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Football fans risk car accidents listening to radio

Joanna Faith
Written By:
Joanna Faith
Posted:
Updated:
29/08/2013

More than 1 in 10 motorists have said listening to football commentary on the radio while driving had caused them to have an accident or near miss.

Young adults aged 18-24 were most affected by listening to radio commentary, with over 1 in 5 having an accident or near accident, according to the study by comparison site Confused.com.

A further 7% of football fans said listening to commentary had led to erratic driving, while listening to goals being scored by or against their team prompted one in 25 to drive faster or more aggressively.

Unsurprisingly, half (50%) of football fans said their stress levels increased when listening to commentary on the radio while driving, with West Bromwich Albion fans being most stressed out (83%); followed by Sunderland (67%) and Norwich City fans (60%).

Crystal Palace and Stoke City fans were the calmest; with only 1 in 4 (25%) saying they experienced increased stress levels when listening to their club play on the radio.

It seems football commentary also affects people’s relationships with nearly 8% admitting they have rowed with a partner in the car due to football commentary.

When it comes to driving etiquette (letting other drivers out at junctions and so on), almost 1 in 5 fans (18%) would discriminate against drivers of cars with stickers/ scarves of arch rivals displayed.

Football fans that are most likely not to let rival fans out of junctions:

1.Manchester City fans
2.West Bromwich Albion fans
3.Sunderland fans
4.Cardiff City fans
5.Norwich City fans

Manchester City fans are almost twice as likely (31%) to discriminate than Man United fans (17%).

Gemma Stanbury, head of car insurance at Confused.com said: “We understand how avid football fans love supporting their football teams and listening to the games whenever they can, even if that means when they are driving.

“However, worryingly there are clear consequences of listening to football commentary on the radio. The research indicates that people are being distracted when listening to their team and consequently accidents on the roads are being caused.”


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