How to get tickets for Premier League games

The Premier League is self-branded as the ‘best' league in the world, and while there is debate to be had about just how true that is, it certainly does attract a lot of interest from supporters.

English football fans are passionate about their clubs, and the only other league in Europe that can rival the Premier League when it comes to attendances is the Bundesliga in Germany.

Getting tickets for Premier League matches is difficult, but not impossible. There is a myth that every single PL match is a sell-out, but that isn't the case, so there are options available.

Our guide below runs through the different options available to you when it comes to buying Premier League tickets.

How to get Premier League tickets – your options

Buy Premier League tickets directly from the club

Sales dates for Premier League matches vary wildly depending on the club you are buying tickets from. Some will list tickets for matches around one month in advance, while some list tickets for all matches at the beginning of the season. Therefore, the first thing you need to find out is when tickets go on sale for the match you want to attend.

Once you have this information, the next step is to act quickly. Some clubs operate on a first-come, first-served basis, particularly for general sale tickets, so you will need to buy tickets as soon as possible. In other instances, you may need to enter a ballot, but the sooner you enter said ballot, the sooner you will have peace of mind that you have done all you can for the time being.

All current Premier League clubs allow you to buy tickets online. As part of this, you will need to be registered on their system, as football clubs won't just sell tickets to anyone. This is to help ensure that they aren't selling tickets to fans of opposition teams, fans who have football banning orders, and also so they can then target you with marketing material.

Some clubs may still allow you to buy directly through an in-person ticket office, but again, you will have to check this on a case-by-case basis.

Offers for club members

All Premier League clubs give preference for purchasing tickets to club members. If that is the case, then you may consider taking out a membership, which is normally charged at a fee per season. However, depending on the cost of this will influence whether it is a worthwhile investment or not to improve your chances of getting a ticket.

Most importantly, a club's season ticket holders usually get priority treatment when purchasing EPL tickets. In some cases, season ticket holders are also accorded special treatment for VIP ticketing for big or regular games. Big games in the English Premier League usually include derbies and historical rivalries, such as games between Liverpool and Man Utd or Arsenal vs Man Utd.

Corporate and hospitality tickets

Corporate and hospitality English Premier League tickets aren't suitable for everyone attending a football match. Unlike regular seating, these tickets provide access to exclusive seating areas, including the VIP lounge for an executive dining experience. Corporate or hospitality is expensive because sometimes you may pay ten times the amount you would spend on the regular seating areas.

The catch with hospitality tickets is that they come as a package, featuring several benefits one will enjoy once inside the stadium. So while booking seats in the regular stands would limit one to doing just a few things inside the stadium, fans who pay for corporate and hospitality tickets don't just sit or stand the entire game.

VIP seating offers an exclusive view of the playing field, a complimentary bar, a VIP entrance, a matchday gift, and gourmet dining, which are just a few of the exclusive benefits available to a VIP matchgoer.

VIP English Premier League ticket prices can start at around £150, with some seats costing over £3,000 for a single match. In contrast, a standard ticket for the same game might only be £50. Additionally, holders of VIP tickets typically enjoy early access to the match venue, often arriving three hours before kick-off.

Obtaining tickets for most English Premier League (EPL) clubs can be quite challenging due to high demand. For instance, Newcastle United hospitality tickets can be particularly difficult to acquire. One effective solution is to purchase a club membership, which offers a priority booking experience.

Also, note that, unlike fans in the regular stands, VIP matchgoers are often restricted to corporate attire and a chance to meet club legends is always very likely. In addition, different English Premier League teams have varying categories of VIP ticketing, each with a different price and benefits.

Ticket touts

Ticket touts, or scalpers as they are called in the States, are not seen as often at games in the UK, and that is due to one very good fact – it is illegal in the UK to resell tickets to football matches. However, occasionally, it does happen, but only really at some of the bigger clubs, such as Manchester United or at some of the London clubs.

You will have to pay over the odds if buying from a tout, and there is also no guarantee that the ticket is legitimate, as fake tickets are prominent in the UK. Our advice – avoid touts at all costs.

Easiest Premier League tickets to buy

English Premier League tickets can be challenging to obtain, especially for big clubs and high-profile matches like derbies and cup competitions. Which EPL tickets are the easiest to acquire?

The easiest tickets to get in the Premier League are at clubs that don't regularly sell out their stadium. Sunderland are always a safe bet as the Stadium of Light consistently has empty seats, while Wolves have similar issues at Molineux.

Official ticket exchanges

In recent years, there has been a growth in Ticket Exchange platforms. These platforms allow seasoned Premier League ticket holders to sell their tickets for games they are unable to attend. Since these platforms are not authorized by the clubs themselves, they often bypass laws concerning ticket resale. Two Ticket Exchanges that are sanctioned by some of the clubs are Stubhub and Viagogo, but there are other exchanges you can consider.

StubHub

StubHub is a ticket exchange company based in the USA. It allows you to buy Premier League tickets from resellers. Dubbed the largest ticket exchange in 2015, StubHub has grown by leaps and bounds to become one of the most visited platforms in the UK for football fans looking to buy EPL tickets.  The checkout process is fast and you can pay in a current of your choice such as pounds and dollars.

The good thing about StubHub is that once you log in, football fans can view stadium seats, available spaces, and seating locations and then place reservations based on the indicated prices. Apart from selling EPL tickets, StubHub is also an exchange for concerts, theatre, comedy, and event tickets at affordable rates. However, you may have to pay more than what you get buying match tickets from official club sales.

Viagogo

Viagogo is another highly trusted Premier League ticket exchange platform by UK matchgoers. Interestingly, Viagogo, founded in London, has been owned by StabHub since 2021. Every day, thousands use the ticket exchange platform to reserve seats for upcoming English Premier League games. The multinational ticketing platform also serves other interest groups, such as concertgoers.

SeatPick

Another trusted match ticket exchange platform in the UK is SeatPick. The catch with Seatpick is that it works like a search engine and hence aggregates EPL tickets from several listings around the web, including UK matches in the Premier League and other competitions.

The fact that you get to compare Premier League tickets from more than 50 markets and dozens of ticket changes makes SeatPick a one-stop shop for competitive prices.

Again ticket prices and availability fluctuate depending on the popularity of the match. However, for some less popular games, prices have been reasonable, some even being less than the normal ticket price, so they are worth checking out.

Other ticket exchanges/ticket agencies

In recent seasons, several ticketing websites have appeared, allowing fans and others to sell their tickets to others. However, some clubs such as Arsenal and Tottenham have tried recently to identify and clamp down on tickets sold via agencies. This has led some individuals who purchased tickets through an agent to be denied entry to the game.

The Premier League has advised fans to avoid such sellers. Plus, there are plenty of bogus agencies out there who will happily take your money, but the tickets will never materialise. So bear this in mind.

Not bothered about which game you see

If you're excited to attend a match at Old Trafford but are not too concerned about who Manchester United is playing, consider going to one of the less popular fixtures. Tickets for these games are typically easier to obtain. For example, early rounds of domestic cup competitions or the initial stages of the Champions League (against lesser-known clubs) often do not sell out.

Look at sitting with the away fans

People forget that the away club will get an allocation of tickets for each game (normally around 3,000). Now, if the away club is not doing well in the league and/or the game is being televised, then add that it might take place on a mid-week evening, and the away club’s fans need to travel a fair distance to get there and back, then again you may find that tickets are available.

If you decide to purchase these Premier League tickets, you must purchase them from the away club beforehand, either online or by telephone.

Sometimes they are available on the day of the match at the football ground that the game is being played out, but this is uncommon in the Premier League. If this does happen, monitor the away club’s website again as they will generally inform their supporters that tickets are still available and that they can ‘pay on the day.’

How to get Premier League tickets when visiting from abroad

Getting the premier league ticket can be challenging for someone living outside the United Kingdom. Of course, you will not be buying a whole season ticket so it is important to make the right decision beforehand, especially the match you want to watch upon landing in the country.

So what are your options?

First, you may need to register as a club supporter to access the ticketing portal. The procedure varies from club to club. However, that may not be an end in itself, especially for clubs that do not offer international membership.

Secondly, we recommend visiting trusted third-party ticketing platforms such as Viagogo, SeatPick, Thomas Cook Tickets, or any other. While EPL clubs do not authorise these platforms, they have always come in handy for locals and visitors looking for last-minute offers.

A few things to avoid include not buying from unknown sources and ticket touts. Also, don't buy from Craig's List and eBay.

Another way to get premier league tickets from abroad is through overseas agents. For example, Arsenal sells tickets overseas through Champions Travel, a ticketing agent listed on the club's official website. As the official agent of the club, you can visit the official Champions Travel website for upcoming Arsenal match tickets. Another agent that Arsenal uses to sell EPL tickets internationally is Travel Connection.

You should check other EPL club's websites for authorized international ticketing agents.

Apart from buying having membership before accessing tickets for EPL matches, a friend or  a family member residing in the UK can purchase EPL tickets for you

International supporters clubs

Most Premier League clubs have supporter clubs around the world. These often can apply to allocate tickets for a particular game. These clubs typically (but not always) get preferential treatment for tickets. So, if you follow a particular team and live outside of the UK, you may wish to research whether there is a supporters club for that team in your country, and maybe joining that Supporters Club will secure tickets in the future.

Feeling lucky? 

Although a game may be labelled as ‘sold out,' it is sometimes still worth contacting the club in the run-up to the game, as tickets can often become available. For example, if corporate tickets have remained unsold, the club may then sell these as normal tickets. Or if the away club returns tickets, these may again be put on sale. So it is always worth a try.

The ‘old fashioned’ way…

You can always try the old-fashioned way of ‘asking around’ to see if someone has extra Premier League tickets. With the internet era, there are many fan message boards and social media channels for a particular club on which you could try enquiring for a spare ticket.

And lastly…

If you are still desperate and none of the above has worked, then on the day of the game, you could make your way outside of the stadium and ask every fan you see whether they have spare English Premier League tickets! You could be lucky, there is always some friend or family member who can't make the game at short notice, but for the real big matches, your chances of success are slim.

So, don't travel to a game unless you already have a ticket!