English fans tend to vote Labour

Fans of teams in the Premier League, the 1st division of English football, and the Championship, the 2nd division, tend to vote for candidates from the Labour Party. The analysis comes from a survey carried out by The Athletic with data from the 2019 UK general election and shows that this movement occurs across the cities in which the teams are based.

Residents of large English urban centers, where the country’s top teams are usually based, tend to support Labour candidates. On the other hand, residents of small towns, where the smaller clubs are based, tend to support the Conservatives.

Liverpool FC, from Liverpool, one of the largest cities in England and known for its working class, proves the explanation of The Athletic. The club’s fans, for the most part, support Labour Party candidates, according to the magazine.

Here are the voting trends according to the teams’ league:

Here is the voting trend of English fans:

Although the Conservative Party and the Labour Party differ on several proposals, both support the creation of a regulatory body for English clubs.

The idea aims to reduce the differences between Premier League teams, which receive large investments, and clubs in lower leagues, which tend to receive smaller contributions.

The bipartisan-backed regulatory body would also aim to reduce the chances of established clubs going bankrupt, as Bury FC did. DAfter 134 years of existence, the club’s finances collapsed and it was expelled from League One in 2019, returning to activities with a new name, Bury AFC, only in 2023.