Premier League football in Manchester – Manchester City

Regarded by many as England’s second city, Manchester has a lot to offer those visiting the city for leisure. A large number of cultural attractions and outdoor activities await arriving tourists, while the city’s nightlife and entertainment is second-to-none. The city also hosts two of top Premiership football teams in the country; Manchester United and Manchester City.

Manchester United is one of the most famous football clubs in the world, but Manchester City was much lesser known until recent times. In 2008, the club was purchased by the Abu Dhabi United Group, providing the management with huge spending power that was unimaginable in the club’s darker days. This money from the Middle East has allowed Manchester City to purchase world-class players such as Robinho, Carlos Tevez and David Silva, eventually leading to an FA Cup win in 2010. This was the club’s first trophy in 36 years.

Nowadays, Manchester City is firmly back on the map. This has given a great boost to Manchester’s tourist economy, with large numbers of visitors from both home and abroad keen on taking in a game at the Etihad Stadium. With our insight, you can learn how to turn this dream into a reality.

Manchester is served by Manchester Airport, which is located around nine miles south of the city centre. There are direct flights to Manchester from several continents, including North America and Asia, in addition to flights from major cities across Europe. On arrival, passengers will find a direct train link to the city centre, but those who would like to do extensive travel in the region might like to consider Manchester car hire, which is readily available in all terminal buildings, instead.

Parking in the city centre can be expensive and limited, but most decent hotels offer discounted parking at the very least. Manchester’s public transport system is nowhere near as extensive as London’s, so the inconvenience of parking is offset by the ease of getting around with a hire car. Most visitors prefer to stay in the centre, to be close to Manchester’s excellent bars and restaurants.

The Etihad Stadium is around a 20-minute walk from the city centre, but it’s not the most pleasant walk, so those travelling with Manchester car hire will probably prefer to drive instead. The stadium has 2,000 on-site parking spaces, with a further 8,000 spaces provided by local schools and businesses.

Given the club’s recent success, Manchester City tickets are much harder to come by than in previous years, with many games sold out to members several weeks beforehand. However, visitors may find tickets on open sale for the less attractive games. Of course, those with large budgets could consider one of the club’s corporate packages or even contact one of the many travel agents which now offer ‘football weekends’. Many of these weekend breaks include hotel and ticket in the overall cost.

The Etihad Stadium is well-policed nowadays and trouble is rare. However, those who are supporting the visiting team should take some simple precautions if sitting in the home sections of the stadium. Precautions include avoiding wearing club colours and not cheering goals by the visiting team. This could result in ejection from the stadium at the very least or attract violent attention from home supporters. Of course, those who are supporting Manchester City should have no problems sticking to this advice whatsoever!