According to a data released by UK Home Office, Manchester United had the highest number of supporters arrested of all clubs in England and Wales last season. In all 121 United fans were arrested during the last campaign which saw the club finish 15th in the table. After United, their city rivals Manchester City had 94 fans arrested followed by West Ham with 77.
According to the Daily Mirror, as far as arrests go West Ham had occupied the top position in the last three seasons. But this time United took the top spot with the majority of the arrests coming in the home games at Old Trafford. “Forty nine per cent of the arrests of United fans occurred at home games, with 34 of them for public or violent disorder,” the report said.
The 2024-2025 season also marked the first season where the football-related arrests dropped for the first time since fans returned to the stadium after Covid suspension. According to the report, the most common arrest type was public disorder (32 per cent). The percentage of arrests for possession of Class A drugs was the highest since it became a Schedule 1 offence in November 2022, up to 19 per cent from an initial nine per cent in 2022-23.
The report also mentioned that overall increase in the number of banning orders. As of June 1, 2025 2,435 fans are banned from entering the stadium in England and Wales which is 12% more than what was at the same time in 2024. It also happens to be the highest number since the 2012-13 season.
Fans who are banned to enter the stadiums in UK and in some cases individuals can be ordered to handover their passports to police before their club’s overseas fixtures. In this category, West Ham had the most supporters with a banning order in force with 112, 19 more than what they had at the end of 2024 season. Manchester United were second with 108, up from 89. Chelsea which were eighth in the list the previous season with 54 banned fans moved to third spot with 80 supporters barred from entry into the stadium.
According to the data the most commonly reported incidents were for hate crimes. Out of the 1,583 matches, there were 420 fixtures were at least one hate crime was reported. Of those hate crime reports, 287 incidents related to race, 140 to sexual orientation, 20 to religion, 19 to disability and three to gender identity.
