Long renowned for the incredible atmosphere of its stadiums, the Premier League is no longer up to par. And some former players are sounding the alarm.
On Sunday, Old Trafford was the scene of one of the great classics of English football between Manchester United and Chelsea. The 70,000 seats at the legendary Red Devils stadium had been sold, most of them at a high price. However, despite the sporting stakes, the atmosphere never took off, which viewers can now better understand since it is possible to follow Premier League matches with ambient sound. And this phenomenon is accentuated from season to season on the other side of the Channel, with English stadiums being more and more often silent during most of the matches. After this clash between Manchester United and Chelsea, Jamie Redknapp admitted on Sky Sports that he was stunned by what he had just experienced at Old Trafford.
« I had the impression of being at a match during the Covid confinement period when there was no audience, no atmosphere, no energy », Confided, on the microphone of the Premier League broadcaster, the former player of Liverpool and the England team. This media release obviously had a big impact, and many supporters recognized that the Sky Sports consultant was absolutely right. And it is the Premier League which has been directly accused of this situation.
« What I can also tell you is that the club is completely ruining the atmosphere by making fun of real Reds fans to welcome tourists who bring nothing to the atmosphere of the club », complains, on X, Butsby3. Because many fans recall that by exploding the price of tickets for matches, Premier League clubs have completely cut themselves off from the popular fringe of their supporters, while it is the latter who made the atmosphere in English stadiums inimitable.
