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Fan Experience Forum

Four clubs receive inaugural VisitFootball awards

Four Barclays Premier League clubs are to receive awards for the quality of their customer care as part of a national scheme that is improving standards of fan experience at football stadia.

VisitFootball, a joint venture between the Premier League and the national tourism board VisitEngland, has been assessing the care that customers receive at football grounds since August 2010 and for the first time handed out awards, with this year’s beneficiaries being Arsenal, Manchester City, Liverpool and Fulham.

A panel of industry experts from the tourism, football and customer service industries voted Arsenal the VisitFootball Club of the Year for their “simply outstanding service”.

City received the Best Fan Innovation for their City Square and Family Stand projects, while Liverpool’s stewards won the club the Warmest Welcome award. The fourth award, Unsung Hero, went to Fulham’s Supporter Liaison Officer Tommy Guthrie for his detailed dedication to supporters.

VisitFootball has adapted VisitEngland’s ‘Visitor Attraction Quality Assurance Scheme’, which is used to assess other tourist attractions such as theatres and museums, specifically for football stadia.

All 20 clubs in the Barclays Premier League were judged by a professional tourism assessor across eight areas of the supporter match experience, such as ticketing, stewarding, catering, toilets and the club shop.

Visit England commended the improvement in customer care since the scheme started two years ago, hailing the Premier League for taking the care of supporters visiting its stadia so seriously. >>>Article continues at PremierLeague.com>>>