To worry about the pollution caused by football fans.

[Woulditbeworth]

I know nothing about football but...

There are two football finals with teams from the uk. Liverpool vs Tottenham and Man U vs Arsenal (I think). They are being played in Madrid and Baku, so thats approx 50,000 extra people travelling from the UK, by air.

I get that the locations where agreed in advance but AIBU to be annoyed that we are all trying to be environmentally friendly with reusable bottles and wooden sodding toothbrushes and those with power have no regard for anything other than money!

A really stupid post. People go on holiday,have destination weddings, What's the difference. The actress who flew thousands of miles to support the activists in London,Are you annoyed with her?

I really think you need to get on with other things and keep yourself occupied, as you have to much time on your hands thinking such stupid things. Let people enjoy themselves.

Yeah, I'll still travel for sport and holidays. Going to the British Grand Prix this year, might go to the Australian one next year.

Why pick on footie fans? There are lots of international events - rugby, Olympics, Commonwealth games... Politicians and royalty use jets and helicopters, movie and music stars tour internationally to promote their movies/albums... It is strange that 4 UK teams are playing overseas but if you limited finals to countries where the winners normally reside, then people who aren't in Italy, Spain, UK... would be deprived of seeing the top players play live. I know that football tickets are pricey so it's not truly accessible to everybody there but can you not perhaps see it as a good opportunity for Azerbaijani businesses to make a bit more money ?

I'm not a football fan but the argument of why go if it's on tv is a bit snobbish. Would you say that about a music concert or seeing travelling? Seeing or experiencing things in person is different to seeing it on screen.

There's lots of groups who could stop air travel- school trips, destination weddings, business travellers. My ex travelled abroad every Tuesday and returned on Thursdays for business reasons for 2 years. He worked in telecommunications so you'd think that there were other solutions. The product he was working on was manufactured and developed in the country where we lived in and the country he travelled to was where HQ was. I know more than one man who flies in order to play golf at their destination (not Donald Trump ) It's everybody's responsibility to do their bit.

It is slightly crazy that it's in Baku when there's 2 London clubs involved but this was decided years ago. Can't just change it weeks before. The journey fans have to take to get there however seems mad and the ticket allocation is stupid but that's another story

Cant just throw it all at football fans. People go away on holiday, long weekends etc they all add to the pollution as well.

Something positive has been achieved, hasn't it, if people are looking up Baku and learning about it? I shall get on Google Earth when I'm on my laptop later.

I've just looked it up and it's possible to get there by train. Takes 4.5 days from London, via Paris, Frankfurt, Vienna and Kiev, if you don't stop off anywhere en route. One for Michael Portillo, perhaps.

Yes, why pick on football?

Inverted snobbery? The RU WOrld Cup is being played in Japan this year, many more people will be going but maybe RU is more socially acceptable.

I'm reminded of Dennis Bergkamp who used to play for Arsenal. Known as the non flying Dutchman. He was scared of flying, so would take the train/car to fixtures, or in some cases not play.

I'm reminded of Dennis Bergkamp who used to play for Arsenal. Known as the non flying Dutchman. He was scared of flying, so would take the train/car to fixtures, or in some cases not play*

Indeed and he would often miss the premier league and domestic cup games either side of european games because he literally had to go the long way round

Can you imagine how many games woukd be posponed if that was the case for the whole team and the fans

Actally given the negativity towatds football on here yeah yeah lets insist on that so the season never ends because of having to reshedule the games that were pisponed because of the time taken to travel to european games

Not taking in to account the days of work lost because of people booking annual leave/throwing sickies in order to travel to the games by fans

The cost to the clubs and tje assocated local businesses that comes from posponing games.

Brilliant idea yeah

What I want to know is why (according to other mumsnetters), UK internal flights can work out cheaper than a train journey.

We need to sort out train pricing. People should not be financially penalised for taking the more sustainable, more inconvenient choice!

OP are you from Manchester?

Wins the thread

Chelsea and Arsenal have allocated only 6000 tickets each. Panic over

Get a life! People travel. People will continue to travel. The airplane and the car are not going to cease to exist because of environmental bores.

What I want to know is why (according to other mumsnetters), UK internal flights can work out cheaper than a train journey.

This is why.

Under the 2003 Energy Taxation Directive (ETD) most fuels and energy products in the EU are subject to tax. However Article 14 of that Directive permits member states to continue to exempt from taxation aviation fuel for domestic, intra and extra-EU flights.
Taxing aviation fuel in Europe - Transport & Environment
www.transportenvironment.org/sites/te/.../2019_02_Taxing_kerosene_intra_EU.p...

We need to start taxing it.

Chelsea and Arsenal have allocated only 6000 tickets each. Panic over

This is just the latest boring stick to bash others with on MN, air travel. Yawn. It's still going to happen. It's cheaper than rubbish trains with shitty service and takes less time.

God, yes, more taxes! So the rich can do as they like but the poor get penalised. That's going to go over really well. Said no one ever.

Chardonnay That's not going to reduce the price of train tickets, though. We need to get people wanting to take the train.

Looking into the future and the issues with fuel consumption etc would it not be a good idea to ration airmiles per person per year? You can save them up for a once in a lifetime holiday if you desire . No one needs more than 1 holiday a year; it doesn’t matter how hard you work or how much you think you deserve it .
I have no problem with the footballers flying to watch their team btw. Those teams have played amazingly well in their last matches; of course their fans want to see them in the final .

True, I'm afraid, but that's what keeps air tickers cheap and gives air travel an unfair advantage.

Why is air fuel not taxed but train is?

As for poor people being penalised by taxing air fuel, they are penalised now anyway, they do take the train?

Taxing air travel would be very unfair on those with less money. Rationing is the answer !

Not really, people with less money use trains every day, are they not penalised by the fact that one industry gets an unfair advantage over the other?

Most passengers passing Heathrow for example are transit, so by not taxing air fuel we are all subsidising them. Is that fair on people with low income?

I see what you are saying, but it's more to it than just that.

I've won most idiotic comment on Mumsnet for my opinion? Cool story.

Yes I drive. If I didn't, I wouldn't be able to go anywhere with my wheelchair. I certainly don't fly.

I really don't care what anyone thinks of my opinion that football is a vile sport. Obviously the process of kicking a ball round a field in itself isn't vile, but generally the thug culture, the fans, the alcohol, the drain on the NHS for the abuse of said alcohol during matches, the rise in domestic abuse when a match is on, the extortionate a.ount the players are paid etc. Yes, all vile.

When I worked in the city centre the train was much cheaper than running a car would be and the bus didnt get me there on time. Wasnt and am not high income, but it was the cheapest option available to me.

The fact that impoverished children around the world are able to enjoy football because all you need is a ball, a couple of rocks for a goal and a few mates - yes utterly vile. I wish Neymar Jr had stayed in the favela instead of being paid loads of money for playing football and inspiring the next generation of Brazilian kids. Vile man.