Blackburn Rovers supporters have been waiting for their club to regain their spot in the Premier League after 11 years away, but so far it has not happened.
Dropping from the top flight of English football in 2012, Rovers have endured some relative struggles since then, including a relegation to League One and having to see their biggest rivals Burnley sustain themselves for a long time in the Premier League.
Nevertheless though, their supporter base are a passionate bunch and whilst they may not pack Ewood Park out every week, they are decent enough on their travels in particular.
Unfortunately though, sometimes things do spill over and supporters are arrested at football games – but how many of Blackburn’s were taken away by the police at matches last season and how does it compare to other clubs around England and Wales?
According to government statistics that have just been released – via the Stoke Sentinel – Blackburn Rovers supporters were arrested 31 times over the course of last season.
And in terms of where Rovers fans rank compared to their rivals in England and Wales, they sit 19th in the table, with figures going down all the way to the National League.
How does Blackburn Rovers’ number of arrested fans compare to other EFL and Premier League clubs?
There are 18 teams above Blackburn when it comes to number of fans arrested before, during or after matches, and some are perhaps surprising.
Two English clubs had over 80 arrests, with West Ham topping the list that they really didn’t want to be top of with 89 arrests over the course of the campaign, with Manchester United following them with 83 arrests.
Premier League clubs from last season make up the next four teams listed, with Leeds United, Man City, Arsenal and Tottenham all high up in the rankings, and then the first team from last year’s Championship teams is none other than Blackburn’s bitterest of rivals in the form of Burnley.
It often gets a bit tasty when the two clubs meet, which they did twice last season in the league, and for the first time in a long time, the ‘bubble trip’ method of away fans getting to the opposition stadium, which would involve travelling on a club coach, was scrapped.
50 Burnley fans were arrested over the 2022-23 season, and when it came to the East Lancashire Derby in particular, 10 supporters were taken away by police in the two fixtures.
Four of those arrests were made in the first fixture in November 2022 at Turf Moor, including two ‘balaclava-clad’ Burnley supporters, whilst the reverse fixture at Ewood Park in April 2023 saw six arrests made, with two of those being on suspicion of common assault.
Other Championship clubs from last season to rank above Blackburn in the arrested standings are Millwall, Birmingham City and Middlesbrough, with League One clubs Bolton Wanderers, Derby County and even Peterborough United coming above Rovers.