H’away days - Newcastle United fans will travel 28 hours this festive period

• The ‘Toon Army’ will travel almost 1,500 miles across their three away fixtures over the festive season, a greater distance than a journey from Newcastle to Rome, Italy
• The club also have the longest away day of the period, covering nearly 600 miles on the return trip to visit Ed Sheeran’s beloved Ipswich Town, the equivalent of a trip from Newcastle to Rotterdam, Netherlands.
• Fans of the league leaders, Liverpool, will have the longest average single journey, with over nine hours of travel

New research from breakdown provider, Green Flag, reveals dedicated Newcastle fans could spend over 28 hours (28.24 hours)¹ on the road this festive period² covering 1,452 miles³ to follow their team, the most of any Premier League club. Evertonians (1052.8 miles) and fans of West Ham United (964 miles) will also be spending significant time behind the wheel travelling to matches.

Table 1: Top 10 clubs whose fans will be travelling the furthest this festive period (return trips)

Source: Green Flag, 2024

Newcastle fans also have the longest return journey of the festive period, when they head to Suffolk to take on Ipswich Town on the 21^st of December, covering 584 miles and spending over 10 and a half hours on the road. Everton (528 miles) and AFC Bournemouth (502 miles) also have journeys of over 500 miles, to Bournemouth and Manchester United respectively, spending close to 10 hours on the road too. Southampton (170 miles), Arsenal (166.8 miles), Manchester United (154 miles), and Brentford (147.4 miles) are all also facing lengthy round trips for their matches.  

Table 2: Top 10 journeys for clubs during the festive period (return trips)

Source: Green Flag. 2024

Katie Lomas, Managing Director of Green Flag, commented: “The festive season is a football fans heaven with so many matches, though it also means many fans will spend a large amount of time on the roads following their beloved clubs. To ensure that fans don’t miss any of the matches and to arrive on time, it is important that they prepare ahead and ensure their vehicle is roadworthy, to avoid the nightmare of a breakdowns when on the road to a game.”

With many fans driving to football games over the festive period together, Green Flag has shared some top vehicle maintenance tips to help avoiding any potential breakdowns while on the way to the big match.

Green Flag’s car maintenance tips:

• Keep tyres inflated correctly: Low tyre pressure or pressure that is too high, can cause damage and increases the wear and tear to your tyres. The correct tyre pressures for your car can usually be found on a sticker on the driver’s door frame (when the door is open), inside the fuel filler flap or in the owner’s manual.
• Check tyres for damage: An already-damaged tyre could potentially blow out when a car is driving at speed. Ensure that any worn tyres are repaired or replaced as soon as you see any signs of damage.
• Keep an eye on your oil: Take a few minutes to check your oil level once a month or so. An engine that’s low on oil can be damaged irreversibly. If topping up when low, also be careful not to over fill the oil, as this can also cause damage.
• Check coolant levels: Coolant prevents a car’s engine from overheating, which can cause serious engine issues, resulting in breakdowns. Although most modern cars now include a feature that will cut-off the engine if the coolant is low, many older cars do not have this feature, so drivers need to be aware of the warning signs. The coolant level should always be between the minimum and maximum.

- ENDS -

For further information please contact:

Chelsey Wheeler

Deputy Head of News and Issues

Email: chelsey.wheeler@directlinegroup.co.uk

Fleishman Hillard

Email: DirectLineGroupMedia@Fleishman.com or 07482107207

Notes to editors:

1. Time on the road – determined via Google Maps on the quickest route suggested between the two grounds of the clubs. Newcastle journeys – 1. Newcastle to Tottenham Hotspur (10-hour 56-minute round trip). 2. Newcastle to Manchester United (6-hour 42-minute round trip). 3. Newcastle to Ipswich (10-hour 34-minute round trip). Total – 28-hours 24-minutes.

2.      Festive Period defined as 14^th December – 6^th January (Premier League Game weeks 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)

3.      Distance travelled – defined as the distance between the two grounds of the clubs according to Google Maps

About Green Flag:

With over 50 years' experience, Green Flag provides customers with breakdown cover 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Customers have access to a network of breakdown operators across the UK and mainland Europe (Euro Plus cover required).  

Green Flag is underwritten by U K Insurance Limited, Registered office: The Wharf, Neville Street, Leeds LS1 4AZ. Registered in England and Wales No 1179980. U K Insurance Limited is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority.  

Green Flag and U K Insurance Limited are both part of Direct Line Insurance Group plc.   

Customers can find out more about Green Flag products or get a quote by calling 0345 246 1557, connecting via the Green Flag Rescue Me Application, or visiting www.greenflag.com