A total of 63 EFL clubs have achieved Family Excellence status, nine of which have been crowned as ‘Gold Award’ winners for their remarkable work in engaging families on match days.
The record-breaking number, up from 56 clubs in 2017/18, recognises continuous improvement and best practice in family engagement across the leagues and supports clubs’ efforts to attract and retain young fans of the future.
Amongst the 63 clubs, the ‘Gold Award’ given to nine clubs highlights an elite number of clubs that offer an exceptional family matchday experience.
EFL clubs received two ‘mystery family’ visits throughout the 2018/19 season, with their feedback and reports determining whether each respective club would achieve ‘Family Excellence’ status.
The year-on-year progress of EFL clubs was highlighted at the EFL Awards earlier this month, with Doncaster Rovers named the EFL Family Club of the Year for their strong family culture, including their highly engaging family-focused matchday activities, along with an innovative kit design competition and a hugely popular and active mascot Donny Dog, and his ‘Kennel’.
The respective Sky Bet Championship and League Two Family Clubs of the Year, Middlesbrough and Mansfield Town, also introduced exciting concepts, with the former showcasing innovative activities based on health, education and fun. Meanwhile, Mansfield’s Family Area and the introduction of a new Family Room has enhanced the club’s matchday experience.
EFL Chief Executive, Shaun Harvey, said: “It has been fantastic to see the continued dedication and improvement made by EFL clubs in offering engaging matchday experiences for families.
“More clubs than ever before are being recognised for offering true family value and a consistently high level of service and innovation, with the EFL’s long-running Family Excellence Scheme helping to produce positive and impactful change across the League, while driving a real focus on the overall matchday experience.
“I would like to congratulate the clubs that have achieved Family Excellence status and those that have been awarded Gold status this year. We look forward to continuing our work with clubs to help drive change, and support the continued effort to attract and retain future generations of supporters.”
A full list of EFL Clubs to receive the Family Excellence and Gold status can be found below:
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AFC Wimbledon Aston Villa Barnsley Birmingham City Blackburn Rovers Bolton Wanderers Brentford Bristol City Bristol Rovers Burton Albion Cambridge United Carlisle United Charlton Athletic Cheltenham Town Colchester United Coventry City Crawley Town Crewe Alexandra Derby County Doncaster Rovers Exeter City Forest Green Rovers Hull City Ipswich Town Leeds United Lincoln City Luton Town Mansfield Town Middlesbrough Millwall Milton Keynes Dons Newport County |
Northampton Town Norwich City Nottingham Forest Notts County Oldham Athletic Oxford United Peterborough United Plymouth Argyle Port Vale Portsmouth Preston North End Queens Park Rangers Reading Rochdale Rotherham United Scunthorpe United Sheffield United Sheffield Wednesday Shrewsbury Town Southend United Stevenage Stoke City Sunderland Swansea City Swindon Town Tranmere Rovers Walsall West Bromwich Albion Wigan Athletic Wycombe Wanderers Yeovil Town |
Gold Award Winners: Aston Villa, Cardiff City, Derby County, Fulham, Middlesbrough, Queens Park Rangers, Reading, Blackburn Rovers, Doncaster Rovers, Luton Town.