With the last kick — and head-butt — of the World Cup still fresh in the mind, it might seem hard to believe, but the new football season is upon us. This afternoon the journeymen of the Championship and lower leagues will stir from their mock-Georgian mansions, and a week later the stars of Chelsea and Liverpool will try to shake off their World Cup hangovers by winning the Charity Shield.

But it is not just the players who are limbering up for the new season. The clubs’ marketing machines are set to start a promotional blitzkrieg, and they will be offering much more than just football shirts. Fans will be asked to support their team by using a club-branded credit card, or invest their cash in a club- branded savings account.

Leading the way on the commercial field of play is Manchester United. The treble winners of 1999 offer credit cards, savings accounts, insurance, loans and even mortgages.

According to Moneyfacts, the financial information group, 41 of the 92 league clubs offer savings accounts. Interest rates vary from the woeful 0.4 per cent offered to Hartlepool United fans by Darlington Building Society, to the respectable 4.5 per cent paid by Birmingham Midshires to Wolverhampton Wanderers supporters. Though the average rate is a pitiful 2.13 per cent, fans may be happy to settle for lower returns, knowing that their club’s coffers will be boosted by the building society donating up to 1 per cent of the total balance in the football account each year.

But savers with Britannia Building Society, the leading football account provider, which has about £400 million on deposit earning 2.05 per cent a year, could help their clubs more if they moved to a better paying account. If they invested their money in ICCI bank’s online HiSAVE account paying 5.15 per cent gross, they would collectively earn almost £21 million a year — enough to buy Ruud van Nistelrooy twice over.

But some club-branded accounts have extra features that can make them worthwhile for fans. For example, the West Bromwich Albion account from the West Bromwich Building Society has a paltry rate of 2 per cent, but offers a 5 per cent discount on a £469 season ticket in the club’s family stand. By opening the account with the minimum balance of £100, West Brom fans renewing season tickets can make a saving of almost £25.

The Stoke City savings account with the Britannia Building Society might offer an interest rate of just 2.05 per cent but account holders also get a 10 per cent discount on merchandise in the club shop. Britannia also offers a Junior save and support account for under-18s that pays 4.5 per cent gross on £1 or more.

Peter Gerrard, of Moneysupermarket, the price comparison website, says: “Generally, football savings accounts do not have competitive interest rates and the benefits to the club and account holder are not great. Look at the rates first and the gimmicks last.”

Many football clubs also offer credit cards. The cards work by giving the clubs between £5 and £20 for each supporter who opens an account. They also pay the club a small commission, usually between 0.25 per cent and 1 per cent, of each retail transaction. But the rates are high, usually 15.9 per cent.

Paul Lawler, the marketing manager at MBNA, which supplies club-branded credit cards for every Premiership team, considers the cards a great way for fans to show their loyalty. “Football cards allow supporters to show their club colours in a more discreet way than football kits,” he says.

Some of the cards also have reward schemes that offer unique prizes. Mr Lawler says: “Every season, one Celtic cardholder gets to have dinner with the manager and at Manchester United, cardholders can win days out at the Carrington training centre. Every Premiership club’s credit card will offer a reward scheme by the end of this month.”

But Samantha Owens, the head of credit cards at Moneyfacts, says that football- branded cards do not offer great value and borrowers should not be blinded by perks. “Borrowers cannot get the same range of deals if they opt for a football affinity card. There are no lifetime balance-transfer cards and no long-term 0 per cent deals. The APR for MBNA’s Premiership affinity cards is 15.9 per cent, not the worst rate, but there are many better deals. Get one of these cards only if you pay off the balance every month.”

Ms Owens suggests better ways for football fans to support their team. “Cashback credit cards, such as Amex Blue, refund as much as 2 per cent on all purchases,” she says. “Supporters could use one of these cards and donate the cashback to their club. But they would have to weigh up whether they are the sort of person who would get around to it. For some people, football-branded cards can be a convenient way to support a team.”

CASE STUDY

Miles Lewis, a 42-year old chartered surveyor, enjoys using his Liverpool credit card in front of supporters of rival clubs.



“I like the card because it gives me the chance to support my club. I also like the fact it has the Liverpool club crest on it,” he says. “I used it recently to buy furniture in Manchester — and it was worth it just for the look on the cashier’s face.”

Mr Lewis, a Liverpool season ticket-holder who lives in Threpwood, Cheshire with his wife Yvonne, 39, and two children Nicholas, 2, and Eleanor, 9 months, has had a Liverpool card for more than four years.

“I applied for the card after being approached in the club shop,” he says. “I already had an MBNA gold card but the Liverpool card offered certain benefits to the club. I was also able to convert my gold card into a platinum card with a £14,000 credit limit.”

The Liverpool card pays a percentage of every retail transaction directly to the team’s academy, which develops young players. He adds: “The academy system is an important part of the club especially since transfer fees have gone sky-high. Even Liverpool is struggling against the likes of Chelsea, so I am glad to be helping the club to produce its own players.”

The Liverpool card charges 15.9 per cent interest on purchases and a 3 per cent fee on cash advances. Mr Lewis realises that the card does not offer the most competitive interest rate on the market, but he is not affected by this because he usually pays off his balance in full each month.