As of Sunday 22 March 2026, it is now a criminal offense for anyone to enter a football game in England or Wales without a ticket.
The law was introduced following disruption in July 2021 at the Euro 2020 final between England and Italy at Wembley — and a man has already been charged with 'tailgating' under the new law.
Tailgating is when someone closely follows another person to gain access to a location for which they are not authorised. In the case of the new law, this applies to fans entering football grounds without paying for a ticket, but unauthorised access can also be a serious security concern for other industries and private companies.
Prevent tailgating by utilising Tensor's access control with integrated CCTV. Tensor's technology platform supports comprehensive CCTV systems, which can work alongside access control such as smart cards, turnstiles and gates. The system can sound an alarm or send an alert, as well as use facial recognition to check a database of excluded individuals.
Find out more about Tensor's CCTV systems at https://www.tensor.co.uk/cctv/cctv-systems, or contact us to find out more about our sport venue specific security solutions.