds of the season coming in the meetings with Bonnyrigg Rose and East Fife – 670 and 623, respectively.
Brechin City: Glebe Park gates soaring
Brechin could have been forgiven for fearing the worst when they were relegated to the Highland League in 2021.
With games spread out across the Highlands, including a near six-hour commute to Wick, travelling crowds are limited.
But Brechin have bucked the trend by increasing their home and away fan base en-route to winning the Highland League title.
This season has seen them play in front of their biggest crowds since their Championship term in 2017-2018.
They played out the season in front of a staggering 1,900 in the pyramid play-off semi-final loss to Spartans.
Even before that they were drawing crowds and Brechin’s average gate has soared by 45.6% year-on-year.
The 594 that watched this term, in comparison to a mean gate of 408 last term, eclipses the fan base they have had in League One and League Two over the last decade.
Tayside: Dundee, Dundee United and St Johnstone
Dundee
Dundee are back in the top flight and were applauded by thousands of fans thanks to a civic reception at City Chambers to parade the Championship trophy.
But with the news that manager Gary Bowyer has departed just a few days after masterminding the title success, their plans for next season are uncertain.
Relegation from the top flight also hit them in the pocket.
The loss of big derby gates and crowds from Aberdeen and the Old Firm saw Dark Blues taking a 19.3% drop in average attendances.
They went from 6,029 in 2021/22 to 4,865 last term.
But a rejuvenated Dundee in the Scottish Premiership will be hoping to reverse that downward trend.
Dundee United
Across the street, Dundee United’s crucial survival showdown with Ross County is heading for a sell-out.
United have called on their fans to turn Tannadice tangerine on Saturday and have offered a price incentive of £5 and £10 for the match.
Buoyed by a recent upturn in fortunes, fans have snapped up the cut-price tickets to back Jim Goodwin’s side.
But, to their credit, United fans have turned out home and away all season.
Record season ticket sales amid general uptick in Scottish football attendances
With record season ticket sales smashing through the 6,000 barrier, United’s gates have gone up by 25.5% on last year.
So far this term, United have welcomed an average of 9,366 through their gates despite battling against relegation.
Last season, on their charge towards European football, they played in front of an average gate of 7,461.
St Johnstone
St Johnstone went into last season on a high, as double cup holders.
But as the season unfolded, they found themselves embroiled in a relegation battle that saw them plunge into the play-offs.
They survived a shoot-out with Inverness and have seen an upsurge in crowds this term.
Attendances at McDiarmid Park are up by 23.8% – 5,416 turning up at their home gates compared to 4,374 last year.
Fife: Dunfermline, Raith Rovers, Kelty Hearts, East Fife and Cowdenbeath
Dunfermline
An East End Park banner read: ‘In a big city dreams stay with you’ as Dunfermline fans watched a statement win against rivals Falkirk.
A staggering 9,530 witnessed their 2-0 victory in March.
That’s a figure that exceeds the highest crowds at five top-flight sides this term.
Dunfermline became a city in May 2022 and their football club is enjoying a resurgence under James McPake.
That has seen their turnstiles clicking more often on matchday.
An impressive 4,766 turned up to watch them in League One in comparison to 3,769 in last year’s Championship.
That’s an increase of 26.5% and you’d expect those numbers to climb even more next season.
Raith Rovers
It’s been a strange year for Raith Rovers as they finished in ‘no man’s land.’
Rovers were the only side with nothing to play for on the final day.
Comfortably in seventh, Ian Murray’s men also reached the SPFL Trust Trophy final.
And hope springs eternal for next year, after their takeover was confirmed from a local ex-Kelty Hearts consortium.
This season’s consolidation has seen their gate numbers increase moderately from 1,821 to 1,982. That is up 8.84% on 2021/22.
Kelty Hearts
Kelty were backed by an average crowd of 705 as they clinched the League Two title in 2022.
That went up by 16.9% to 824 last term, but they were aided by two 2,100+ attendances when Fife rivals Dunfermline visited New Central Park.
Kelty have become accustomed to winning after back-to-back title wins to get them into League One.
Last year was about consolidation and there will be big changes at Kelty after several high-level figures left to take on day-to-day running at Raith.
But a concerted play-off or promotion push could see the gates climb.
East Fife
East Fife grabbed the final play-off spot and will face Clyde in the second leg at the weekend.
Their crowds have remained stable this term, with a modest 2.24% increase from 535 to 547.
That was bolstered by a final-day gate of 774 against Albion Rovers.
Cowdenbeath
It was always going to be a challenge for Cowdenbeath to increase their gate share after relegation from the SPFL.
Their debut season in the Lowland League saw a chunk of their fans remaining loyal. That’s also against a backdrop of smaller visiting supports.
But they have lost just over 100 of their core gate, down 31.8% from 368 in 2021/22 to 251 the following year.
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