Manchester City supporters were arrested more than fans of any other club in England and Wales during the 2025/26 season, with 102 football-related arrests, according to Home Office figures.
Chelsea were second with 76 arrests, followed by Manchester United (67), Arsenal (66) and Millwall (63). City fans also topped the charts for some of the most serious offences, with 16 arrests for violent disorder and 45 for public disorder - both the highest of any club.
Drug and alcohol arrests
Portsmouth supporters recorded the most arrests for drug offences, with 22 arrests for entering stadiums with Class A drugs. Manchester United fans were arrested 19 times for the same offence, Chelsea 18 times and Manchester City 16 times.
In alcohol-related arrests, Leeds United and Newcastle United were joint top with eight each.
Overall arrests fall
The total number of football-related arrests and other police actions at regulated games in England and Wales fell to 1,963 last season, down 4% from 2,037 in 2024/25 and 24% from 2,584 in 2023/24.
Arrests worked out at 4.0 for every 100,000 people attending a game, down from 4.2 the previous season and 5.5 the year before. A Premier League spokesperson said: “The Premier League and its clubs work closely with police forces at a national and local level to ensure safe and welcoming environments for all fans.”
“We are investing more than £90million a season in stewarding, security, crime prevention in communities and a series of technology-led pilots in partnership with a number of police forces and the UKFPU.”
Wembley trouble and hate crime rise
The match with the most arrests was Chelsea vs Leeds United in the FA Cup at Wembley, where police made 39 arrests, including 22 for public order (17 Leeds fans, one Chelsea fan and four Manchester City fans) and six for violent disorder.
Hate crimes recorded at games rose to 491 last season, up from 421 in 2024/25 and 341 in 2023/24. The majority concerned race (356), with 144 about sexuality, 28 for religion, 14 about disability and three for gender identity.
Chief Constable Mark Roberts QPM, the NPCC Lead for Football Policing, said: “Almost 48 million people attended men’s domestic and international matches during the 2025/26 season, and the vast majority of those were law-abiding citizens who wanted to support their team.”
He added that football-related crime does not stop when fans exit the stadium, but under the current system clubs do not pay towards policing outside their grounds, leaving taxpayers to foot a £70m bill each season.
