Five English clubs opt in to safe standing pilot scheme

It will come into effect in January

Fans will legally be allowed to stand at four Premier League grounds and one Championship stadium from January 1st onwards as part of a pilot scheme. Tottenham Hotspur, Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City and Cardiff City have opted in to the programme, which was offered to English clubs in the top two divisions a month ago. It is expected that more clubs will rush to install rail seating in their stadiums to enable fans to stand safely during the summer, ahead of the 22/23 season, according to The Times. The clubs who have opted into the programme have committed to providing rails seating for both a section of the home support and the away section. The numbers will differ from stadium to stadium. The Tottenham Hotspur stadium should reportedly be able to have 10,000 fans standing, including 7,000 in their famous one-tier south stand. Jon Darch, who has run the Safe-Standing Roadshow and has campaigned for the Football Supporters’ Association, said: "Quite a few more clubs have it on the radar for next summer. I would expect to see a number of clubs doing some kind of safe-standing installation next summer." The rail seats mean that every fan will have an allocated position, with the option to flip the seat down if they wish to sit at any point. The rails themselves will prevent crowds collapsing.