FOR the first time ever, the basic price of a Premier League match-day ticket has risen above £30, a BBC study found yesterday.

The 6 per cent rise was labelled a “rip-off” by shadow sports minister Clive Efford, with the league attempting to defend the extortionate prices by claiming that the study was “misleading.”

The study also found that the most expensive season ticket is still Arsenal at £2,013.

The club’s cheapest, at £1,014, is still £249 more expensive than the next highest.

In stark contrast, Women’s Super League season tickets were dramatically cheaper, with Manchester City the most expensive at £48 and London Bees the lowest at just £18.

Premier League club Chelsea charge the most for a single matchday ticket at £52 while Derby County, Reading and Huddersfield have the cheapest tickets across the top five leagues in England at £10.

In Scotland, Celtic have the most expensive season ticket at £559, though that is £41 cheaper than last season.

The rises come despite 70 per cent of season ticket prices in England being frozen or reduced from last season but Football Supporters’ Federation chief executive Kevin Miles said it shows how bad things are that this is deemed good news.

He told the BBC: “It says a lot about modern football when it’s hailed as unusually good news that ticket prices aren’t rising even further. Last season, football was incredibly expensive, it remains expensive this season — particularly on match-day tickets, for away fans and young adults.

“Premier League clubs knew before they had even set their prices for this season that they would be due a substantial windfall from the new TV deal.”