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Level Playing Field’s 2025 recap

2025 has come to a close and Level Playing Field is taking the opportunity to reflect on an important year for the charity, which included vital progress on access and inclusion for disabled fans across England and Wales, alongside a number of challenges.

Engagement with the charity has been at a high level throughout the year, with responses in the 2025 Level Playing Field Annual Fan Survey reaching a record tally and widespread involvement in the ‘Unite For Access’ campaign.

At individual clubs and venues, there have been advancements to improve the experiences of disabled fans, while elsewhere decisions have been made which needed to be addressed.

Level Playing Field has been pleased to bring people together at events throughout the year and now invite you to take a look through some of what happened throughout 2025.

January

Accessible Stadia consultation

Level Playing Field started the year by opening a final stage of consultation on selected areas of the Accessible Stadia rewrite. This followed earlier invites for disabled fans to contribute in 2024.

Since the original guidance was published over 20 years ago and the Supplementary Guidance released in August 2015, it has served as the premier guidance for design professionals, stadia operators and other key individuals and organisations in delivering access and inclusion for disabled sports fans and staff at sports stadia.

Level Playing Field’s general manager & head of access and development, Ruth Hopkins, has lead on the rewrite and the process is now reaching its conclusion ahead of publication in 2026.

2024 Level Playing Field Annual Fan Survey results
The charity’s fourth annual survey results revealed continuing rises in disability abuse and inaccessible public transport as barriers to attending live sport.

Arrival and departure times were featured as a specific area of focus in this report, with its publication following a look at away travel in European club football near the end of the previous year.

February

First regional forum of the year
Worcestershire County Cricket Club hosted the Level Playing Field Midlands Forum for the first time.

The event brought together disabled fans, club representatives and other key stakeholders, to discuss accessibility.

Opening remarks were made by Ashley Giles MBE, Chief Executive Officer at Worcestershire and 2005 Ashes winner, with Anxiety and mental health specialist, Claire Henson, providing a talk as guest speaker. Claire would then go on to speak at subsequent forums for the North and Wales & South West regions.

Unite For Access – Launch

Level Playing Field Patron, Roy Hodgson, official launched ‘Unite For Access’ 2025 with an official campaign film.

The celebration of access and inclusion for disabled sports fans will bring together sporting communities across England and Wales, during the March 1-16 window.

Roy Hodgson, the charity’s Patron, is pleased to unveil the campaign film. It focuses on the value of collective matchday experiences and combatting year-on-year rises in disability abuse as a barrier to attending live sport, as revealed in the 2024 Level Playing Field Annual Fan Survey results.

March

Unite For Access – Campaign window

The main campaign window brought sporting communities together to celebrate access and inclusion for disabled fans.

Clubs across the Premier League, EFL, the women’s game, non-league football and the Welsh leagues were involved from March 1-16.

100% of Sky Bet Championship sides took part and that was replicated across Sky Bet League One for the first time ever.

Highlights spanned teams across the divisions, from Everton, where members of the Level Playing Field team were pleased to join disabled fans for a familiarisation tour at the new stadium, and Seamus Coleman became a patron of the Everton Disabled Supporters’ Association, to Stevenage, where a new scheme for supporters with nonvisible disabilities was launched.

Talking inclusion at Leeds Rhinos

The Level Playing Field podcast took a trip to AMT Headingley, to speak with Leeds Rhinos legend, Jamie Jones-Buchanan, before he was announced as the club’s new chief executive, to speak about inclusion in rugby league.

It has since been announced that the stadium will host the charity’s first forum of 2026 and registration is still open.

April

Wimbledon accessibility announcement

The All England Lawn Tennis Club announced its ambition to undertake a programme of enhancements to one of sport’s famous viewing experiences, The Hill.

The planned developments are set to provide far greater accessible viewing opportunities and will transform wheelchair access to The Hill’s various tiers, including the Orchard and Pergola areas, situated at the top of The Hill. The plans will also deliver more seating through a number of new low retaining walls which will optimise visibility of the No.1 Court large screen by reducing the gradient of the existing tiers.

Level Playing Field has been pleased to be involved through the planning process and the new-look Hill ins intended be ready to welcome guests at The Championships 2027. This project forms part of the All England Club’s plans to mark the 150th anniversary of the first Championships in 1877.

Old Trafford’s first wheelchair user as a mascot
Bobby Moore made history, when he went out onto the field alongside Bruno Fernades and the rest of the team, at Old Trafford.

May

Limitations on accessibility at major finals

Following patterns from previous years, issues arose surrounding accessibility at the UEFA Europa League Final and the UEFA Conference League Final.

Level Playing Field was grateful for the vital work from Manchester United Disabled Supporters’ Association, SpursAbility and Chelsea Disabled Supporters’ Association in standing against these failures and hopes to see a positive impact on experiences of disabled fans attending events across Europe in the coming years.

First forum in Preston

The Level Playing Field North Forum went to Preston North End for the first time and invited the EFL’s director of equality, diversity and inclusion, David McArdle, and anxiety and mental health specialist, Claire Henson, as guest speakers.

The venue has already been set for the 2026 Level Playing Field North Forum, with a first trip to West Yorkshire planned for January.

June

Brentford legend discusses autism

Former Brentford, Bristol Rovers, and Swansea City defender, Ijah Anderson, opened up on a revelation of an autism diagnosis, since his playing career, that reshaped how he understood both his past and himself, while looking back on his career.

In the episode of the Level Playing Field Podcast, the 49-year-old met with Level Playing Field’s head of fan engagement & supporter services, Liam Bird, at the Gtech Community Stadium.

Summer forum

Level Playing Field brought disabled fans together online, as the sporting seasons shifted.

Key topics of conversation included ticketing policies and challenges, accessible transport and matchday travel, and updates on the charity’s membership.

July

First Disability Access Officer forum

The first Level Playing Field Disability Access Officer forum brought together club staff from across sports.

Sessions at the bet365 Stadium, in Stoke, included discussions on policies, the support available to clubs and practical analysis of real-life case studies.

The event also included a panel where Level Playing Field’s chief executive, Owain Davies, was joined by David McArdle, director of equality diversity & inclusion at the EFL, and Ben Abberstein, senior EDI partner at the RFL.

Unite For Access at the cricket

Celebrations of access and inclusion for disabled cricket spectators took place during Level Playing Field’s first ‘Unite For Access’ campaign in the sport.

The campaign reached its climax with two double-headers, which saw Glamorgan host Gloucestershire, while Hampshire welcomed Birmingham Bears women and Sussex Sharks men.

Level Playing Field’s chief executive, Owain Davies, was pleased to be present and meet with disabled spectators at Hampshire’s Utilita Bowl while the charity’s fan engagement & enquiry officer, Mark Phillips, was in attendance at Sophia Gardens.

This followed events earlier in the campaign from Kent and at Leicestershire vs Middlesex in the Rothesay County Championship.

Regional forum tour concludes
Level Playing Field’s second tour of regional forums finished with disabled fans and industry professionals from Wales and the South West coming together. Details on upcoming forums can be found on the Level Playing Field website.

July also saw disabled fans from across England and Wales come together online once again, for an open format discussion on accessibility when attending live sport.

August

New guidance on Home Artificial Nutrition

Level Playing Field partnered with PINNT, to produce guidance on how sporting venues can be accessible to fans who require Home Artificial Nutrition (HAN).

PINNT are a support and advocacy group for people who are unable eat or drink orally and instead require their nutrients through tube feeding. The charity provides education, information and guidance to HAN individuals and their families.

The publication of the guidance comes in Home Artificial Nutrition Awareness (HAN) Week. The week runs 4-10 August and is dedicated to raising awareness about essential nutritional treatments; parenteral and enteral feeding and oral supplements.

September

Independent Regulator for Football forum

Interim Chief Operating Officer at the Independent Regulator for Football (Shadow), Martyn Henderson, joined disabled fans as a guest speaker at Level Playing Field’s online forum. A presentation was given, before a Q&A took place.

Attending with an autistic child

Jon Roberts shared how his daughter Kaya inspired Lilly & Myles: The Match – a story that explores the excitement and challenges of attending football through the eyes of an autistic child.

The episode of the Level Playing Field Podcast can be found here.

October

Exeter City become stoma friendly
Exeter City announced the club had achieved ‘Stoma Friendly’ status, with Jack Fitzwater sharing his personal story.

Level Playing Field was pleased to host a Colostomy UK presentation to clubs across the country, with many taking the opportunity to learn. To find out more, visit the Colostomy UK website.

England & Wales partner with Alzheimers Society
The England and Wales men’s football teams brought attention to Alzheimers Society, when both sets of players walked out at Wembley alongside fans living with dementia.

Chelsea introduce access passports
This new introduction provided disabled supporters with another option to communicate with staff on a matchday, regarding any access requirements.

November

New guidelines for women’s football stadia

New design guidance for women’s football stadia included key considerations of disabled supporters, across the areas of inclusivity & accessibility, fan experience and facilities & safety.

Level Playing Field was pleased to feed into the development process, with the guidance marking a significant increase in focus on stadium design and management in women’s football, ahead of the publication of Accessible Stadia Second Edition, which will apply across all sports.

2025 Level Playing Field Annual Fan Survey results
Results from the survey revealed the barrier to attending live sport which saw the highest increase was ‘no access to a companion/PA ticket,’ while year-on-year rises in supporters identifying ‘inaccessible public transport’ and being ‘unable to travel to stadiums’ as barriers continued.

The survey received a record number of responses and had a specific focus on accessible parking.

Supporters were brought together to share their thoughts on an online forum call and members of the team discussed the data in an episode of the Level Playing Field Podcast.

New forum tour starts in Southampton

The current tour of regional forums started with the Level Playing Field South Forum, at St Mary’s.

The forum was opened by the Southampton’s CEO, Phil Parsons, before Disability Liaison Officer, Helen Goosey, welcomed guests. Later, Saints Disabled Supporters’ Association Chairman, Mike Thew, delivered closing remarks.

Registration for upcoming forums in Leeds and Nottingham are now open.

December 

World Cup accessibility concerns
Level Playing Field was in contact with FIFA to raise concerns shared by disabled supporters, in relation to accessible ticketing at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

National FAs were also notified and the matter is still being followed up on.

Minister for Disabled People role changes
Following the Government’s decisions concerning the role of Minister for Disabled People, Level Playing Field wrote to the Department of Culture, Media and Sport. The letter outlined the need for greater emphasis to be placed on the requirements of disabled sports fans.

Palace spotlight Sophia

Crystal Palace spoke with Sophia and her family, about experiencing matches with GiveVision headsets. This included when she met Oliver Glasner.

A gift for Glenn
Ipswich Town got into the festive spirit, with a gift for committed supporter, Glenn.

Now we go onto 2026…

Everyone at Level Playing Field is eager to achieve so much in 2026 and many plans are already in place, from the upcoming ‘Unite For Access’ campaign, to the launch of accessible stadia.

The commitment and dedication shown by individual disabled fans and supporters’ associations, as well as the cooperation of so many disability access officers (DAOs), disability liaison officers (DLOs), non-disabled supporter groups and governing bodies, is integral to so much of the progress made.

If you have plans for the upcoming year which Level Playing Field can assist with, or would like to find out more information, then please get in touch.