Reserved Seat home

    Premier League

    Sideline for the view, home end for the noise · tickets via members

    English grounds put every seat close to the pitch, but getting one means memberships, ballots and strict resale law. Here is how it works for US fans.

    Clubs and related pages

    Abstract football field illustration representing Arsenal F.C.
    Premier League Club

    Arsenal F.C.

    Arsenal seat guide for US fans: stands and tiers at the Emirates, the away corner, derby demand, member ballots and matchday travel.

    London, England
    Abstract football field illustration representing Arsenal F.C.
    Premier League Club

    Arsenal F.C.

    Arsenal seat guide for US fans: stands and tiers at the Emirates, the away corner, derby demand, member ballots and matchday travel.

    London, England
    City

    Atlanta

    Seat-by-seat advice for Atlanta's arenas, stadiums, theaters and comedy clubs, with the season calendar and how to reach each venue.

    Atlanta, GA
    City

    Chicago

    Seat advice for Chicago's ballparks, arena, concert halls, comedy clubs and Loop theaters, plus the season calendar and the trains to each.

    Chicago, IL
    Venue

    Lincoln Financial Field

    The Linc's home and visitor sidelines, value sections, covered rows and concert picks, plus the subway, tailgate lots and bag rules.

    Philadelphia, PA
    Venue

    Mercedes-Benz Stadium

    Atlanta's eight-panel-roof stadium, seat by seat: the tiers worth paying for, the sections to pass on, and the quickest way in by MARTA.

    Atlanta, GA
    Venue

    SoFi Stadium

    SoFi Stadium levels compared for NFL games and concerts, which rows sit too low, how the canopy affects sun, and transit, parking and bag basics.

    Inglewood, CA
    Abstract trophy illustration representing Wimbledon
    Major Event

    Wimbledon

    Which Wimbledon court to aim for, why debentures are the only resale-eligible seats, and how the ballot and the overnight Queue work.

    London, United Kingdom
    By the Reserved Seat editorial teamUpdated How we research

    Picking your stand at an English ground

    English soccer grounds are compact, with steep stands built right up to the touchline, so even an upper tier feels closer than the upper deck of an NFL stadium. The real choice is which stand. Stands carry long-standing names; at Emirates Stadium, home of Arsenal F.C., you will hear about the Clock End and the North Bank.

    • Sideline stands (the main stand and the stand opposite): the clearest view of the whole match and where most hospitality is based. Choose these for the football itself.
    • The home end (behind one goal): the club's most vocal fans fill it and sing for 90 minutes. You will be on your feet whenever a chance develops.
    • The away section: the visiting club sells these seats to its own fans, who are grouped in a corner or an end. Leave the visitors' shirt at home if you sit among home fans, or stewards may relocate you.
    • Front rows of the lower tier: very close but low to the grass, and some are uncovered, which matters in English weather.

    Seats are the rule across the league, but a number of grounds have added rail seating (seats with a waist-high barrier that allow safe standing).

    Twenty clubs and a 38-match season

    The Premier League is the top tier of English men's soccer. Each of its 20 clubs plays 38 matches, home and away against everyone else, between August and May. The bottom three drop to the EFL Championship and three clubs come up. It started in 1992, and no sports league on earth reaches more TV markets: 212 territories carry it. The record for titles belongs to Manchester United with 13. Recent champions are Liverpool (2024–25) and then Arsenal F.C. (2025–26).

    • The 2026–27 calendar: the season kicked off on Friday, August 21, 2026, with Arsenal at home to newly promoted Coventry City, and all 20 clubs play their last match at the same time on Sunday, May 30, 2027.
    • New this season: Coventry City, Ipswich Town and Hull City came up, taking the places of relegated Wolverhampton Wanderers, Burnley and West Ham United.
    • Boxing Day: a full round is traditionally played on December 26, one of the best atmospheres of the year.

    Memberships, ballots and official hospitality

    At the larger clubs, far more people want tickets than there are seats, so each club rations them in tiers. Details vary, but the pattern is consistent, and it means planning starts months ahead.

    • Season ticket holders take most of the stadium, and waiting lists for new season tickets can be long.
    • Paid members can enter a ballot (a lottery) or use a priority buying window for single matches, and pricier tiers usually improve the odds. Arsenal is a good example: Silver and Red members go into different ballots roughly a month to six weeks out, and the club's own figures show Silver members succeed much more often.
    • Club ticket exchanges are where season ticket holders can pass on seats they cannot use to other members, at face value, usually once the ballot has closed.
    • General sale to the public happens only when seats are left, and at the biggest clubs that mostly happens for certain cup ties.
    • Official hospitality (a match seat bundled with a meal, sold by the club itself) is usually the one route that needs no membership. For a visitor with fixed travel dates, it is the most dependable option.

    Tickets are generally linked to a named member and loaded onto a club app or membership card. A seat passed along by a stranger may simply fail at the turnstile.

    Resale law in England, and why it matters

    This is where US habits can get you into trouble. English law (the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994, section 166) bars anyone from selling or passing on a ticket to a designated football match, a group that covers Premier League games, unless the organizer has authorized it in writing. On top of that, clubs declare void any ticket obtained through touts (British slang for scalpers), agencies, unofficial sites or social media, and they can refuse entry or eject the holder.

    For a home match in England, the safe channels are the club's box office, its sanctioned exchange and its hospitality packages; read the club's ticketing terms before considering anything else. The statute is published on legislation.gov.uk. Summer friendlies staged in the United States are a different matter: American rules apply, and resale works there as it does for any US event.

    Planning the trip to England

    • Travel authorization: US citizens visiting the UK generally need an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA), applied for online before departure, rather than a visa. Confirm the UK government's current rules before booking.
    • Moving fixtures: the full fixture list comes out in June, but television often shifts dates and kickoff times with only a few weeks' notice. Book flexible travel or build a stay of several days around the scheduled date.
    • Kickoff times: a classic 3 p.m. Saturday kickoff in England typically starts at 10 a.m. on the US East Coast.
    • Transit: rail or the London Underground serves most grounds, and matchday parking is often restricted.
    • Bags: grounds commonly turn away bags bigger than A4 paper (about 8.3 by 11.7 inches) and have no storage, so leave luggage at your hotel or a station.
    • Pairing events: London has several Premier League clubs. A summer trip for Wimbledon lands in the soccer off-season, so the two rarely overlap.

    Watching Premier League clubs without leaving the US

    For many fans, the simplest way to see these clubs is a summer friendly at home. The league's own Premier League Summer Series has run twice. In 2023, six clubs (Fulham, Brentford, Aston Villa, Brighton, Newcastle United and Chelsea) played at sites that included Mercedes-Benz Stadium and Lincoln Financial Field. In 2025, Bournemouth, Everton, West Ham and Manchester United played in East Rutherford, Chicago and Atlanta. A planned 2024 series did not happen. Clubs arrange their own tours as well; Arsenal F.C. faced Liverpool at Lincoln Financial Field and Manchester United at SoFi Stadium in July 2024.

    These preseason matches are staged in large NFL stadiums and sold by promoters, so availability is usually broad and resale is common. Starters play limited minutes; go to see the club and its traveling supporters rather than a competitive match. Every Reserved Seat order is backed by a 100% guarantee. The Soccer page covers MLS, the US national teams and the American venues of the 2026 World Cup.

    Frequently asked questions

    Which stand should I pick at a Premier League match?

    A sideline stand gives the best view of the match and is where most hospitality sits. The home end behind the goal has the loudest supporters, and you should expect to stand there at key moments.

    Can I buy Premier League tickets without a membership?

    Usually only through official hospitality, which clubs sell directly and which typically needs no membership. Most other home tickets go to members through ballots, priority windows and the club exchange.

    Can I buy a ticket from another fan in England?

    Not legally, unless the match organizer has authorized it in writing. English law makes unauthorized resale of designated football match tickets an offense, and clubs cancel tickets that change hands that way.

    Do kickoff times change after the fixtures are published?

    Often. Matches are moved for television, sometimes only a few weeks ahead, so build flexibility into any trip.

    Can I see Premier League teams in the United States?

    Yes, in preseason. The league held US Summer Series events in 2023 and 2025, and individual clubs, Arsenal among them, have played US stadium tours.

    Sources

    Card and header photos come from Wikimedia Commons contributors under Creative Commons or public-domain terms. Artist and license for each one are listed on the photo credits page.